Sainte-Maure de Touraine AOP — the goat's milk log from Touraine in the Loire Valley, and one of the most recognisable goat's cheeses in France. It holds AOP (Appellation d'Origine Protégée) status and is defined by its elongated log shape, its ash-dusted rind, and the rye straw that runs through the centre from end to end. The straw is not decorative — it holds the fragile cheese together and carries the producer's name and AOP identification number laser-etched into it, making each log individually traceable.

The cheese is made from goat's milk, hand-ladled into log-shaped moulds, then unmoulded, dusted with a fine coating of wood ash (charbon végétal) and aged for a minimum of 10 days. The ash helps regulate moisture loss and encourages the development of the wrinkled, grey-blue natural rind that forms during maturation. When young, the paste is white, moist, and lightly chalky at the centre, with a clean, fresh, lemony acidity and a mild goat's milk character. As it ages, the rind becomes thicker and more moulded, the paste firms and yellows, and the flavour develops — nuttier, earthier, with a more pronounced tang and a deeper goat's milk savouriness. The texture and flavour vary across a single log: softer and creamier towards the thinner ends, firmer and chalkier at the thicker centre.

Origin: Touraine, Loire Valley, France (AOP)

Ingredients: Goat's milk, salt, rennet, starter cultures, wood ash.

Storage: Refrigerate, loosely wrapped. Use within a week of receipt. Bring to room temperature before eating.

Net: 220g±

Allergens: Milk (goat's).