Comte St. Antoine is a hard French cow’s milk cheese aged in Fort St. Antoine. It has deep, rich, nutty notes and a crunchy texture that are a little bolder than the lighter, fruity classic Comte flavors. Older cheeses take on a strong, farmyard-like character. Comte is one of the classics of French cheesemaking – you’d be hard-pressed to find a more popular, more coveted cheese in France. And Comte St. Antoine is its crown jewel.
This hearty mountain cheese was one of the first few cheeses to be AOC protected, back in 1958, ensuring that traditional methods and ingredients are used in its production every time. Cheese maker Marcel Petite sources his unpasteurized milk from Montbéliard cows from small dairies called “fruitiers” and then ages the cheese for 24 months in the cellars of Fort St Antoine, and old fort from the 1800s – a humid, ideal spot for slow affinage.
You can enjoy our delectable Comte in several ways: you can grate it over pastas and risottos, cut it into cubes and scatter through a salad or melt it into any sauce or dish that calls for cheese. Any white wine of the Jura complements this tasty cheese wonderfully.
Comte St. Antoine was created in an old military fort that was found in 1966 in a forest at a 3600ft altitude. was turned into a cheese making facility as the fort’s structure of cut and vaulted stone, covered with a thick layer of soil were ideal conditions for “Affinage lent” (slow maturing). It is also perfectly located in close proximity to the mountain cheese dairies, ensuring fresh raw materials.