Pasture and cheese diversity in French Northern Alps
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Three trials were conducted on traditional PDO hard cheeses from the Northern Alps, Beaufort and Abondance. The overall objective of these trials was to assess the influence of the nature of pasture grazed by cows on cheese characteristics. The trials were designed to compare cheeses made from milk produced on as different pastures as possible, under real conditions.
The major differences found between cheeses were linked to the altitude of pastures, which implies botanical composition but also other various factors. In particular, highland pastures led to higher plasmin activity and more unsaturated fatty acids in milk, with differences found mainly in the texture of cheeses, and to a lesser extent in flavour.
The highland pastures varied in terms of botanical composition, with different effects on cheeses. The presence of Renonculaceae in pastures was suspected to increase plasmin concentration in milk, which could influence the intensity of proteolysis in cheeses, as well as bitterness and texture characteristics. A higher occurrence of terpenes in cheeses, related to a lower occurence of Gramineae in pastures, was associated with less protein-derived volatile compounds and a milder flavour, presumably because of a microbial inhibition by terpenes.
The diversity of the sensory characteristics of Beaufort and Abondance is related to the diversity of pastures.