The Ark of Taste
Established in 1996
Rather than simply listing these products – raw or processed – in an inventory, the Ark of Taste puts them back at the heart of the scene, highlighting their importance and thus contributing to the preservation of biodiversity and the vitality of local economies. Since 2012, the Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity has been safeguarding entire aspects of the history and culture of communities around the world by identifying, cataloging, and promoting them.
Smoked cheese from Bardos
Smoked Bardos is a soft, white, creamy raw cow's milk cheese. It measures approximately 8 cm high and 18 to 20 cm in diameter, and weighs an average of 1.2 kg. This dry cheese contains 45% fat. Its rind is relatively thick, hardened by cooking, light yellow in color, browned in places, and displays burnt ochre spots due to its characteristic production process. To make it, the milk is heated to 33°C and rennet is added to obtain curds an hour later. The curds are then stirred and left to rest for 15 minutes. After molding and draining, they are charred on all sides before being salted with Bayonne salt 16 hours later. They are then wiped again and left to mature for 12 to 15 days. They can then be sold for the following three months.
Traditionally, it is dried in domestic fireplaces. Once considered a coarse and unhygienic cheese, its artisanal production declined. In 1958, in Basque and Bayonne gastronomy, R. Cuzacq mentioned that it was currently being sold at the Bayonne market.
There are apparently only two producers left to ensure the production of this whole raw milk cheese, which does not have an AOC (Protected Designation of Origin). The exceptional survey conducted in France by the AOC has enabled the sustainable production of many products. However, this highlights the vulnerability of products that do not benefit from this designation and are therefore marginalized.
