Gaperon facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Gaperon
Country of origin	France
Region, town	Auvergne
Source of milk	Cows
Texture	Elastic to soft and buttery
Aging time	4 weeks

Gaperon is a special type of French cheese. It comes from the Auvergne region in France. People have been making Gaperon cheese for more than 1200 years! That's a very long time.

This unique cheese is made from cow's milk. It gets its special taste from cracked peppercorns and garlic. Gaperon cheese has a fluffy white outside and is shaped like a dome. Inside, it can be ivory or light yellow, depending on the time of year.

You can find Gaperon cheese all year round. It doesn't have a specific "best season" because of its strong pepper and garlic flavors. When the cheese is young, it tastes a bit tart. But as it gets older, it becomes soft and buttery. It also develops a very strong garlic and pepper taste.

How Gaperon Cheese is Made

Gaperon cheese is a traditional food from the Auvergne countryside. It first came from an area called the Limagne plateau. This plateau is located between the cities of Clermont-Ferrand and Vichy in the Puy de Dôme region.

Long ago, Gaperon was made using babeurre. This is the liquid left over after making butter, also known as buttermilk. The leftover buttermilk was mixed with fresh milk. This mixture helped create the cheese curds. Then, local pink garlic and pepper were added to give it flavor.

In the past, Gaperon cheese was ripened by hanging it in the open air. Farmers would hang it in their farmhouse kitchens or storerooms. This allowed the cheese to dry and develop its unique taste and texture.