Dairy
Tomme de Savoie
Tomme de Savoie is a semi-firm cow’s-milk cheese from the Savoie and Haute-Savoie, typically made from partly skimmed milk so the paste stays relatively lean, elastic, and mildly tangy under a natural grey-mould rind. Flavour is earthy, milky, and gently nutty, with rustic cellar notes from the thick mottled rind rather than aggressive wash aromas. It is a everyday alpine table cheese—sliced for bread and charcuterie, cubed in salads, or melted modestly in mountain cooking. PGI rules link production to Savoie departments; “tomme” more broadly names many small mountain wheels across the Alps, so origin and fat level matter when buying.
Also known as: Tomme de Savoie IGP, Tomme Fermière
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Grading systems
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History
Farmhouse tommes from skimmed milk after butter-making were staple cheeses of Savoie mountain households.
Natural-rind tommes circulated in alpine markets as modest, long-keeping village cheeses.
Cooperative dairies standardised wheel size and mould-rind ripening for Tomme de Savoie beyond pure farmhouse make.
PGI protection recognised Tomme de Savoie’s geographic link while allowing traditional milk-fat ranges.
Fermier raw-milk tommes and industrial rinded wheels both expanded, with clearer labelling of milk type and origin.
Updated PGI specifications reinforced Savoie and Haute-Savoie production identity against generic “tomme” labels.