Banon: The Chestnut-Leaf Cheese

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Banon is Provence’s most distinctive cheese—a small disc of goat’s milk cheese wrapped in chestnut leaves and tied with raffia, aged until the leaves impart their tannins and the interior develops from chalky freshness to a rich, almost liquid creaminess. It received AOC protection in 2003, the first Provençal cheese to be so designated. The production begins with raw goat’s milk from the Provençal breeds (Rove, Alpine) that graze the garrigue of Haute-Provence. The fresh cheese is made by lactic coagulation (a slow, acid-driven set over 24-48 hours, not the rapid rennet coagulation used for most cheeses), which produces a delicate, moist curd with a subtle tang. After 1-2 weeks of initial drying, the cheese is dipped briefly in eau-de-vie de marc (to discourage unwanted mould), wrapped in chestnut leaves that have been softened in vinegar or eau-de-vie, and tied with raffia into the distinctive parcel. The wrapping serves multiple purposes: the chestnut leaves’ tannins inhibit surface moulds while encouraging the desired Penicillium candidum bloom beneath, and the leaves regulate moisture loss, creating a microclimate that allows the cheese to age slowly for 2-4 weeks. A young Banon (2 weeks wrapped) has a firm, slightly crumbly interior with herbaceous, milky flavours. A mature Banon (4 weeks) has a soft, almost runny interior with intense, mushroomy, forest-floor complexity—the chestnut leaves have done their work, imparting a gentle bitterness that grounds the cheese’s richness. In the Provençal kitchen, Banon is served after the main course with bread and often a drizzle of honey, or baked whole in its leaves at 180°C for 10 minutes until molten, then eaten communally with bread dipped into the flowing cheese.

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