Spruce Cambium Strips

These spruce cambium strips are collected by first removing the bark from trees, then special knives are used to cut the inner cambium layer which is then cut to size and dried. These strips are harvested and made in France. The famous spruce band, which makes cheese such as Mont d'Or so visually striking, is tied around cheese when very young, before the rind has begun to develop. The spruce cambium serves a practical function, to hold the ripening cheese together as it develops a melting, almost liquid texture, it also imparts striking aromas of rubbed pine needles and soft wood resin into the cheese.  As the cheese ripens and this unmistakable aroma begins to develop, a delicate geotrichum bloom starts to form, which breaks down the firm paste of the cheese, giving a creamy texture and yeasty flavor. Fluffy white molds coat the cheese and act with the geotrichum to ripen the cheese and also give the rind an undulating or crumpled appearance.