Carol Gullidge Apr 15, 2011:

what makes a cheese a tomme somewhat after the event (in any case, this was only published in 2010) but I found this during a similar search, and it may come in handy for any future glossary searchers : http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:w_x9AEu...


French cheese lovers tend to associate tomme-style cheese with its circular round shape, earthy gray-brown rind. Other distinguishing characteristics include its pale white semi-soft to firm paste and intensely nutty taste. Despite all the similarities, there's tons of variety when it comes to the type of milk and the overall flavor profile.

From France's renowned cow's milk Tomme de Savoie to Twig Farm's goat's milk tomme, the consistency and taste of this cheese can vary rather drastically -- with varying notes of rich hazelnut and mild citrus flavor and a texture from firm to crumbly. Given all these renditions, what exactly makes a tomme a tomme?

According to Michael Lee, cheesemaker and co-owner (with Emily Sunderman) of Twig Farm in West Cornwall, VT, "There is a basic recipe and process ...

Michael GREEN Mar 31, 2008:

J'arrrive après la bataille :) mais "tome" et "tomme" ("t" minuscule) sont 2 orthographes pour la pâte de lait caillé dont on fait les fromages à pâte dure.
"Désigne, dans des fabrications de pâtes pressées, le gâteau de caillé (Ex. Cantal)." (GDT)

swanda Mar 31, 2008:

je suis d'accord Emma, y a vraiment pas de quoi en faire tout un fromage :-)

Emma Paulay Mar 31, 2008:

Pas de quoi en faire tout un fromage :-) La tomme de Savoie, je suis d'accord mais un tome, avec un seul 'm', comme une partie d'un livre - mais ça peut désigner un gros volume d'autre chose. C'est lié tout ça.

swanda Mar 31, 2008:

mind you, I'm French, and I can tell you: I'm positive: the gender is feminine, we always say UNE TOME DE SAVOIE.... never heard "UN TOME"

Emma Paulay Mar 31, 2008:

My CR dictionary gives "tome" as "large volume". The Savoie cheese is "tomme". He's a chef, if he meant that variety he wouldn't have added "de fromage". Mind you he got the gender wrong: "tome" is masculine...!

swanda Mar 31, 2008:

the word "tome" at all

swanda Mar 31, 2008:

sorry, but as I have said the "tome" is a kind of cheese; we've got the "tome de Savoie", which is quite famous, can't think of another one, but it is a variety of cheese, that's why I would say "a big "Tome" of cheese is always...." without translating

lindaellen (X) Mar 31, 2008:

If you are free to improvise, how about "a large variety of cheeses" - so we are not bored with having only one kind of big cheese to munch on during the voyage.

Emma Paulay Mar 31, 2008:

...one should consume it at any time of day. In which case a slab or chunk is probably a better bet. Or else cover all eventualities with "a large hunk of cheese that you can cut into at any time of day" or somesuch.

Jonathan MacKerron Mar 31, 2008:

"grosse tome de fromage" gets absolutely no googles, leaving it wide open to interpretation, perhaps simply a "big hunk/slab/piece/wedge of cheese" is meant here??

Emma Paulay Mar 31, 2008:

Hi Miranda, just a comment re the "whole cheese" idea: if we're talking about going on a long trip over several weeks, then the translation of "whole cheese" is probably appropriate. However, the quote you give suggests that the Chef is saying that...

Miranda Joubioux (X) (asker) Mar 31, 2008:

It might be worth noting that the chef is referring to sailing long distances.

swanda Mar 31, 2008:

I wouldn't say "a whole cheese", as a part of a "tome" is still "de la tome"; in fact I wouldn't translate it at all; would you try to translate "fourme d'Ambert"? or "Saint Albray"? or "Brie"?