Nestled in the heart of the Jura mountains in Franche-Comté, within the Doubs department, the Haut-Doubs is a mid-mountain land of unspoiled landscapes featuring spruce forests and lush green combes. Stretching along the Swiss border around its capital Pontarlier, this region boasts a generous culinary heritage renowned for its Comtois specialties and centuries-old cheesemaking expertise. Naturally, it was a foodie destination we were eager to discover!
So off we went on a wonderful gourmet getaway with my favorite photographer and a small team of food lovers in January 2026, to explore the famous Mont d’Or AOP (also known as Vacherin du Haut-Doubs). On the agenda: discovering the secrets behind crafting this seasonal cheesy gem, visiting iconic local farms and production workshops, plus sharing our favorite tested spots in and around Pontarlier!
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All about Mont d’Or AOP
Mont d’Or is undoubtedly one of the crown jewels of Franche-Comté gastronomy. A seasonal soft unpressed cheese with a washed rind, it stands out for its creamy texture, pleated exterior, and delicate woody aromas imparted by the surrounding spruce tree. The year 2026 marks a symbolic milestone as it celebrates the 30th anniversary of its European AOP (awarded in 1996), accompanied by the entry into force of a new set of specifications in April 2026.
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The making of Mont d’Or AOP
Only 10 cheese dairies currently make Mont d’Or in the Haut-Doubs, adhering to exceptionally strict requirements to meet the specifications of this raw milk cheese AOP:
- Minimum altitude: the raw milk must be produced at an altitude of over 700 meters.
- Exclusive zone: the milk collection area and the production site must be strictly identical, right in the heart of the Haut-Doubs.
- Selected cows: the milk comes exclusively from Montbéliarde or French Simmental cows.
- Careful aging: the cheese is aged for a minimum of 21 days on spruce boards.
- The spruce pairing: the spruce strap and box are an integral part of the appellation’s production conditions.
- A seasonal product: its production is authorized from August 15 to March 15, and its sales period runs from September 10 to May 10.
Mont d’Or is the result of a perfect alliance between nature and humanity, uniting raw milk and spruce wood. As soon as it is removed from the mold, the cheese is strapped by hand with a strip of spruce bark harvested by specialized craftsmen (known as “sangliers” — yes, you heard right, and we’re definitely not talking about wild boars here…). This strap holds the cheese together and imparts its characteristic woody flavor. It is then placed in a spruce box slightly smaller than itself: it’s this slight snugness that gives its golden rind its famous ripples!
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How to enjoy Mont d’Or?
While Mont d’Or is traditionally enjoyed with a small spoon at room temperature, eating it as a baked “boîte chaude” (with a dash of Jura white wine and a few cloves of garlic) has seen a meteoric rise since the 1990s. This popular success has truly boosted the market, with sales more than doubling since the 2000s. As a living raw milk cheese, it remains delicate to export and thus delights enthusiasts in markets where raw milk regulations allow it.
- You can enjoy it at room temperature (honestly, that’s how I found its aromas come out best) like a traditional cheese.
- Hot by baking it in the oven: place the lid underneath the box, and let it bake for about 25 minutes in an oven preheated to 220°C. For extra indulgence, you can poke a small hole before baking to pour in some white wine or sapinette (a liqueur made by macerating and/or distilling fir and spruce buds, young shoots, or needles).
- You can also use it in recipes, like the Comté and Mont d’Or croquettes we made with chef Sophiane Violette from La Parenthèse restaurant in Pontarlier.
Good deal: If you visit Pontarlier in mid-September, don’t miss the traditional Coulée du Mont d’Or festival on Place d’Arçon, which celebrates the official launch of the sales season every year! In 2026, the Coulée will take place on September 12, and the event also marks the opening of the Mont d’Or season.
Visiting iconic production sites in the Haut-Doubs
Discovering Fromagerie Badoz in Pontarlier
Cheesemakers from father to son since 1830, the Badoz family keeps true artisanal craftsmanship alive. After starting out in Les Fourgs in 1961 at the initiative of the grandfather, the company settled in Pontarlier in 1981 at its main site. Today, this wonderful independent family business is run by the three Badoz brothers, who oversee the entire production chain, from milk collection to manufacturing and aging in cellars.
Positioned in the high-end market, the cheese dairy offers the ultimate Franche-Comté cheese board (featuring Comté, Morbier, and of course Mont d’Or). They produce their own cultures and collect milk from local partner farms. During the Mont d’Or season, the dairy turns into a veritable beehive: the team grows from 100 employees to 150 people to handle the intense manual strapping work! The house produces nearly 1.4 million boxes per season (available in 4 different sizes).
While the production workshops are not open to free public tours for strict hygiene reasons related to raw milk, you can find all their cheeses directly at their retail shop in Pontarlier or at their other boutiques scattered across the Haut-Doubs.
Fromagerie Badoz Shop
1 rue Denis Papin, 25300 Pontarlier
Specialties: Mont d’Or AOP, aged Comté AOP, Morbier AOP, Cancoillotte
Prices: direct sale of cheeses cut to order and in boxes of various sizes
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Meeting a farmer at Pierre Courvoisier’s dairy farm in Gellin
To understand the quality of a cheese, you first have to trace it back to its source: the region’s dairy farms. Here, the price of milk is paid above the national average, allowing small family farms to be passed down peacefully from generation to generation. We had the opportunity to visit Pierre Courvoisier, a passionate livestock farmer based in the commune of Gellin, just a few kilometers from Pontarlier.
His farm spans about fifty hectares of high-altitude pastures and is home to a herd of roughly 40 dairy cows, exclusively of the Montbéliarde breed (the region’s characteristic red-and-white patched beauties). Each cow produces an average of 25 liters of milk per day, destined for crafting the region’s AOP cheeses (Comté, Mont d’Or, and Morbier). We were able to attend the late-afternoon milking: an authentic and fascinating moment, right up close to the animals and the daily lives of the farmers!
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Visiting the Tuyé de Papy Gaby in Gilley
It’s impossible to explore the Haut-Doubs without stopping by the Tuyé de Papy Gaby, located in Gilley, in the heart of the folkloric Republic of Saugeais. This artisanal institution, which has existed for over 50 years and employs 18 staff members, is dedicated to making famous regional cured meats.
By the way, what exactly is a tuyé (pronounced “twee-ay”)? It’s an immense wooden chimney topped with a pyramidal hood, which used to be the central room of traditional Comtois farmhouses. This is where meats were smoked and dried using the slow combustion of fir and spruce wood to preserve provisions during the long winter months. Papy Gaby’s tuyé, erected in the 1970s, is the tallest in the region at over 18 meters high (very impressive when you look up at the top of the flue blackened by soot)! The house produces about 50 tons per year of authentic PGI Saucisse de Morteau (which represents a quarter of its total production). Made with local pork fed on cow’s whey from Comté cheese production, it is stuffed into a natural casing and tied off with its famous traditional wooden peg.
The site welcomes nearly 40,000 visitors a year and offers a self-guided or guided tour featuring a museum area showcasing Comtois traditions, followed by a very generous tasting session (Saucisse de Morteau, Saucisse de Montbéliard, ash-cured sausage, homemade bacon…). It’s a wonderful visit that I warmly recommend if you’re in the area, before stopping by the shop where we wanted to bring everything back!
Good deal: Pack a cooler bag in your car to bring back some Morteau sausages and ash-cured sausage bought directly at the shop after the tasting!
Le Tuyé de Papy Gaby
2 rue les Cotey, 25650 Gilley
Tours: free or guided tour of the tuyé and museum all year round
Prices: free tour with complimentary cured meat tasting
Shop: open every day from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM and from 2:00 PM to 6:30 PM
My favorite addresses in and around Pontarlier
Nestled in the heart of the Jura mountains, at an altitude of over 800 meters, Pontarlier stands out as the capital of the Haut-Doubs. It is known for its rich distilling heritage and famous aniseed spirit. The town also moves to the rhythm of the seasons and local terroir, just a few kilometers from the mountain pastures where Mont d’Or cheese is born. Below is a selection of gourmet addresses that we had the opportunity to test during our stay discovering Mont d’Or.
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Where to stop for coffee and decor in Pontarlier? Janaya
If you’re looking for a really nice spot to take a break in downtown Pontarlier, I suggest pushing open the door of Janaya. This charming concept store offers a lovely selection of decorative items, crafts, and accessories, while also housing a cozy coffee corner. It’s a great address to sip a matcha latte or a comforting hot drink while browsing through artisan creations.
Janaya Concept Store & Café
72 rue de la République, 25300 Pontarlier
Prices: hot drinks and coffees between €2.50 and €5
On the menu: matcha latte, specialty coffees, teas, and decor selection
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Where to eat creative cuisine in Pontarlier? Restaurant La Parenthèse
For lunch or dinner, the restaurant La Parenthèse is a fine dining spot in Pontarlier. Open for 9 years and taken over 3 years ago by chef Sophiane, this address offers refined cuisine, entirely homemade using fresh, seasonal, and local ingredients. He works mostly with small local producers, and they are even all listed on the establishment’s menu. The welcome is warm, and the plates are flavorful and generous. As a bonus, it’s one of the rare restaurants open for Sunday lunch in Pontarlier!
Restaurant La Parenthèse
8 rue de Vannolles, 25300 Pontarlier
Prices: starters between €4 and €17 / à la carte main courses around €18 to €33 / desserts between €8 and €15 / set lunch menus
Hours: open from Tuesday to Saturday for lunch and dinner, and Sunday for lunch
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Where to eat regional specialties in Pontarlier? Restaurant La Pinte Comtoise
For lovers of traditional Comtois recipes, head to La Pinte Comtoise. This typical inn celebrates the great classics of regional gastronomy in a friendly and rustic atmosphere. On the menu, you will find all the traditional specialties of the Jura: morel mushroom crust (€16 as a starter or €24 as a main), Comté fondue (€20 per person), Comtois morbiflette (€17), melted Mont d’Or (€23.50), or regional cheese poultry (€22.50). All to be paired with one of the Jura wines from the wine list. A great stop to regain your strength after a day in the fresh air!
Restaurant La Pinte Comtoise
4 rue Jeanne d’Arc, 25300 Pontarlier
Prices: regional specialties and set menus starting from €22, children’s menu €9
Specialties: Comtois fondue, morel mushroom crust, morbiflette
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Where to stay in the Haut-Doubs? Gîte La Grande Marguerite
Located on the rooftop of Doubs, in Les Fourgs, the Gîte de la Grande Marguerite offers an immersion into the authentic atmosphere of the Haut-Doubs. This characterful Comtois farmhouse is situated at an altitude of over 1,100 meters. Generously sized, this spacious accommodation features 3 separate bedrooms, 2 living rooms, and 2 bathrooms with showers, ideal for a family stay or a trip with a group of friends, as was our case. The gîte also offers a fully equipped kitchen (oven, dishwasher, microwave, complete utensils) which is very practical for cooking on-site, as well as Wi-Fi, a laundry area, and private on-site parking. I truly fell in love with this charming accommodation!
Gîte La Grande Marguerite
1st floor 72 Grande Rue, 25300 Les Fourgs
To extend your stay in the Doubs department, feel free to check out my articles on visiting Besançon or discovering the Royal Saltworks of Arc-et-Senans!
Thank you to Laurent from the aiRPur agency, the AOP Mont d’Or and the producers of Haut-Doubs for their warm welcome and sharing their passion during this wonderful gourmet getaway.
I hope all this has made you want to set off and discover the Haut-Doubs and taste a delicious Mont d’Or! And if you also have your own Comtois addresses or tips, please feel free to share them in the comments below!
Photo credits: Nicolas Diolez Photos not in the public domain, photographer authorization required prior to any use
