Fromagerie La Mère Richard
Founded in 1965 by Renée Richard, known as La Mère Richard, and at the Halles since 1971. Its page names Saint-Marcellin and Saint-Félicien as specialities and Paul Bocuse among the clients who built its name.
About Fromage fort de la Croix-Rousse
A Lyon spread of old blue and goat cheeses worked with white wine, salt and pepper and kept in a stoneware pot, where the starter ferments for several months to a year before being mixed with fresh curd. The Observatoire des produits du terroir also lists leek broth, butter, cream and Burgundy marc. French Wikipedia ties it to the silk workers of the Croix-Rousse, says it is known in the Lyonnais, the Dombes and the Beaujolais, and says bouchon customers spread it on toast from a pot on the bar.
Made in: Lyon, especially the Croix-Rousse hill; known in the Lyonnais, the Dombes and the Beaujolais
On the plate
Very strong. The Observatoire scores it 5 out of 5 for power, 4 for bitterness, 3 for saltiness and 2 for acidity, and lists toasted bread, potatoes and other root vegetables, warm buckwheat waffles and brandy or marc to go with it.
Rind: none, eaten fresh
Wine and cheese
What to pour with Fromage fort de la Croix-Rousse
Beaujolais, red Beaujolais
Local traditionFrench Wikipedia quotes the Inventaire du patrimoine culinaire de la France: in Lyon's bouchons the pot sat at the corner of the bar and was spread on toasted bread, accompanied by a beaujolais. A plain Gamay red suits its sharpness.
Chénas Beaujolais
Our pickThe Observatoire des produits du terroir names Chénas among the reds for fromage fort. A Beaujolais cru with some structure is a fair match for a very strong, bitter spread on toast.
The grapes behind these winesGamay
From the source
Where to buy and taste it
Maison Cellerier (Halles de Lyon)
The cheese counter of a Lyon house founded in 1890, now in its fourth generation by its own count. Its page for the Halles shop cites more than 350 cheeses, alongside charcuterie and a traiteur.
Fromagerie Mons Villefranche
Shop of the Mons house of affineurs on the rue Nationale, selling cheeses selected and aged by Hervé Mons, among them the local Bleu du Passeloup.
Cheese experiences nearby
Halles de Lyon Paul Bocuse
Lyon's covered food market, whose own pages list four cheese counters: Beillevaire, Mons, La Mère Richard and Cellerier, and say Paul Bocuse bought supplies here for his restaurants.
Marché couvert de Villefranche-sur-Saône
The covered market of Villefranche-sur-Saône, a listed 1930s building reopened in December 2025 after a year of renovation. Rhône Tourisme lists cheesemongers among its traders.
Fromage fort de la Croix-Rousse: questions
What do you eat it with?
Toasted bread, according to French Wikipedia; the Observatoire des produits du terroir adds potatoes and other root vegetables and warm buckwheat waffles.
Which wine goes with it?
French Wikipedia quotes the Inventaire du patrimoine culinaire de la France, Rhône-Alpes: in Lyon's bouchons the pot sat at the corner of the bar and was spread on toasted bread, accompanied by a beaujolais. The Observatoire lists Chénas among the reds.
Is it protected?
No. It has no protected name, and French Wikipedia says the ingredients seem fairly variable, though there is a common core.
Same cheeseboard
More cheeses from Beaujolais
Plan the trip
Visit Fromage fort de la Croix-Rousse country
Tastings and tours where it is made, and somewhere to stay.
Beaujolais
Le Hameau Duboeuf: The 1st Vine and Wine Theme Park Tour
All 61 experiences in BeaujolaisBooking links go to our partners (GetYourGuide, Viator, Zen Hotels), who may pay us a commission. It never decides what we cover. Editorial standards.
Sources: fr.wikipedia.org, www.lopt.org. The drawing is made from the cheese's recorded shape, rind and paste, not a photograph.