cerise

Cherries, introduced from Anatolia, have been grown in France since the Middle Ages. Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes Côte-d'Azur are the biggest producers.

The wild cherry tree, the merisier (Prunus avium), is also known as cerise des oiseaux, cerise sauvage ou cerise des bois. Its tiny cherries aren’t very sweet and hard to pit, but are sometimes used in brandy.

The common French sweet cherries are bigarreaux. Guignes are softer and delicious but often not marketed because they don’t travel well; these are used in jams. The other main type are sour cherries descended from the griottier that are more resistant to the cold. They are often used in brandies, jams, desserts, juices and syrups.

Common Bigarreaux varieties in France

Burlat: or Early Burlat (Hatif Burlat) sweet, dark red, shiny. One of the most common.