Rene Hunnekink: The Gouda Guy
Every Saturday in Quillan and every Sunday in Esperaza hungry patrons filter to the stand behind which Rene Hunnekink sells the products he grew up with in Holland. A friendly smile and eager words are the standard greeting. Very good cheeses from a single producer in his home country are available. My wife is not a fan of fromage, but the Gouda and “man cheese” (pepper cheese that bites you back) are favorites. We serve them regularly to guests and they make great afternoon snacks when accompanied by a baguette and a local rose or red. He offers several wines from around Limoux for sale.
Rene moved to the Vendee region of France to farm 120 acres in 1999. As the youngest of three sons of a fourth generation dairy farm it was unlikely that he would ever be the “boss”. However, after four years of raising dairy cows, sunflowers and maize, he suffered a stroke. This eventually forced him to abandon labor intensive dairy production and switch to raising sheep. Finally, six years ago with “pain in my heart” he sold the farm and moved to a rural property not far from Limoux. He was attracted to the area because it is peaceful and “people accept you as you are”. When he returns to Holland for a visit, he loves to drive the tractor around the family farm and milk the cows.
When he and his wife first shared a bottle of wine years ago, it was from one of our local vineyards. This resulted in a plan for the move to the Haute Valley - to sell reasonably priced wines to the Dutch back in his home country. Red tape and distribution difficulties forced him to abandon this plan (thank goodness for all us Gouda lovers); instead he brings some of Holland to France.
Rene is married and the father of three teenaged adopted children, all originally from Haiti. The youngest boy is playing football (soccer for you Americans) for a club in Carcassonne. All three are typical - they were difficult to deal with during the lockdown.
When asked to sum up his move to the Aude he said, “Life is so good here”.