Then there are gaudes, gnocchi-like rolls or dumplings made with the flour of grilled maize and called by some the national dish of Franche-Comté and used in soups, like pasta or as an accompaniment to sausages, eggs or meats.

Pontarlier in Franche-Comté was formerly the capital of absinthe manufacture, until wine interests had the narcotic spirit banned in 1915. Recently production of the “green fairy” has been revived, but local distilleries such as Les Fils de Emile Pernot also make their own anis-flavoured pastis, and liqueurs of fruits, berries and roots of alpine plants. The most curious is bright green Liqueur de Sapin, made with the young green shoots of Christmas trees and sometimes presented in wooden bottles.

And of course there are the wines of Arbois and the Côtes de Jura, seldom seen outside the region and made not only with familiar Pinot Noir and Chardonnay varieties as used in Burgundy, but also with the regional exclusivities Savagnin (a rather wild flavoured, sometimes varnishy, white, often barrel-aged without topping up so that it develops a nutty and sherry-like oxidised taste), Poulsard (or Ploussard) a traditional local variety producing pleasant pale red or rosé wines and the historic Trousseau, a black grape which produces more robust, substantial reds, though its juice is white.

The priciest and most highly flavoured specialities are the region’s famous vin jaune (made with Savagnin or Chardonnay much like a flor-affected but unfortified sherry and used especially for the region’s characteristic poultry sauce) and vin de paille (literally straw wine), the bone dry but highly concentrated wine made with individually selected grapes which have been half-dried (formerly on straw - hence the name) before pressing.

As is often the case, the region’s wines are best enjoyed near their place of birth. Franche-Comté’s chefs, especially Thierry Moyne at the Michelin starred La Balance in Arbois, have made it a mission in life to match local wines to local food specialities, and even the region’s most prestigious wine lists, like that kept at the Relais & Châteaux Château de Germigney lead off with a fine selection from Franche-Comté’s best wine producers.

A sure fire hit is a creamy Mont d’Or, opened up to accommodate a couple of glasses of Savignin, and then heated (foil-wrapped as a precaution against leakage) in a medium oven for 15 to 25 minutes to produce a sort of self-contained fondue. Yummy.

Robin Young flew to Franche-Comté with easyJet - www.easyjet.com - and the Franche-Comté Tourist Board - www.franche-comte.org

Recommended hotels and restaurants

Château de Germigney, delightful Michelin starred Relais & Chateaux [circumflex on first a] with 20 rooms in a former hunting lodge mansion in Port-Lesney - www.chateaudegermigney.com or 0033 (0)3 84 73 85 85.

Hôtel Charles Quint (without restaurant), 3 rue du Chapître, Besançon. Mansion house close behind the cathedral in the handsome fortified capital of Franche-Comté - www.hotel-charlesquint.com or 0033 (0)3 81 82 05 49.

Restaurant Mungo Park, 11 rue Jean Petit, Besançon. Chef Jocelyne Lotz-Choquart is that rarity, a female with a Michelin star, and her restaurant is close by Besançon’s excellent covered market.

La Balance Mets et Vins, 47 rue de Courcelles, Arbois. Thierry Moyne’s restaurant specialises in matching dishes to the local wines. 0033 (0) 3 84 37 45 00.

Franche-Comté’s biggest tuyé, the Tuyé Papy Gaby at Gilley in the Haut Doubs, makes prize-winning Morteau sausages and smoked meats and is well set up to receive visitors, with automatons to help keep the kids interested.

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