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Glossary entry

French term or phrase:

liégeois

English translation:

deluxe yoghurt dessert

Added to glossary by Clive Jones
Sep 6, 2012 18:58
12 yrs ago
3 viewers *
French term

liégeois

French to English Other Food & Drink Dairy produce
This a one of a range of dairy products including: mousses, liegeois, fromages frais.
I have seen "stirred yogurts" (which seems to me to a specialist term) but am unable to pin down a suitable word. The client has explained that this is a luxury yoghurt with a layer of chocolate/coffee at its base. So far, I have translated it as "creamy, coffee flavoured yoghurts" but there must be a snappy marketing term! I feel that words such as "fromages frais", cremes fraiches and mousses" (which appear also in the text) are terms known in the UK whereas I've never seen the word "liegeois". I feel sure that if I went into a supermarket and asked where the "liegeois" were, I would be met with blank stares.
Has anyone a word which would include the ideas of "luxury", "coffee layered", "creamy"?
Proposed translations (English)
4 -1 deluxe yoghurt dessert
4 +4 coffee/chocolate liegeois
4 +2 liegeois
4 -1 yogurt sundae
References
Any yogourt?
Change log

Sep 7, 2012 15:40: Yolanda Broad changed "Term asked" from "liegeois" to "liégeois"

Discussion

Tony M Sep 8, 2012:
Funnily enough... ...only yesterday, with this question fresh in my mind, I went out and bought some of these thingies — only to hear my b/f say at table: "Oh, I do like these yoghurt things!" The ensuing discussion confirmed what I said below; to the French, colloquially, any kind of individual 'pot dessert' is legitimately called a 'yaourt', even if it isn't actually based on yoghurt at all. I shall try him on a different one tomorrow...
SJLD Sep 7, 2012:
And if you ever go to Liège and ask for a café liégeois, they'll grin and say "you must be French" (because it doesn't exist in Liège).
Tony M Sep 6, 2012:
Attaching photos You need to do this in two steps:

1) Upload the photo to one of the many free photo hosting sites

2) Copy the URL for its location, and paste THAT here.
Tony M Sep 6, 2012:
Fromage frais BTW, Clive, the literal translation of 'fromage frais' as 'fresh cheese' really won't do, I'm afraid; we don't really have the equivalent product in EN, but fortunately, the FR term is widely known. I would definitely avoid 'fresh cheese', not least because it kind of invites the idea that 'stale cheese' might also exist!
Tony M Sep 6, 2012:
OK! So now we know it is a bog-standard café liégois, nothing whatsoever to do with yoghurt! Red herring...

In that case, that of course changes everything...
Clive Jones (asker) Sep 6, 2012:
I can now even tell you the full ingredients: Lait écrémé(53,7%), Eau, Crème (11%), Sucre, Amidon modifié, Cacao maigre (1,4%), Epaississant(s) : Carraghénanes ou E407, Pectine ou E440 ; Lactose et protéines de lait, Gélatine de bœuf, Arômes.
Clive Jones (asker) Sep 6, 2012:
Hi Tony. I have now a photo of the item and some more text which might clarify.
xxx est spécialisée dans la fabrication de produits laitiers ultra-frais : fromages frais, crèmes, yaourts et desserts,
XXX manufactures and sells fresh dairy products (yoghurt, fresh cheese, fresh cream) and engages in various activities relating to collection of milk from dairy producers and food transport logistics. It produces milk, dairy products and fruit-based beverages.
I also have a photo of what they are selling but I don't know how to attach it.
jmleger Sep 6, 2012:
The liégeois, which incidentally, was called viennois until the German armies decided to pound the crap out of Liège during WWI, is traditionally made with coffee, coffee ice-cream and chantilly. For obvious reasons, the ice cream had to be replaced and the chantilly "modified". The whole thing on the supermarket shelf is ersatz. Has the ice-cream been replaced by yoghourt? I would not bet the farm on it. The only pristine thing in the whole deal is the name.
Tony M Sep 6, 2012:
Aha! Light dawns... Just a thought, Clive: did you customer say (in EN) it was actually made of yoghurt? Because over here, the term 'yaourt' is often used loosely as a general term for any kind of pot dessert (just like those 'alco-pops'-type vodka-based drinks that get called 'bières', even though there is not a drop of actual beer anywhere near them!)

This might explain why what we over here know as 'liégeois'-type desserts got lumped together generically as 'yoghurts' — and this would also make sense in terms of the other items on your list, since 'mousses' probably wouldn't be actual yoghurts either, for example.
Tony M Sep 6, 2012:
Clarification Over here in France, the word 'liégeois' for a 'pot' dessert has now passed into general usage, and any FR reader would get the idea (even though the yoghurt content might come as a bit of a surprise!); so it is a useful shorthand to save lengthier explanations.

However, the same would not be true of an EN reader — not having necessarily been exposed to the 'ersatz' supermarket variety of desserts, the EN reader is likely to think of the 'classic' dessert (unless the term is otherwise explained); and since the key ingredient (i.e. yoghurt) is completely different, I think an EN reader might be easily misled.

'Liégois-style yoghurt dessert' might be a technically accurate (but unappealing!) way to describe it.
Clive Jones (asker) Sep 6, 2012:
Thanks, Clive!
Clive Phillips Sep 6, 2012:
FWIW= for what it's worth (I think).
Clive Jones (asker) Sep 6, 2012:
liegeois OK Catharine but I don't know what FWIW means :-(
Clive Jones (asker) Sep 6, 2012:
Liegeois Thanks Jeux de mots. It's a yoghurt with a layer of chocolate/coffee on the bottom and chantilly cream on the top. Glad you like chocolate!
Catharine Cellier-Smart Sep 6, 2012:
Hi Clive, I know it's not a coffee, I was just trying to show that the term could be acceptable in an English-speaking context, hence my "FWIW". :-)
Clive Jones (asker) Sep 6, 2012:
liegeois Thanks Tony and Catharine. Tony appears to agree with my descriptive idea. For Catharine, in this case it's not a coffee but a dessert yoghurt.
Tony M Sep 6, 2012:
BTW I don't think your term 'stirred yoghurts' is anything to do with this dessert; surely that would translate 'yaourt brassé', which is a quite different sort of beast again...
Tony M Sep 6, 2012:
Confusion What you describe (a kind of yoghurt) isn't much like the ordinary 'liégois' desserts we find in supermarkets over here, which are more or less chocolate or coffee 'slime' topped with whipped cream. A very poor substitute for the genuine 'chocolat liégois' classic dessert.

So I think it would be unwise, and indeed downright misleading, to actually use that term in EN, since it doesn't seem to have much in common with your yoghurty concoction.

I'd stick with something more explanatory...

Proposed translations

-1
18 mins
French term (edited): liegeois
Selected

deluxe yoghurt dessert

"Liegeois" doesn't make me think of chocolate pudding with a yoghurt topping! The client has made it clear what is in this product, though, so I'd try to wrap the ingredients up in an appetizing way. Deluxe products always gets a second look from me - especially if it's got anything to do with chocolate!
Peer comment(s):
neutral Catharine Cellier-Smart : this could be any dessert
4 mins
Provided it's deluxe and yoghurt-based (which I understand here is the case), you're right!
neutral Tony M : OK, so now we have proper context, we know for sure it isn't actual yoghurt at all!
32 mins
Thank you Tony. This definitely needs yoghurt in the name to avoid any confusion
disagree Nesrine Echroudi : the marketed version of the coffee liegeois is definitly not a yoghurt
1 hr
Thanks Nesrine. I agree, the traditional liegeois is not yoghurt, but the asker's client has specifically stated that it is. Unless you know something that we don't!
Something went wrong...
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "Many thanks for the myriad of responses. I think it proves how delicious this dessert is! Special thanks to Tony M for his tenacity. I chose a generic term because later on I noticed this was produced for Manufacturers Own Brands. Keep eating and buying them until we can be sure! I've ditched any reference to Liege - sorry to all liegeois!"
+4
8 mins
French term (edited): liegeois

coffee/chocolate liegeois

I would just go with the French term, but IMO in English you'd need to add chocolate or coffee in front to be clearer as it's probably less well-known as a dessert than in France.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Café_liégeois

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 10 mins (2012-09-06 19:08:31 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

As you say just "liegeois" wouldn't be known in the UK, but I feel if it's called by its full name i.e. "coffee liegeois" or "chocolate liegeois" it should be OK.

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 19 mins (2012-09-06 19:17:54 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

FWIW I see that Senseo sells a range of coffee pods called Coffee Liegeois
http://www.sarahscoffeecompany.co.uk/vmchk/lavazza-espresso-...
Peer comment(s):
agree Tony M : OK, so now we have proper context, we know that this is indeed the 'standard' variety.
5 mins
thank you
agree Nesrine Echroudi : http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Café_liégeois
1 hr
thank you
agree Sandra Mouton
18 hrs
merci Sandra
agree Kate Collyer : Yes, with the flavour in the title it could be bought even without any knowledge of what a liegois actually is.
1 day 2 hrs
:-) thank you
Something went wrong...
+2
21 mins
French term (edited): liegeois

liegeois

you will find a lot of reference to liegeois dessert on the net. Even in the UK. I am sure the mash and bangers crowd can be educated, especially given it's a delicious concoction.
Peer comment(s):
agree Nesrine Echroudi : liegeois" is found on the dairy products part of the supermarket, that doesn't damage the context of the source text
1 hr
Thx!
agree Letredenoblesse
15 hrs
Thx!
Something went wrong...
-1
1 day 15 hrs

yogurt sundae

A sundae is the North American version of a café liegeois. Not an exact match, but it captures the notion layered ice cream - or yogurt - whipped cream, and some form of flavored .
Peer comment(s):
disagree Tony M : But in the light of Asker's added context, we now know that this is indeed just an 'ordinary' industrial 'liégeois', with nothing yoghurty about it at all.
38 mins
Something went wrong...

Reference comments

1 hr
Reference:

Any yogourt?

http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Café_liégeois

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 heure (2012-09-06 20:12:21 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Café_liégeois
Peer comments on this reference comment:
agree Tony M : Yes, that's the 'classic' dessert, but clearly nothing to do with Asker's context.
30 mins
neutral Nesrine Echroudi : liegeois" is found on the dairy products part of the supermarket, that doesn't damage the context of the source text
1 hr
Something went wrong...
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