American Bresse Chickens

Welcome! American Bresse Chickens are a remarkable, dual-purpose breed.

The breed is quite new to the United States and Canada, having been imported only in 2011. If you’re hearing about this breed for the very first time, that may be why.

Dual, or Triple-Purpose?

1. EGGS: American Bresse chickens are excellent egg-layers. Some of them are likely to start laying eggs by week 18, and will lay close to an egg a day through spring, summer, and autumn. Many American Bresse chickens lay 250 eggs per year, or more.
   
   
2. MEAT: American Bresse chickens are also very fast growing meat birds. They grow fast and early, faster than the usual dual purpose breeds such as Rhode Island Red or Plymouth Rock. As heritage birds, they will reproduce true to the breed year after year, unlike Cornish Cross, the typical "meat" bird.
   
   
3. FLAVOR: Additionally, American Bresse have the same unique meat quality and intense flavor that French Bresse chickens are known for. They are described as the "most delicious chicken in the world" due to the fat-marbled meat sought after by renowned chefs. They certainly command a royal price in French markets.
   
   Given their 500-year history in France, who's to say there isn't also a genetic component that influences the exquisite "Bresse" flavor to the poultry??

It is hard to keep secret a breed this cool and useful!

American Bresse chickens are a striking red, white and blue. 

Roosters have large, shockingly red single combs and wattles contrasting sharply with their all-white feathers. The legs provide the blue, ranging in color from quite bluish to a darker steel gray.

Those first French chicken farmers may have been quite patriotic. Whether by accident or by design, Bresse chicken coloration is now proudly said to represent the blue, white, and red of the French flag.

Interesting for American Bresse breeders is that the United States flag is, very conveniently, also red, white and blue.

While American Bresse are most commonly found in all-white plumage, they can also be found in blue, black, splash, and grey (silver penciled) varieties, although in fewer numbers. All have blue to steel-gray legs. 

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American Bresse Chickens are Still Being Perfected in North America...

Surely it is evident that the French were not going to just sell to anyone their very best Bresse stock?

Thirteen years (since 2011) is the longest any breeders in the United States have been breeding American Bresse specifically. That is why great opportunity exists to further improve this breed, and Ambresse.com is here to help as much as possible, especially with information dissemination and breeder support.

Find American Bresse Chicken Breeders Here

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Ambresse.com is here to help...

• Are you already raising American Bresse chickens?
• Are you intrigued about learning more about this breed?
• Do you own or raise another breed or breeds of chickens?
• Do you totally enjoy a breakfast omelet or gourmet chicken dinner?

If you answered YES to any of the above, welcome, and keep reading! Feel free to click on the informational links that interest you.

Have questions? Drop us a line and let us know how we can help.

Ambresse.com supports American Bresse Breeders, Hobby Farmers, and Homesteaders...

Ambresse.com presents the history and background of the French Bresse Chicken, the source of the American Bresse chicken. This helps provide a sense of where the breed has been and where it is going. We hope you will join us on the journey!

Ambresse.com supports the American Bresse Breed Club, which as of early 2024 is still in process of formation. Progress! The American Bresse Breed Club information is temporarily hosted here on the Ambresse website. The Breed Club is the keeper of a draft standard of perfection for the American Bresse breed, drafted in February, 2022 in collaboration with a core group of dedicated American Bresse breeders. It is closely modeled after the French Standard of Perfection, other than specifications for size, and will help guide both American and Canadian breeding choices.

Because the breed is relatively new in North America, it needs a standard, and breeders willing to dedicate themselves to improving their flock. With concerted and joint efforts, the breed will thrive here in America.

Feel free to bookmark this website and check back here as frequently as you like! We’ll direct you to the club details as soon as they become available.

It provides details about genetic information that is specific to the American Bresse breed.

It maintains an American Bresse breeder directory. By working together we can continue the journey toward enhancing and perfecting the American Bresse breed on this side of the Atlantic. 

It will provide guidance on best practices for selective breeding. I love that the American Bresse breed already benefits humanity in multiple ways, but there is always room for improvement, for example, to improve body structure or growth efficiency, or to eliminate genetic problems as they crop up.

It will offer a marketplace to American Bresse breeders. They will have opportunity to list American Bresse related items that they might have available, such as eggs, hatching eggs, breeding stock, meat, even manure, etc.

It will detail husbandry practices that are partially or mostly specific to the American Bresse breed. For example, an American Bresse market bird will become an excellent market bird after a degree of "finishing" is applied. We can even offer you a finishing recipe! We'll give you the full scoop on how to produce a meat bird that will satisfy the finest chef. But of course, how much finishing you wish to do is completely up to you.

Ambresse.com will be useful to chicken owners generally...

• Ambresse.com will include helpful general information on raising chickens, caring for chicks, etc. For example, supplementing with granite chicken grit supports the health and digestion of rapidly growing American Bresse birds; better health and faster growth saves AB growers money.
  
  As we grow this section of the website, you'll find good resources here no matter what breed of chicken you own or raise.
  
  
• All chicken owners and breeders need various useful tools and supplies. Whether you raise American Bresse chickens or other breeds, we will include ideas about and links to info on chicken coops, housing, feeding, and much more.

Ambresse.com will Help Connoisseurs, Gourmet Cooks, and Homemakers...

• Ambresse.com will have a chicken recipe section! There are some fabulous recipes that are exceptional when prepared using an American Bresse chicken.
  
  And additionally, it is always fun to try out others' favorite recipes! Do you have an absolutely lovely chicken recipe? We'll make it easy for you to share it here on this Ambresse website.
  
  
• Did you know that rendered chicken fat is called schmaltz? Click the link to learn how to make schmaltz from your American Bresse meat birds. That remarkable punch of Bresse flavor inhabits the schmaltz as well. Try it!
  
  
• It will discuss nutritional information about eggs, chicken meat, chicken stock, bone broth, and more, for those who need the information. It's always great to be aware of nutritional values, especially if you have any dietary concerns.
  
  
• It will give how-to instructions for making and preserving products derived from American Bresse chickens, for example, water glassing or dehydrating eggs... making, canning, and dehydrating bone broth... making and preserving chicken stock... and more. 
  
  From overages of eggs to overages of meat, we'll give you all our favorite ways to preserve your cornucopia of bounty so you'll have more than enough and to spare through the leaner winter months.
  
  Setting aside for a rainy day gives joy and comfort, and if you have enough bounty to give away to someone less fortunate, Providence smiles.
  
  

American Bresse chickens come from France

American Bresse chickens originated directly from French Bresse chickens in the Bresse province of France (pictured), which have been raised by the French people for at least 500 years, and no doubt quite a bit longer.

The year 1591 marks the first known recognition in the historical record of "Bresse" chickens. 

American Bresse

The first French Bresse chicken imports arrived in the United States in 2011. Legal controls around the use of the name "Bresse" outside of the tiny Bresse valley in France necessitated modifications to the breed name in North America. Here, the breed is called American Bresse. They are virtually identical genetically to Bresse chickens in France.

There is much more breed history and details on the French Bresse Chicken History page.

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God Bless You!

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