French Cheese
You can never go wrong with cheese — the French have made sure of that. Up your fromage savoir-faire, from melty Pont L'Eveque to pungent Roquefort.
For the French, cheese is a way of life, a daily indulgence to share with family and friends and a product of real national pride. One of the best times of day is after the dinner plates are cleared away, and cheese, accompanied by fresh, chewy baguette is ushered onto the table. Every night often brings something different. Sometimes a rich blue that’s swirled together with crème fraiche. Other times a pungent, oozing, soft cheese like Camembert. There are 400 officially recognised cheeses, and each has its own history to tell, specific origin location and very own production process. Each cheese is an adventure, and bloody delicious we might add. Plus, pairing some of this creamy goodness with beer will bring a new cheese experience to your palate. Here we take you through ten of the tastiest fromage coming out of France.
French Cheese
Fun facts about
How many tonnes of cheese are produced annually in France – that’s about 50 kilos every second.
How many varieties of French cheese are officially recognised.
The average amount of cheese a Frenchie powers through every year.
The most common milk used in French cheese, but goat, sheep and even horse milk can be used.
A BITE-SIZED HISTORY OF FRENCH CHEESE
Cheese has been produced in France for well over a thousand years. For a while, it was even considered less of a luxury product, and more of a protein source that kept the masses alive when meat was too expensive.
As a nation with strong regional diversity, France is unsurprisingly and fiercely protective of its local cheeses. Citizens can get downright competitive when it comes to discussing the ‘best’ varieties. From northern soft white mould Camembert de Normandie to nutty, sweet Comté in the east, each region has been producing and perfecting their cheeses for centuries. And just how people talk about the intricate details of grapes, soil and weather when discussing wine, cheese comes with its own discussion of terroir — literally translating to ‘land’, but referring to much more including pasture, climate, water and breed of the animals producing the milk.
THE MANY VARIETIES OF FRENCH CHEESE
For most Australians, the AOC is the group of sports administrators who get mad when famous swimmers admit to abusing sleeping pills. But for the French, the AOC is the appellation d’origine contrôlée, or basically the overlords who control certification for regional specialities like cheese, wine and uh… lentils. So far more than 40 types of French cheese have AOC designation, so they’re protected under law, have a specific seal and must meet certain rigorous standards. There are quite literally hundreds of French cheeses that aren’t AOC, but this doesn’t make them inferior at all, just a little less tightly controlled. Below are a few of our favourite AOC and non-AOC cheeses.
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ROQUEFORT
Tangy, salty, bold semi-hard blue mould sheep’s milk cheese from the south of France. Cheeses labelled ‘Roquefort’ must be aged in the ancient Combalou caves at Roquefort-sur-Soulzon. -
POULIGNY-SAINT-PIERRE
Like a tiny cheese pyramid with a flat top, this soft mould, raw goat’s milk cheese is pretty distinctive and delicious. It’s from the Indre region in central France and aged for about a month. -
MIMOLETTE
From Lille in the north, this hard cow’s milk cheese is aged for up to two years. Round, with a greyish crust (sort of like a rockmelon), inside Mimolette is distinctively orange, nutty and sweet. -
GRUYERE
A hard, aged cow’s milk cheese named after Gruyère, Switzerland, it's (somewhat controversially) also produced and recognised in France. Perfect for melting and cooking. -
CROTTIN DE CHAVIGNOL
Nutty, crumbly and rich, this goat’s cheese from the Loire Valley develops a brown crust as it ages. Good on a cheese board, it's even better baked in the oven and served with a light salad. -
COMTE
Unpasteurised cow’s milk cheese from the eastern Franche-Comté region. Hard, sweet and almost nutty, one 70-centimetre diameter disc uses up to 600 litres of milk. It’s then aged in cellars for several months. -
BRIE DE MEAUX
Rich, buttery and soft raw cow’s milk cheese from the town of Meaux northeast of Paris. Edible mould rind develops over a six to eight week ripening process. -
CAMEMBERT DE NORMANDIE
Soft, surface-ripened cow’s milk variety from Normandy in the northwest. Similar in taste and production method to Brie de Meaux, though more pungent and sold in smaller wheels and wedges. -
PONT L'EVEQUE
Another Normandy speciality, but far more pungent than Camembert. This soft, washed rind cow’s milk varietal is amazing in fondue and dates back to the 12th century. -
BOURSIN
A brand rather than a variety, Boursin is a much-loved flavoured, spreadable soft cheese kind of like Australian Philly. Often served at parties with crackers, it’s also great as a rich sandwich filling.
EATING ETIQUETTE
Sadly the French don’t really follow our philosophy when it comes to eating cheese, which is ‘all of it, all the time.’ Restraint is the name of the game, so we guess you could say you need to be on your best brie-haviour. The basics here are: use a separate knife for each cheese (or at the very least wipe off your knife in between bites), maintain the shape of the wedge (don’t slice off the ‘nose’) and eat from the mildest cheese through to the most pungent — this is less for etiquette and more for the sake of your tastebuds.
If you’re preparing a cheeseboard, select a mix of hard, soft and blue varieties, and maybe include something a little acidic and sweet on the board like grapes or quince paste for contrast. Make sure you allow all the cheeses to come to room temperature before you serve, and if there are any leftovers, store them in a cloth cheesebag (if you have one) or very loosely wrapped in clingwrap. Never freeze cheese — it doesn’t end well.
A PERFECT COMBINATION
Entire books have been written about correctly matching cheeses to wines, but there’s a growing trend to pair beers and cheese — and it’s bloody awesome. Match bold cheeses to bold brewskies, and fresher, softer cheeses with a lighter beer. Try James Squire One Fifty Lashes with a smooth, creamy Camembert, Hahn SuperDry with a gooey Brie, and for the super soft cheeses, we’re looking at your Boursin, pair up with a ice cold James Boag’s Premium Lager. Above all, when it comes to matching cheese with anything, follow your own palate and work out what you like.
Hungry for more? Get your fix at the Melbourne Night Noodle Markets by Beer The Beautiful Truth from November 9 to 26.
Illustrations: Barry Patenaude.
Images: Kimberley Low.
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