France
The spiritual home of cheese — over 400 varieties.
Cheeses from France (18)
Brie
The "Queen of Cheeses" — a soft, buttery wheel with a velvety bloomy rind that melts toward the center as it ripens.
Brillat-Savarin
A decadent triple-cream French cheese so rich and buttery it eats more like dessert than a cheese course.
Camembert
Normandy's earthy bloomy-rind classic — deeper and more rustic than Brie, with mushroom and barnyard notes.
Cantal
One of France's oldest cheeses — a firm, tangy, Cheddar-like wheel from the volcanic Auvergne.
Chèvre (Fresh Goat)
Bright, tangy fresh goat cheese — light and spreadable, with a clean lactic zing that pairs with almost anything.
Comté
France's most-produced AOP cheese — an Alpine wheel of astonishing range, from hazelnut sweetness to roasted, savory depth.
Crottin de Chavignol
A small drum of Loire Valley goat cheese that grows from soft and tangy to hard and intensely nutty as it ages.
Époisses
One of the world's most pungent cheeses — washed in brandy until spoonably soft, with a powerful aroma and a rich, savory taste.
Livarot
A pungent washed-rind Norman cheese wrapped in reed bands, with a powerful aroma and a surprisingly mellow, savory paste.
Mimolette
A striking bright-orange French sphere with a pockmarked rind and a nutty, caramel sweetness when aged.
Morbier
An Alpine French cheese instantly recognisable by the dark line of ash running through its middle.
Munster
A pungent Alsatian washed-rind cheese with a powerful aroma and a smooth, savory, surprisingly gentle interior.
Pont-l'Évêque
A square Normandy washed-rind cheese — aromatic on the nose but mellow, creamy, and savory within.
Reblochon
A nutty, creamy Alpine cheese from Savoie — the melting heart of the French winter dish tartiflette.
Roquefort
The "King of Blues" — a powerful, salty, sheep's-milk blue ripened in the limestone caves of Roquefort-sur-Soulzon.
Saint-Nectaire
A semi-soft Auvergne cheese with an earthy, mushroomy depth and a distinctive mottled grey rind.
Tomme de Savoie
A rustic low-fat mountain cheese from the French Alps with a thick grey rind and a mellow, earthy, milky paste.
Valençay
A striking ash-dusted goat cheese shaped like a truncated pyramid, with a bright lemony tang and earthy finish.
Related reading
Cheeses by Region
The Cheeses of the Alps (France, Switzerland, Italy)
A guide to Alpine cheese across France, Switzerland, and Italy — the great mountain cheeses, how they're made, and what unites them.
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Cheeses of Normandy: France's Dairy Heart
A guide to the cheeses of Normandy — Camembert, Livarot, Pont-l'Évêque, and Neufchâtel — France's lush dairy heartland.
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