French Cheese

Fruity, smooth, mellow and nutty. Made in a small, village-based co-operative called a fruitière. At a few weeks' old, this Comté then enters Marcel Petite’s maturing rooms where it is regularly turned, brushed and rubbed.

Rich, ice cream texture. Buttery, with crème fraiche notes maturing to meaty ‘mushroom’. The Lincet family have been making cheese in Burgundy for the past 125 years, and this utterly decadent triple cream is a speciality. The smaller cheeses have a marvellously thin geotrichum rind, while the larger cheeses pick up the spicier flavours of a downy white penicillium coat.

Sticky, savoury and slightly floral. Washed in Marc de Bourgogne, this baby brother of Époisses possesses the same pungent quality but can easily be consumed in one sitting. Helpful for avoiding an ‘aromatic’ fridge.

Moussey and rich. Sweetly herbal. Approachable saltiness With a nod towards the cheeses of Provence, this quenelle of young goats’ cheese is given just a touch of thyme oil. It is then ripened only to the point that the herbal quality lingers without dominating the milky flavour of the cheese itself.

Glossy and smooth, with a wrinkled rind, this pasteurised Brie offers a rich texture and a lightly vegetal, mushroomy flavour. Made in small batches by the third-generation Dongé family in Meuse, it is a fine example of French Brie.

Selected by award-winning affineur Rodolphe Le Meunier, this soft-ripened Camembert is made from pasteurised cow’s milk. Its bloomy rind encases a rich, glossy paste with buttery, earthy flavours and delicate mushroom notes.

Soft and silky. Both milky and savoury. For Rodolphe, an AOP status can get in the way of experimenting with a much-loved cheese. This is a Selles-sur-Cher in all but name, yet Rodolphe’s maturation brings balance and greater complexity.

Citrusy and only lightly goaty with gentle minerality.

Rich and delicately textured, with a subtle, herbaceous complexity. Rodolphe ages his cheeses to the palates of his customers. For us Brits, Rodolphe ensures St. Maure is creamy, savoury and contained by only a wafer-thin rind.

Strong and sublime. A sweet, creamy paste with sharp, mineral pockets of blue. The most acclaimed producer of Roquefort, and the only one to make their own penicillium roqueforti, extracted from rye loaves baked in house. Respect for tradition and quality is at the heart of this cheesemaking family.

Plump and hearty. Salty and 'yeasty'. Made on a family farm with only 200 lively goats, this speciality of the South is aromatised with rosemary oil, then dried and ripened in Rodolphe le Meunier’s caves.

Delicate and smooth. Subtle ‘goatiness’ with a nut-shell finish. Named after a rebellious Christian sect from the Middle Ages and decorated with the region’s Occitan cross. Made by the Fricker family in Saint-Félix-Lauragais and ripened for the thinnest of wrinkled rinds and the complexity of gentle, sweet milk.

Dense, savoury and salty. First made in 17th century France, when war saw the banning of all Dutch products including Gouda. Cheese mites, usually the bane of a cheesemonger’s life, are encouraged here so as to create the cheese’s pockmarked surface.

A firm yet yielding texture, with flavours of soured cream and nuts. Selected by François Bourgon, this farmstead cheese is a true taste of Basque tradition. Each wheel is marked by the shepherds who make the cheese, and will vary in flavour depending on whether the sheep are grazing in the valleys or mountains. The mature cheeses are washed by hand, and ripened in the cellars of Les Saloirs de Louis.

Supple and fruity. Historically, cheesemakers would make curd from evening milk, then sprinkle a protective layer of ash on top. The next morning they would make another curd to add to the previous evening’s cheese.Unfortunately, Morbier is currently out of stock. This is due to a temporary ban on the import of French and Italian raw milk soft and semi-soft cheeses due to an outbreak of a disease in cattle. There have been minimal cases, but DEFRA are maintaining a very cautious approach to protect our British herds. Suggested Alternative: Ashcombe.Made in Gloucestershire by celebrated cheesemaker, David Jowett, this cheese shares the distinctive ash line running through the core of the cheese and a similar milky paste and savoury rind. It is also a former Supreme Champion of both the British and Artisan Cheese Awards., A supple-textured, unpasteurised French cheese, with a characteristic line of ash running through it.

Pliable and slightly crystallised. Joseph Paccard select their Beauforts every September to release at the age of twelve months. They then release them in consecutive batches, each one a month older than the last.

Mountain forest aroma. Rich and fudgy texture. Earthy flavour. A true Tomme de Savoie, from a time before the rise of industrialised cheesemaking. Redolent of a woody wonderland, this is a cheese of great structure and complexity. Unfortunately, Brie de Meaux is currently out of stock. This is due to a temporary ban on the import of French and Italian raw milk soft and semi-soft cheeses due to an outbreak of a disease in cattle. There have been minimal cases, but DEFRA are maintaining a very cautious approach to protect our British herds.

Smooth and supple. Notes of ‘walnuts’ and ‘meadow flowers’. The flagship cheese of Haute-Savoie. The green label indicates that this is the rare farmstead variety, and it has been washed twice by Fromagerie Joseph Paccard, leading to an intoxicating aroma of leather and spruce. Unfortunately, Reblochon is currently out of stock. This is due to a temporary ban on the import of French and Italian raw milk soft and semi-soft cheeses due to an outbreak of a disease in cattle. There have been minimal cases, but DEFRA are maintaining a very cautious approach to protect our British herds.Suggested Alternative: YarlingtonLovers of Reblochon will surely enjoy this British washed rind cheese with a blush coat and a plump and glossy interior.

Sweet and mouth-filling, with notes of ‘hazelnut’. Nurtured by Romain Dubois to grow a soft, fluffy coat. As the cheese becomes firmer, the paste grows denser and the floral flavours are balanced by deeper, nuttier tones, but Crottin is delicious at all ages.

A rich and earthy aroma, a firm texture, and a subtly nutty depth as it ages. From Auvergne’s Cantal region, this tomme is made from rich mountain-pasture milk. Admirers call its rustic character a “quiet cheese with a bold soul”. Best paired with crusty bread and robust red wine.