Cheese news
TradeUpper Midwest Dairy Production Rises as Global Expansion Pressures Commodity PricesIndiaHC seeks replies on plea against non-dairy products sold as paneerMakersThis New Jersey Creamery Is Absolutely GoatedHeritageThe Murray’s Cheese Advent Calendar Is A Two Week Charcuterie PartyIndiaDelhi High Court seeks FSSAI stand on PIL against non-dairy, analogous 'paneer'AwardsSimply Better: six generations of cheesemaking at Gubbeen Farmhouse Cheese 13 October 2026 FreeAwardsSwiss Cheese Awards: Zwei Kategoriensiege für Käse aus der RegionIndiaThe great ‘paneer’ fraud: PIL in Delhi HC seeks clear disclosure by hotels on non-dairy substitutesTradeCOUNTRY LIFE: Benchmark falls 60 cents from August, $1.55 less than September 2025MakersThey know cheese better than anyone else. Meet the Master Cheesemakers at SartoriTradeUpper Midwest Dairy Production Rises as Global Expansion Pressures Commodity PricesIndiaHC seeks replies on plea against non-dairy products sold as paneerMakersThis New Jersey Creamery Is Absolutely GoatedHeritageThe Murray’s Cheese Advent Calendar Is A Two Week Charcuterie PartyIndiaDelhi High Court seeks FSSAI stand on PIL against non-dairy, analogous 'paneer'AwardsSimply Better: six generations of cheesemaking at Gubbeen Farmhouse Cheese 13 October 2026 FreeAwardsSwiss Cheese Awards: Zwei Kategoriensiege für Käse aus der RegionIndiaThe great ‘paneer’ fraud: PIL in Delhi HC seeks clear disclosure by hotels on non-dairy substitutesTradeCOUNTRY LIFE: Benchmark falls 60 cents from August, $1.55 less than September 2025MakersThey know cheese better than anyone else. Meet the Master Cheesemakers at Sartori
EveryCheese

Cheeses for cheese boards

Served on its own, sliced or cut at the table, with bread, fruit and something to drink.

A cheese board serves cheese for its own sake, cut at the table and eaten with bread, fruit and something to drink. In France it comes after the main course and before dessert; in Britain and Ireland, often after dessert with a glass of port; in Spain and Italy, as tapas or antipasto. A good board balances styles, milks and strengths, so that each cheese shows off the others.

Building a board

Three to five cheeses are plenty for most tables. A common pattern is one of each kind: a soft bloomy or fresh goat cheese, a firm aged cheese such as Comté or Manchego, a blue, and perhaps a washed rind. Mixing cow's, goat's and sheep's milk adds variety. Allow about 30 to 50 grams of each cheese per person after a meal, and more if the board is the meal. Take the cheeses out of the fridge an hour before serving.

Order and cutting

Taste from mild to strong, so that a blue or a washed rind comes last. Cut each cheese so that everyone gets a fair share of rind and centre: wedges from the middle of a round, long slices along a wedge of hard cheese. An old rule of etiquette says never to cut the point off a wedge of Brie, which leaves the next person with only rind. Use a separate knife for blues and strong cheeses, so their flavour does not travel.

What goes with it

Bread and plain crackers, fresh and dried fruit, nuts, honey and fruit pastes are the usual partners. Spain serves Manchego with membrillo, quince paste; Britain serves Stilton with port; France eats its board with bread and red wine. In India, cheese boards from the country's growing number of artisan dairies set Bandel, Kalimpong and hill-farm cheeses beside chutneys, fresh fruit and roasted nuts.

Worth knowing

  • Comté: A firm, nutty anchor for any board
  • Brie de Meaux: The classic soft cheese
  • Stilton: Blue served with port
  • Manchego: Served with quince paste
  • Roquefort: Sheep's milk blue for the end of the board
  • Crottin de Chavignol: A fresh goat note
  • Époisses: A strong washed rind to finish
  • Kalimpong cheese: A mild Indian hill cheese

Sources and further reading

About this page

Original text by the EveryCheese desk, written with AI assistance and checked against the sources above. Customs are described as tradition, not as advice. If we have something wrong, tell us.

Cheese boards on EveryCheese

The cheeses written up so far, best known first.

StyleFreshBrinedStretched curdBloomy rindLacticWashed rindSemi-softSemi-hardAlpineHardBlueSmokedWheyDriedProcessed
MilkCowGoatSheepBuffaloYakCamelMixedOther
FlavourMilky and freshButtery and creamyNuttySweet and caramelTangy and lacticSaltySharp and tangy-agedSavoury and brothyEarthy and cellarMushroomyPungent and funkySmokyHerbal and grassyPiquant and spicy
🇫🇷 FranceCamembert A soft-ripened cow's milk cheese from Normandy with a white mould rindCow · Bloomy rind · Earthy and cellar 🇺🇸 United StatesLiederkranz A pungent American smear-ripened cow's milk cheese created in 1891 as a Limburger variant.Cow · Semi-soft · Pungent and funky 🇬🇪 GeorgiaDambalkhachoდამბალხაჭო A pungent, semi-soft Georgian cheese aged in clay pots with sour buttermilk curdsCow · Semi-soft · Pungent and funky 🇸🇪 Sweden and 1 moreBondostbond-ost A firm Swedish cow's-milk cheese aged in brine for six to eight weeks.Cow · Semi-hard · Salty 🇦🇹 AustriaLüneberg A saffron-tinted cow's-milk cheese from the Austrian Alps, bridging Swiss and German styles.Cow · Semi-hard · Nutty 🇮🇹 ItalyCastelrosso A rare semi-hard cow's milk cheese from Piedmont with a gray rind and mild lactic flavor.Cow · Semi-hard · Buttery and creamy 🇮🇪 IrelandCoolea A wax-rinded cow's milk cheese from County Cork with sweet, caramelly notes.Cow · Hard · Sweet and caramel 🇮🇱 Israel and 1 moreGvina levanaגבינה לבנה A soft, unripened cow's-milk cheese spread on bread in Israel.Cow · Fresh · Tangy and lactic 🇫🇷 FranceRoule cheese A soft, herb and garlic flavoured cow's milk cheese rolled into a spiral shape.Cow · Bloomy rind · Herbal and grassy 🇮🇪 IrelandWicklow Farmhouse Cheese A range of handmade cow's milk cheeses from Arklow, Ireland, spanning soft bries to hard cheddars.Cow · Bloomy rind · Nutty 🇦🇹 Austria and 1 moreTyrolean grey cheeseTiroler Graukäse A low-fat cow's milk acid-curd quark from the Tyrolean Alps with a moulded rind.Cow · Fresh · Tangy and lactic 🇮🇪 IrelandBay Lough Cheese A self-taught Irish cheddar-style cheese aged in waxed wheels.Cow · Semi-hard · Savoury and brothy 🇳🇱 NetherlandsRoomano An aged hard cow's-milk cheese from Friesland with less butterfat than standard Gouda.Cow · Hard · Salty 🇺🇸 United StatesSaga A mild Danish blue-veined cheese with a white mould rind and creamy texture.Cow · Bloomy rind 🇳🇴 NorwayNøkkelost A Norwegian cow's-milk cheese flavoured with cumin and cloves, aged for three months.Cow · Semi-hard · Savoury and brothy 🇬🇧 United KingdomStinking Bishop A washed-rind cow's-milk cheese from Gloucestershire, ripened in perry.Cow · Semi-soft · Savoury and brothy 🇹🇷 Turkey and 1 moreBasket cheesesepet peyniri A fresh, unsalted or lightly salted whey and curd cheese shaped in reed baskets from the Aegean coast.Goat · Fresh · Milky and fresh 🇬🇧 United KingdomHereford Hop A firm cow's-milk cheese with a rind coated in toasted hops, made in Herefordshire.Cow · Semi-hard · Savoury and brothy 🇦🇺 AustraliaCheer A mature cheddar cheese made in Australia by Warrnambool Cheese and Butter.Cow · Semi-hard · Sharp and tangy-aged 🇫🇷 France and 3 moreBrie A soft, pale French cow's-milk cheese with a white mould rind, aged for about five weeks.Cow · Bloomy rind · Nutty 🇫🇷 FranceBaguette laonnaise A soft, washed-rind cow's milk cheese from northern France shaped like a small loaf.Cow · Washed rind · Savoury and brothy 🇮🇪 IrelandGubbeen A washed-rind semi-soft cow's milk cheese from County Cork, Ireland.Cow · Semi-soft · Mushroomy 🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 1 moreMarble cheese A processed cow's milk cheese with distinct colored marbling patterns.Cow · Hard · Savoury and brothy 🇺🇸 United StatesD'Isigny A soft American cheese modeled on French Brie and Camembert styles.Cow · Bloomy rind · Milky and fresh 🇦🇱 AlbaniaMishavin A soft, crumbly Albanian cheese aged in skins and wood from sheep or cow milk.Sheep · Buttery and creamy 🇳🇱 Netherlands and 5 moreEdamEdammer A semi-hard Dutch cow's-milk cheese aged in distinctive red wax spheres.Cow · Semi-hard · Nutty 🇫🇷 France and 2 moreBlue cheese A family of cheeses defined by blue-green mold veins created through deliberate inoculation and piercing.Cow · Semi-soft · Sharp and tangy-aged 🇮🇹 ItalyBurrata A fresh Italian cheese with a solid mozzarella pouch filled with cream and stracciatella.Cow · Fresh · Milky and fresh 🇮🇹 ItalyGrana Padano A hard, grainy Italian cow's-milk cheese aged for at least nine months in the Po Valley.Cow · Hard · Nutty 🇨🇭 SwitzerlandAppenzeller A hard, washed-rind cow's-milk cheese from northeast Switzerland with a herbal brine rind.Cow · Hard · Nutty 🇫🇷 France and 1 moreMunsterMunster-géromé A washed-rind cow's-milk cheese from the Vosges mountains of eastern France.Cow · Bloomy rind · Pungent and funky 🇧🇬 Bulgaria and 5 moreKashkavalkaşkaval A semi-hard yellow cheese from cow, sheep, or goat milk, popular across the Balkans and Turkey.Cow · Semi-hard · Milky and fresh 🇫🇷 FranceComté A hard, cooked-pressed cow's milk cheese from eastern France, aged up to three years.Cow · Semi-hard · Nutty 🇮🇹 Italy and 4 moreProvolone A semi-hard Italian stretched-curd cheese aged for at least four months.Cow · Semi-hard · Sharp and tangy-aged 🇳🇱 NetherlandsMaasdam A semi-hard Dutch cow's milk cheese with holes, aged for one to three months.Cow · Semi-hard · Nutty 🇮🇹 Italy and 4 moreCaciocavallo A stretched-curd cheese from southern Italy shaped like a teardrop and aged to develop a hard rind.Cow · Stretched curd · Nutty 🇫🇷 France and 1 moreMimolette A bright orange cow's-milk cheese from northern France, aged with mites for a nutty flavor.Cow · Hard · Nutty 🇫🇷 FranceLivarot A soft Normandy cow's-milk cheese with a pungent orange rind wrapped in reed bands.Cow · Bloomy rind · Pungent and funky 🇫🇷 FranceÉpoisses A pungent washed-rind cow's-milk cheese from Burgundy, rinsed in local brandy.Cow · Bloomy rind · Pungent and funky 🇨🇭 Switzerland and 1 moreSbrinz A very hard, full-fat cow's-milk cheese from Central Switzerland aged for over two years.Cow · Hard · Savoury and brothy 🇫🇷 FranceAbondance A semi-hard raw cow's milk cheese from Haute-Savoie aged on spruce boards.Cow · Semi-hard · Savoury and brothy 🇫🇷 FranceFrench NeufchâtelNeufchâtel A soft, grainy Normandy cow's-milk cheese with a bloomy rind, aged for two months.Cow · Bloomy rind · Salty 🇨🇭 Switzerland and 1 moreTête de Moine A semi-hard Swiss cow's milk cheese shaved into rosettes with a special tool.Cow · Semi-hard · Savoury and brothy 🇫🇷 FrancePont-l'Évêque A soft, square cow's-milk cheese from Normandy with a washed rind and pungent aroma.Cow · Bloomy rind · Pungent and funky 🇮🇹 ItalyTaleggiotalegg, taegg or taècc A semi-soft washed-rind cow's milk cheese from Lombardy with a pinkish rind and fruity tang.Cow · Semi-soft 🇬🇧 United KingdomDouble Gloucester A semi-hard cow's-milk cheese from England with a savoury flavour and natural rind.Cow · Semi-hard · Savoury and brothy 🇫🇷 FranceBleu de Gex A mild French blue cheese from the Jura mountains made with raw cow's milk.Cow · Semi-soft 🇫🇷 FranceLangres A washed-rind cow's milk cheese from the Langres plateau in France.Cow · Bloomy rind · Savoury and brothy
More cheeses

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

The weekly digest

Every Monday: seven cheeses you may not know, the cheese days of the week ahead, and one dish explained step by step.