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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

Cow's milk cheeses

Most of the world's cheese: cheddar, Gouda, Brie, Parmigiano, paneer and the great Alpine wheels.

Cow's milk makes most of the world's cheese. It is plentiful, mild and balanced in fat and protein, which lets cheesemakers turn it into everything from paneer to Parmigiano. Its fat carries carotene from grass, so cow's milk cheese is often pale yellow, deeper in summer when the herds graze fresh pasture. Cheddar, Gouda, Brie, Camembert, Emmental, Comté and mozzarella all begin here, and so does most of India's paneer.

Breeds and feed

Breed matters to a cheesemaker. Holstein-Friesians give large volumes of milk, while Jersey and Guernsey milk is richer in fat and protein. Many protected cheeses name their breeds: Comté must be made from the milk of Montbéliarde or French Simmental cows, and some Parmigiano Reggiano dairies work only with the old red Reggiana breed. Feed matters too. The rules for Comté and Parmigiano Reggiano forbid silage, because fermented feed can carry bacteria that spoil a long-aged wheel.

India and the cooperatives

India produces more milk than any other country, from cows and buffaloes together, and a great deal of it becomes paneer and chhena. The cooperative movement that began at Anand in Gujarat in 1946 grew, through the programme known as Operation Flood, into a national network of village dairies, and today it makes paneer, processed cheese and mozzarella on a large scale. Native breeds such as Gir and Sahiwal are kept for their milk, and many families still set paneer at home from the morning's delivery.

One milk, many cheeses

Cow's milk can become soft or hard, fresh or aged for years. It separates its cream easily, which suits both butter and skimmed-milk cheeses, and its curd sets firmly with rennet. Cheeses from the same milk can taste wholly different depending on the cultures, the size of the cut, the cooking, the salting and the cellar. That is why cheddar and Camembert, paneer and Parmigiano, all made from the milk of the same kind of animal, share almost nothing on the plate.

Worth knowing

  • Cheddar: The most widely copied cheese in the world
  • Parmigiano Reggiano: Grana of the Po valley, aged at least a year
  • Gouda: Dutch washed-curd cheese, young to very old
  • Camembert de Normandie: Raw-milk bloomy rind of Normandy
  • Comté: Jura wheel of Montbéliarde milk
  • Emmental: Swiss wheel with large holes
  • Paneer: India's fresh pressed cheese
  • Kalimpong cheese: Small Himalayan wheel of West Bengal

Good to know

  • Pale cheese in winter and golden cheese in summer is normal for pasture-fed herds.
  • Cow's milk cheeses suit almost any wine, beer or tea: match strength with strength.
  • Store firm cow's milk cheeses in paper and soft ones in a closed box.

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.

Cow on EveryCheese

The cheeses written up so far, best known first.

StyleFreshBrinedStretched curdBloomy rindLacticWashed rindSemi-softSemi-hardAlpineHardBlueSmokedWheyDriedProcessed
FlavourMilky and freshButtery and creamyNuttySweet and caramelTangy and lacticSaltySharp and tangy-agedSavoury and brothyEarthy and cellarMushroomyPungent and funkySmokyHerbal and grassyPiquant and spicy
🇮🇹 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 🇬🇧 United KingdomStinking Bishop A washed-rind cow's-milk cheese from Gloucestershire, ripened in perry.Cow · Semi-soft · Savoury and brothy 🇮🇹 ItalyMascarpone A soft, unripened Italian cream cheese made by acid-set coagulation of heavy cream.Cow · Fresh 🇨🇭 Switzerland and 2 moreGruyère A hard, pressed Swiss cheese made from raw cow's milk, aged for several months.Cow · Hard · Sweet and caramel 🇮🇳 India and 4 morePaneer A fresh, non-melting acid-set cheese made from cow or buffalo milk in South Asia.Cow · Fresh · Milky and fresh 🇳🇱 Netherlands and 5 moreEdamEdammer A semi-hard Dutch cow's-milk cheese aged in distinctive red wax spheres.Cow · Semi-hard · Nutty 🇩🇪 Germany and 5 moreQuarkTvorog A fresh, acid-set cow's milk cheese with a smooth texture and mild taste.Cow · Fresh · Milky and fresh 🇫🇷 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 🇺🇸 United States and 2 moreCottage cheese A fresh, unaged curd cheese made from skimmed milk and dressed with cream.Cow · Fresh · Tangy and lactic 🇮🇹 ItalyGrana Padano A hard, grainy Italian cow's-milk cheese aged for at least nine months in the Po Valley.Cow · Hard · Nutty 🇺🇸 United States and 3 moreCream cheese A soft, unripened cow's-milk cheese made with added cream and eaten fresh.Cow · Fresh · Buttery and creamy 🇨🇭 SwitzerlandAppenzeller A hard, washed-rind cow's-milk cheese from northeast Switzerland with a herbal brine rind.Cow · Hard · Nutty 🇧🇪 Belgium and 2 moreLimburger A washed-rind cow's-milk cheese from Belgium known for its strong aroma and soft texture.Cow · Semi-soft · Salty 🇫🇷 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 🇮🇹 Italy and 4 moreProvolone A semi-hard Italian stretched-curd cheese aged for at least four months.Cow · Semi-hard · Sharp and tangy-aged 🇫🇷 FranceComté A hard, cooked-pressed cow's milk cheese from eastern France, aged up to three years.Cow · Semi-hard · Nutty 🇧🇬 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 🇩🇪 Germany and 2 moreTilsitTilsiter A semi-hard smear-ripened cow's milk cheese from East Prussia with a dark yellow rind.Cow · Semi-hard · Savoury and brothy 🇫🇷 France and 1 moreReblochon A soft washed-rind cow's milk cheese from the French Alps with a nutty flavour.Cow · Bloomy rind · Nutty 🇳🇱 NetherlandsMaasdam A semi-hard Dutch cow's milk cheese with holes, aged for one to three months.Cow · Semi-hard · Nutty 🇮🇹 Italy and 4 moreFontinafontine A semi-soft cow's milk cheese from Italy's Aosta Valley, known for its nutty flavor and excellent melting quality.Cow · Semi-soft · Nutty 🇫🇷 FranceLivarot A soft Normandy cow's-milk cheese with a pungent orange rind wrapped in reed bands.Cow · Bloomy rind · Pungent and funky 🇫🇷 FranceBeaufort A firm, hole-free Alpine cow's milk cheese from the French Savoie region.Cow · Alpine · Buttery and creamy 🇫🇷 France and 1 moreMimolette A bright orange cow's-milk cheese from northern France, aged with mites for a nutty flavor.Cow · 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 🇫🇷 FranceFrench NeufchâtelNeufchâtel A soft, grainy Normandy cow's-milk cheese with a bloomy rind, aged for two months.Cow · Bloomy rind · Salty 🇫🇷 FranceAbondance A semi-hard raw cow's milk cheese from Haute-Savoie aged on spruce boards.Cow · Semi-hard · Savoury and brothy 🇫🇷 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 🇫🇷 FranceMorbier A semi-soft French cow's milk cheese marked by a thin dark ash line running through its center.Cow · Semi-soft 🇨🇭 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 🇷🇺 Russia and 4 moreTvorogтворог A soft, white fermented cow's milk curd from Central and Eastern Europe.Cow · Fresh · Milky and fresh 🇫🇷 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 🇬🇪 Georgia and 1 moreSulguniსულგუნი A brined, elastic Georgian cheese from Samegrelo, often deep-fried.Cow · Brined · Salty 🇮🇹 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 🇮🇹 Italy and 2 moreAsiago A pressed cow's milk cheese from the Veneto plateau, sold fresh or aged.Cow · Semi-soft · Sweet and caramel 🇬🇧 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 🇺🇸 United StatesAmerican cheese A mild, meltable processed cheese made from cheddar or Colby with sodium citrate.Cow · Processed · Salty 🇫🇷 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 🇮🇹 ItalyScamorza A stretched-curd cow's-milk cheese from southern Italy, often smoked and tied with string.Cow · Stretched curd 🇮🇳 India and 2 moreKhoa A soft South Asian cheese made by simmering whole milk until thick and dry.Cow · Fresh · Milky and fresh 🇫🇷 FranceFourme d'AmbertForma d'Embèrt A narrow cylindrical blue cheese from the Auvergne region of France.Cow · Semi-hard · Savoury and brothy 🇫🇷 FranceLaguioleLa Guiòla A semi-hard pressed cow's milk cheese from the Aubrac plateau in southern France.Cow · Semi-hard · Nutty 🇳🇴 NorwayGamalostgammelost A firm, sour Norwegian cheese made from skimmed cow's milk and aged for several weeks.Cow · Semi-hard · Tangy and lactic 🇬🇧 United KingdomCaerphilly A hard, crumbly cow's-milk cheese from South Wales with a mild lemony taste.Cow · Hard · Tangy and lactic 🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreHavartiflødehavarti A semi-soft Danish cow's-milk cheese with a buttery taste and small irregular eyes.Cow · Semi-soft · Buttery and creamy
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The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

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