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.

🇫🇷 FranceCamembert A soft-ripened cow's milk cheese from Normandy with a white mould rindCow · Bloomy rind · Earthy and cellar 🇫🇷 FranceRoule cheese A soft, herb and garlic flavoured cow's milk cheese rolled into a spiral shape.Cow · Bloomy rind · Herbal and grassy

🇫🇷 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 🇺🇸 United StatesCup cheese A pungent, spreadable Pennsylvania Dutch cheese sold in cupsCow · Bloomy rind · Pungent and funky

🇮🇹 Italy and 2 moreGorgonzola A creamy Italian blue cheese from Lombardy with two distinct styles.Cow · Bloomy rind · Salty 🇮🇪 IrelandWicklow Farmhouse Cheese A range of handmade cow's milk cheeses from Arklow, Ireland, spanning soft bries to hard cheddars.Cow · Bloomy rind · Nutty

🇩🇪 GermanyHandkäse A small, sour cow's-milk cheese from Hesse, traditionally marinated in vinegar and oil.Cow · Bloomy rind · Pungent and funky 🇺🇸 United StatesD'Isigny A soft American cheese modeled on French Brie and Camembert styles.Cow · Bloomy rind · Milky and fresh 🇺🇸 United StatesSaga A mild Danish blue-veined cheese with a white mould rind and creamy texture.Cow · Bloomy rind

🇫🇷 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

🇫🇷 France and 1 moreReblochon A soft washed-rind cow's milk cheese from the French Alps with a nutty flavour.Cow · Bloomy rind · Nutty

🇫🇷 FranceLivarot A soft Normandy cow's-milk cheese with a pungent orange rind wrapped in reed bands.Cow · Bloomy rind · Pungent and funky

🇫🇷 FranceFrench NeufchâtelNeufchâtel A soft, grainy Normandy cow's-milk cheese with a bloomy rind, aged for two months.Cow · Bloomy rind · Salty

🇫🇷 FranceÉpoisses A pungent washed-rind cow's-milk cheese from Burgundy, rinsed in local brandy.Cow · Bloomy rind · Pungent and funky

🇷🇺 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

🇫🇷 FranceLangres A washed-rind cow's milk cheese from the Langres plateau in France.Cow · Bloomy rind · Savoury and brothy

🇫🇷 FranceChaource A soft-ripened cow's-milk cheese from north-eastern France with a white mould rind.Cow · Bloomy rind · Salty

🇫🇷 FranceCoulommiers A soft cow's-milk cheese with a bloomy rind from the Seine-et-Marne department of France.Cow · Bloomy rind · Nutty

🇨🇿 Czech RepublicOlomouc curd cheeseOlomoucké tvarůžky A pungent, low-fat ripened soft cheese from the Czech Republic made from quark.Cow · Bloomy rind · Pungent and funky

🇩🇪 GermanyCambozola A mild German cow's-milk blue cheese with a creamy texture and white rind.Cow · Bloomy rind · Buttery and creamy

🇪🇸 SpainTetillaQueixo Tetilla A soft, conical cow's-milk cheese from Galicia with a distinctive nipple-like peak.Cow · Bloomy rind · Buttery and creamy

🇫🇷 France and 1 moreVacherin Mont d'Or A soft, seasonal cow's milk cheese wrapped in spruce bark from the Jura mountains.Cow · Bloomy rind · Earthy and cellar

🇫🇷 FranceBrie de Meaux A soft-ripened cow's milk cheese with a white rind from the Brie region of France.Cow · Bloomy rind · Milky and fresh

🇫🇷 FranceGaperon A dome-shaped Auvergne cheese with a white mold rind and garlic-pepper filling.Cow · Bloomy rind · Buttery and creamy

🇮🇹 ItalyToma A soft to semi-hard Italian cow's milk cheese prized for melting.Cow · Bloomy rind

🇫🇷 FranceSaint-Marcellin A small, soft cow's-milk cheese from Isère with a creamy interior and bloomy rind.Cow · Bloomy rind

🇩🇪 GermanyMilbenkäse A German quark cheese ripened with living cheese mites in rye flour.Cow · Bloomy rind · Sharp and tangy-aged

🇫🇷 FranceAbbaye de Tamié A soft cow's-milk cheese aged in the cellars of a Savoyard abbey by monks.Cow · Bloomy rind · Milky and fresh

🇫🇷 FranceSaint AgurSant Agur A soft, double-cream French blue cheese with olive-green veins and a mild spicy taste.Cow · Bloomy rind · Tangy and lactic

🇫🇷 FranceChaumesPalhas A soft, washed-rind cow's milk cheese from the Périgord with a tangerine-orange rind.Cow · Bloomy rind · Savoury and brothy

🇪🇬 Egypt and 1 moreDomiatiجبنه دمياطى A soft, salty Egyptian white cheese salted before coagulation.Buffalo · Bloomy rind · Salty

🇨🇿 Czech RepublicHermelín A soft Czech brie-style cheese with a white mold rind, often marinated or fried.Cow · Bloomy rind · Mushroomy

🇳🇴 NorwayPultost A soft Norwegian sour milk cheese flavored with caraway seeds and preserved with salt.Cow · Bloomy rind · Tangy and lactic 🇫🇷 FranceVieux-Boulogne A soft, beer-washed cow's milk cheese from northern France known for its intense aroma.Cow · Bloomy rind · Salty

🇫🇷 FranceSaint Albray A soft cow's-milk cheese from France with a flower-shaped rind and hollow center.Cow · Bloomy rind · Milky and fresh

🇫🇷 FranceSaint-Félicien A creamy cow's milk cheese from France with a flower-patterned rindCow · Bloomy rind · Milky and fresh 🇳🇴 NorwaySnøfrisk A soft, spreadable Norwegian goat cheese with a fresh, sour taste.Goat · Fresh · Tangy and lactic

🇮🇹 ItalyRobiola A soft-ripened Italian cheese from Piedmont and Lombardy, made from cow, goat, or sheep milk.Cow · Bloomy rind · Sweet and caramel

🇮🇹 ItalyCaciotta A mild Italian cheese made from cow, sheep, goat, or buffalo milk.Cow · Bloomy rind · Milky and fresh

🇫🇷 FranceMottin charentais A cylindrical French soft cheese made from pasteurized cow's milk with a creamy taste.Cow · Bloomy rind · Buttery and creamy

🇮🇹 ItalySquacquerone A soft, crumbly cow's-milk cheese from Romagna with a short maturation.Cow · Bloomy rind · Sweet and caramel

🇫🇷 FranceDélice de Bourgogne A soft triple-cream cow's milk cheese from Burgundy with a bloomy rind.Cow · Bloomy rind · Tangy and lactic

🇮🇹 ItalyDolcelatte A mild, sweet Italian blue cheese made from cow's milk with a soft texture.Cow · Bloomy rind · Sweet and caramel 🇫🇷 FranceExplorateur A soft-ripened triple cream cow's milk cheese from France with a squat cylindrical shape.Cow · Bloomy rind · Buttery and creamy

🇫🇷 FranceTrou du Cru A pungent washed-rind cow's milk cheese from Burgundy, aged with local brandy.Cow · Bloomy rind · Pungent and funky

🇨🇦 CanadaLe Pied de Vent A soft raw cow's milk cheese from Quebec's Magdalen Islands, aged for sixty days.Cow · Bloomy rind · Milky and fresh

🇨🇦 CanadaLe Riopelle de l'Isle A soft triple-cream cow's milk cheese from Isle-aux-Grues in Quebec.Cow · Bloomy rind · Buttery and creamy

Photo credits on this page

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

Toma: Yozh, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Handkäse: User:Elya + User:Fotandi, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Brie de Meaux: Coyau, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Coulommiers: Myrabella, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Époisses: Coyau, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Pont-l'Évêque: Coyau, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
French Neufchâtel: Coyau, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Olomouc curd cheese: Chmee2, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Tetilla: Tamorlan, CC BY 3.0, source
Saint-Marcellin: Thesupermat, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Saint Agur: Micah Anderson, Public domain, source
Vacherin Mont d'Or: Zubro, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Saint Albray: Lyokoï88, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Chaumes: Robin dubois, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Hermelín: Original uploader was Aida at cs.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Pultost: Jan-Tore Egge, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Reblochon: Pierre-Yves Beaudouin, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Domiati: MartinKassemJ120, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Tvorog: Loyna, CC BY-SA 2.5, source
Camembert: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Milbenkäse: Benutzer:Dundak at de.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Livarot: Coyau, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Langres: Myrabella, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Munster: Pierre-Yves Beaudouin, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Chaource: Coyau, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Gaperon: Pymouss, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Gorgonzola: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Trou du Cru: Tristan Ferne, CC BY 2.0, source
Cambozola: Jorchr, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Abbaye de Tamié: Tangopaso, Public domain, source
Saint-Félicien: Coyau, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Dolcelatte: Richard Rutter, CC BY 2.0, source
Caciotta: Peachyeung316, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Robiola: Andrea Marchisio, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Mottin charentais: Cobber17, CC BY 3.0, source
Délice de Bourgogne: Beprost, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Squacquerone: WILO-MA, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Le Pied de Vent: Cephas, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Le Riopelle de l'Isle: Lëa-Kim Châteauneuf, CC BY-SA 4.0, source