Washed-rind cheeses of the world

A block: a square or brick, cut from a slab or pressed in a square mould. Feta, Taleggio and processed cheese come in blocks.

Washed-rind cheeses are rubbed or bathed in brine, beer, wine, cider or spirits as they ripen. The damp, salty surface welcomes Brevibacterium linens and related bacteria, which colour the rind orange to russet, make it sticky and give the famous smell. Inside, the paste is often milder than the rind suggests: soft, meaty and supple. Époisses, Munster, Taleggio, Limburger, Maroilles and Livarot are the classics, and many began in monasteries.

How the rind is made

After moulding and salting, the young cheeses are washed every few days with brine or a weak alcohol, by hand or with a cloth. The washing keeps the surface moist and salty, which holds back unwanted moulds and lets coryneform bacteria thrive, including B. linens. These bring the orange colour, sometimes helped by annatto, and the aromas of meat, broth and farmyard. Époisses is washed with marc de Bourgogne, a spirit distilled from grape pomace, Munster with brine, and Taleggio is wiped with brine and a sponge.

Monks and the washed rind

Many washed rinds have a monastic story. Maroilles is said to have been created at the Abbey of Maroilles in the tenth century. Munster takes its name from the monastery town of Munster in Alsace. Port-Salut came from the Trappist abbey of Port-du-Salut at Entrammes, and Trappist houses in Belgium, the Netherlands and Canada made similar cheeses. A common explanation is that monks needed rich, savoury food for their many meatless days, and a strong washed rind filled that place.

Strength and serving

The smell can be powerful, but the flavour is usually gentler: savoury, sweet and creamy. Époisses runs when ripe and is eaten with a spoon. Limburger, from the old Duchy of Limburg, is eaten on rye bread with raw onion in Germany and in Wisconsin. Taleggio melts into risotto and polenta. Lightly washed cheeses such as Reblochon and Raclette melt well and are the base of tartiflette and raclette. Many people who flinch at the smell enjoy the taste once they try it.

Worth knowing

Époisses: Burgundy cheese washed in marc, soft enough to spoon
Munster: Alsace cheese, often served with cumin seeds
Taleggio: Square, mild washed rind of Lombardy
Limburger: Strong cheese of Belgium, Germany and Wisconsin
Maroilles: Square abbey cheese of northern France
Livarot: Normandy cheese bound with five strips of sedge
Pont-l'Évêque: Square Normandy cheese, one of the oldest of the region
Herve: Belgium's best-known strong cheese

Good to know

Wrap washed rinds well and keep them in a closed box so their smell does not spread through the fridge.
Serve at room temperature, when the paste softens and the flavour rounds out.
The rind is edible, though some people trim it on the strongest cheeses.
A moist, sticky rind is normal; a dry, cracked rind means the cheese has been kept too dry.

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.

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