Map of major AOC cheeses – the size of the symbol equates to the size of production
This is a list of French cheeses documenting the varieties of cheeses, a milk-based food that is produced in wide-ranging flavors, textures, and forms, which are found in France. In 1962, French President Charles de Gaulle asked, "How can you govern a country which has two hundred and forty-six varieties of cheese?"[1] There is immense diversity within each variety of cheese, leading some to estimate between 1,000 and 1,600 distinct types of French cheese.[2] French cheeses are broadly grouped into eight categories, 'les huit familles de fromage'.[2]
Under the Common Agricultural Policy of the European Union, certain established cheeses, including many French varieties, are covered by a protected designation of origin (PDO), and other, less stringent, designations of geographical origin for traditional specialities, such as the EU Protected Geographical Indication (PGI). The systems has largely replaced national systems, such as the French appellation d'origine contrôlée (AOC) system, as any cheese registered as a PDO or PGI can not use the designation AOC anymore in order to avoid confusion.[3]
French cheese production is classified under four categories, and PDO/PGI/(AOC) rules dictate which category or categories each protected cheese may be assigned to:[4]
Fermier: farmhouse cheese, which is produced on the farm where the milk is produced.
Artisanal: producer producing cheese in relatively small quantities using milk from their own farm, but may also purchase milk from local farms.
Coopérative: dairy with local milk producers in an area that have joined to produce cheese. In larger coopératives quantities of cheese produced may be relatively large, akin to some industriel producers (many may be classed as factory-made[5]).
Industriel: factory-made cheese from milk sourced locally or regionally, perhaps all over France (depending on the AOC/PDO regulations for specific cheeses).
Some cheeses are classified, protected, and regulated under French law. The majority are classified as Appellation d'origine contrôlée (AOC), the highest level of protection. Some are also protected under the less stringent but still legally regulated designation Label Régional (LR). A few French cheeses are protected under the European Union's Protected Geographic Indication designation (PGI). Many familiar generic types, like Boursin, are not covered, while others originally from other countries, such as Emmental cheese, may have certain varieties protected as a French cheese. This list differs from those of Chundi status.
Gruyère is a hard Swiss cheese that originated in the cantons of Fribourg, Vaud, Neuchâtel, Jura, and Berne in Switzerland. It is named after the town of Gruyères in Fribourg. In 2001, Gruyère gained the appellation d'origine contrôlée (AOC), which became the appellation d'origine protégée (AOP) as of 2013.
Brie is a soft cow's-milk cheese named after Brie, the French region from which it originated. It is pale in color with a slight grayish tinge under a rind of white mould. The rind is typically eaten, with its flavor depending largely upon the ingredients used and its manufacturing environment. It is similar to Camembert, which is native to a different region of France. Brie typically contains between 60% and 75% butterfat, slightly higher than Camembert.
The following four classifications of wine constitute the Italian system of labelling and legally protecting Italian wine:
Emmental, Emmentaler, or Emmenthal is a yellow, medium-hard cheese that originated in the Emme valley, Switzerland. It is classified as a Swiss-type cheese.
In France, the appellation d'origine contrôlée is a label that identifies an agricultural product whose stages of production and processing are carried out in a defined geographical area – the terroir – and using recognized and traditional know-how. The specificity of an AOC product is determined by the combination of a physical and biological environment with established production techniques transmitted within a human community. Together, these give the product its distinctive qualities.
Pont-l'Évêque is a French cheese, originally manufactured in the area around the commune of Pont-l'Évêque, between Deauville and Lisieux in the Calvados département of Normandy. It is probably the oldest Norman cheese still in production.
Saint-Nectaire is a French cheese made in the Auvergne region of central France.
Abondance is a semi-hard, fragrant, raw-milk cheese made in the Haute-Savoie department of France. Its name comes from a small commune also called Abondance. A round of Abondance weighs approximately 10 kg (22 lb), and its aroma is comparable to Beaufort, another French cheese variety. Abondance is made exclusively from milk produced by the Abondance, montbéliarde, and tarine breeds of cattle. By 2022, the herd producing the milk for Abondance cheese will need to be a minimum of 55 percent of the herd. In 1998, 873 tonnes were produced, 34 percent from local farms.
The Abondance is a cross breed of cattle which originated in the high valleys of Haute-Savoie, France.
Rocamadour is a French cheese from the southwest part of the country. It is produced in the regions of Périgord and Quercy and takes its name from the village of Rocamadour in the département of the Lot.
Laguiole, sometimes called Tome de Laguiole, is a pressed uncooked French cheese from the plateau of Aubrac, situated at between 800 - 1400m, in the region of Aveyron in the southern part of France. It takes its name from the small town of Laguiole and has been protected under the French Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée (AOC) since 1961 and a Appellation d'origine protégée since 1996. Laguiole is said to have been invented at a monastery in the mountains of Aubrac in the 19th century. According to historical accounts, the monks passed down the recipe for making this cheese from cattle during the alpages to the local buronniers, the owners of burons, or mountain huts.
Ossau-Iraty is a Basque cheese made from sheep's milk.
Bergkäse refers to a number of varieties of cheese produced in the Alps. This includes products of mountain farming, the cultivation of alpine pastures as well as the milk processing of local producers in dairies. The term does not say much about the type or production method of the product called mountain cheese, which is usually a hard or semi-hard cheese with no or little holes, usually with a natural rind, but there are also semi-hard cheeses and soft cheeses under this designation. The term is used also generically for Swiss-type or Alpine cheeses, which resemble these in taste and texture but do not come from one of the traditional cheese making regions. The texture is rather hard, sometimes with small holes or cracks, the flavour strong and often a bit nutty.
Bleu des Causses is a French blue cheese made from whole cow's milk. Some consider it as a mild variant of Roquefort. The cheese has a fat content of 45% and is aged for 3–6 months in Gorges du Tarn's natural limestone caves. The ripening process involving naturally temperature-controlled cellars is the major element that gives it its special aroma. Today, it is a relatively rare cheese that is only made by a handful of small producers.
Tête de Moine AOP is a semi-hard cheese manufactured in Switzerland. It is classified as a Swiss-type or Alpine cheese, and was invented and initially produced more than eight centuries ago by the canons of the abbey of Bellelay, located in the community of Saicourt, district of Moutier, in the mountainous zone of the Bernese Jura, the French-speaking area of the Canton of Bern as well as the Canton of Jura.
Fourme de Montbrison is a cow's-milk cheese made in the regions of Rhône-Alpes and Auvergne in southern France. It derives its name from the town of Montbrison in the Loire department.
Chevrotin is a soft goat milk based cheese produced in the historical region of Savoy, (France). Since 2002 it has had an AOC designation.
In Switzerland, the appellation d'origine protégée is a geographical indication protecting the origin and the quality of traditional food products other than wines.
The protected designation of origin (PDO) is a type of geographical indication of the European Union aimed at preserving the designations of origin of food-related products. The designation was created in 1992 and its main purpose is to designate products that have been produced, processed and developed in a specific geographical area, using the recognized know-how of local producers and ingredients from the region concerned.
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