Cheese Varieties: A Comprehensive Overview Of Different Cheeses

Cheese is a dairy product that comes in a variety of textures, flavours, and forms. There are approximately 2,000 types of cheese produced globally, with 750 different types of cheese made in the UK alone. The different types of cheese are categorised based on their texture, flavour, and production methods.

The most common types of cheese include fresh, soft, semi-soft, semi-hard, and hard cheese. Fresh cheeses are unaged and have a high moisture content. Soft cheeses have a complex flavour and creamy texture, while semi-soft cheeses are pliable with a moderate moisture content. Semi-hard cheeses have a firm yet sliceable texture, and hard cheeses are dense and crumbly.

Cheese is a versatile ingredient that can be used in a variety of dishes, from salads and pizzas to grilled cheese sandwiches and charcuterie boards.

Blue, hard, pasta filata, processed, semi-hard, semi-soft, soft, and fresh cheeses

There are many different types of cheese, which can be grouped or classified according to criteria such as length of fermentation, texture, production method, fat content, animal source of the milk, and country or region of origin. The most common traditional categorization is based on moisture content, which is then further narrowed down by fat content and curing or ripening methods.

Blue Cheese

Blue cheese is a general classification of cheeses that have had cultures of the mold Penicillium added so that the final product is spotted or veined throughout with blue, or blue-grey mold, and carries a distinct smell. Blue cheese can be eaten by itself or can be spread, crumbled, or melted into or over foods. Some examples of blue cheese include Gorgonzola, Roquefort, and Stilton.

Hard Cheese

Hard cheese goes through a longer aging process and has lower moisture content than other types of cheese, which makes them crumbly and dry. They are often consumed in grated form. Examples of hard cheese include Parmigiano-Reggiano, Grana Padano, and Pecorino.

Pasta Filata Cheese

Pasta filata, or 'spun paste' in English, is a technique in the manufacture of a family of Italian cheeses, also known as stretched-curd, pulled-curd, and plastic-curd cheeses. The curd is steeped in a bath of very hot whey or water, and once it begins to float, most of the liquid is removed and the curd is mixed and kneaded until a soft, elastic, stringy texture is obtained. Some examples of pasta filata cheese include mozzarella, provolone, and halloumi.

Processed Cheese

Processed cheese is made from traditional cheese and emulsifying salts, often with the addition of milk, more salt, preservatives, and food coloring. Its texture is consistent, and it melts smoothly. It is sold packaged and either pre-sliced or unsliced. Processed cheese was first developed in Switzerland in 1911 and has a longer shelf life than natural cheese.

Semi-Hard Cheese

Semi-hard cheeses include the familiar Cheddar, one of a family of semi-hard or hard cheeses whose curd is cut, gently heated, piled, and stirred before being pressed into forms. The moisture content of semi-hard cheeses is between 45–50% of its dry weight. Examples of semi-hard cheese include Gouda, Edam, and Monterey Jack.

Semi-Soft Cheese

Semi-soft cheeses can be shredded, sliced, and cubed. They have some stretch and can be broiled and browned. Their melting ability makes them ideal for sauces, soups, casseroles, and roulades. Examples of semi-soft cheese include Havarti, Munster, and Mozzarella.

Soft and Fresh Cheese

Soft and fresh cheeses are often spreadable, with a mild flavor. They are generally produced in a cool and humid environment and tend to have very short maturation periods. Examples of soft and fresh cheese include cream cheese, cottage cheese, and mascarpone.

Cheeses made from cow's milk

Cow's milk is the most commonly used dairy in cheese production. The relatively high-fat content (3.25%) and general abundance make it an ideal dairy for making cheese.

Hard cheeses

Hard cheeses are pressed for days to weeks to remove the whey and compact the curd. They tend to have a strong flavour and low moisture content. Some examples of hard cheeses made from cow's milk include:

• Cheddar
• Gruyere
• Parmesan

Semi-hard cheeses

Semi-hard cheeses have a lower moisture content than soft cheeses. They are moulded and aged under pressure, drying them out. Examples of semi-hard cheeses made from cow's milk include:

• Cheddar
• Colby
• Edam
• Emmental
• Gouda
• Gruyere
• Jarlsberg
• Monterey Jack

Soft and fresh cheeses

Soft-fresh cheese varieties are not pressed like harder cheeses. Instead, the whey is gravity-drained, and the cheese is not age-hardened. This gives soft-fresh varieties their high moisture content, making them spreadable. Types in this category that are made from cow's milk include:

• Cottage cheese
• Cream cheese
• Feta
• Mascarpone
• Neufchatel
• Queso blanco
• Ricotta

Soft-ripened cheeses

Soft-ripened cheeses are noted for the penicillin candidum mould that gives them their hard white "crust". Examples of soft-ripened cheeses made from cow's milk include:

• Brie
• Camembert

Pasta filata or stretched curd cheeses

Pasta filata or stretched curd cheeses are made by soaking the curd in water until it is sufficiently elastic that the cheese can be kneaded and stretched to give it a chewy elastic texture. Examples of pasta filata or stretched curd cheeses made from cow's milk include:

• Halloumi
• Mozzarella
• Provolone

Blue cheeses

Blue cheeses are made by adding penicillium mould, which reacts with the curds to give them a funky taste and distinct blue colour. Examples of blue cheeses made from cow's milk include:

• Gorgonzola
• Roquefort
• Stilton

Cheeses made from goat's milk

There are hundreds of types of cheese from various countries, and they can be categorised in many ways, including by the type of milk used to make them. Goats' milk is used to make cheese, and there are myriad varieties of goats' milk cheeses produced around the world.

Goats' milk cheese can be pungent, tangy, salty, sweet, or mild in flavour, and can have a crumbly, creamy, sticky, runny, or hard texture.

Some goats' milk cheeses are similar in texture to cow's milk cheeses such as feta or ricotta, while others are unique. For example, kemariya is a variety of smooth white cheese traditionally made with goats' milk by local women from the indigenous Wilaya community in southern Algeria. It can also be made with cows' or camels' milk.

Goats' milk is also used to make some well-known cheeses, such as feta, which is a brined curd white cheese made only in Greece, from sheep's milk, or a mixture of sheep and goats' milk.

Other goats' milk cheeses include:

• Anari: a type of goats' milk cheese.
• Añejo: a firm, aged Mexican cheese traditionally made from skimmed goats' milk, but most often available made from skimmed cows' milk.
• Anthotyros: a traditional Greek whey cheese.
• Banon: a French goats' milk cheese.
• Bastardo del Grappa: an Italian goats' milk cheese.
• Brunost: a Norwegian brown goats' milk cheese with a sweet flavour profile. When made with cows' milk, it is known as Geitost.
• Bucheron: a goats' milk cheese native to the Loire Valley in France.
• Castelo Branco: a goats' milk cheese from Portugal.
• Circassian smoked cheese.
• Crottin de Chavignol.
• Faisselle: a non-protected French cheese made of raw milk from goats, cows, or sheep.
• Gbejna friska: a fresh cheeselet similar to ricotta in texture, native to the Maltese Islands.
• Gbejna tal bzar: the same as Gbejna friska, but aged and coated in black pepper, and native to the Maltese Islands.
• Gbejna mghoxxa: the same as the fresh Gbejna friska, but left to air dry, and native to the Maltese Islands.
• Humboldt Fog: a goats' milk cheese from Cypress Grove, California.
• Le Chevrot: a mould/yeast-ripened goats' milk cheese from France.
• Majorero: a Spanish goats' milk cheese similar to Manchego. It is protected under European Law with Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) status.
• Picón Bejes-Tresviso.
• Pouligny-Saint-Pierre.
• Sainte-Maure de Touraine.
• Selles-sur-Cher.
• Ardagh Castle Cheese.
• Ardsallagh Goat Farm.
• Chaubier: a French goats' milk cheese made from half goats' milk and half cows' milk.
• Cooleeney Farmhouse Cheese.
• Garrotxa: a dense and aged goats' milk cheese from Catalonia, Spain.
• Nababbo: an Italian goats' milk cheese.
• Queso de Murcia al Vino PDO: a Spanish goats' milk cheese.
• Ticklemore: a goats' milk cheese from Devon, England.

Cheeses made from sheep's milk

Sheep's milk cheeses are known for their sharply defined flavours and textures, making them ideal for standalone snacking. They can be paired with red wine, or served with briny olives and fresh fruit. Here are some examples of cheeses made from sheep's milk:

Brebisrousse d'Argental

This French cheese has a vegetal, wet wool aroma, with a flavour of butter and seawater, and a hint of wool sweater. It has a rich, thick, fatty texture, similar to the best Velveeta.

Rivertown from Many Fold Farm

This American cheese has a roasted garlic and porcini mushroom aroma, with a creamy, mushroom and garlic flavour. It has a sticky, gooey texture.

Berkswell Exported by Neal's Yard Dairy

Produced in England, this cheese has a whiff of fish aroma, with a strawberry shortcake flavour in the spring and a lamby flavour in the fall. It has a dense yet powdery texture.

Pecorino Toscano

Commonly sold as "young" Pecorino Toscano, this Italian cheese has a mild, tangy milk aroma, a briny tang flavour, and a firm yet creamy and moist texture.

Manchego

Produced in Spain, Manchego has a butterscotch aroma and flavour, with the possibility of gaminess. It has a chunky, oily yet dry texture.

Roncal

Also produced in Spain, Roncal has a woolly aroma and a lamb chop fat cap flavour. It has a pressed and granular texture.

Queso de la Serena

Also from Spain, this cheese has a vaguely woolly and sour aroma, a floral and pleasantly bitter flavour, and a panna cotta texture.

Fiore Sardo

Fiore Sardo, also from Italy, has a sheepy aroma, an intensely salty flavour with more going on, and a firm and moist but flaky texture.

Pecorino Romano

Pecorino Romano, also from Italy, has a sheepy aroma, an intensely salty flavour, and a firm and moist but flaky texture.

Roquefort

This French cheese is considered the Champagne of Cheese. It has a damp, dark mushrooms and hidden subterranean rivers aroma, with a sweet, salty cream, mushroom and fruity acid pop flavour. It has a tempered butter texture.

Beenleigh Blue

Bryndza Podhalańska

Castelo Branco

Cazelle de Saint Affrique

Fine Fettle Yorkshire

Pecorino di Carmasciano

Picón Bejes-Tresviso

Serra da Estrela

Wensleydale

These are some additional examples of sheep's milk cheeses.

Cheeses made in the UK

The UK is home to a plethora of cheeses, with over 700 named British cheeses produced across the country. From the classic cheddars and stiltons to innovative new creations, British cheese is stepping out of the shadows of its French neighbours and becoming a force to be reckoned with in the world of cheese.

One of the most well-known British cheeses is Cheddar, with its sharp, tangy flavour and dry, crumbly texture. The longer it matures, the drier and more crumbly it becomes. A good cheddar will have a hint of crystal caused by long maturing, and a strong, tangy flavour. Some of the best cheddars include the Black Bomber extra-mature cheddar from Wales, the Westcombe Cheddar, and the Hand-Selected Pitchfork Somerset Cheddar.

Another classic British cheese is Stilton, which comes in two varieties: Blue, which has had Penicillium Roqueforti added to generate a characteristic smell and taste, and White, which has not. A good Stilton will be rich and buttery, and one of the finest available is the Colston Bassett Stilton.

Beyond these classics, there are many more British cheeses to discover. For a soft, white cheese, try the Brie-style Baron Bigod from Suffolk, or the Cornish Yarg from Cornwall. If you're after something a little stronger, the Renegade Monk from Somerset is a soft blue cheese washed in ale, or try the Shropshire Blue, a dense but crumbly cheese inspired by Stilton but more akin to Cheshire in texture. For a Scottish cheese, the Corra Linn is a Manchego-style cheese made with raw sheep's milk in Lanarkshire. And if you're feeling adventurous, try the Stinking Bishop, perhaps the UK's most notorious cheese, known for its distinctive odour.

British cheesemakers are also innovating with new creations. For something truly unique, try the Isle of Wight Blue, a naturally rinded soft blue cheese and a must for all cheese lovers. Or, for a whisky-washed soft cheese, the East London Cheese Board recommends a whisky-washed cheese from a collaboration between cheesemaker David Jowett, cider maker Tom Oliver and Cellarman Sam.

Frequently asked questions