Culture10 French Cheeses to Celebrate Bastille Day
Charles de Gaulle once said it was impossible to govern a country with over 250 types of cheese. He was wrong — France produces more than 3,500. Bastille Day is the perfect excuse to dig into the ones that matter most — the cheeses that define each region's terroir and have earned their place on tables for centuries. We ranked these ten by their average rating from the Fromag community. Here's what to seek out this July 14th.
1. Beaufort
Savoie — 4.81★
Known as the "Prince of Gruyères" — a title gastronome Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin gave it in his 1825 book Physiologie du Goût — Beaufort is a hard Alpine cheese made from the milk of Tarine and Abondance cows grazing high mountain pastures. Traditional producers still cook the milk in copper vats over an open wood fire, a technique that shapes its dense, smooth paste and lends it fruity, floral notes with a slight sweetness — the result of strict production standards that limit each cow's daily milk yield to preserve quality.
2. Camembert de Normandie
Normandy — 4.75★
France's most iconic export. Camembert de Normandie is a small, soft-ripened cow's milk cheese with a bloomy white rind and a rich, almost custardy interior. Traditional producers still ladle the curd by hand — a technique that keeps more moisture and flavor locked inside than industrial versions.
3. Époisses
Burgundy — 4.54★
Washed in Marc de Bourgogne brandy during aging, Époisses develops a sticky, orange rind and an intensely pungent aroma that belies its soft, savory, almost meaty interior. Napoleon reportedly loved it. According to urban legend, it's banned on the subway for being too smelly.
4. Reblochon
Savoie — 4.50★
A washed-rind, semi-soft cow's milk cheese from the Alps with a nutty, creamy flavor and a faint tang. Historically, farmers under-milked their cows for tax collectors, then finished the job after inspection — the extra-rich second milk became Reblochon, whose name comes from the old French for "to milk again." It's the heart of tartiflette.
5. Brie de Meaux
Île-de-France — 4.42★
Legend has it Brie de Meaux was Charlemagne's favorite cheese. This soft, bloomy-rind cow's milk cheese is buttery and grassy when young, developing mushroomy, earthy depth as it ripens. Unlike the mass-produced brie found in most supermarkets, the AOP version is made from raw milk and ladled by hand into molds.
6. Comté
Franche-Comté — 4.38★
The most-eaten AOP cheese in France. Comté is a raw cow's milk cheese made high in the Jura mountains, where herds graze on Alpine grasses and wildflowers. Aged anywhere from 4 months to 3 years, it moves from mild and nutty to deep, caramelized, and crystalline. No two wheels taste alike — a single dairy can produce a range of flavor profiles depending on the season's grass.
7. Crottin de Chavignol
Loire Valley — 4.33★
A small, cylindrical goat's cheese from the Loire, known for its clean, tangy, lightly acidic flavor when young. As it ages, the paste firms up and the flavor intensifies into something nutty and sharp. Locals pair it with the region's crisp Sancerre wines — a classic terroir match, since the goats and the grapes share the same chalky soil.
8. Roquefort
Aveyron — 4.19★
The king of French blues. Roquefort is made from raw sheep's milk and aged exclusively in the limestone caves of Combalou, where natural drafts and Penicillium roqueforti mold work together. The result is sharp, salty, and tangy, with a crumbly texture that melts into rich, buttery pockets.
9. Cantal
Auvergne — 4.06★
One of the oldest cheeses in France, with a history dating back over 2,000 years. Cantal is a firm, uncooked cow's milk cheese similar in style to a young cheddar — buttery, slightly tangy, with a clean, milky finish. It's produced in massive wheels, some weighing over 40 kilograms.
10. Munster
Alsace — 4.00★
A pungent, washed-rind cow's milk cheese made near the Vosges mountains since the 7th century, when monks first developed it as a way to preserve milk. Beneath the strong aroma is a surprisingly mild, creamy, slightly salty paste. Alsatians traditionally eat it with boiled potatoes and cumin seeds.
Whatever you're pouring on the 14th — a crisp rosé, a bold Burgundy, or just a cold beer — build a board around a few of these and you'll have a taste of France worth toasting to. Vive la fromage.