Best French Pasteurized Milk Cheese Types
Saint-Félicien is a soft French cheese originating from the region of Rhône-Alpes. The cheese is made from cow’s milk and has a creamy texture, while its flavor can be described as fruity, sour, nutty, and buttery. During the aging process, it develops a bloomy rind with a strong mushroomy aroma which does not really match the flavors of the cheese.
Due to its fragile nature, this cheese often comes packaged in small terracotta pots. It is recommended to pair it with crusty baguettes, olives, or a glass of red wine.
Often called the heavenly cheese, St. André is a French triple-crème cheese made from cow’s milk. It originated from Coutances in the region of Normandy. Underneath its bloomy edible rind, there is a dense, creamy-textured body with mild and rich aromas and flavors which can best be described as sour, tangy, buttery, and salty.
Because it is enhanced with the addition of heavy cream, its fat content is quite high - typically 75%. It is recommended to pair it with crusty bread, pear slices, or a glass of light and fruity rosé.
Originally known as Excelsior, Délice des Gourmets, or Le Magnum, this triple-cream cheese was first produced in the late 1800s near Forges-les-Eaux, Normandy. In the 1930s, to pay homage to an 18th-century gourmet Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, the famous French cheesemaker Henri Androuët renamed the cheese to Brillat-Savarin. Available year round throughout Normandy and Burgundy, Brillat-Savarin is a soft, white-crusted cow's milk cheese with at least 75% butterfat, and an edible snowy rind.
It is luscious, creamy, and neutral to faintly sour when fresh, but it can develop pronounced earthy flavors with longer aging. Like any other triple-crème cheese, Brillat-Savarin is best enjoyed with sparkling wines, and for a nice fruity twist, try pairing it with fresh berries.
THE BEST Brillat-Savarin Cheeses
Délice de Bourgogne is a French triple crème cheese originating from the region of Burgundy, hence the name. The cheese is made from cow’s milk and butterfat, and it has a fat content of 75%. Its texture is smooth and creamy, while the flavors are tangy, tart, salty, buttery, and mushroomy.
The rind is white, bloomy, and quite pungent. It is recommended to serve the cheese on its own or pair it with ciders and white wines.
Pair with
Saint Agur is a French cheese originating from Auvergne, particularly the village of Beauzac. This rindless blue cheese is made with cow's milk, and it is typically left to ripen in cellars for 60 days. The flavors are sharp, spicy, and fruity, while the aroma is intense and milky.
The texture of Saint Agur is very creamy and smooth, which is the reason why the cheese melts and spreads extremely well. It comes in an octagonal shape, reminiscent of basalt stones in Auvergne, so its shape acts as a tribute to its origin. Serve Saint Agur with figs, pears, and walnuts, or use it in dips and sauces.
Cabécou is a soft French cheese originating from the Midi-Pyrénées region. It is made from goat’s milk. Before it is wrapped in chestnut leaves and left to mature, the cheese is dipped in plum brandy and sprinkled with black pepper.
After about two weeks, blue mold develops on its thin rind. Cabécou’s texture is creamy and smooth, while its flavor is slightly tangy. It is recommended to pair it with a glass of Chardonnay.
Pair with
Tomme des Pyrénées is a semi-hard, cow's milk cheese from the Pyrénées region in France that must mature for at least 21 days before consumption. It is wrapped in a distinguishable black wax coating, which acts as a seal to prevent the air from coming in and thus stopping the maturation process.
Appreciated for its big, bold flavors, Tomme has a rubbery texture and buttery, salty, earthy taste with slight hints of sourness and undertones of mushrooms, garlic, onions, peanuts and beef bouillon that come forth once the cheese has melted in the mouth.
THE BEST Tomme des Pyrénées Cheeses
Époisses is a soft cheese made from cow's milk with a glossy rind, and a pale beige, creamy, slightly salty body. It must mature for at least 4 weeks before it is ready for consumption when its salty, spicy, and sweet flavors, and an intense, pungent aroma fully develop.
The cheese is so smelly that it's been banned on public transport in France, according to the BBC. Its natural, brick red glossy rind develops during the maturation process as it gets washed with water containing Marc de Bourgogne (an aged brandy from Burgundy). Époisses is sold in a wooden box in order to ease the transport and prevent the cheese from spilling out.
Pair with
THE BEST Époisses Cheeses
Buche de Chevre is a French cheese originating from the Poitou-Charentes region. Made from goat's milk, this soft cheese has a white color, bloomy rind, and a creamy, flaky texture. The flavors are tangy, earthy, and slightly sweet. The cheese is shaped into a log and it must mature for at least 7 days before consumption.
It is recommended to serve Buche de Chevre with crusty baguettes, fruit, or honey. The cheese can also be used in salads and quiches. Pair it with a glass of robust red Bordeaux wine or a glass of crisp white wine from the Loire Valley.
THE BEST Buche de Chevre Cheeses
Neufchâtel is a soft cheese with a white rind made from cow's milk in the humid Bray region in France and it can come in a variety of shapes - round, brick-shaped, square-shaped, or heart-shaped. This cheese is arguable the oldest in France, and it must mature for at least 10 days.
In terms of flavor, it is similar to Camembert, but saltier and more intense, with mushroomy and nutty flavors. The texture is grainy, and the cheese is usually used as a low-fat substitute for cream cheese. Neufchatel goes well with sparkling wines, and it is often consumed spread on a piece of crusty bread.
Pair with
THE BEST Neufchâtel Cheeses
TasteAtlas food rankings are based on the ratings of the TasteAtlas audience, with a series of mechanisms that recognize real users and that ignore bot, nationalist or local patriotic ratings, and give additional value to the ratings of users that the system recognizes as knowledgeable. For the “Top 99 French Pasteurized Milk Cheeses” list until March 21, 2025, 2,544 ratings were recorded, of which 2,024 were recognized by the system as legitimate. TasteAtlas Rankings should not be seen as the final global conclusion about food. Their purpose is to promote excellent local foods, instill pride in traditional dishes, and arouse curiosity about dishes you haven’t tried.