Cheese of Paris : The Brie
Cheese Paris : There are between 1,200 and 2,380 varieties of French cheeses. However, it is really difficult to be able to say on an exact figure, considering that new varieties are created every year. In addition, there are a multitude of criteria to define the different types of cheese. Let’s have a closer look at cheeses around Paris.
France the country of cheese
A common reference system makes possible to compare the diversity of cheese production in European countries, where cheese has been part of the gastronomic heritage for thousands years. These are the appellations of origin :
- Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée (AOC) for controlled designation of origin
- Appellation d’Origine Protégée (AOP) for protected designation of origin
These define cheese specialties according to a set of know-how and organoleptic characteristics, while guaranteeing a link with a geographical origin of production. According to the European Commission census, France is the country with the greatest figure of 54 cheese appellations registered in June 2020. France is just ahead of Italy with its 53 appellations, followed by Spain (28 ) and Greece (21). The Brie is the second cheese most consumed in the world right after the Gouda (Netherlands).
Cheese Paris : The Brie by excellence
The cheese from Paris is the brie, well known abroad because it a creamy cheese with no strong smell. The Brie de Meaux is one of the most popular cheeses in France. Bries are an important family of soft cheeses with a bloomy rind, originating in the French region of Brie, nearby Paris. These soft cheeses are prepared from cow’s milk whose rind has a soft, even cottony texture.
- Brie de Meaux AOP, Île-de-France
- Brie de Melun AOP, Île-de-France
- Brie de Montereau, Île-de-France
- Brie de Nangis, Île-de-France
- Brie de Provins, Île-de-France
- Brie noir, Île-de-France
- Brie fermier, Île-de-France
- Brie de Melun bleu
- Brie petit moulé
- Brie laitier
- Brie truffé
- Coulommiers, Île-de-France
- Brie Mont Bebour, Réunion
Only Bries de Meaux and Bries de Melun are protected by a PDO Protected Designation of Origin.
Brie cheeses existed before the Roman invasion but their exact origin is unknown. Although retaining the same basic characteristics, including the preparation based on partially skimmed raw milk, different types of cheese have stood out over the centuries. It is a soft cow’s milk cheese with a bloomy rind, the production area of which extends to the departments of Seine-et-Marne, Hauts-de-Seine, Val-de -Marne, Seine-Saint-Denis, Paris, Aube, Yonne, Aisne, Loiret, Marne, Haute-Marne, Meuse.
Cheese Paris : Other popular Parisian cheeses
- The Bleu Cendré
- The Brillat Savarin
- The Jouvenceau
- The Dormoy
- The Petit Morin
- The Saint Jacques
- The Tomme de Saint Corentin
- The Nanteau
- The Petit Chèvre d’île de France
- The Fougerus
- The Camembert (from Normandy)
- The Roquefort (type of blue cheese from Aveyron)
- The Comté (from Franche Comté)
- The Cœur de Neufchâtel (from Normandy, one of the oldest French cheese)
- The Tomme de Savoie (from Savoie)
- The Sainte-Maure-de-Touraine (goat cheese from Centre – Val de Loire)
- The Emmental (from Franche-Comté, Rhône-Alpes, Champagne-Ardenne, Bourgogne et Lorraine
- The Mimolette (from North of France)
- The Reblochon (from Savoie)
- The Saint Marcellin (from Isère)
- The Vacherin Mont d’Or (from Jura)
- And much more !
The Brie de Meaux is supple; it has a subtle aroma of cream, butter and hazelnut. It is attested that Robert le Pieux, second Frankish king of the Capetian dynasty reigning from 996 to 1031, tasted Brie de Melun cheese at the Melun Castle in 999, a city South of Paris.
This traditional French cheese from Paris could be a specific Private Tour Guide, in the Seine et Marne, for a Brie tasting tour, a walk along the Marne river in the land of impressionist painters such as Cézanne, Corot, Pissarro, Rousseau and Millet, Van Gogh…, with a private driver. At the same time, go for a Champagne Tasting Tour sur la Route du Champagne.
Emy,
