x
  • Start Here
  • Free Keto Diet Plan
  • Keto Food Guide
  • Recipe Index
  • Meal Prep Course
  • Our Cookbooks
  • Our Ebooks
  • About The Keto Queens
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
cropped the keto queens logo

The Keto Queens

Making Keto Approachable

  • Recipe Index
    • Appetizers
    • Bread
    • Breakfast
    • Desserts
    • Drinks
    • Fat Bombs
    • Main Course
    • Salads
    • Sauces and Condiments
    • Side Dishes
    • Snacks
    • Soup
    • Spice Mixes
  • Blog
  • Travel
    • USA
    • Europe
  • About
    • About Faith
    • About The Keto Queens
    • Disclaimer
    • Accessibility Policy
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms and Conditions
  • Shop
    • Our Cookbooks
    • Our Ebooks
    • Meal Prep Course
  • Members Login
  • Keto 101:
  • Keto Diet Explained
  • Beginner’s Guide
  • Keto Food List
  • Meal Prep
  • Keto Meal Plan
  • Low Carb Guide to Eating Out
Home Travel Europe France

French Cheese

cheese in france featured image
Posted on September 4, 2019 By Faith Gorsky

After spending a month in Paris, we want to share all the insider information we gathered about French Cheese! Think past Brie and Camembert; you’ll love the nuttiness of Comté, the creamy earthiness of Brilliant-Savarin, and the crumbly, creamy tang of Roquefort.

Assorted French Cheeses in Cheese Shop

France is known world-wide for her cheese, and for good reason! With well over 1000 different types of French cheese, there’s a cheese to suit every taste. We’re going to talk about a few ways in which French cheese is classified, as well as where you can buy it.

And did you know, there are several quotes about French cheese by famous people?

  • “Any country with 300 cheeses cannot die.” – Winston Churchill
  • “How do you want to govern a country where there are more than 300 types of cheese?” – Charles de Gaulle
  • “Tell me what you eat and I will tell you what you are.” – Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin

Read more about famous French cheese quotes on A Year in Fromage and Wikipedia.

In This Article

  • How Many Types of Cheese Are There in France?
  • French Cheese List
  • Best French Cheese
  • Cheese Shop Paris
  • French Cheese Shop – Fromagerie
  • French Cheese Board
  • Tips for Keto Success

How Many Types of Cheese Are There in France?

Brin d'Amour Cheese on Wooden Board

Several sources say that there are over 1600 different types of French cheese (see Wikipedia and About France). There are a few different ways that cheeses are grouped into categories.

Langres and Neufchatel Cheeses on Wooden Shelf in Cheese Shop

The three families of French cheese are:

  1. Pressed cheeses
  2. Soft cheeses
  3. Blue cheeses

There are three different types of milk used to make French cheese:

  1. Sheep’s milk (ewe’s milk)
  2. Goat’s milk
  3. Cow’s milk

Additionally, cheese is classified by the way it’s manufactured:

  1. Fermier: Made on the farm with milk that was produced on the farm
  2. Artisanal: Relatively small-batch cheese production made with milk that was produced on the farm, and possibly also from other local farmers
  3. Cooperative: Local milk producers join together and make cheese using their milk
  4. Industrial: Factory-made with local or regional milk
Langres Fermier Cheese

AOC (Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée)

This is the French protected designation of origin. French law specifies the region and commune in which a given product must be manufactured.

According to Wikipedia, “AOC products can be identified by a seal, which is printed on the label in wines, and with cheeses, on the rind. To prevent any possible misrepresentation, no part of an AOC name may be used on a label of a product not qualifying for that AOC.”

French Cheese List

We’re going to break down French cheese based on the three families: pressed cheeses, soft cheeses, and blue cheeses.

Tartuffo Cheese on Shelf in French Cheese Shop

Pressed Cheeses

This type of cheese is hard and sliceable, and is made from cow’s milk. Pressed cheeses are either “cooked” (where heat is applied during production) or “uncooked”.

Examples of pressed cheeses include:

  • Comté
  • Cantal
  • Emmental
  • Mimolette

Soft Cheeses

Top View of Different Types of Fromage au Lait Cru on Top of Straw in French Cheese Shop

A few soft French cheeses include:

  • Brie
  • Brillat-Savarin
  • Camembert
  • Muenster
  • Neufchâtel
  • Saint Nectaire
  • Époisses de Bourgogne

Blue Cheeses

And here are some French blue cheeses:

  • Roquefort
  • Bleu des Causses
  • Bleu d’Auvergne
Selles sur Cher Cheese in French Cheese Shop

Best French Cheese

Saint Felicien Cheese on Shelf in Paris Cheese Shop

As with anything else, someone’s idea of what is the best French cheese is very subjective and varies based on a person’s individual tastes. Lara and Faith both enjoy the buttery richness and slight nuttiness of a double cream Brie.

Soft, crumbly, and tangy Chèvre Lara’s everyday go-to cheese for crumbling on things like salads and steaks. Faith’s all-time favorite is Saint-Félicien with a creamy, liquidy interior, bloomy rind, and nutty, subtly mushroomy flavor. Her favorite way to eat it is with a spoon or paired with strawberries. 

Pro Tip: Buy a small amount of a few different cheeses so you can try them and see which is your favorite!

Brocciu Passu Cheese on Shelf in Barthelemy Cheese Shop

Cheese Shop Paris

Paris is full of incredible cheese shops! The best way to find a great French cheese shop in Paris is to do a quick Google search based on your location. Look at the photos, read the reviews, and then once you find a place that looks good on Google, head to Trip Advisor and Yelp to read the reviews there.

Pro Tip: Find out where the locals go and shop there! The lines are usually longer (sometimes coming out the door), but the quality and selection is worth it.

Fromagerie Case in Marche d'Aligre Paris

French Cheese Shop – Fromagerie

In French, the word “fromagerie” refers to a cheese shop. These are our personal favorite French cheese shops (aka fromageries) in Paris.

Barthélemy

51 Rue de Grenelle, 75007 Paris (7th Arrondissement)

Outside of Barthelemy Fromagerie

During the month that Faith and Lara were in Paris, this was their go-to cheese shop because they were just a five minute walk way. It’s a small shop, but it’s completely loaded with a large variety of cheese as well as other dairy products, such as butter. Faith regularly bought a round of Saint-Félicien, Lara frequently tried a different kind of goat cheese, and we both enjoyed their amazing butter.

La Fromagerie

25 Rue d’Aligre, 75012 Paris (12ème Arrondissement)

Interior of La Fromagerie Cheese Shop in Paris

Above: Interior of La Fromagerie Cheese Shop

There are three things we love about this cheese shop: 1) the prices are rock bottom, 2) the selection is huge, and 3) its located along the street of part of the outdoor market of Marché d’Aligre.

Pro Tip: When you go to La Fromagerie to stock up on reasonably priced cheese, stay a while and wander around Marché d’Aligre. There you’ll find: fresh flowers; a huge variety of fresh fruit and vegetables; charcuterie; fish; meat; pastries and bread; a huge assortment of olives; and even a small outdoor flea market.

French Cheese Board

French Cheese Board with 4 Types of Cheese

Pictured in this French cheese board (clockwise from top right): Chèvre cheese, herbed green olives, sun-dried tomatoes, Muenster cheese, Comté cheese, rosemary and olive oil Pili nuts, Saint-Félicien cheese, pickled garlic, and marinated mushrooms.

When putting together a French cheese board, there is almost an endless variety of different cheeses you could include. Go with three to four different kinds of cheeses, and then add a variety of fresh fruit, dried fruit, olives, nuts, pickles, sugar free jams (like sugar free strawberry jam!), low carb crackers, etc.

We have a whole post on How to Make a Cheese Board!

Mobile Phone Photography of French Cheese Board

Or just go with one kind of cheese and pair it with charcuterie, olives, cornichons, and stone-ground mustard.

Charcuterie and Goat Cheese Tray for One

Tips for Keto Success

Save Money and Jumpstart Keto

If you found this post and you’re ready to start a keto diet, check out our 5 Day Budget Keto Meal Plan to get into ketosis fast! You’ll get 5 days worth of recipes and eat for under $5 per day!

5 day budget plan jumpstart

4 Week Keto Meal Plan

For something a little longer term, you might be interested in our 4 week keto meal prep course. It comes with 4 weeks of keto meal plans (1200, 1500, and 1800 calorie levels), weekly keto grocery lists, 40 keto recipe ebook, how to meal prep ebook, videos, and more!

keto meal prep course

Keto Recipe Inspiration

Or if you’ve been doing keto for a while and just need a little help with inspiration, we’ve got you covered! Check out our low carb and keto recipe collection.

We love hearing from you!

If you like this post, share it with your mom, bestie, hubs, or wife! Or bookmark it to easily find it later.

You can also tag #theketoqueens on social media.

To stay up-to-date, Follow us on Instagram @therealketoqueens, Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter.

I want to start keto!

Let's do this together! In a month you'll be happy you started. Take it one step at a time:

  1. Read this article about keto. It'll answer a ton of your questions.
  2. Calculate your macros. It's easy and we'll walk you through it.
  3. Find out what foods are keto. It's more than you might think!
  4. Put together your keto meal plan. Go with recipes you love, and try some new things too.
  5. Make your keto shopping list.
  6. Grocery shop. Cook. Enjoy. And reap the benefits of keto.

Connect and stay in touch!

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Free 3 Day Meal Plan

Reader Interactions

Share Your Thoughts Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

Welcome

Hi! I'm Faith.

Hello! Whether you’re a keto newbie, already keto-adapted, or just keto-curious, you’re in the right place. Here at The Keto Queens, we share keto lifestyle tips, informative tidbits, and of course tasty low carb and keto recipes that your whole family will love. We want to inspire you, and show you that you can do this! Welcome to the family.

Read More About The Keto Queens


Facebook


Instagram


Pinterest


YouTube


Youtube

Find a Recipe

Or browse the Recipe Index

Don't miss out!

Get free keto recipes and lifestyle tips delivered to your inbox.

Subscribe »

Books

keto junk food cookbook cover
keto drinks cookbook cover
the keto meal plan cookbook resized to 750
Keto Bread cookbook Cover
keto power bowls cookbook cover

More Keto Books

Related Posts

churches featured imageMust-Visit Cathedrals, Churches, and Basilicas in Paris
france restaurant hacks featured imageLow Carb Restaurant Hacks in France

Ultimate Keto Diet Ebook Bundle
keto meal prep course side bar image

The Keto Queens is monetized in part though affiliate links, and as an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. This means that if you click on an affiliate link and/or purchase an item after clicking on an affiliate link, The Keto Queens may receive a percentage of the sales price. We only recommend products that we love and use. To learn more, please read our Privacy Policy.

FacebookTweetPinYummly

Featured On

Let's Connect

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Don’t miss out!
Get free keto recipes and lifestyle tips delivered to your inbox.

Newsletter Signup

shop
recipes
blog
about
contact
disclaimer | accessibility | privacy policy

The Keto Queens is monetized in part though affiliate links, and as an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. This means that if you click on an affiliate link and/or purchase an item after clicking on an affiliate link, The Keto Queens may receive a percentage of the sales price. We only recommend products that we love and use. To learn more, please read our Privacy Policy.
© 2023 The Keto Queens

Copyright © 2023 · The Keto Queens