I'm planning a trip to Europe for next Spring and am looking for suggestions of cheeses to try and cheese shops to visit...any suggestions? I'm interested in the following info:
1. Name and description of the taste of the cheese.
2. Where in Europe the cheese comes from.
3. Names of cheese shops and locations of where the cheese shops are.
Buon Apetito!

France, Italy, England??? Just where are you traveling?

Italy is mandatory, otherwise the itinerary is open. I thought that this idea of a "Cheese Tour" might bring some interesting locations to my attention.

Just don't drink wine with cheese. Or is that soda? Or, is that ice cold soda? I am soooo confused!

Of course France and Switzerland come to mind right away, but my favorite..

Serra Cheese, from Portugal. Creamy, buttery, mmmmmmmmmmmm. (I got it in Sintra, and ate it sitting out on my patio in the old town overlooking the palace. Pure heaven.)

The best cheese I've tasted is in The Netherlands.

My favorite is Epoisses from Burgundy.
http://tinyurl.com/j663h
As this site says, it is the only cheese so pungent that it is forbidden to take it on the Paris Metro.

It is really yummy, though.

Enjoy,

Kaneohe, are you from Kaneohe? If so, I should tell you that Epoisses is available at Foodland (Beretania).

I had a very good (but expensive) experience at Neal's Yard Dairy in London. They let you sample cheeses, and I was really surprised at some of the goat- and sheeps-milk cheese they had. Any preconceived notions of stinky cheese you have, should be thrown out the window.

Like SurferX, I also liked the cheese in the Netherlands. I went on a tour that included a cheese farm, and the cheese was so creamy. It LOOKED like the kind of gouda you might find in the US, but it wasn't....

If you really do a cheese tour, I'd hate to see you when you get home and realize that the American stuff is crap!

Hi

The Norwegian brown goat cheese is very good. It is sweet and it is sold in all the stores in Norway and most Norwegian eats it on a piece of bread. There are three types Geitost, Gudbrandsdalsost and Fløtemysost. The one called Geitost is made from just goat milk and has a stronger flavour.

Regards
Gard
http://gardkarlsen.com - trip reports and pictures

The best cheese I had was in the Netherlands also. We stopped at a cheese and wooden shoes farm on the way out of Amsterdam toward Cologne(Koln) and had free tasting of four different cheeses. I still have some of the cheese but I don't have the label anymore, sorry. This is definitely the way to go.

Baldworth

Kaneohe
In France they have more than 365 distinct different cheeses. You could try one each day for a year. Maybe you have more vacation, I think they have a couple of cheeses extra.

All of the French cheeses are good but some of them are very good.

Blackduff

Since Italy is mandatory, it seems like a trip to Parma makes sense. Visit a parmesan reggiano factory (cheesery?). Don't quite know what to call a place that produces cheese.


My favorite cheese in Italy was Pecorino Romano.

Artvark
You'll need some Grana Padano with the Pecorino if you want to make Pesto. I've a bunch of Pesto which uses both and it's made in Heaven.

Blackduff

As the guy says 355 cheeses in france. France operates an AC on cheese (like AC for wine) as they argue that the taste comes from the cows, the feed to the cows, the way the cows are milked, the way the whey is handled -))the maturation process etc. True AC camembert from Normandy is my tops kept out of the fridge for 2 weeks begins to make it very runny (in supermarkets watch out for deep frozen cheese) and in supermarkets open the camembert package and push the bottom, its not ripe until your finger goes easily in. Once in the Camembert area or the Tourist web site for camembert(it is a region as well) you will find a route de fromage (a cheese road) and can visit little farms where the stuff is made and as long as you are not pregnant you can eat it.

Wow, at this point I just have to stop for some Wensleydale.

Fancy a cheese gromit!

Hi K,

Excellent cheeses are found in Ireland, Wales, England, Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, FRANCE, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Germany, Greece, Bulgaria.

Hope this helps you plan your visit.

A very useful source of information for you would be "The Cheese Primer" by Steven Jenkins. It has great info on cheeses from all over the world.

My favorite is Pecorino Romano, but I also love Parmesan.

Tracy

Another of my favourite Italian cheese not mentioned here yet is dolcelatte. It's a very creamy blue-veined cheese. Think cross between camembert and gorgonzola. Not too strong, great with ripe pears. Fontina or taleggio are also very nice Italian cheese. Especially I love mature, almost runny taleggio.
For UK, I like Innes Button (very light fresh goat cheese), Sage Derby (pretty contrasting colour), Wensleydale (the one with fruits). Some people rave about Stinking Bishop (which is a wash-type cheese) though I'm not particularly a big fan.
If you're going to Switzerland, don't miss cheese-making demonstration at Gruyere.

I find Pecorino Romano to be much too salty. I love the Parmesan here in Naples. Of course, I go against my residence when I say I dislike Mozarella di Buffala (ducks to avoid getting hit). I prefer sharp, dry cheese, nobody younger than 22 months gets past my teeth!! The mozarella is too wet-- it sort of bleeds when you cut it and has a soft, chewy texture... not for me, but many others love it.

Go parmesan!!!

Camembert from Normandy, in Normandy. Wonderful!