The AnyCheese Holiday Gift Guide

Soft Cheeses

Exploring soft cheeses, known for their distinct texture and production methods.

Clear Filters

Brie

Brie is a soft cow's milk cheese named after the French region it comes from, pale under a white mould rind. It runs 60 to 75 percent butterfat and tastes creamy, nutty and mushroom-like, with a faint acidity. The rind …

Country: France
Milk Type: Cow's milk
Texture: Buttery , Creamy , Smooth , Soft
Flavor: Nutty, Mushroom

Camembert

Camembert is a moist, soft, surface-ripened cow's milk cheese from Normandy, first made in the late 18th century. Penicillium camemberti gives it a white bloomy rind and a creamy interior, with a taste stronger and slightly more sour than brie.

Country: France
Milk Type: Cow's milk
Texture: Soft
Flavor: Slightly sour, stronger than brie

Taleggio

Taleggio is a semisoft Italian cheese with a washed, smear-ripened rind and a strong smell. The taste is milder than the aroma suggests, creamy and pale yellow inside, with an unusual fruity tang.

Country: Italy
Milk Type: Cow's milk
Texture: Soft
Flavor: Sweet, delicate, slightly sour

Blue

Blue cheese is any cheese made with edible mold cultures that form blue-green spots and veins through the paste. It ranges from mild and slightly sweet to salty and sharp, and from almost liquid to hard.

Country: France
Milk Type: Cow, Sheep, Goat
Texture: Creamy , Crumbly , Granular , Soft
Flavor: Sharp, Tangy, Savory, Salty, Pungent

Mascarpone

Mascarpone is a soft Italian dairy product made by coagulating cream with acid and heat, without rennet and without aging. Milky white and easy to spread, it is best known as the base of tiramisu.

Country: Italy
Milk Type: Cow's milk
Texture: Soft
Flavor: Buttery to slightly tangy

Arzúa-Ulloa

Arzúa-Ulloa is a soft cow's milk cheese from Galicia, Spain, protected as Arzúa-A Ulloa PDO. It is known for a thin yellow rind, a creamy pale paste, and a mild flavor that is slightly sweet and grassy.

Country: Spain
Milk Type: Cow's milk (raw or pasteurized)
Texture: Soft
Flavor: Slightly salty and pleasantly acidic, buttery and milky with nutty notes

Stracchino

Stracchino, also called crescenza, is an Italian cow's milk cheese made in Lombardy, Tuscany, Veneto, Friuli-Venezia Giulia and Liguria. It is eaten very young, with no rind, a soft creamy body and a mild, slightly acidic flavor.

Country: Italy
Milk Type: Cow
Texture: Soft
Flavor: Mild, slightly acidic

Banon

Banon is an unpasteurized goat cheese from Provence, sold as a small 100 g disc wrapped in chestnut leaves and tied with raffia. It ages about two weeks, gets dipped in eau de vie before wrapping, and has held AOC …

Country: France
Milk Type: Goat's milk
Texture: Soft
Flavor: Mild and intense, with notes of mushrooms and forest floor

Afuega'l Pitu

Afuega'l pitu is an unpasteurized cow's milk cheese from Asturias in northern Spain, sold plain white or paprika red. Its name translates as "strangle the chicken," and it holds Protected Designation of Origin status from Spain and the EU.

Country: Spain
Milk Type: Cow's milk
Texture: Soft
Flavor: Lactic, slightly sour, salted in fresh or hardly ripened cheeses; strong and spicy as ripening progresses

Anari

Anari is a fresh, mild whey cheese from Cyprus, made mostly from the whey left over from halloumi or kefalotyri. Soft and chalk-white when young, it is eaten with carob syrup or honey, or salted and dried into a hard …

Country: Cyprus
Milk Type: Goat's or sheep's milk
Texture: Soft
Flavor: Very mild nutty flavor

Chèvre (Goat Cheese)

Chèvre is the French name for cheese made from goat's milk. The classic French style is soft and creamy under a light colored rind, tart from the fatty acids in goat milk, and is sometimes served hot as chèvre chaud.

Country: France
Milk Type: Goat
Texture: Crumbly , Soft
Flavor: Tangy

Crescenza

Crescenza, also called stracchino, is an Italian cow's milk cheese from Lombardy, Tuscany, Veneto, Friuli-Venezia Giulia and Liguria. It is eaten very young and known for a rindless, very soft and creamy body with a mild, slightly acidic flavor.

Country: Italy
Milk Type: Cow
Texture: Soft
Flavor: Mild, slightly acidic

Abbaye de Tamié

Abbaye de Tamié is a soft cheese made from unpasteurised cow's milk by the monks of Tamié Abbey in Savoie, in the French Alps. It is close in style to Reblochon, with a saffron crust dusted in white down and …

Country: France
Milk Type: Cow's milk
Texture: Soft
Flavor: Nutty, milky, delicate to strong with age

Anevato

Anevato is a Greek fresh cheese made from sheep's milk, goat's milk or a blend of the two in the mountains of Grevena and Voio in Western Macedonia. It is white, spreadable and grainy like cottage cheese, lightly salty and …

Country: Greece
Milk Type: Ewe's or goat's milk or mixtures of both
Texture: Soft
Flavor: Pleasant sourish and refreshing flavor

Queso Blanco

Queso blanco is the white, fresh cheese of Latin America, made by curdling hot milk with an acid such as vinegar. No rennet or culture goes into it, and depending on the country it is crumbled over soups, fried as …

Milk Type: Cow
Texture: Soft

Chèvre Log

A goat cheese log is a smooth, creamy cheese made from goat's milk, shaped into a cylindrical form. It has a tangy, slightly tart flavor with a velvety texture that softens as it warms. Often served fresh, it pairs well …

Milk Type: Goat
Texture: Crumbly , Soft
Flavor: Tangy

Ash-Ripened Goat

Ash-Ripened Goat cheese is a soft cheese made from goat's milk, known for its creamy and smooth texture. It features an edible ash coating that gives it a light gray rind, adding a mild earthiness to its flavor profile. Inside, …

Milk Type: Goat
Texture: Soft

Artisanal Goat Cheese

Artisanal Goat Cheese is a soft cheese made from goat's milk. Its texture is creamy and smooth, making it easy to spread on bread or crackers. The flavor is tangy and slightly tart, characteristic of goat's milk cheeses, with a …

Milk Type: Goat
Texture: Soft

Was this page helpful?