The Best French Cheeses for Fall and Winter, and How to Serve Them

Any good fromager will tell you that cheese is not the same all year round. As the herds move from high summer pastures down to their winter barns, the milk changes with them, growing richer and higher in fat as the cold sets in. This is why autumn and winter give us some of the most comforting cheese in the French calendar: unctuous, deep, and made for slow evenings by candlelight.

Here are six of the best French cheeses for fall and winter, and how to serve them.

For Autumn

1. Comté

Perhaps the most cherished cheese in all of France, Comté is a firm pressed cheese from the Jura, made in vast wheels from the milk of Montbéliarde cows. Aged from a few months to several years, it deepens with time into something nutty and complex, the oldest wheels carrying tiny crunches of flavor within.

How to serve it: Slice it into thin batons, cutting so that each piece carries a little of both the heart and the rind.

What to pair it with: Walnuts, a cluster of grapes, and a glass of white wine from its native Jura, a Savagnin or a Côtes du Jura.

2. Roquefort

As the season turns toward bolder flavors, few cheeses answer like Roquefort. This blue is made from raw sheep’s milk in the south and matured in the limestone caves of Roquefort-sur-Soulzon, where the natural cave environment gives the cheese its blue veining and its sharp, saline character.

How to serve it: Cut it gently with a wire cutter so the delicate paste does not crumble, giving each portion a share of the veined heart.

What to pair it with: A drizzle of honey or a spoonful of fig preserve to temper the salt, and a glass of Sauternes, whose sweetness is its classic foil.

3. Saint-Nectaire

From the volcanic Monts-Dore of the Auvergne, Saint-Nectaire is a semi-soft washed-rind cheese, supple and earthy, with gentle aromas of hay and mushrooms, balanced by fresh, milky notes and hints of hazelnuts. Its mottled orange-grey rind gives way to a soft, mellow interior that feels made for autumn.

How to serve it: Cut it into wedges from the centre outward, so each guest receives a little of both the rind and the heart.

What to pair it with: A rustic country bread, a handful of hazelnuts, and a supple red from the Auvergne or a light Loire white.

For Winter

4. Vacherin Mont d’Or

The undisputed jewel of winter. Made only from mid-August to mid-March, this soft cow’s milk cheese from the Jura is bound in a band of spruce bark, which holds it as it ripens and lends it a delicate resinous, woodland scent. At its peak, it is soft enough to be eaten with a spoon, straight from the wooden box that holds it.

How to serve it: Serve it at room temperature with a spoon, or for pure indulgence, score the top, add a splash of white wine, and warm it in its box until molten.

What to pair it with: Warm potatoes and crusty bread for dipping, and a glass of the region’s white wine of a Vin Jaune from the Jura.

5. Beaufort

Often called the prince of Gruyères, Beaufort is a firm pressed cheese from the Savoie Alps, golden and fruity with a smooth, supple texture. Its finest expression, Beaufort d’Alpage, is made in summer from the milk of high mountain pastures, then aged into the colder months when it comes into its own.

How to serve it: Cut into fine slices, taking care that each carries a little of the rind, and let it sit at room temperature to release its full fruitiness.

What to pair it with: Dried apricots and nuts on a board, or melted into a Savoyard fondue, alongside a crisp Alpine white such as an Apremont.

6. Époisses

Bold, glorious, and not for the timid. Époisses is a soft washed-rind cheese from Burgundy, its rind bathed in marc de Bourgogne, the local pomace brandy, as it matures, which gives it a burnished orange coat and a famously powerful aroma. Beneath lies an interior so soft and creamy it is best served with a spoon.

How to serve it: Bring it fully to room temperature and present it in its box, with a spoon and plenty of bread to carry it.

What to pair it with: A robust red Burgundy, or a measure of the same marc de Bourgogne with which it is washed.

A beautiful cheese deserves a beautiful table. A wooden board, the right knife, a linen napkin, a candle lit as the evening draws in: these small touches turn a simple plate of cheese into an occasion worth lingering over. It is the same quiet art the French bring to the whole season, not doing more, simply doing it beautifully.

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