Oct 08 2025
It is possible to love cheese and enjoy it all year round, and many of us will be oblivious to the work that goes on to ensure that is the case. We see a seamless transition from spring and summer to autumn and winter and still enjoy our favourite cheeses with no interruption in supply. But when you understand the milking and grazing cycles of the animals involved in cheese production you might wonder how that is the case. The answer is the genius and tradition of French cheesemaking, and what makes it the best source of cheese in the world.
Spring and summer see us enjoying fresh and vibrant flavours and lighter textures in our cheese, while autumn and winter find us sampling richer flavours with more depth. There are subtle changes to how our cheese tastes, smells and feels across the year, and often only a true cheese connoisseur will notice this, but there are good reasons for this if you look into the seasonal changes in cheesemaking.
In the spring and summer, the milk is fresher, and the animals are grazing on lush green pastures. This tends to produce brighter, more buttery flavours such as Brie de Meaux, Coulommiers and the deliciously creamy Tommes des Pyrénées. These are ideal when paired with a light white wine and fresh herbs and spring fruits. Sheep will produce milk between March and October, and so, popular ewe’s milk cheeses such as Ossau Iraty and Roquefort are very popular between these times.
By the time the autumn months come around, goats and sheep have stopped producing milk and herds are brought inside from the harsh pastures, which have long since dried out and stopped growing. At this time animals are also building fat reserves for the winter. Farmers can keep a much closer eye on the quality of the cheese during this period, so many of the aged cheeses mature during this time to produce typical ‘winter’ cheeses such as Comte, Cantal, Abondance and Raclette. These tend to be harder cheeses with a nuttier flavour but can also include great melting properties. Pairing a dripping bowl of melted raclette with a red wine, crusty bread and root vegetables, for example, is the ideal way to recover from a long winter walk in front of the fireplace.
Mass-production processes and the skills of the cheese-producing craftspeople who can stagger milking cycles carefully, mean we can buy and enjoy our favourite cheeses, which are still made with natural ingredients, for 12 months a year. There may be subtle and delicate changes in flavour and texture, but not so much that we notice the quality dropping. Some cheeses such as Beaufort and Morbier are famously consistent all year round, while some people prefer aged cheeses that have been matured for long periods anyway, such as Munster.
In that respect, everyone will have a seasonal cheese they especially enjoy, whether it’s spring, summer, autumn or winter, but don’t be put off by the time of year, enjoy great cheeses sourced from Sodiaal at any time you like.
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