What Does Cheese Maturation Actually Do to Flavour?

Sep 23 2026

Cheese is the result of a scientific process, and that is an ongoing process which continues even after the cheese is ready for consumption. An important part of this process is ‘maturation’, also known as ‘aging’ or ‘ripening’. This is the part of the process whereby the cheese develops the favour and texture profile that makes it unique and distinctive. The length of this process will vary according to the type of cheese being produced, and which, in most cases, is dictated by years of history and is protected by very strict rules.
The length of the maturation period loosely corresponds with the complexity of the flavour and texture profile. So a simpler cheese, such as the deliciously soft Brie de Meaux, enjoys a relatively short maturation period of four to eight weeks, while a strong blue cheese with a delicate texture, such as Roquefort, will take much longer to mature, a minimum of three months, and this can be up to ten months.

How does cheese mature?

In the cheese-making process there are three primary sources of enzymes, which are responsible for the different stages of change the cheese goes through. These are:

Rennet – Added during the milk separation process
Specific microorganisms – These grow on the cheese surface or within the cheese, and can be artificially administered to influence flavour and texture
Bacteria – These are naturally present in the curd from the original milk

The cheesemaker will control the levels of these enzymes according to the cheese being made. The levels of these enzymes can influence how savoury, nutty or bitter the cheese is. They can also control how the fatty acid in the cheese is broken down, which helps it develop softer, buttery textures and fruity or earthy aromas. However, the specific ripening process for a cheese is also influenced by moisture and the temperature of the rooms used to store and ‘age’ the cheese. Water is evaporated by the rind that forms on the cheese, and this firms up the texture as required, but also concentrates the flavour profile and how intense the cheese is to taste.

The maturation process for different cheeses

Although this process is very specific for each different type of cheese, in general terms the maturation process follows certain guidelines:

Semi-hard/hard cheeses – Examples such as Comte or Cantal are cut and drained at an early stage of the maturation process, to ensure excess liquid is removed. They are then aged for longer having been treated with bacteria. This helps to achieve the harder texture and sharper tastes.
Holey cheeses – French cheeses with ‘eyes’, such as Gruyère and Emmental, have an extra stage in the maturation process. They have specialist bacteria added back in after pasteurisation, and then are moved to different rooms to be rapidly cooled. This triggers the carbon dioxide bubbles which form the rounded ‘eyes’ that make these cheeses so distinctive.
Soft blue cheeses – Roquefort and Bleu d’Auvergne have a specialist mould introduced during maturation. The cheese has needles inserted to encourage oxygenation, which forms the signature blue veins.
Soft, bloomy rind cheeses – These cheeses, such as Brie de Meux and Coulommiers, are treated with surface microorganisms to artificially accelerate maturation. This matures the cheese from the outside in, and hence usually makes the centre more soft and creamy than the outside, or at least you can judge the maturation period of this type of cheese by how soft the centre is.