Top 6 Hauts-de-France Pasteurized Milk Cheeses

Maroilles is a soft cheese made from cow's milk and produced in four sizes, with a reddish-orange rind. It has been made in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region in France since the 10th century and must mature for at least 35 days. Unlike most other cheeses, it comes in the shape of a square and when it is fully matured, it develops an intense, pungent aroma with a flavor reminiscent of that of smoked bacon. It has a nutty, mushroomy taste and the texture is soft and oily. As it is a strong cheese (it smells so strong that it has been nickname "old stinker"), pair it with red wine, light beer or a French cider.Expand

Visually reminiscent of a dusty cannonball, mimolette is a semi-hard French cheese originating from the area around Lille, which is the reason why it’s also known as boule de Lille. Made from cow’s milk, it’s left to age anywhere from 2 months to 2 years. The cheese is characterized by its orange color (coming from annatto), fruity aroma, and chewy texture, while the flavor is nutty, salty, and buttery with a fudgy finish. Mimolette’s rind is infamously hard and tough to crack, and its appearance is the result of cheese mites which have been intentionally introduced in order to add flavor to the cheese as they burrow through it.Expand

Abbaye du Mont des Cats is a French cheese produced by monks in the eponymous monastery in Godewaersvelde. The cheese is made with pasteurized cow's milk. It matures for a minimum of one month, during which it is washed with brine and dyed with roucou – a natural dye derived from annatto shrub. Mont des Cats has a floral aroma and a smooth and supple texture with occasional holes, while the flavors are salty, hay-like, and milky. It is traditionally consumed as a breakfast cheese with coffee.Expand

Boulette d'Avesnes is a French cheese made with cow's milk. The cheese is characterized by its conical shape. It is flavored with tarragon, cloves, parsley, and pepper. The rind is traditionally washed with beer and colored with paprika, imparting a reddish hue to the cheese. The aroma is pungent and stinky, the textures are smooth and creamy, while the flavor is sharp, strong, and peppery. The cheese matures for 2 or 3 months in humid cellars. Originally, Boulette d'Avesnes was made using the leftovers from cheeses which hadn't formed correctly in the molds. It is recommended to pair this cheese with a glass of beer or gin on the side.Expand

Baguette Laonnaise is a French cheese originating from the town of Laon. This semi-soft cheese is made from pasteurized cow's milk, either at creameries or industrially. Underneath its washed rind, the texture is supple and open. The cheese is shaped into a brick or a baguette, and it's usually left to age for 3 to 4 months. The aromas are pungent, while the flavor is spicy and similar to Maroilles, and as it ages, it becomes sharper. It's recommended to pair Baguette Laonnaise with a glass of Riesling on the side.Expand

Dauphin is a French cheese originating from Nord-Pas de Calais. The cheese is made with pasteurized cow's milk and it's left to age for 3 to 4 months. Underneath its washed rind, Dauphin hides a firm-textured body with a yeasty aroma. Due to the addition of tarragon, parsley, cloves, and black pepper, the flavor is strong and spicy. It is recommended to pair it with beer. Interestingly, the cheese was named after Louis XIV's son Dauphin, and later on, the cheese was even shaped into a dolphin, but nowadays it is mostly sold in a hexagonal shape.Expand