Neufchâtel
AOP📍 Normandy · Seine-Maritime
Heart-shaped Norman cheese, one of the oldest in France.
The cheese
The oldest Norman cheese (documented since 1035), AOP Neufchâtel is produced in the pays de Bray in Seine-Maritime. Its particularity? It is the only French cheese available in six official shapes: bonde (small cylinder), briquette, square, heart (the most famous), double-bonde and grand-coeur. A soft-ripened, bloomy-rind cow's-milk cheese (raw or pasteurized), it ages at least 10 days but is best at 3-4 weeks. The downy white rind hides a tender, melting, crumbly paste with a lactic, salty taste and notes of mushroom, cream and hazelnut. Local pairing: a dry farmhouse cider or an extra-brut Champagne. Heart-shaped Neufchâtel is traditionally offered as a gift, especially on Valentine's Day.