round and blood-red, and Port-Saluts lined up like soldiers on
parade. Three Bries, side by side, suggested phases of the moon;
two of them, very dry, were amber-colored and "full," and the
third, in its second quarter, was runny and creamy, with a "milky
way" which no human barrier seemed able to restrain. And all the
while majestic Roqueforts looked down with princely contempt upon
the other, through the glass of their crystal covers.

Emile Zola

In 1953 the United States Department of Agriculture published Handbook
No. 54, entitled _Cheese Varieties and Descriptions,_ with this
comment: "There probably are only about eighteen distinct types or
kinds of natural cheese." All the rest (more than 400 names) are of
local origin, usually named after towns or communities. A list of the
best-known names applied to each of these distinct varieties or groups
is given:

Brick Gouda Romano
Camembert Hand Roquefort
Cheddar Limburger Sapsago
Cottage Neufchâtel Swiss
Cream Parmesan Trappist
Edam Provolone Whey cheeses (Mysost and Ricotta)


May we nominate another dozen to form our own Cheese Hall of Fame? We
begin our list with a partial roll call of the big Blues family and
end it with members of the monastic order of Port-Salut Trappist that
includes Canadian Oka and our own Kentucky thoroughbred.