Cheese Database

Le Douanier vs Saint-Nectaire

Le Douanier

Facts

Milk
Cow
Texture
Semi-hard
Type
Washed rind
Rind
Washed rind
Country
Canada
Place
Quebec

Le Douanier is a semi-firm cheese from Quebec, Canada, made from pasteurised cow's milk. A washed rind covers a supple, pale yellow paste, and a thin line of edible vegetable ash runs through the middle. The French name means the customs officer. Makers use the ash line as a picture of the border between Canada and the United States, near the area where the cheese is produced. The taste moves from creamy and nutty toward a light spice as the rind develops.

Saint-Nectaire

Facts

Milk
Cow
Texture
Semi-soft
Type
Pressed
Rind
Natural rind
Country
France
Place
Auvergne

Saint-Nectaire is a semi-soft cow's milk cheese from Auvergne, in central France. It is pressed, not cooked, and formed into a flat round with a gray, mottled rind. The paste is supple, ivory to pale gold, and usually has a few small holes. The smell of the rind suggests damp earth, straw, and a cellar, while the inside stays milky. Farmhouse and dairy versions both exist, and the label tells them apart.