Cheese Database

Olivet cendré vs Saint-Marcellin

Olivet cendré

Facts

Milk
Cow
Texture
Soft
Rind
Natural rind
Country
France

Olivet cendré is a soft cow's milk cheese from France. The word cendré means that ash covers the cheese, and the rind turns grey from that coat. The paste is ivory, supple, and a little moist, with a delicate earthy taste. Makers have long ripened the rounds in ash, once from burned vine cuttings and now often from vegetable charcoal. It is a table cheese, sold in small cylinders for cutting and spreading.

Saint-Marcellin

Facts

Milk
Cow
Texture
Soft
Type
Bloomy rind
Rind
Bloomy rind
Country
France
Place
Rhône-Alpes

Saint-Marcellin is a small soft cheese from Rhône-Alpes, in France, and it is made from cow's milk. Each piece is a low round, often sold in a little dish that holds it as it ripens. The rind is thin and wrinkled, and the paste turns creamier with time. Young cheese is mild and holds a shape, while ripe cheese slumps and tastes stronger. It is a table cheese, not a hard cheese for grating.