Cheese Database

Port Salut vs Saint-Paulin

Port Salut, field guide plate
Port Salut, photographed

Port Salut

Facts

Milk
Cow
Texture
Semi-soft
Type
Washed rind
Rind
Washed rind
Country
France

Port Salut is a semi-soft cow's milk cheese from France, sold in small wheels with a smooth orange rind. The paste is pale, supple, and mild, with a light sweetness and a gentle tang. It slices cleanly, and it also softens when it is warmed. The smell can be stronger than the taste, especially after the wheel has been kept, but the flavor stays approachable. French cooking treats it as an everyday cheese, not as a fierce washed-rind challenge for specialists.

Saint-Paulin

Facts

Milk
Cow
Texture
Semi-soft
Type
Washed rind
Rind
Washed rind
Country
France

Saint-Paulin is a mild semi-soft cheese from France, made from cow's milk and sold in small rounds. The paste is pale, smooth, and supple enough to slice, with a buttery taste and little sharpness. The rind is thin and orange to yellow, and it is edible, though some people trim it. The cheese is pressed, then salted, and it is ready without a long age. It is a table cheese more than a grating cheese, and Port-Salut is the close cousin most shoppers already know.