facture of Camembert cheese has extended to a considerable distance from the original village, but it is all made in that part of France.
Emmenthaler Cheese.—Emmenthaler cheese is a variety of Swiss cheese of the same type as Gruyère. It is sometimes called the "cart-wheel" cheese on account of its immense size. These cheeses are sometimes three or four feet in diameter and of a disk-like shape, something like a wooden wheel sawed out of a round tree. It is a cheese which was originally made in Switzerland, although the manufacture of it has spread over into that part of France bordering Switzerland. It has the general character of Swiss cheese in texture, also in composition and nutritive value.
Brie Cheese.—This is one of the most famous of French cheeses. It is made in the form of a round flat mass about 16 inches in diameter for the grande Brie and 12 inches in diameter for the petite Brie. The thickness of the cheese is about one inch. The method of preparation is not very greatly different from that of cheeses in general. During the curing process, as in the case of Camembert, mould develops, especially on the outside of the cheese, and the change which goes on in the interior breaks down the casein, forming a creamy mass of a strong, piquant flavor. The mould which grows upon the outside of Brie cheese gives it a strong odor which reminds one of decomposition. Brie cheese might be said to resemble in general properties the Camembert variety of cheese.
Roquefort cheese is a very popular cheese made in France from sheep's milk. When properly ripened it shows a green mould. It is made in a particular way at Roquefort, and according to König has the following composition:
Water, 36.85 percent
Fat, 30.61 "
Proteids, 25.25 "
Lactic acid, 1.90 "
Ash, 5.39 "
Port Du Salut.—This variety of cheese has a most deserving popularity, not only upon the Continent but in the United States. It is, however, not so generally known in this country as the Roquefort and Camembert varieties. It was long manufactured by a secret process by the Trappist monks of Bricquebec in the Department of Manche.
The secret of the manufacture of this variety of cheese is guarded with the same jealousy by the monks as is the secret of making the chartreuse liqueur. Port Du Salut is always put up in very small packages of cylindrical form, flat, and about one inch in thickness. The cheese has a number of holes, in which it resembles the Swiss cheese. Its flesh, however, is mellow, and does not have the toughness nor solidity which characterizes the flesh of Swiss cheese. Although the monks' secret has been well guarded the general method of its manufacture has been described ("Cheese and Cheese Making," by Jas.
