The Incomparable Selles-sur-Cher

Selles-sur-Cher has always been my favorite goat’s-milk cheese. Have you tried it? The commune of Selles-sur-Cher, situated on the Cher river within France’s Loire-et-Cher department, gets its name from its abbey. The term "selles" is derived from "celles," which comes from "cellae," meaning a monk’s cell. The cheese bears the name of the city thanks to the "coquetiers" (poultry sellers) who collected eggs and cheeses from the farms and transported them by train to Paris. Selles-sur-Cher is now known and appreciated throughout the world.

The cheese is recognizable by its beveled disc shape and slightly grayed, bluish rind. It is salted and coated in plant ash. In France, it is made of raw whole milk, and reveals a slightly salty, acidic, and gentle tanginess along with slight goaty and mushroom aromas after its required minimum of 10 days of ripening. Its texture is soft and smooth, but not runny. When you press it gently with your finger, it gives a little, unlike many fresh goat cheeses that can be firm and chalky. You may like this one even if you're not generally a fan of fresh goat cheeses. Selles-sur-Cher was recognized with an AOP designation in 1996.

You cannot find raw-milk Selles-sur-Cher in the United States that has been ripened for less than 60 days (per US law regarding raw-milk products), making what is available in the US less interesting and just a reproduction (a real shame!) of authentic Selles-sur-Cher. The authentic one is EXCELLENT with a Chinon red wine (just the two of them together, no bread needed), from the same region.