An encyclopedia of cheese: its history, the types of cheese, cheese-making regions of the world, tasting notes, and (very general) recommended wine pairings. The cheese-making regions of the world chapter entirely consists of western Europe, the US/Canada, and Australia/New Zealand; this is surprising and disappointing for multiple reasons, not least of which is that the first historical mentions of cheese were found outside these parts of the world in Mesopotamia and Sumer. The wine pairings are also quite general (for example, slightly fruity whites and low-tannin fruity reds for soft cheeses with bloomy rinds); this lack of specificity may upset some readers, but will ensure the book does not age quickly with references to discontinued vintages. Overall, a valuable text for any cheese lover (and for many restaurant owners / waitstaff as well).

This compendium is the Alpha and the Omega of all things cheese. Everything you'd want to know and even more can be found in this work. Readers will take away a real appreciation for this humble but yet complex food and the voluminous types that you can educate yourself on. Entertaining and unusual but useful gift for your favorite foodie and the budding cheesemaker.

There is so much information in this book beyond just lists of cheeses; this is a wonderland for cheese fanboys and fangirls everywhere. We get rundowns on the dairy breeds, cheesemaking process, and the eleven families of cheese to prepare us for the main event: the guide, the lists within lists of families and the notable cheeses within them. Following this, we have countries and territories, plus a guide to tastes and pairing, preparing and serving, suggested cheese platters, and how to wrap cheeses. This would make a perfect gift for the cheese nerd in your life, or for yourself if you are that cheese nerd!

#AFieldGuidetoCheese #NetGalley

This is a must-have cheese reference! Well organized, comprehensive, excellent use of graphics and illustration.

Advance copy provided by NetGalley.

For anyone who doesn't know me, I LOVE cheese. I have several books that I have purchased in the past but I love the organization and layout of this book. It starts with a little bit of history and then it breaks it down into the different kind of cheese. Each category (and there are 11) have multiples of cheese underneath. Each comes with a description as well as a visual representation (aka drawing). The best part for me is the countries and territories. We (used to) travel a ton and I am always looking for the local cheeses. This outlines each of the distinct cheese by area. I thought this was a really cool way to do it. The last piece is the tasting and pairing but it also includes a section (with pictures!!) on how to cut each shape of cheese. #MaintainTheWedge My family makes fun of me often for this but it can actually change the experience and can ruin the rest of the cheese for others (I am talking to the people who only eat the middle out of the brie, stop it!!). This is a great reference guide I can see myself using often.

The most important thing to know about this book is that it was originally published in France, and has a very different approach to cheese, or food in general, than you’ll find in the United States, at least in my experience. The author’s assumption is that you have access to a cheesemonger, or some other shop that sells specialty cheeses. The bulk of the book is spent profiling very specific cheeses, frequently those that are made on a single farm or dairy, or in a very small locality. The profiles are interesting, to a point, but they aren’t going to help you sort through the cheese counter at your local grocery store. Much more interesting, in my opinion, were the sections on cheesemaking, and suggestions for cutting, serving, pairing, and describing cheese.

Final verdict: fun to skim, but unless you’re a cheese aficionado with plans to travel based on tasting or acquiring some of these cheeses, I wouldn’t recommend you try to read it straight through.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley for an honest review.

Interesting, explanations on how cheeses are made and classified. I would have love a bit more details on paring and more common names of cheeses listed.

Thanks to NetGalley and Artisan for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

A Field Guide to Cheese gives a brief history of cheese, info on the different breeds of cows, sheep, goats, and buffalos that supply most of the milk. Who knew that there is donkey and Yak cheese available? There are drawings and descriptions for 400 different cheeses from around the world.

My favorite sections were the Aromas and Flavors of Cheese, Preparing and Serving, and Taste and Parings. Not sure why this was at the end of the book. I appreciated the section of how to cut different types of cheeses and setting up platters. There are even multiple pages of how to property wrap and store your cheese. Fantastic job by the illustrator Yannis Varoutsikos.

This book makes me want to travel the world and try new cheeses. At the very least, I will bring the book to a local cheese store and try to find some of the mentioned cheeses. This book would be a great addition to any well stocked kitchen.

A comment for NetGalley—I had to read the book solely on your app which is missing some key features vs. Kindle. I couldn’t search or highlight sections to make it easy to reference.