Long before it made its way into sourdough sandwiches, pizzas, and grazing boards, cheese was travelling across empires, supplementing the diets of soldiers, traders, and royalty alike. With more than 1,800 distinct types across continents, it’s no surprise that cheese has a few too many wild stories attached to it.
Some historians trace its origins back over 7,000 years, likely discovered by accident when milk was stored in containers lined with animal stomachs. 7,000 years is bound and enough to write a good set of stories, aren’t they? From the shepherds of Mesopotamia to the monks of medieval Europe, cheese has been part of, and seen, most empires.
Today, it’s come to represent the places it comes from. In France, it grew into a cultural identity, with hundreds of varieties shaped by terroir and tradition. In Italy, house techniques have evolved into icons like Parmigiano Reggiano and mozzarella, while parts of England have turned cheddar-making into an art form.
Factors like climate, local bacteria, and even cave conditions play a crucial role in the cheese production process. Meaning no two cheeses, even when made the same way but separated by kilometres, taste identical.
However, there’s more to it than just geography. Cheese has been used as currency and offering to god. History has seen it banned, taxed, and fiercely protected as a symbol of identity. Regions have fought to preserve the authenticity of their cheeses, while others have turned them into global exports.
So the next time you reach for a wedge of brie or a block of cheddar, remember—you’re biting into legends (that may or may not be true)! Below, find some of the rather strange and funny stories of cheese from around the world.
Camembert
Camembert was created in 1791 by a Norman farmer, Marie Harel. The tale goes that she refined local methods of cheese-making after receiving advice from a fleeing priest.
During the French Revolution, Harel offered shelter to the priest, who then showed his gratitude by sharing his secret cheese-making technique. Originating in the Pays d’Auge region of Normandy, the gooey cheese is made from raw cow’s milk. The use of this milk became widespread during 19th-century industrialisation, it was transported in wooden boxes, and distributed to French troops during World War I.
Roquefort
According to legend, this popular blue cheese was discovered when a young shepherd was eating bread and ewe’s milk cheese in a cave near Roquefort-sur-Soulzon, France. He left his lunch to go after a beautiful girl and returned weeks or months later to find the cheese covered in a strange blue mould, which he surprisingly found delicious.
The funniest part? Roquefort cheese is only matured in the natural limestone caves of Mount Combalou (similar to how it “accidentally” came to be) in Roquefort-sur-Soulzon. This is thanks to the unique temperate and humid conditions in the caves, which are not found anywhere else.
Gorgonzola
Gorgonzola is among the world’s oldest blue cheeses, with roots dating back to 879 A.D. in Northern Italy, originating most likely near Milan or in the Valsassina caves.
Legend has it that an absent-minded cheesemaker in Italy left his curd overnight. The next morning, in an attempt to cover up his mistake, he mixed it with fresh morning curd, resulting in the distinctive blue-veined mould. This accidental creation led to the blue veins that define Gorgonzola.
It was originally called stracchino di Gorgonzola (or “green stracchino”), with the word stracchino coming from stracco (tired), referring to the milk from cows returning from a long transhumance journey.
Parmigiano-Reggiano
Parmigiano-Reggiano, widely regarded as the King of Cheeses, is believed to have been created nearly 900 years ago by medieval Benedictine and Cistercian monks in Italy’s Emilia-Romagna region. Seeking a long-lasting, transportable food, they resorted to using local milk and salt from Salsomaggiore (a town in Italy) to create the hard, durable, and naturally additive-free cheese known today.
The funny part of the story is that its value proved so reliable that today entire wheels are used as collateral in banks. Yes—since 1953, the Italian bank Credito Emiliano (Credem) has accepted wheels of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese as collateral for loans to local producers. The bank stores over 300,000 wheels in specialised, climate-controlled vaults, treating the high-value cheese, which matures over 12-36 months, as a safe, tangible asset worth hundreds of euros per wheel!
Cheddar
Cheddar cheese originated in the 12th century in the village of Cheddar, Somerset, Southwest England. Here, local caves provided ideal conditions for maturing hard cheese such as cheddar. On how it came to be, many trace cheddar back to a forgotten bucket of milk left in the caves of Cheddar Gorge. The cave’s natural temperature and humidity did the rest—accidentally inventing one of the world’s most popular cheeses.
Thereon, it became a favourite of English monarchs, such as Henry II, who particularly ordered over 10,000 pounds of Cheddar in 1170. Its unique flavour is created by a specific process called cheddaring, which was perfected in the 19th century by Joseph Harding, known as the father of cheddar.
Casu Marzu
Casu Marzu, more popularly known as rotten cheese, is a traditional Sardinian sheep’s milk cheese (pecorino) from Corsica. The most intriguing part? To produce it, it’s intentionally infested with live larvae of the cheese fly or Piophila casei.
Shepherds created it by letting flies lay eggs in a Pecorino Sardo (another variety of cheese) wheel after its top is cut off. The flies lay eggs inside the wheel, which hatch into maggots that ferment and soften the cheese into a pungent, creamy, and sometimes spicy delicacy.
While it’s illegal to produce commercially or sell in Italy and the European Union due to health safety regulations regarding parasites, the cheese is still available in Sardinia’s black market. It’s such a safety hazard that the Guinness Book of World Records considers it the “world’s most dangerous cheese”.
Limburger
Limburger’s reputation is so intense that it’s practically written into pop culture. Originally from the historical Duchy of Limburg (modern-day Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands), Limburger’s notorious smell comes from its aging. During the ripening process, it develops a bacterium called Brevibacterium linens—the same microbe responsible for the scent of human skin, which explains why Limburger’s aroma is often compared to… well, unwashed feet!
By the 19th and early 20th centuries, its smell had become the centre of legend, especially in the United States, where it was embraced by German immigrants but mocked at by everyone else.
It even turned into a running gag in films, cartoons, and radio shows—most notably in shows like The Three Stooges, where simply opening a wedge of Limburger could “clear a room.” The irony? Beneath that aggressive smell is a surprisingly mild, creamy, almost meaty flavour that’s loved and sought after by many.
Tête de Moine
Tête de Moine, translating to “monk’s head,” was first made over 800 years ago by monks at the Bellelay Abbey in Switzerland. Among them, it was so prized that it functioned almost like currency—used to pay taxes or traded for goods. But its name is where things get interesting.
Legend has it that during times of conflict, soldiers who ransacked monasteries would shave off the tops of the cheese wheels, much like a monk’s tonsured head, giving the cheese its now-iconic (and dramatic) name.
What makes Tête de Moine even more memorable is how it’s eaten. Instead of slicing it, the cheese is delicately shaved into thin, ruffled rosettes using a special tool called a girolle. This isn’t just for aesthetics—those airy curls actually transform the texture of the cheese, making it taste more aromatic, layered, and complex.
Read more: Halwa: A Diverse And Delicious Sweet With A History As Rich As Its Texture
Also read: From Partition To Plate: Tracing The History Of Chhole Bhature
