Maroilles and the Washed-Rind Cheeses of the Nord

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Maroilles (AOC 1955, AOP) is the most pungent cheese in France — a square, washed-rind cow's milk cheese from the Thiérache (the border country of the Aisne and Nord departments) whose aroma has been compared to dirty socks, barnyard, and sulphurous brimstone, but whose flavor — once you overcome the olfactory assault — is surprisingly nuanced: rich, creamy, tangy, with notes of earth, mushroom, and a long, complex finish that reveals why this cheese has been made continuously since the 7th century (documented at the Abbey of Maroilles in 962 AD). The production: raw or pasteurized cow's milk is coagulated, cut, moulded into 13×13cm squares (the distinctive shape), and pressed lightly. After demoulding, the cheese is washed every 2-3 days for 5-7 weeks with brine (and sometimes beer or annatto-tinted water), which encourages the development of Brevibacterium linens — the bacterium responsible for both the orange-red rind color and the legendary stench. The washing prevents mould growth, promotes the brevibacterium, and produces the slick, sticky, orange rind that is Maroilles' visual signature. The AOC specifies four sizes: the full Maroilles (720g), Sorbais (540g), Mignon (360g), and Quart (180g). In the kitchen, Maroilles' power makes it a cooking cheese par excellence: it enriches the flamiche au Maroilles (a quiche-like tart that is Picardy's most famous dish), flavors gratins and sauces, and is the secret ingredient in the goyère (a Maroilles-enriched brioche from Valenciennes). The canonical pairing is with strong beer (a Ch'ti Ambrée or a Trappist ale) — not wine, which the cheese overwhelms.

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