Cheese Quiz
From Cheddar to casu marzu: 15 questions on the world's great cheeses and the science behind them.
Gouda and Edam are classic cheeses from which country?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Netherlands
Both cheeses are named after Dutch towns. Gouda, near Rotterdam, hosted a cheese market from the Middle Ages, and Edam, north of Amsterdam, exported its red-waxed balls across the world.
The Netherlands still holds traditional cheese markets in Gouda and Alkmaar, where porters in straw hats carry the wheels on wooden sledges.
Cheddar cheese takes its name from a village in which English county?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Somerset
Cheddar is a village at the foot of the Mendip Hills in Somerset, where cheese was matured in the cool caves of Cheddar Gorge. The name itself is not protected, so cheddar is made worldwide.
West Country Farmhouse Cheddar has protected status and must be made with milk from Somerset, Devon, Dorset or Cornwall.
Which cheese is the classic topping on a pizza Margherita?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Mozzarella
A pizza Margherita uses tomato, mozzarella and basil, a combination said to echo the red, white and green of the Italian flag. Mozzarella's mild flavour and stretchy melt make it the standard pizza cheese.
Legend says Neapolitan baker Raffaele Esposito named the pizza for Queen Margherita of Savoy during her 1889 visit to Naples.
Which Swiss cheese is famous for its large round holes?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Emmental
Emmental, from the Emme valley near Bern, is the cheese with the big cherry-sized eyes that cartoons use to represent Swiss cheese. Gruyère, by contrast, has few or no holes at all.
A traditional Emmental wheel is huge, weighing around 75 to 120 kg (165 to 265 lb), and takes well over 1,000 litres of milk to make.
At which Gloucestershire hill do competitors chase a wheel of Double Gloucester cheese down a near-vertical slope every spring?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Cooper's Hill
The Cooper's Hill Cheese-Rolling in Brockworth sends runners tumbling after a Double Gloucester wheel down a 200-yard (180 m) slope every Spring Bank Holiday, with the cheese reaching around 70 mph.
The wheel is fitted with a wooden casing and ribbons for the race, and the first runner to reach the bottom wins the cheese itself.
Halloumi, the firm cheese that can be grilled without melting, originated on which island?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Cyprus
Halloumi is the national cheese of Cyprus, traditionally made from a mix of goat's and sheep's milk. Its high melting point lets it brown on a grill or in a pan while holding its shape.
Halloumi won EU protected designation of origin status in 2021, after a dispute over the name that lasted more than a decade.
Under EU rules, cheese sold as feta must be made in which country?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Greece
Since 2002 the name feta has been protected for cheese made in mainland Greece and Lesbos from sheep's milk, or sheep's milk blended with no more than 30 percent goat's milk.
Similar brined white cheeses from Bulgaria, Turkey and Denmark now have to be sold under other names inside the EU.
Manchego, Spain's best-known cheese, is made from the milk of which animal?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Sheep
Manchego is made only from the whole milk of Manchega sheep raised on the plains of La Mancha, and it is typically aged from two months to two years. Its rind carries a distinctive zigzag pattern from the moulds.
The herringbone pattern on the rind comes from the woven esparto grass moulds once used to press the cheese, now copied in plastic.
Which soft, bloomy-rind cheese is named after a village in Normandy and traditionally sold in a round poplar-wood box?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Camembert
Camembert comes from the village of Camembert in the Orne department of Normandy, where farmer Marie Harel is credited with refining it in 1791. The thin wooden box let it travel by rail across France.
Brie is the older cousin from the Île-de-France region east of Paris and is made in much larger, flatter wheels.
Which gas forms the holes in Swiss-style cheeses as they ripen?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Carbon dioxide
Propionic acid bacteria in the cheese convert lactic acid into propionic acid and carbon dioxide, and the gas collects into bubbles that become the eyes. Warmer ripening rooms produce bigger holes.
Swiss researchers found in 2015 that cleaner modern milking reduced tiny hay particles in milk, which is one reason industrial Emmental has fewer holes.
What is the minimum ageing period for a wheel of Parmigiano-Reggiano?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
12 months
The protected product specification requires at least 12 months of maturing in the defined area, after which experts tap each wheel with a hammer and fire-brand the ones that pass.
Wheels that fail inspection have their rind markings scraped off, and many producers age their best wheels for 24, 36 or even 48 months.
What is rennet, the traditional ingredient that curdles milk into cheese?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Enzymes from a calf's stomach
Rennet is a complex of enzymes, chiefly chymosin, from the fourth stomach of unweaned calves, which splits milk protein so that it clots into curds. Vegetarian cheeses use microbial or plant enzymes instead.
The legend of cheese's discovery has a traveller carrying milk in a pouch made from a calf's stomach and finding it had turned to curds and whey.
Which English blue cheese may legally be made only in Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Stilton
Stilton has had protected status since 1996, limiting production to those three counties and only a handful of licensed dairies. The village of Stilton in Cambridgeshire, where the cheese was once sold, cannot make it.
White Stilton is protected too, and a bid to let the village of Stilton itself make the cheese was rejected by the government.
Which blue cheese is ripened in the natural Combalou caves of southern France and became the country's first protected cheese in 1925?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Roquefort
Roquefort is made from raw Lacaune sheep's milk and aged in the limestone caves beneath Roquefort-sur-Soulzon, where air shafts called fleurines keep the Penicillium roqueforti mould thriving.
Charlemagne is said to have loved Roquefort, and in 1411 Charles VI granted the village a monopoly on ripening the cheese.
Which Sardinian sheep's milk cheese is deliberately infested with live insect larvae before it is eaten?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Casu marzu
Casu marzu, Sardinian for rotten cheese, is a pecorino left open to cheese flies whose larvae digest the fats and turn the paste soft. It is banned from sale in the EU but still made for private use.
Diners traditionally shield their eyes while eating it, because the larvae can jump up to 15 cm (6 in) when disturbed.
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All Food and Drink quizzes →About the Cheese Quiz
Cheese is one of the oldest foods people make, and every wheel carries a story. Roquefort was the first French cheese to win a protected name in 1925, Parmigiano-Reggiano must age for at least a year before it earns its stamp, and the village of Stilton is not actually allowed to make Stilton.
These 15 questions range from easy crowd pleasers about Cheddar, Gouda and mozzarella to the bacteria that blow holes in Emmental, the counties that may legally make Stilton, and the notorious Sardinian cheese that comes with live maggots. It suits cheese lovers, pub quiz teams and anyone who has ever argued over a cheeseboard.
You will find 15 multiple choice questions here, each with four options. Difficulty: Hard. Most people finish in about 6 minutes, and every answer comes with a short explanation and one extra fact worth keeping.
How to play
Read the question and pick one of the four answers. The correct answer is revealed straight away with a short explanation, then press Next question to keep going. At the end you get your score out of 15 and a full review of your round. Play again any time and the questions arrive in a fresh order. There is no timer and no account.
Good to know before you play
Why does Swiss cheese have holes?
Propionic bacteria in cheeses such as Emmental release carbon dioxide as they ripen, and the gas collects into bubbles that become the eyes.
What is the difference between Parmesan and Parmigiano-Reggiano?
Parmigiano-Reggiano is the protected Italian original, aged at least 12 months in a defined area, while Parmesan can be a generic imitation outside the EU.
What is rennet?
Rennet is a set of enzymes, traditionally taken from a calf's stomach lining, that curdles milk into solid curds for cheesemaking; vegetarian versions use microbial or plant enzymes.
Answer key: all 15 questions with explanations
- Gouda and Edam are classic cheeses from which country?
Netherlands Both cheeses are named after Dutch towns. Gouda, near Rotterdam, hosted a cheese market from the Middle Ages, and Edam, north of Amsterdam, exported its red-waxed balls across the world. The Netherlands still holds traditional cheese markets in Gouda and Alkmaar, where porters in straw hats carry the wheels on wooden sledges. - Cheddar cheese takes its name from a village in which English county?
Somerset Cheddar is a village at the foot of the Mendip Hills in Somerset, where cheese was matured in the cool caves of Cheddar Gorge. The name itself is not protected, so cheddar is made worldwide. West Country Farmhouse Cheddar has protected status and must be made with milk from Somerset, Devon, Dorset or Cornwall. - Which cheese is the classic topping on a pizza Margherita?
Mozzarella A pizza Margherita uses tomato, mozzarella and basil, a combination said to echo the red, white and green of the Italian flag. Mozzarella's mild flavour and stretchy melt make it the standard pizza cheese. Legend says Neapolitan baker Raffaele Esposito named the pizza for Queen Margherita of Savoy during her 1889 visit to Naples. - Which Swiss cheese is famous for its large round holes?
Emmental Emmental, from the Emme valley near Bern, is the cheese with the big cherry-sized eyes that cartoons use to represent Swiss cheese. Gruyère, by contrast, has few or no holes at all. A traditional Emmental wheel is huge, weighing around 75 to 120 kg (165 to 265 lb), and takes well over 1,000 litres of milk to make. - At which Gloucestershire hill do competitors chase a wheel of Double Gloucester cheese down a near-vertical slope every spring?
Cooper's Hill The Cooper's Hill Cheese-Rolling in Brockworth sends runners tumbling after a Double Gloucester wheel down a 200-yard (180 m) slope every Spring Bank Holiday, with the cheese reaching around 70 mph. The wheel is fitted with a wooden casing and ribbons for the race, and the first runner to reach the bottom wins the cheese itself. - Halloumi, the firm cheese that can be grilled without melting, originated on which island?
Cyprus Halloumi is the national cheese of Cyprus, traditionally made from a mix of goat's and sheep's milk. Its high melting point lets it brown on a grill or in a pan while holding its shape. Halloumi won EU protected designation of origin status in 2021, after a dispute over the name that lasted more than a decade. - Under EU rules, cheese sold as feta must be made in which country?
Greece Since 2002 the name feta has been protected for cheese made in mainland Greece and Lesbos from sheep's milk, or sheep's milk blended with no more than 30 percent goat's milk. Similar brined white cheeses from Bulgaria, Turkey and Denmark now have to be sold under other names inside the EU. - Manchego, Spain's best-known cheese, is made from the milk of which animal?
Sheep Manchego is made only from the whole milk of Manchega sheep raised on the plains of La Mancha, and it is typically aged from two months to two years. Its rind carries a distinctive zigzag pattern from the moulds. The herringbone pattern on the rind comes from the woven esparto grass moulds once used to press the cheese, now copied in plastic. - Which soft, bloomy-rind cheese is named after a village in Normandy and traditionally sold in a round poplar-wood box?
Camembert Camembert comes from the village of Camembert in the Orne department of Normandy, where farmer Marie Harel is credited with refining it in 1791. The thin wooden box let it travel by rail across France. Brie is the older cousin from the Île-de-France region east of Paris and is made in much larger, flatter wheels. - Which gas forms the holes in Swiss-style cheeses as they ripen?
Carbon dioxide Propionic acid bacteria in the cheese convert lactic acid into propionic acid and carbon dioxide, and the gas collects into bubbles that become the eyes. Warmer ripening rooms produce bigger holes. Swiss researchers found in 2015 that cleaner modern milking reduced tiny hay particles in milk, which is one reason industrial Emmental has fewer holes. - What is the minimum ageing period for a wheel of Parmigiano-Reggiano?
12 months The protected product specification requires at least 12 months of maturing in the defined area, after which experts tap each wheel with a hammer and fire-brand the ones that pass. Wheels that fail inspection have their rind markings scraped off, and many producers age their best wheels for 24, 36 or even 48 months. - What is rennet, the traditional ingredient that curdles milk into cheese?
Enzymes from a calf's stomach Rennet is a complex of enzymes, chiefly chymosin, from the fourth stomach of unweaned calves, which splits milk protein so that it clots into curds. Vegetarian cheeses use microbial or plant enzymes instead. The legend of cheese's discovery has a traveller carrying milk in a pouch made from a calf's stomach and finding it had turned to curds and whey. - Which English blue cheese may legally be made only in Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire?
Stilton Stilton has had protected status since 1996, limiting production to those three counties and only a handful of licensed dairies. The village of Stilton in Cambridgeshire, where the cheese was once sold, cannot make it. White Stilton is protected too, and a bid to let the village of Stilton itself make the cheese was rejected by the government. - Which blue cheese is ripened in the natural Combalou caves of southern France and became the country's first protected cheese in 1925?
Roquefort Roquefort is made from raw Lacaune sheep's milk and aged in the limestone caves beneath Roquefort-sur-Soulzon, where air shafts called fleurines keep the Penicillium roqueforti mould thriving. Charlemagne is said to have loved Roquefort, and in 1411 Charles VI granted the village a monopoly on ripening the cheese. - Which Sardinian sheep's milk cheese is deliberately infested with live insect larvae before it is eaten?
Casu marzu Casu marzu, Sardinian for rotten cheese, is a pecorino left open to cheese flies whose larvae digest the fats and turn the paste soft. It is banned from sale in the EU but still made for private use. Diners traditionally shield their eyes while eating it, because the larvae can jump up to 15 cm (6 in) when disturbed.
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