A British Affineur in France: Three Days in France

Day One: Dawn at Rungis, then down to Tours

We started before sunrise at Rungis Market in Paris, the world’s largest wholesale food market. I’ll be honest, I felt a bit rusty after the journey. But as soon as you step into the cheese hall, the smell hits you like a hot shot of coffee. You can’t help but wake up.

Dawn at Rungis

Each time I visit, it feels more organised, slicker, more industrial. Efficiency wins. Pallets fly through, humidity and refrigeration are spot on, and quality is maintained at scale. But part of me misses the stories of the old days: traders bartering, mongers shopping for the week ahead. The human element feels thinner each visit. I’d have loved to see it 25 years ago.

“One curiosity: a goat–mozzrella cheese. I didn’t even know that existed. Cheese never stops surprising you.”

By mid-day we were in Tours for Mondial du Fromage. Tastings, competitions, innovations, and a hall packed with people who live and breathe curd. Artisan cheese at scale: consistent, polished, but sometimes too uniform. In Britain, those differences matter.

Day Two: Mondial, the Masterclass with Romain, and British Reflections

The British contingent: Gherson Deli, Frate Newcastle, MonS, Emma Young, The Cheese Hamlet, Norfolk Deli, Pong Cheese, Academy of Cheese, The Gog, Harvey & Brockless, and The Fine Cheese Company made sure we had our own conversations too. People asked me everything from food safety and Salsa+Cheese to affinage. I’m an open book; it felt good to be useful.

The French Cheese Workshop with Romain Le Gal, MOF

The centrepiece of the day was a masterclass at Villa Rabelais with Romain Le Gal — not just a respected affineur, but a MOF (Meilleur Ouvrier de France). MOF is the highest honour a craftsperson can hold in France, awarded once every four years. It puts you on a pedestal among peers and makes you a mini-celebrity in the French food world. When a MOF speaks, you listen.

Romain structured the tasting in two halves. First, chocolate pairings at different percentages with cheese. Most of us agreed that 100% chocolate works best on its own, but wrestling with awkward matches sharpened our focus on flavour detail.

The second half was more rewarding. We played with grinders filled with paprika, smoked paprika, dried raspberry mix, white pepper, black pepper, and cumin. One of the most surprising moments came with a 12-month Comté. On its own: flat, lactic, uninspiring. With a pinch of paprika: hazelnutty, warm, and long. A dull cheese turned into a talking point.

“Food for thought: even a dull cheese can become memorable when paired thoughtfully.”

It challenged my instincts. I’m not usually keen on “post-additive” fixes, but the right partner can highlight what’s missing. It’s an idea I might borrow for future tastings, not to cover faults, but to help people tune into flavour.

Beyond the workshop, one thing really stayed with me: how little Britain was represented at Mondial. Cropwell Bishop and Quicke’s were there, but that was about it. It was upsetting, because I know how strong our Wensleydales, our cheddars, our territorials would look on that stage. The world often sees British cheese through a narrow lens. That’s a gap , and a huge opportunity.

Day Three: Farm Innovation and a Museum that Respects Cheese

The final day took us to Ferme de la Tremblaye. A farm where tradition and technology shake hands. Herds dry off in winter, so cheesemaking pauses naturally

Goat herds dry off in winter, so cheesemaking pauses naturally. No artificial insemination, just natural breeding. The cows wear smart tags that guide them: “you’ve eaten enough, go this way; you’ve been milked already, back to the pen.”

Our guide knew her animals by name, and the place was immaculate! No small feat for a site producing this much milk and manure. Lunch from the farm’s own produce showed what closed-loop farming tastes like: honest, flavourful, nothing wasted.

Day three finished with a visit to the Cheese Museum in Paris. Not some token stop for tourists, but a place that managed to keep even seasoned mongers engaged — no easy task when you already know the ins and outs of cheesemaking.

The real highlight was their interactive virtual cheesemaking experience. You pick a style of cheese, then use hand gestures with digital projections to work through the process, piercing a blue, pouring milk, adding rennet, cutting curd. Each choice changed the steps, so every cheese gave you a different path. For those of us who live and breathe this, it felt a bit like preaching to the choir, but it was still fascinating to see the French approach, and honestly, much more approachable for the public than many demos I’ve seen.

They also had a run of lactic cheeses they’d made over the past few weeks, lined up so you could see the transformation day by day. Simple, but so effective in showing how milk evolves into cheese.

What I loved most was the way the museum framed cheese. The French don’t treat it as a novelty. They treat it as culture, agriculture, and identity. And you really feel that when you walk around.

If you’re a cheese fan, I’d say it’s well worth a visit: musee-fromage-paris.com

What I’m Bringing Home

• Scale + craft: Rungis proved clarity at volume doesn’t erase quality.
• Consistency + individuality: Mondial and Romain’s workshop reminded me that standards build trust, but differences matter most.
• Systems that respect animals: Tremblaye showed welfare, tech, and sustainability can align in practice.
• Story + structure: The museum underlined that storytelling is infrastructure, not decoration.

Back to Rennet & Rind

At Rennet & Rind we’ll keep doing what we do best: selecting and maturing every cheese by hand, championing independent British makers, and sharing what we learn. If you want to taste these ideas in practice, come in, book a tasting, or build a box online.