What Is Cave-Aged Cheese? How Underground Aging Changes the Flavor

"Cave-aged" is one of the most prized phrases on a cheese label, and for good reason. It means the cheese spent its aging time in a cave or cave-like underground space instead of an ordinary refrigerated room.

Why caves are perfect for aging cheese

Young cheese is full of moisture, enzymes and living cultures. As it ages, those enzymes slowly break down proteins and fats, turning a mild, rubbery young cheese into something firm, savory and complex. That process works best when conditions are:

• Cool and steady. Most aging caves sit somewhere in the 50s Fahrenheit. The earth around a cave barely changes temperature from season to season.
• Humid. Caves are naturally damp, often 85 to 95 percent humidity, which keeps wheels from drying and cracking and helps natural rinds grow.
• Dark and quiet, with gentle airflow.

A refrigerator can hold a temperature, but it's dry and it cycles on and off. A cave does the job naturally and evenly, and slow, even aging is what builds flavor.

Famous cave-aged cheeses

Cheesemakers have used caves for centuries. Roquefort must be aged in the limestone caves of Mont Combalou in southern France. Comté ripens for months in cool mountain cellars and vaults. And the original Cheddar was aged in the caves of Cheddar Gorge in England, which is still used to mature cheese today.

What cave-aged cheese tastes like

Compared with cheese aged in a dry cooler, cave-aged cheese usually has:

• Deeper, nuttier, more savory flavor
• A smoother, more even texture from rind to center
• More developed natural rinds, sometimes with earthy, mushroomy notes
• Little crunchy crystals in long-aged cheeses like Parmesan and aged Cheddar

Is there a cheese cave in Texas?

Yes. In 2011, Brazos Valley Cheese dug a cheese cave seventeen feet underground on Halbert Lane in Waco. It's one of the few underground cheese caves in Texas. Brazos Valley is now Heritage Cheese Company, and we're bringing the cave back into service as cheesemaking returns to Waco. Learn more about our underground cheese cave.

Try it yourself

We carry cave-aged artisan cheese from a small group of trusted creameries and ship anywhere in the U.S. Call (254) 723-4777 for pricing and to order, or browse our cheeses.