These are basically 7 types of cheeses. Here's a way to think about them when you pick them out.
The 7 Types of Cheeses
Fresh Cheese (FC)- No rind and moist. They are ready to eat quickly. Milky, refreshing and acidic, lemony and nutty undertones.
Aged fresh Cheese (AFC)- Fresh yet aged with nice molds, yeasts and controlled to grow rind. Found in rounds, logs, pyramid shapes. They are aromatic, creamy sometimes wrinkly with ash, spices or wrapped in leaves.
Soft White Cheese (SWC)- White crust a little runny, wild and earthy mushroom buttercup flavors rich texture. Can be peppery and a little grainy.
Semi Soft Cheese (SSC)- Two types: Dry Rind and Washed Rind. Dry ripens slowly and Washed rinds soften quicker and gets supple with age. Both can range from nutty to floral and barnyard to meaty taste and aromas.
Hard Cheese (HC) - Have a rough or polished rind and gets interesting flavors. Usually come in wheels, can be either cows, goat or sheep milk, Gets complex and crunchy as they mature which can be grainy, dry and oily at the same time.
Blue Cheese (BC) – Customarily blue molds with a sticky to crusty rind. Ranges from dense, herbaceous and buttery to sweet caramel or sharp, salty and spicy. Blue cheeses can be crumbly and damp with a metallic tang. Often display veins of blue and commanding aromas.
Flavor Added Cheeses (FAC)- Varied kinds where ingredients are meshed, naturally smoked, or rind is flavored. Majority is broken up and reformed with added ingredients, sweet dried fruits, seasonings, nuts, seeds, herbs, creative blendings. They are deli counter standouts.
Thinking of them like this is pretty helpful to me. So I thought I'd pass it on...