Dutch cheeses may be the most underrated of cheeses. I can say this safely as a self-appointed cheese expert. Dutch cheeses fly under the radar largely, I think, because they keep the best stuff to themselves.

The rubbery Edams and Goudas that appear on my local supermarket shelf in France certainly pale in comparison to the rich variety on offer in even the most modest Dutch supermarket. When in the Netherlands, I take every opportunity to sample them in all their sublime diversity—be it delicately flavored with cumin seeds or aged until crisp, salty crystals appear beneath the surface. And more often than not, it is a recent viewing of a Dutch still life of cheese which has tempted me to do so.