Where To Find The Oldest Cheese In North America

When my Quebec City tour guide mentions that the island we’re heading to has the oldest cheese in North America, I’m briefly concerned. A grotesque vision of a 150-year-old pickle my friend Harriet once told me about flashes before my eyes. But, what I learn upon arriving at the Île d'Orléans, 15 minutes from the capital, is that Paillasson is simply the oldest style of cheese in North America—it’s made fresh on the island, tastes extremely good and nearly disappeared in the ‘60s.

Grilled until crispy and brown, cut into a wedge and oozing out slowly, the buttery cheese squeaks as I eat it. Les Fromages de l’Isle d’Orléans, the only place currently producing the cheese, teeters between “serious dairy doing historic and amazing cheesemaking” and “hokey tourist attraction.” The 17th-century-costumed employees pull themselves back from the brink of embarrassment with charm, a fount of curd knowledge and some spectacular cheese. Reminiscent of halloumi in texture, but with the sweet brightness of fresh milk, Paillason smells vaguely of pancakes hot off the griddle and offers a refreshing salinity.

In the early 17th century, the French explorer Samuel de Champlain brought with him three cattle, the historically-dressed guide explained. “Presumably at least one male,” he added, before narrating the history of cheese in the area. Newcomers brought over most of their recipes from the Old World, but—as settlers are wont to do—they adapted their traditional foods to the new environment.

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