By Rabbi Avrohom Gordimer, Adapted with Permission from our partner OU Kosher.
Below is a list of many varieties of cheese, along with the times for which they are aged.
“Yes” next to an entry indicates that according to halacha (Jewish law) the OU’s poskim (rabbinic authorities) maintain that one who keeps kosher must wait after eating that specific cheese before starting to eat meat.
“You mean that I have to wait SIX HOURS after I eat cheese before I can eat meat??” Well, often yes. The Rama (Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 89:2) states that the minhag (custom) is to wait after eating hard cheese before partaking of meat, just as one waits after meat before dairy; this minhag has become accepted practice for Ashkenazic Jews.
What constitutes hard cheese (for the purpose of waiting) according the Rama? Is all cheese which we refer to as “hard” included in this category? The answer is a clear “no”.
The Shach (YD 89 s.k. 15) and Taz (ibid. s.k. 4), among other major early poskim, explain that cheese is considered to be hard for the purpose for waiting if it is six months old or if it has developed holes (done via worms in the old days), such as Swiss cheese – see Aruch Ha-Shulchan ibid.
It should be noted that the six-month period is apparently not absolute. This is emphasized by some contemporary poskim, for the Shach (ibid.) writes that, “In general, six month-old cheese is classified as hard”. The Shach seemingly posits that six months is an approximate estimation of when cheese is categorized as hard for the purpose of waiting – it is not a hard rule or a rigid shiur.
See below the chart for additional information.
Cheese Type and Aging Period
- American Cheese: Made from cheddar that is aged 2-3 months or less – NO
- Appenzeller Classic (Swiss-made): 3-4 months – NO
- Appenzeller Extra (Swiss-made): Over 6 months – YES
- Appenzeller Surchoix (Swiss-made): 4-6 months – YES
- Asiago d´Allevo/Mezzano (Aged): Aging widely varies. Consumers should carefully review the label for any indication of age. – YES
- Asiago d´Allevo/Mezzano (Young): Aging widely varies. Consumers should carefully review the label for any indication of age. – NO
- Asiago d´Allevo/Stravecchio: Over 18 months – YES
- Asiago d´Allevo/Vecchio: 9-18 months – YES
- Asiago Pressato (Fresh): 3-6 weeks – NO
- Bastardo del Grappa: 3 months – NO
- Bleu (including Danish Bleu (“Danablu”) and Roquefort): 2-4.5 months – NO
- Brie: 3-6 weeks – NO
- Caciocavallo (Aged): Well beyond six months – YES
- Caciocavallo (Fresh): 2 months – NO
- Caciocavallo (Semi-aged): up to 6 months – YES
- Caciotta al Tartufo: 2-3 months – NO
- Caciotta Alpina: Up to 1 year –YES
- Caciotta di Pecora: 30 days –NO
- Camembert: 3-5 weeks – NO
- Cheddar (Medium, Sharp, Aged): Close to 6 months, and up to 7 years (!) – YES
- Cheddar, Mild (Regular): 2-3 months – NO
- Chevre/ Goat Cheese: Usually aged for two weeks or less; however, if label says “aged” or states a specific cheese variety, may be aged much longer – NO
- Chevre/ Goat Cheese (Aged): If label says “aged” or states a specific cheese variety – YES
- Ciliegene: 1 week to 30 days – NO
- Colby: 1-3 months – NO
- Dolce (Mild, Regular) Provolone: 2-3 months – NO
- Edam: 3 months – NO
- Emmental/ Swiss Cheese-Switzerland: 6-14 months – YES
- Feta (Cow’s Milk): Brined 1 month – NO
- Feta (Goat or Sheep Milk): Brined 3-6 months – NO
- Fiore Sardo: 4-8 months – YES
- Fontina (Aged): Aging widely varies. Consumers should carefully review the label for any indication of age. – YES
- Fontina (Young): Aging widely varies. Consumers should carefully review the label for any indication of age. – NO
- Golden Jack: 2 months – NO
- Gouda (Baby): 4-10 weeks – NO
- Gouda (Regular): 3 months – NO
- Gruyere: 5 months- 12 months – YES
- Havarti (Aged): 1 year – YES
- Havarti (Regular): 3 months – NO
- Kashkaval (Aged): Aging widely varies. Consumers should carefully review the label for any indication of age. – YES
- Kashkaval (Young): Aging widely varies. Consumers should carefully review the label for any indication of age. – NO
- Marble Cheese (Aged): Aging widely varies. Consumers should carefully review the label for any indication of age. – YES
- Marble Cheese (Young): Aging widely varies. Consumers should carefully review the label for any indication of age. – NO
- Mochego Curado: 3-6 months – YES
- Monchego Fresco: 2 weeks – NO
- Monchego Viejo: 1 year – YES
- Montaggio: 3-4 months – NO
- Montasio (Aged): 10 months – YES
- Montasio (Fresh): 2 months – NO
- Montasio (Semi-Aged): 5-9 months – YES
- Monterey Jack (American market): 2 months – NO
- Monterey Jack (Foreign Market): Can be aged 6 months to 1 year (see also Dry Monterey Jack) – YES
- Monterey Jack, Dry: 7-10 months – YES
- Morlacco, Morlacco di Grappa: 20 days-3 months – NO
- Mozzarella: 30 Days – NO
- Muenster: 5-7 weeks – NO
- Parmesan: 10-24 months or more – YES
- Pecorino Fresco: 15 days-3 months – NO
- Pecorino Romano: 6-8 months – YES
- Pecorino Sardo: 8 months – YES
- Pepper Jack (American market): 2 months – NO
- Pepper Jack (Foreign Market): Can be aged 6 months to 1 year – YES
- Piccante Provolone: 6-12 months – YES
- Pressed Asiago: 6 weeks – NO
- Primo Sale: Approximately 30 days – NO
- Provola dei Nebrodi: At least 6 months – YES
- Provola Sfoglia: 3-4 months – NO
- Provolone, Dolce (Mild, Regular): 2-3 months – NO
- Provolone, Piccante: 6-12 months – YES
- Queso Quesadilla: Less than 30 days – NO
- Reggianito: 6 months – YES
- Romano: 5-12 months – YES
- Scamorza: 1 week – NO
- Speedy Piccante: At least 9 months – YES
- Stracchino: 1-20 days – NO
- Stravecchio: 1-3 years – YES
- Swiss (American made, Baby Swiss and Lacey Swiss): 3-4 months (see Emmental, above, for Swiss made in Switzerland) – NO
- Tabor: 30 days – NO
- Tilsit: 6 months (when produced correctly, although it is suspected that much Tilsit cheese is not aged anywhere near a 6-month period) – YES
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Waiting After Eating Hard Cheese: Some Hard Facts
It is the position of the OU’s poskim (halachic authorities) that one need only wait between eating aged cheese and meat if the cheese is of a variety that is intentionally aged in production, such as Parmesan (must be aged in production at least 10 months) and Emmental (much be aged in production at least 6 months). One need not wait after consuming non-aged cheese that is then incidentally aged on refrigerator shelves and exhibits the same texture and taste as it should exhibit in in its non-aged state.
However, it has come to our attention that some non-aged cheeses, if left to age in their packaging, may acquire a meshichas ta’am – a very potent taste – which is one of the factors that requires a person to wait after certain cheeses. (V. Taz. s.k. 4 and other poskim on Shulchan Aruch Yoreh 89:2.)
Should a person notice that an otherwise non-aged cheese which has aged after production presents a very potent taste, or that it has acquired a brittle texture similar to that of aged cheeses, he should treat such cheese the same as regular aged cheese and wait the full period before consuming meat.
Adapted from Sources: https://oukosher.org/blog/consumer-kosher/aged-cheese-list/ and https://oukosher.org/blog/consumer-kosher/are-all-fromages-created-equal-waiting-between-cheese-and-meat/
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