For many cheese enthusiasts, sheep's milk cheeses are the most compelling of all. Dairy sheep (as opposed to breeds prized for meat or wool) give especially rich milk, well suited to cheesemaking. It has roughly twice the fat of cow's or goat's milk and half again as much milk protein. Consequently, a gallon of sheep's milk yields more cheese than a comparable volume of goat's or cow's milk.

But there's a catch. Sheep compensate for their high-quality milk by being stingy with it. So sheep's milk cheeses tend to more expensive than their goat and cow equivalents, but their many fans consider it money well spent.

France's two best-known sheep's milk cheeses could hardly be more different. The more famous is Roquefort, one of the world's few sheep's milk blues. The other is Ossau-Iraty, a firm, aged wheel from the Pyrenees, with aromas of nuts, brown butter and caramel. Abbaye de Belloc is a particularly fine example of Ossau-Iraty, still made by the Benedictine monks of the Abbaye de Notre-Dame de Belloc.

The shepherds in the Pyrenees still follow the age-old practice known as transhumance, leading their flocks into the mountains in spring to graze on fresh pasture, then bringing them down to the valley barns in early fall when snow threatens. The cheese is made throughout the season at little huts in the mountains and brought down to the valley for sale.

To experience the concentrated flavor of Ossau-Iraty or Abbaye de Belloc, try it shaved in thin slices with a cheese plane. Shave it over salads, or sandwich it in a lightly buttered baguette. Or top a frittata with grated Ossau-Iraty to make a brunch dish fit for guests.

See It Made: Fromage Frittata

Cook's Tip: Nowhere is it written that only Italian cheese complements pasta. Hard aged French cheeses — such as Mimolette, six-month-old Ossau-Iraty or even a well-aged Crottin di Chavignol — can stand in for Parmesan and display your creative side. Try braised lamb shanks with buttered noodles topped with grated Ossau-Iraty. Splendide!