Laguiole Cheese Knives and Sets
These Laguiole cheese knives, sold singly or in sets of three, are made in France, where Laguiole en Aubrac crafts them by hand for cutting and serving at the cheese board. A single Laguiole cheese knife in the classic shape, the one people recognise as the French cheese knife, has a curved blade with a two-pointed tip, so you cut a wedge and carry it to your plate with the same knife. The Buron, named after the stone huts of the Aubrac, is a Benjamin Auzier design with a wide, flat handle, so the knife stays upright on the table.
Each Laguiole cheese knife set holds three knives with matching handles, and every knife is shaped for a different texture. You spread a soft goat’s cheese with the spreading knife, cut and serve Brie with the forked knife, and break a mature Cheddar into chunks with the cleaver, so no flavour ends up on the wrong cheese. Handles include pale juniper, zebu horn tip and reconstituted malachite. To choose between singles, sets and The Buron, read the Expert UK Guide to Cheese Knife Sets (3-Piece & Singles).
•Handmade in France•Shaped for serving cheese•Handles in wood, horn or stone•
Laguiole cheese knife handles: juniper, zebu horn tip or malachite
Juniper is the pale choice, honey to blond in tone, with brown veining and small knots under a satin finish, and you can have it on the classic knife, The Buron or a full set. Zebu horn tip is taken from the solid point of the horn, where the colour runs deep, and is polished, with blond or amber flames running through browner horn, sometimes translucent. Reconstituted malachite is deep green with paler bands and rings, polished and offered on the set of three. Each set uses a single material for all three handles.
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Watch the juniper set of three
The spreading knife, the forked knife and the cleaver, each with a satin juniper handle.
View this set
What are the different cheese knives for?
Among the types of cheese knives, a set from Laguiole en Aubrac brings together three, each matched to one texture. The spreading knife, with its rounded end, is for soft and creamy cheeses such as a fresh goat's cheese or a runny Camembert. The forked knife has a slim blade that soft cheese does not stick to, so it cuts a wedge cleanly and then picks it up on its prongs. The cheese cleaver is the broadest of the three, made for firm and hard cheeses, which it cuts into cubes. Alongside the set, the classic knife and The Buron take care of soft and semi-hard cheeses on their own.
Which cheese knife for which cheese?
Match the knife to the texture. For a ripe Brie, a Camembert or a soft goat's cheese, use a soft cheese knife: in this range, the spreading knife or the forked knife. For semi-hard cheeses such as an Edam or a young Gouda, reach for the classic knife or The Buron. A mature Cheddar or a block of Comté calls for the cleaver, which does the job of a hard cheese knife. Keeping one knife per cheese also stops the flavours mixing as the board is passed round.
Cheese knife questions from UK shoppers
What cheese knives do I need?
For a board with several cheeses, a set of three covers every texture: one knife to spread soft cheese, one to cut and serve, and a cleaver for the hard ones. If you tend to serve a single Brie or Camembert, the classic knife or The Buron on its own will do. Laguiole en Aubrac crafts every one of them by hand in France.
Why do cheese knives have a hook?
The hook is the curved, two-pointed end of the blade, and it lets one knife do two jobs. On the classic model, you slice into the wedge along the curve, flip the blade, and spear the piece on the two points to lift it onto a cracker or a side plate without using your fingers. In the set, the forked knife cuts the portion and picks it up on its two prongs to serve it.
What is the best cheese knife set in the UK?
One that gives each texture its own knife and names its maker on every blade. As a cheese board knife set, Laguiole en Aubrac's set of three combines a round-tipped spreading knife, a forked knife and a broad cleaver, all handmade in France with matching handles in juniper, horn tip, malachite or another material.
A leaflet with care instructions comes in every order. Wash the knives by hand after the cheese course, dry them with a cloth straight away, and don't let wood or horn handles near the dishwasher.
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