The History of Cheese

July 22, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

In 2015, an organized crime ring in Italy was arrested for stealing over 2,000 wheels of authentic Parmigiano-Reggiano from warehouses over a two-year period. The take was estimated at over a million dollars. That is the kind of pull cheese has had on human civilization for roughly 10,000 years—a history that predates writing, changed human DNA, and sparked everything from riots to royal decrees.

The Accidental Discovery That Changed Human Biology

Cheese predates recorded history, with its origins likely tied to the domestication of sheep and goats around 8000 BCE in the Fertile Crescent (modern-day Iran and Turkey). The most plausible origin story involves an accidental discovery: milk was often stored in animal stomachs, which contain an enzyme called rennet. Rennet naturally coagulates milk, separating it into solid curds and liquid whey. A shepherd may have opened a stomach container to find chunks floating in the liquid, eaten them, and invented cheese.

Continue reading the full summary in the app — free to try.

Read Full Summary →

Free • No credit card required

Listen to Audio Summary Open in App

Never miss an episode of Historically High

Get every new episode summarized in your inbox — free, ~5 minutes to read.

No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.

What you'll learn

1 (01:28) **Introduction and Thesis** - The hosts introduce cheese as a world-changing food staple that has brought families together, won wars, and even altered human DNA.
2 (08:55) **Prehistoric Origins of Cheese** - The hosts explore the accidental discovery of cheese around 8000 BCE in the Fertile Crescent, predating written history.
3 (15:14) **Cheese and Human Evolution** - The episode explains how cheese consumption directly enabled the development of lactose tolerance in the human population.
4 (17:35) **The Cheese-Making Process Explained** - A detailed breakdown of the four essential ingredients and the physical process of making cheese.
5 (20:19) **Cheese in Ancient Literature and Empire** - The hosts trace cheese through Greek mythology, the Bible, and its critical role in the Roman Empire's military logistics.
6 (24:51) **Monasteries, Monarchs, and Cheddar** - After the Roman Empire, the Catholic Church's monasteries became the centers of cheese innovation, followed by royal obsessions that shaped the industry.
7 (31:06) **American Cheese and the Annatto Seed** - The episode covers the rise of commercial cheese in America, the standardization of color, and the protection of regional cheese names.

+ Full timestamped outline available in the app

Show Notes

Here we are. The History of Cheese. My love letter to cheese. Cultures. Milk. Rennet. Salt. That's all you need to start making cheese. The history starts prior to written history. The cheesemaking process was carried across the world by war and exploration. That process mixed with the nature and animals of the regions, helped shape unique new kinds of cheese. We have a lot to cover from cheese crime to cheese types to cheese games to cheese getting you high? Join us as we get Historically High on Cheese! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com
for information about our collection and use of personal data for
advertising.