At one point, Lars Smith had 14 California cheeses in his pizzeria. The chef and owner of State of Mind Hospitality Group says he is passionate about finding new, local ingredients to use on pizza and other menu items at his restaurants in California’s Bay Area.

“Using local cheeses and produce has always been part of our business,” Smith says during the recent California Pizza Contest, sponsored by the California Milk Advisory Board. With an audience of 12 pizza makers competing for $30,000 in cash prizes, Smith walks through the five types of cheese and how he uses them. “I’m always looking for combinations that enhance the texture and taste of the cheese and elevate alcohol.”

When pairing cheeses, Smith says he looks either for complementary or contrasting flavors, pointing out that the same philosophy is used for wine and beer parings. A creamy cheese, for example, might pair well with something acidic to cut the richness.

He also recommends balancing flavor and texture. “For me, if you are going to use a really great cheese, you don’t want to overpower that cheese,” Smith says. “They are a commodity. … You really want to let them shine.”

Smith tells the pizza makers vying for plaques in the California Pizza Contest that there are five types of cheese. Here is how he describes each type:

Fresh Cheese

Photo courtesy of Chef Barbara Alexander

Soft, creamy and mild cheeses such as mozzarella and ricotta have a shorter shelf life than hard and aged cheeses. Smith points to low-moisture, whole-milk mozzarella as a fresh cheese that nearly all pizzerias use in the kitchen. Low-moisture mozzarella that melts well is sometimes referred to as pizzarella.

Pizzarella isn’t strictly for pizzas, however. Smith says pizzarella makes a tasty bite on its own when paired with heirloom tomato, peach, extra-virgin olive oil, golden balsamic vinegar and basil.

One of Smith’s favorite pizzarellas is a fresh mozzarella that is slightly aged. Unlike typical fresh mozzarellas, which have high moisture levels, pizzarella can stand up to the conveyor oven, he says.

Soft Ripened Cheese

Soft ripened cheeses have a bloomy, runny interior, and the texture changes as they ripen, according to Smith. To make triple-cream cheeses such as Brie and Camembert extra cream is added during production to create a smooth, decadent texture.

Smith suggests serving soft-ripened cheeses with pepper jelly, scallion and fried almond – or, as he calls it, “the poor man’s Marcona almond.”

Washed Rind Cheese

Washed rind cheeses start out as a soft, ripe cheeses before they are washed – often in a brine or saltwater solution. Cheeses that are washed in cider, beer or wine to introduce bacteria result in what Smith calls “earthy, funky, stronger flavors” and “different aromas.”

Smith says the rind is his favorite part of such cheeses, adding that nearly all cheese rinds are edible except for those encased in varnish or wax.

A good pairing for washed-rind cheeses: escarole, marinated mushrooms, walnut vinegar, “a little bit of walnut” and micro parsley.

Pressed Cheese

Smith calls pressed cheese a “a catch-all” term that refers to nearly “anything firm and aged,” such as cheddar, smoked gouda and jack cheeses. These cheeses are versatile and ideal for slicing.

An elevated presentation of this cheese style is gouda served with apple and onion marmalade, thyme and pickled mustard seed.

Blue Cheese

“The most polarizing of the cheeses,” according to Smith, is blue cheese. He says the blue molding puts some people off, and most consumers either love it or hate it. Blue cheese is often salty, and crumbled blue cheese – such as gorgonzola – works well on salads.

“Gorgonzola is a little bit softer than some of the other blue cheeses,” Smith says. He recommends serving it with roasted figs, honey and rosemary.