james, thanks for putting this in the right spot
billrd
Its mainly around how much whey you extract from the curd and what starter cultures are used (generally a Mesophilic culture). Soft cheese are pressed very little as a general rule.
From there soft cheeses may undergo storage in a brine solution or sprayed with some sort of surface mould to further enhance/develop (eg. Camemberet)
Hard Cheeses
oohhh ahhh... you've got me there. I do over indulge in them with a glass of red or two....ahhh....
Actually Blessed Cheese do these "Wine and Cheese trails" - you go to the shop and pickup a specially prepared pack of cheeses (complete with cooler). It has a map inside showing the local wineries. This map tells you what cheese to match with what wines at a particular winery.... its all organised for you and the cheese place and certain wineries are all clued up for it.