This book provides detailed information on the influence of milk production conditions on cheese quality and cheese ripening; on biochemical reactions that occur during the ripening of the cheese as well as on the microbial population involved in cheese ripening. In particular, the book proposes a review of the main biochemical events that occur during cheese ripening, covering the different aspects related to the enzymatic synthesis of compounds derived from milk fat, their role and importance in cheese flavour and the enzymology and genetics of the main pathway responsible for the catabolism of free amino acids under hostile environmental conditions during cheese ripening.