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Soft smear-ripened cheeses undergo extensive surface crystallization and radial demineralization of calcium, magnesium, and phosphorus, which likely contributes to radial softening during ripening. Furthermore, anecdotal evidence suggests that grittiness is a common characteristic of smear-ripened cheeses. The primary aims of the present study were to evaluate the intensity of perceived grittiness while assessing other key sensory attributes in US artisanal and European protected designation of origin smear-ripened cheeses, and to relate perceived grittiness to the size, shape, and identity of crystals present in the cheese surface smears. Fully ripened wheels of 24 different varieties of smear-ripened cheeses, 16 produced in the United States and 8 in the European Union, were obtained from retail sources. A trained sensory panel (n = 12) was employed to evaluate intensity of grittiness. Crystals present in the cheese smears were identified by powder X-ray diffra,ctonietry and polarized light microscopy, and further evaluated in polarized light microscopy micrographs by image analysis for size arid shape characteristics. Mean serisory scores for the 24 cheeses ranged from no perceived grittiness to easily identifiable grittiness. Surface crys-tals included ikaite, struvite, calcite, and brushite, and mean crystal length arid area ranged among cheeses from 27 to 1,096 mu m, and 533 to 213,969 mu m(2) , respectively. Panel threshold for grittiness occurred at a mean crystal length of about 66 mu.m and mean crystal area of about 2,913 mu m(2) . Cheeses with mean values at or below these thresholds displayed negligible perceived grittiness. In contrast, for cheeses with mean values above these thresholds, the mean sensory scores for grittiness were highly correlated with mean crystal length and crystal area (r = 0.93 and 0.96, respectively). Results suggest that surface crystals in soft smear-ripened cheeses influence sensory perception of texture in complex ways that likely include radial softening arid grittiness development. A better understanding of factors that govern surface crystal formation may lead to improved control over crystallization and more consistent cheese texture.