Google Doodle celebrates Marie Harel, the inventor of Camembert cheese

The new Google Doodle celebrates the 256th birthday of dairy maid Marie Harel with a nine-picture slideshow that shows how Camembert cheese is made.

The step-by-step narrative is drawn in a nostalgic style reminiscent of the early 20th-century French poster artists such as Herve Morvan and Raymond Savignac, says Google.

Harel, who was born on 28 April 1761 in Crouttes as Marie Fountaine, is credited with creating the first camembert in 1791, with help from a cheese whisperer.

According to Google, legend claims that Abbot Charles-Jean Bonvoust, a priest purportedly from the region of Brie, sought shelter at Beaumoncel, near Vimoutiers during the French Revolution, where he shared his secret for making the soft-centred cheese with Harel.

Harel took it a step further, making the creation her very own by packing the cheese in its iconic wooden boxes.

Harel started a dynasty of entrepreneurial cheese makers who developed the production of the camembert cheese on a large scale. Her grandson, Cyrille Paynet, started a cheese factory in the commune of Le Mesnil-Mauger in Calvados.

Like its counterpart, brie, camembert is made from raw cow's milk without cream. The cheese is yellow, carries an earthy aroma and has a creamy taste. It also has an edible white rind.

Camembert made from unpasteurised milk receives the designation Camembert de Normandie.

The Camembert Museum in the village of Vimoutiers, has a statue of Harel, who is celebrated for her contribution to French cheese culture.