The first thing that hits you at the World Cheese Awards is the smell.

As the 37th edition -- part competition, part a celebration of cheese -- kicked off in Switzerland on Thursday, some visitors might wish the offerings had more holes.

With descriptions of odors including “stinky socks” and “sick dog," it's clearly a festival — and a challenge — for the nose as much as mouths, fingers and eyes.

Welcome to sensory overload.

Connoisseurs, culinary experts and curious consumers flocked to the three-day event in a country where cheese is both food and folklore.

The first day got going with the competition, which featured over 5,200 cheeses, nearly one-fifth from Switzerland. Some 46 countries took part, a record count of competitors from Australia to Austria, Bulgaria to Brazil.

All those offerings in the same Bern exhibition hall made for an original mélange of odors.

But once past that medley of smells, the sights, flavors and individual scents of the cheeses were tantalizing.

John Farrand, managing director of the Guild of Fine Food in Britain, the event organizer, says some people who tell him they “don't like cheese, it's that awful smelly thing” just need to take time and consider the myriad choices.

"I've been doing this all my life, hanging out with cheese, and I now am fairly immune to the sense of smell," he said to AP. But he admitted that the breaking of a huge 120 kg wheel of Emmentaler during the opening ceremony, gave him a kick. "The aroma of this Emmentaler just hit me," he said. “That’s the first time that that cheese has released its greatness and the aroma ... just makes you hungry.”

Some may turn up their noses at bacteria-blued “bleu” cheeses or reject the strong odors of varieties like Limberger, Taleggio, “Stinking Bishop” and Époisses de Bourgogne — a Burgundy specialty reputed to be Napoleon’s favorite, and one so stinky that urban legend claims it’s banned from public transport in France.

Others might not get over the hump of hesitation to taste a camel (or buffalo or donkey) cheese, or cringe at unpasteurized or squishy cheeses.

More adventurous tasters will try the most gooey or moldy cheeses, looking for the most rich, creamy or meaty varieties on hand.

For the judges, no such compunction: It’s more about scrutiny, savoring, criticism and curiosity.

This year's winner was Swiss: A “spezial” Gruyere from the Vorderfultigen Mountain Dairy about 20 kilometers (12 miles) south of Bern, which scored 85 points from the jury.

The raw cow’s milk cheese was drained overnight and dry salted before being matured for more than 18 months.

While the U.S. state of Wisconsin hosts the World Championship Cheese Contest and a competition in France selects the world’s best cheesemonger, organizers of the World Cheese Awards say it’s the largest cheese-only event anywhere.

The competition started in Britain, but Italy, Spain and Norway have also hosted.

AP video by Jamey Keaten