Once you realize that hard vs. soft is really only a description of how much water a cheese actually contains, these definitions will make a lot more sense. That being said, semi-soft cheeses are generally only slightly harder than cheeses characterized as “soft.” According to Artisanal, these cheeses contain a high percentage of moisture, ranging between 62% and 67%.
While I’m not going to go into the process of how semi-soft cheeses are made, Cheese Chick on her blog, did an excellent job explaining how semi-soft cheeses are made.