SWISS CHEESES
People consider Switzerland a land of cheese although in most instances they will only be able to identify two or three. Shocker! Swiss cheese doesn’t have to have big holes, nor does it have to come from cows’ milk, nor eaten on a sandwich. Occasionally you’ll hear that it’s made for fondue & some for raclette. Although we have in our spotlights over the years introduced you to a number of cheeses, it’s time to take a closer look with a bird’s eye view of “Swiss Cheeses”.
If you request “Swiss Cheese” in Switzerland, you’ll probably get a quizzical look or perhaps even a “Petit Suisse” which actually comes from the Normandy region of France. With over 450 varieties of cheese produced in Switzerland we will only be able to give you a brief overview and introduce you to some interesting cheeses. You might know that Swiss cheeses are frequently associated with a canton or a region (Appenzell, Gruyère, Grisons, la Romandie or the Valais) whose inhabitants take great pride in their local cheeses.
There are many other ways to identify or classify them. A good start is by type. Extra hard & hard cheeses like Sbrinz, Emmentaler & Gruyère are the most well-known. Raclette cheese from the Valais, Appenzeller, Vacherin & Tête de Moine fall into the semi-hard category; while Swiss Brie, the Vacherin Mont-d’Or and the Tomme from the Canton of Vaud qualify as soft cheeses. You can of course separate them by the origin of the milk used. Most cheeses come from cows’ milk, however you can find some really good ones made from goat, sheep or buffalo milk.
Following ageless traditions, cows are led to alpine pastures where they can graze on rich & lush grass. Although there are large cheese producers in Switzerland, many Swiss cheeses to this day are still made in hundreds of small dairies using milk produced locally on small farms. If a cheese is labeled with an “AOC” (Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée) symbol, it indicates that the cheese was only made from May to early October using milk from cows that have grazed on mountains between 1000 and 2000 meters in altitude.
As is the case with wines from Switzerland, most of the locally produced Swiss cheeses are not generally available in the USA. Your cheese monger should be able to provide you with Sbrinz, the “Swiss Parmesan”, Appenzeller with its distinctive aroma, as well as Tilsit, or perhaps a Fromage de Bagne for Raclette, and maybe even a good Vacherin. However, the majority of the cheeses produced in Switzerland are not exported. It’s too bad because you’ll miss out on some really good ones, some of which have interesting & funny names. You are already familiar with Tête de Moine (Monk’s head), how about: Bleudi Geiss (Stupid Goat), Märli für Erwachese (Fairy Tales for Adults), Buebe-Troum (Boy’s Dream) or Roter Teufel (Red Devil)!
Checkout the videos & web sites by clicking on the various highlighted links above
People consider Switzerland a land of cheese although in most instances they will only be able to identify two or three. Shocker! Swiss cheese doesn’t have to have big holes, nor does it have to come from cows’ milk, nor eaten on a sandwich. Occasionally you’ll hear that it’s made for fondue & some for raclette. Although we have in our spotlights over the years introduced you to a number of cheeses, it’s time to take a closer look with a bird’s eye view of “Swiss Cheeses”.
If you request “Swiss Cheese” in Switzerland, you’ll probably get a quizzical look or perhaps even a “Petit Suisse” which actually comes from the Normandy region of France. With over 450 varieties of cheese produced in Switzerland we will only be able to give you a brief overview and introduce you to some interesting cheeses. You might know that Swiss cheeses are frequently associated with a canton or a region (Appenzell, Gruyère, Grisons, la Romandie or the Valais) whose inhabitants take great pride in their local cheeses.
There are many other ways to identify or classify them. A good start is by type. Extra hard & hard cheeses like Sbrinz, Emmentaler & Gruyère are the most well-known. Raclette cheese from the Valais, Appenzeller, Vacherin & Tête de Moine fall into the semi-hard category; while Swiss Brie, the Vacherin Mont-d’Or and the Tomme from the Canton of Vaud qualify as soft cheeses. You can of course separate them by the origin of the milk used. Most cheeses come from cows’ milk, however you can find some really good ones made from goat, sheep or buffalo milk.
Following ageless traditions, cows are led to alpine pastures where they can graze on rich & lush grass. Although there are large cheese producers in Switzerland, many Swiss cheeses to this day are still made in hundreds of small dairies using milk produced locally on small farms. If a cheese is labeled with an “AOC” (Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée) symbol, it indicates that the cheese was only made from May to early October using milk from cows that have grazed on mountains between 1000 and 2000 meters in altitude.
As is the case with wines from Switzerland, most of the locally produced Swiss cheeses are not generally available in the USA. Your cheese monger should be able to provide you with Sbrinz, the “Swiss Parmesan”, Appenzeller with its distinctive aroma, as well as Tilsit, or perhaps a Fromage de Bagne for Raclette, and maybe even a good Vacherin. However, the majority of the cheeses produced in Switzerland are not exported. It’s too bad because you’ll miss out on some really good ones, some of which have interesting & funny names. You are already familiar with Tête de Moine (Monk’s head), how about: Bleudi Geiss (Stupid Goat), Märli für Erwachese (Fairy Tales for Adults), Buebe-Troum (Boy’s Dream) or Roter Teufel (Red Devil)!
Checkout the videos & web sites by clicking on the various highlighted links above
