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SWISS CHEESE

Ten varieties of cheese you should be able to identify if you live in Switzerland

Admit it: you moved to Switzerland for the cheese, right? And even if you didn’t, you have probably tasted many of them by now. But can you identify which cheese is which?

Ten varieties of cheese you should be able to identify if you live in Switzerland
Switzerland has 450 varieties of cheese, some of which are pictured here. Photo by Azzedine Rouichi on Unsplash

Switzerland produces 450 varieties of cheeses — that’s a hole lot of cheese. 

You may not have tried all of them — yet — or perhaps haven’t even heard of them, so this is a good opportunity to learn.

Why is this important? Not only is cheese an essential part of the country’s culture (and its economy as well), but this is the kind of knowledge that may prove useful on a citizenship test as well.

Not to mention the most important reason: cheese is delicious.

READ MORE: EXPLAINED: Why is Switzerland so obsessed with cheese?

Here are 10 Swiss cheeses from various regions that you should be able to identify. While they are all different in terms of texture and taste, they all have one thing in common: they are made from fresh, untreated milk and sourced from cows who eat only grass and hay.

Gruyère

Perhaps the most famous of Switzerland’s cheeses, Gruyère comes from canton Fribourg, from the very picturesque region of the same name. It is recognisable by its solid yellow colour and taste that ranges from sharp to mild.

It is also the only Swiss cheese that has stirred controversy after an American court ruled in January that this cheese doesn’t have to be manufactured in Gruyère— or even in Switzerland, for that matter —  in order to bear the name. 

READ MORE: Why are Swiss angry with Americans about Gruyere cheese?

A picture of Gruyère cheese so close you can smell it. Photo: ELIOT BLONDET / AFP

Emmentaler

Named after the Bern’s Emmental valley where it is produced, it has a distinctly mild and nutty taste.

This is also the only Swiss cheese with holes, which “range from the size of cherries to the size of nuts and are formed during the maturation process”, according to Switzerland Cheese Marketing board (SCM).

Photo: CHARLY TRIBALLEAU / AFP

Appenzeller

Yes, it comes from the both Appenzells (Inner- and Ausserrhoden) and SCM describes it as “the most flavoursome cheese in Switzerland” (of course, other cheese-producing regions may disagree).

Be it as it may, its tangy flavour comes from the manufacturing process involving the use of herbal brine.

Photo by Pixabay

Tilsiter

If there is such a thing as Swiss cheese with foreign roots, Tilsiter is it.

As SMC describes it, Otto Wartmann returned home to Thurgau in 1893 from a small town in East Prussia called Tilsit.

“He brought a cheese recipe with him. He refined this recipe on his timber yard in the lovely Bissegg in Thurgau. And there he cultivated cheese production, with brand-new quality standards”.

It is hard to know what this cheese tasted and looked like like back then, but today it has semi-firm texture and intense flavour.

Photo: Tilsiter.ch

Raclette

Even though the French claim this cheese (and dish) as their own, the Swiss scoff at this idea, as they scoff at pretty much everything the French say.

This semi-hard, semi-sharp cheese that comes from various regions of Switzerland — including Fribourg and Valais — is eaten melted, poured over boiled potatoes and accompanied by cornichons small pickled onions.

Photo: Claudio Schwarz on Unsplash

Tête de Moine

Translated this means monk’s head — a cylindrical cheese from Jura so named because, as legend has it, it was used by the monks as currency back in the 12th century.

This aromatic, slightly tangy cheese is never sliced but “scraped”  into little rosettes with a special cheese curler.

Sbrinz

This extra-hard, extra sharp cheese from central Switzerland that is broken into chunks or grated rather sliced, “takes at least 18 months to mature – and the longer it is given to mature, the more aromatic and flavoursome the taste”, SMC says.

It is often used instead of Parmesan in Swiss cuisine.

Photo by Waldrebell / Pixabay

READ MORE: 15 facts you may not have known about Swiss cheese

Vacherin Mont d’Or

This round, super-soft cheese with hard crust comes from the Vallée de Joux area of Vaud.

“The delicately melting, creamy quality is best enjoyed eaten from a spoon at room temperature”, according to SMC. “Gourmets love Vacherin Mont-d’Or AOP and enjoy it as an excellent dessert cheese or heated in the oven and served warm alongside new potatoes or crunchy bread”.

Vallée de Joux. Photo by Jacques Bopp on Unsplash

Alpkäse

While there is no standardised “Alpine cheese” in Switzerland,  mountain dairies produce a variety of regional cheeses like Hobelkäse or Mutschli.

They are made from the milk of cows that graze on high-altitude meadows, eating aromatic alpine herbs.

Photo by Quaritsch Photography on Unsplash

Last but not least: what about the fondue?

Fondue is a dish, rather than a single cheese.

Photo by angela pham on Unsplash

The real Swiss one, Moitié-Moitié (French for half-half),  is made from 50 percent Gruyère and 50 percent Fribourg Vacherin.

It is a good thing to know if this question pops up on the citizenship test.

READ MORE: ‘Fondue is Swiss… the French just don’t know how to make it’

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For members

SWISS CHEESE

Say cheese: Switzerland re-legalises raclette and fondue in cable cars

Cheese and altitude lovers rejoice: it is now legal once more to consume two of Switzerland’s best-known dishes while riding in a ski gondola. This is what you should know.

Say cheese: Switzerland re-legalises raclette and fondue in cable cars

It is entirely possible that you have not been aware that eating raclette or fondue while riding in a cable car has been outlawed  in Europe since 2019.

Until then, a number of Swiss ski lift companies routinely served these dishes to passengers taking scenic rides over the Alps.

However, when the European Union introduced a new law banning open fires in closed cable cars, Switzerland had to reluctantly follow suit, even though no incidents of any kind had ever been reported in the country.

READ MORE: The 12 strange laws in Switzerland you need to know

However, Swiss legislation allows exceptions to European standards under certain circumstances —  in this particular case, by ensuring that the two melted cheese dishes don’t increase the risk of fire.

Photo by Pixabay

Rather than fan the flames, the Swiss Ski Lift Association (RMS) has found a solution to ensure fire safety: the table in the cabin will be firmly fixed and made of fireproof material.

RMS submitted its proposal  to the Federal Office of Transport, which has re-legalised the practice.

From now on, “the guests will [again] enjoy a beautiful view and a delicious menu without having to worry about safety”, said RMS director Berno Stoffel.

After three years of cheese-less rides, the fate of ski-lift fondues and raclettes is no longer up in the air — but the cheese dishes certainly are.

READ MORE: Ten varieties of cheese you should be able to identify if you live in Switzerland

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