Only about 40 dairies produce this unique, semi-hard cheese from Eastern Switzerland.
There is nothing like the taste of place in a high-quality, hand-crafted cheese. One of the best examples of this is Appenzeller. This unique raw milk, semi-hard cheese is made in Eastern Switzerland from the dual canton of Appenzell Innerrhoden (also called Inner-Rhodos) and Appenzell Ausserrhoden. It is made from the raw milk of Brown Swiss cows fed exclusively from fresh grass, wildflowers, herbs and hay, and it has been produced for over 700 years.
The cheese is made in the traditional fashion with animal rennet, and GMO feed is strictly prohibited. In Switzerland, animal welfare is especially important, and it is embodied by farmers, dairy producers, and the public alike.
While Appenzeller is often referred to as an Alpine cheese, the area is more rolling hills, abet high rolling hills. Because of the geographic area, Appenzeller is made all year long, and it is an Alpine-style cheese. Typical of Alpine cheeses, it is a cooked and pressed cheese, giving it a smooth texture with small, intermittent, pea-sized holes. The brine or rub that is used during the aging process is a highly protected secret, and it is what makes Appenzeller unique.
Today, there are about 40 small, authorized cheese dairies in this limited production area between Alpstein, Säntis and Lake Constance. One of these, Appenzeller Schaukäserei in Stein, Switzerland, offers tours and tastings to the public. This is a show dairy producing Appenzeller, but it is attached to a museum where the entire process is documented and explained. It’s a bucket list trip for lovers of Swiss-type cheeses.
“Visitors are first shown information about the region in which Appenzeller cheese is produced and the history behind the cheese,” says Jenny Bruderer, sales and marketing manager at Schaukäserei, which has made Appenzeller from local and silage-free raw milk every day since November 1977 and welcomed more than 8.5 million global visitors on its tours.
“Then the milk producers (dairies) are mentioned, and they are only allowed to live within a radius of 20 kilometers from the farmer whose milk is used. Finally, we arrive in the cheese dairy area, where a large display window offers an insight into the working life of the cheesemakers. The cheesemakers are all portrayed individually in a gallery in the display area. On the tour, visitors receive five distinct types of Appenzeller cheese, which are explained at various stations and then eaten. Tastings are only with bread, but visitors can also add charcuterie, beer or cider.”
Bruderer adds there is also an area dedicated to the secret herbal brine that makes Appenzeller so unique. “Here, visitors will find an herb station where they can make their own herbal mixture. However, the secret of the herbal brine is not explained on the tour.”
The closely guarded secret of the herbal brine remains as cherished today as it was hundreds of years ago, according to Reto Steiger, the head of marketing and market development for the Appenzeller trade association. Steiger says the monks at the Abbey of St. Gall were already enjoying the cheese, which they received from farmers in Appenzellerland as a tithe, as early as the 13th century.
“A combination of various herbs, roots, leaves, petals, seeds, and rinds is placed in oversized ‘tea bags’ and steeped in high-proof alcohol for six to eight weeks. During this cold maceration process, the alcohol extracts the various aromas and flavors from the secret mixture, resulting in the herbal essence. The liquid herbal brine is then diluted with water and salt and regularly applied or smeared to the rind of the cheese during the maturing process,” says Steiger.
It eventually permeates the entire cheese and gives Appenzeller, its characteristic tangy taste. The composition of the brine is a closely guarded secret, and the recipe is held by only a few people.
As a smooth, creamy and semi-firm cheese, its flavor profile differs from its close relative, Gruyere. While Gruyere tends to be slightly grainy, its flavor notes are complex and nutty. It makes for a good substitute for Appenzeller in any recipe.
THE TASTY TYPES
Only a selection of Appenzeller cheeses, the classic range, plus the White Label, are available in the U.S. market. There are four varieties in the classic range. The Silver Label has the mildest, creamy texture and matures for three months. The Gold Label, aged four to five months, is tangy and aromatic. The sharp and robust-tasting Black Label matures at least six months, while the Purple Label is aged for nine-12 months, giving it a more complex and fuller flavor.
“Appenzeller White Label has an extra portion of cream that tempers the robust and complex flavor, making it a great introduction to the world of this cheese,” says Daniel Schnyder, director of imports and key accounts for Emmi Roth USA, in Fitchburg, WI. “It pairs well with Chardonnay, cider, or rosé and is perfect for breakfast with bread and fruit or on a cheeseboard.”
The best way to put a face on Appenzeller’s taste of place is to hear from the cheesemakers themselves. Five producers earned awards in two categories, Silver Label and Black Label, for their cheeses at the World Championship Cheese Contest in Wisconsin, in March 2024. Marcel Gabriel, from Käserei Gabriel in Oberbüren, took home first and third place for his Silver and Black label cheeses. What’s more, when the winners in each of the contest’s 142 categories were judged again by a super jury, Gabriel’s Silver Label ranked as one of the top 20 cheeses overall in the world.
“Our Appenzeller has a very pure taste and is so unique in its mild and creamy taste,” says Gabriel, whose dairy has produced cheese for over 125 years. The Gabriel family has run it for over 50 years, and it is now in its second generation with Marcel at the helm.
Philipp Messmer, of Käserei Messmer in Wald, earned second place in the Silver label.
“The basic prerequisite for a tasty cheese is high-quality milk from our farmers,” says Messmer, head of one of the smaller Appenzeller dairies. It’s a family business for Messmer, who works with his wife, and one employee. “My grandfather started making cheese here in Wald in 1968. In 1986, a new building was constructed, and the cheese dairy was expanded. That’s when my father took over the business. I’ve been running it since 2013.”
Rounding out third in the Silver Label were Christian Fankhauser and Thomas Graf of Käserei Grub Riemen, in Grub. “Our cheese dairy is in the Appenzeller-Vorderland, a gently rolling landscape on the edge of the Appenzell mountains. With its healthy and rich herbal grass, this region forms the ideal basis for producing milk for our Appenzeller cheese,” says Graf, whose family had made cheese here since the beginning of the 18th century.
Appenzeller Silver Label pairs well with Riesling, hard cider, eggs and roasted vegetables.
Johannes Eberle, at Käserei Muolen, won first place in the Appenzeller Black Label. “The creamy consistency combined with the tangy flavor make our Appenzeller unforgettable. Not to mention that the cheese is versatile and tastes unique, whether melted, grated, or fresh-cut,” says Eberle, a fifth-generation master cheesemaker.
Show dairy, Appenzeller Schaukäserei, earned second in the Black Label category.
“The cheese has a very pure and extra tangy taste,” says Ralph Böse, managing director. “Today, six cheesemakers work at the cheese dairy, including Urs Buchegger, who has been the manager and master cheesemaker for many years. The first part of the maturing process of the young cheese takes place on-site in the large cheese cellar, which has space for 12,500 wheels and can also be viewed by the public. Naturally well protected by large glass windows.”
EAT LIKE A LOCAL
According to the Appenzeller trade association’s Steiger, cheeses like Appenzeller are enjoyed for breakfast, lunch, and dinner in Switzerland. “We buy the cheese in general in approximately 8-ounce portions or more depending on the size of the family. This portion is usually placed on a wooden board in the middle of the table, sliced by everyone, and eaten with butter, charcuterie and bread. I also like it with hot potatoes, in a dish we call ‘Gschwellti.’ Varieties of Appenzeller cheese can also be used in hot dishes, such as ‘Chäshörnli,’ a traditional dish like macaroni and cheese in the U.S.”
At the “chäserzmorge,” or breakfast for the cheesemakers, Käserei Muolen’s Eberle placed a slice on fresh bread from the village bakery with the dairy’s butter and his mother’s fruit jam. “Appenzeller also gives my homemade ‘spaetzle’ a special touch,” he says.
“I enjoy Appenzeller cheese at any time, including grated over pasta for lunch or as a raclette for dinner. This summer, I discovered Appenzeller for Raclette on the barbecue,” says Gabriel, of Käserei Gabriel.
Appenzeller and an aperitif is how Buchegger at Appenzeller Schaukäserei enjoys this cheese, while Messmer, of Käserei Messmer, looks forward to an evening meal of charcuterie, cheese, pickles, eggs and bread, or an Appenzeller quiche or fondue.
There are trendy ways to use Appenzeller, too.
“To top nachos, on burgers, and in homemade macaroni and cheese,” says Isabelle Schilt, the Stamford, CT-based key account manager at Swiss cheese specialist, Mifroma USA, which imports Appenzeller Silver Label as well as an Appenzeller Black Label, a full wheel aged for 180 days that pairs well with fruits such as figs and apricots as well as in cooking.
