Allgau Emmental
Also referred to as Bavarian Swiss cheese, this is one of the most
famous German Cheeses. It is not originally from Allgau, but from the region of
Emmental located on the Swiss canton of Bern. This cheese has been crafted there since
the 18th century. In 1821, the Swiss method was brought to the Allgau for the
first time by Aurel Stadler. Made from pure Bavarian milk it is
high in protein with a refined flavor, it has a rich, yellow color and
large holes.
Allgäuland Formaggeria Chiantino
A specialty cheese from the Allgäu region of Germany
that has been ripened in red wine. Hand-made using traditional methods, this
delicious cheese is ripened for 100 days in young, fruity red wine. This gives
it the characteristic yellow-orange color, thin
rind, pungent aroma, soft texture and wholesome spiciness.
Barlauchrebell
For bears emerging from their winter hibernation, one of their first
and favorite foods is Bärlauch (Allium ursinum). Bärlauch translates from German
to "bear's garlic," and people living in the Bavarian Alps have known this tasty
herb for thousands of years. Archaeologists discovered traces of wild garlic at
alpine sites settled by Germanic tribes during the Neolithic period.
Today, Bavarians still anticipate the annual arrival
of wild garlic, one of the first plants to appear after the melted snows of
March and April. Soups, cream cheese, salads, and pasta dishes featuring wild
garlic recall the plant's traditional healing properties as a welcoming antidote
that refreshes and wakes the body from its winter slumbers. During an
eight week ripening period, the extremely pungent cheese is saturated with a
mixture of fine herbs which impart a hearty aromatic
flavor.
Bruder Basil
Bruder Basil is made in the tradition of Rauchkäse, a smoked cheese typical
of the region. Originally, Basils were manufactured by Trappist Monks in the
Abbey of Rotthalmunster. In 1902, Basil Weixler founded the Bergader Private
Cheese Dairy. Today, Bergader still works in accordance with this old tradition
of craftmanship. It is still smoked over selected beechwood, which gives it its
special flavor. This semi-soft cow's milk cheese has a darker, natural rind and a
rich, creamy texture. With its smoky flavor, it is ideal for grilled
sandwiches, as an alternative to raclette and gratins and perfect for snacking
with your favorite dark German beer or dry white wine.
Butterkäse
As its name suggests, Butterkäse has a buttery taste
and a creamy texture that melts in your mouth. Aged for one month, it
is a semi soft cow's milk cheese with a pungent flavor that makes it a
perfect table cheese. Its creamy texture lends itself to melting on burgers, chicken, or even a baked potato and it makes a great alternative to butter
or sour cream.
Cambozola
Cambozola, which is made by Kasseri Champignon in
Bavaria, is a rich and creamy Camembert-type cheese with a bloomy white rind.
Beneath its crust one finds streaks of tangy blue. Hence its name: the marriage
of Camembert
and Gorgonzola gives us Cambozola. Very popular all over
the world, Cambozola is the perfect addition to the after-dinner cheese course
and pairs well with fruit and nuts.
Carrot Cheese
Schönegger Käse-Alm's summery, golden-yellow Carrot
Cheese is the star of any display of fine cheeses. Carrot Cheese is produced
from raw milk of cows that graze on meadows blanketed with wild flowers and
Alpine herbs, and combined with pure carrot juice and fresh yogurt. Carrot
Cheese is characterized by a strong aroma, incomparably fresh flavor and taste
of good health.
Cave Rebel
This naturally-ripened hard cheese made from silage-free hay milk
has a medium-soft cheese body with small holes and an aromatic flavor. The
cheese's distinctive appearance can be attributed to the natural rind's
treatment with red smear culture and pine-tree ash during its ripening period.
It's a wonderful melting cheese with a full taste that is perfect for
connoisseurs.
The “Käserebellen” (Cheese Rebels) who make Cave
Rebel cheese rely heavily on the quality of the milk from the Alps. In summer
the cows graze on pastures. In winter, they are fed only with hay and cereals.
The cows do not have to eat silage feed, ensuring that their milk stays as
natural as possible. Milk from cows that are fed with silage may contain butyric
acid bacteria. These can lead to the cheese wheels cracking and crevices forming
in the cheese during the production of hard cheeses and semi-hard cheeses, and
can turn the final product unusable. The Käserebellen use only the highest
quality milk to make sure each wheel is absolutely perfect.
German Tilsit
Named after a town in East Prussia, Tilsit was invented by homesick
Dutch immigrants trying to recreate Gouda. Due to various factors, they were
unable to recreate their beloved cheese. What they did create was a brand new
cheese they named Tilsit. It is made from partially skimmed pasteurized
cow's milk and is semi-firm with a springy texture, dotted with irregularly
spaced tiny holes. It was traditionally made in large wheels, but is now made in
loaf form, making it easier to slice (the way it is generally eaten). The rind
is washed and brushed regularly for the first two months of aging to form an
outer crust that keeps its supple, smooth interior from drying out. Tilsit has a
mildly pungent aroma and a tangy taste that is delicate and fruity with spicy
undertones. It is excellent on sandwiches, cold or grilled, great on chicken, burgers, or melted over
potatoes.
Heublumenkase (Herbs & Flower
Cheese)
Kuh Heublumenkäse is a blend of fragrant dried
flowers, herbs and pure organic Bavarian cow's milk. Besides coming from high
quality milk, this cheese takes on extra character through the selection
of organic flowers, including safflower, blue mallow, peony and marigold,
mingled with rosemary, oregano and a dash of unrefined rock salt. The
cheesemakers coat the cheese with herbs and flowers and then seal it with
transparent wax. Throughout the cheese´s 6-month ripening period, the combined
essences seep into the cheese's paste, making for an innovative, semi-hard cheese
bursting with aroma. The creamy cow's milk balances perfectly with the herb and
flower flavors.
Hirtenkäse
A traditionally handmade product of the Allgäu mountain region, this majestic cheese is rustic, savory and firm textured.
It is an authentic mountain cheese with a rugged, earthy aroma. The rich
cow's milk for Hirtenkäse comes from mountain farmers whose cows graze in
elevations of at least 2600 feet. The farmers have only about 12 to 15 cows per
farm, and each one is well cared for. These pampered cows enjoy the fragrant
grasses on alpine meadows in the summer and spend the winters in their cozy
barn, eating aromatic hay. This humane, loving treatment results in wonderful,
rich milk that makes a spectacular cheese. In mid-September there is a big
festival in the Allgäu called the "Viehscheid". A "lead cow" is decorated with
flowers and all the region's cows are herded down from the mountains to their
barns. The name Hirtenkäse is German for "cow
shepherd's cheese." Hirtenkäse won two gold medals at the World Cheese Awards in
London, England in 2005.
Hochalpkäse
In the Werdenfelser region
of the Bavarian Alps, the cattle graze on wild herbs and flowers that blanket
the meadows in spring and summer. In the winter, the cattle eat perfumed hay
harvested from these very same pastures. Thus, year-round they produce an
aromatic, silo-free milk that is especially prized for its nutritional
qualities. The local farmers use this raw milk to make a traditional High Alps
cheese known as Hochalpkäse in German. High Alps Cheese is a sociable
cheese, appealing to fans of Swiss, Gruyère, Appenzeller, and Cheddar alike. It
is just wild enough to satisfy the palate that craves fruit, earth and spice,
yet it is mild enough for young cheese lovers.
Konig Ludwig
Bierkase
Schoenegger Kaese-Alm has created a classic Bavarian cheese. They
use fresh, unpasteurized milk from cows raised on mountain farms in protected
regions of Europe where they are fed on fresh grass and hay. They were granted a
special license from Prince Luitpold of Bavaria (great grandson of the last King
of Bavaria, Ludwig II), to make Konig Ludwig Bierkase. König Ludwig Dunkel is a
bottom-fermentation dark specialty beer, produced in accordance with traditional
Bavarian brewing methods. This special beer is made in one of the last castle
breweries in the heart of Bavaria, south of Munich in Kaltenberg
Castle. König Ludwig Bierkäse is a delicate yellow, semi-hard
cheese with small holes ripened in the beer to give it its
hearty taste. This dark beer cheese melts well for cooking, but is just as terrific
on its own or served with hearty German bread and a good
beer.
Limburger
Known today as a stinky German cheese, Limburger
was originally created by Belgian Trappist monks. The Germans latched on to the Belgian recipe and made it
their own. This pasteurized cow's milk cheese has a tangy, creamy, Brie-like flavor
with an incredibly pungent aroma. This perfume, which is caused by bacteria
living in the rind, indicates a strong tasting cheese. However, Limburger is
actually fairly tame, especially when you trim the rind. It is best when served
with plenty of cold beer. Other good accompaniments are tinned fish, onions,
crackers, fruits, and vegetables.
Paladin Bavarian
Blue
This tangy, crumbly blue cheese is produced in
Bavaria's Alpine countryside. German cheesemakers have spent centuries taming
the inherent sharpness of the original blue-veined cheese, passing their
time-tested methods down from generation to generation. The result is an
incredibly smooth, mellow white cheese with distinct blue veins. Paladin does
crumble, but has enough moisture to slice as well.
Pfeffer Liebling Kase (Pepper
Cheese)
The founder of Schoenegger
Kaese-Alm started up the company on his father's farm, producing just one kind
of cheese and selling it in his own small shop on the farm. After a few years,
he was so successful that he opened more shops and the small beginnings have now
grown into a factory with 100 employees. Today, they have production facilities
in Bavaria and Austria and sell cheese throughout Germany. Their King
Ludwig Bavarian line of cheeses uses milk from cows raised on mountain farms in
protected regions in Europe where they only feed on fresh grass or hay. They use
unpasteurized milk to produce their golden yellow, semi-hard cheese. The base is
a mild and aromatic mountain cheese. For added crunch and flavor, a generous
amount of whole peppercorns have been added.
Rauchkäse
A smoked cheese typical of Bavaria. This specialty was originally
produced by Trappist Monks in the abbey of Rotthalmunster. Today, there are many
versions of Rauchkase being produced in Bavaria. Like Bruder Basil, Rauchkase is also smoked over select beechwood
embers. But, Rauchkase is a more artisanal cheese with more body and texture in
comparison to the smoothness of Bruder Basil. The rich, buttery Bavarian cow's
milk complements the smoking, creating a robust, smoky aroma with a delicate
smoky flavor.
You can cook with Rauchkase, but we
recommend doing as the Bavarians do; just cut slices and eat with your favorite
breads, cold cuts, and raw veggies.
Regina Blu
This new specialty from Paladin has an extremely mild
and creamy flavor. Its extravagant richness is due to the fact that the cheese
has a 65% fat content. Paladin is calling extra creamy Regina Blu, "the new
queen of our blue cheeses from Bavaria." This German blue is easy to cut and is
delicious spread or melted over steak, crackers or potatoes.
Cheese is perhaps one of Germany's best kept food secrets. While its traditional varieties are less famous than those of other European countries, it doesn't mean Germany lags behind in cheese production.
Despite modern technical refinements, cheese making remains an art that depends on the skill and craftsmanship of each individual cheese maker. The Schleswig-Holstein Cheese Route offers breathtaking scenery, an introduction to the world of cheese making and many other activities along the way. And if the cheese makers of Schleswig-Holstein are the "winegrowers of the north," the Schleswig-Holstein Cheese Route must be the equivalent of the wine routes in more southern parts of Germany. There are magnificent country estates, fine manor houses, baroque-style stately homes, brick Gothic buildings, beautiful churches and many museums to visit along the entire route. For example, north Germany's largest open-air museum in Molfsee is well worth a visit. There are also plenty of boat trips to choose from. The region offers excellent camping and farm holidays and its seaside resorts are perfect for wellness breaks or simply relaxing in the fresh, healthy air. The Schleswig-Holstein Cheese Route also has a wide-ranging program of events with something to suit everyone.
Along the West Allgäu Cheese Trail, cheese gourmets and nature lovers can experience the cheese-maker's craft that is still practiced in its original form today in small, alpine village dairy farms. As you meander along the trail you can experience local cheese dishes and a variety of offerings. You can learn about the process of obtaining milk used in the production of Allgäu Emmentaler cheese, mountain cheese and many other local varieties. 
setting. You can take this trail by car, cycle or on foot and along the way you can take a break at the many quaint inns, all exuding that distinctive "traveller's rest" ambience. The route passes alpine dairy farms, farmhouses, breweries and distilleries. For those who enjoy walking, attractive footpaths are encountered everywhere en route, allowing incredible views and vistas of the Allgäu Alps.