Dairy Buzz

Across the length and breadth of Germany, the flavour of cheese can be found in most homes and restaurants and there are around six hundred varieties of cheese from its various regions. With the landscape differing all across the country, the taste of the cheeses as well as the traditional ways of making them is different too. Most of the cheeses are made in the Bavarian region with the goat’s cheeses being made in the north. The cheeses run the gamut of textures – from hard cheese to semi-hard to semi-soft to soft cheese and fresh cheese. Some of the more popular ones are listed here.

Allgäuer Emmentaler

While Emmentaler is essentially a Swiss cheese, the Allgäuer Emmentaler cheese is today, very much part of the German array of cheeses. It is made in the southern part of Germany in the Alpine region of Allgäu and the tradition goes back nearly 200 years when two Swiss dairymen were invited to make Emmentaler in Germany.

Wilstermarschkäse

The story goes that it was Dutch immigrants who first made this cheese and introduced it to Germany. It has a tangy, light flavour and makes a great breakfast cheese. It is made in an area close to Hamburg which is located behind the Schleswig-Holstein sea dykes.

Gouda

This remains one of Germany’s most popular cheeses and it has been made here for over two centuries. It is great for sauces and in fondues as it melts well.

Räucherkäse

This smoked cheese is a very popular cheese and there’s a lot of it exported. It is a processed cheese made from the Bavarian Emmentaler and then smoked. There is a popular variant that has chopped ham in it.

Münsterkäse

This cheese traces its origins back to the Middle Ages when it was made by French monks in the Alsace region – this became a part of Germany and so the cheese was seamlessly integrated into the German cuisine.

Weinkäse

Cheese goes with wine like butter with bread and this cheese is called the ‘wine cheese’, In fact it got its name because it was made specially to go with the fruity wines in the region around the Rhine River. This mild cheese which has a creamy feel goes well with these wines.

Quark

This is one of the most popular cheeses and it is made from skim milk and is a curd cheese. Germans from all over the country seem to love it and so much of it is eaten. Both the low fat and those with a slightly higher fat content are available. Germans can put down a lot of Quark any which way – plain, in salads, as dips or sauces, with seasoning and herbs, in cheesecake or other desserts like soufflés, in dressings and stuffing. Anyplace they can squeeze a bit of Quark in, they will. It is also made into other cheese by adding cream to it and making it into a more spreadable cheese. Rahm Frischkäse and Doppelrahm Frischkäse are two such cheeses and they are very like Philadelphia cream cheese in texture.