Skip to main content
Support

Browse by category

All categories
Home

Cheese from Appenzell Innerrhoden and Ausserrhoden, and parts of St. Gallen and Thurgau, Switzerland

AppenzellerAppenzeller Käse

Raw cow milk from cows fed only herb-rich grass and hay is made into round wheels in about 40 village dairies. During ripening each wheel is cared for regularly with a secret herbal brine (Kräutersulz), for at least three months in the mild type, which gives the spicy flavour.

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedCommercial cheese with a secret recipe; no source gives amounts.
Raw cow milkFrom cows fed only herb-rich grass and hay[app-factsheet]
Herbal brine (Kräutersulz)Its recipe is a closely kept secret[app-factsheet]
Starterlactic acid bacteria cultures; an Agroscope culture from the raw-milk flora is used for proof of origin

Total time across the recorded steps: 3.2 months

Start
Drag the bar or press Play

What changes: Starting material: raw milk from cows fed grass and hay

Step 1 of 7
Raw milk at the village dairy
Time
Not documented
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Lactic acid bacteria

Output: raw cow milk.

Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

At a glance

Raw cow milk from cows fed only herb-rich grass and hay is made into round wheels in about 40 village dairies. During ripening each wheel is cared for regularly with a secret herbal brine (Kräutersulz), for at least three months in the mild type, which gives the spicy flavour. Made in 7 steps over 3.2 months. The longest step, ripen with herbal brine, takes at least 3 months (SO Appenzeller Käse GmbH 2024). Salt is 20 % (Lee J.-S 2015). Agroscope proof-of-origin culture of lactic acid bacteria, strains taken from the raw-milk flora, added during making and present through ripening does most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main stepat least 3 monthsReported[app-factsheet][app-factsheet-k][app-factsheet-r][guggisberg2017]Ripen with herbal brine
Temperature32 °CReported[lee2015]Add lactic bacteria, then rennet
Salt20 %Reported[lee2015]Salt in brine

What makes this one different

Appenzeller is sold as a registered brand (®). Each wheel is cared for regularly during ripening with a secret herbal brine (Kräutersulz) that gives the spicy flavour.

Milk
Raw cow milk from cows fed only grass and hay
Ripening
At least 3 months (Mild-Würzig); 4–5 months (Kräftig-Würzig)
Composition
At least 48 % fat in dry matter
Size
Round, 30–33 cm across, 7–9 cm high, about 6.7 kg

Related ferments

Variants

  • Mild-WürzigHerbal-brine care for at least three months; silver label.
  • Kräftig-WürzigHerbal-brine care for four to five months; gold label.
  • Extra-WürzigHerbal-brine care for a guaranteed six months; black label.
  • RahmkäseExtra cream added; herbal-brine care for at least three months; at least 55 % fat in dry matter; white label.

Safety

Appenzeller is made from raw milk and ripened at least three months. The US FDA says ageing raw-milk cheese for 60 days may not eliminate or adequately reduce E. coli O157:H7 and Salmonella, and Listeria monocytogenes may grow in certain cheeses during ageing.

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

A 1928 USDA bulletin describes Appenzell cheese as made in Appenzell and in Bavaria and Baden, usually from skim milk.

  1. [fda-rawcheese2016] US Food and Drug Administration 2016, FY 2014–2016 Microbiological Sampling Assignment Summary Report, Raw Milk Cheese Aged 60 Daysgov
  2. [app-factsheet] SO Appenzeller Käse GmbH 2024, Factsheet Appenzeller Mild-Würzigweb
  3. [app-factsheet-k] SO Appenzeller Käse GmbH 2024, Factsheet Appenzeller Kräftig-Würzigweb
  4. [app-factsheet-e] SO Appenzeller Käse GmbH 2024, Factsheet Appenzeller Extra-Würzigweb
  5. [app-factsheet-r] SO Appenzeller Käse GmbH 2024, Factsheet Appenzeller Rahmkäseweb
  6. [guggisberg2017] Guggisberg D., Winkler H. et al. 2017, Influence of chemical and biochemical characteristics on the texture of Appenzeller cheese, International Dairy Journal 75:111–119 (abstract read)paper
  7. [templer2007] Templer S.P., Baumgartner A. 2007, Enterococci from Appenzeller and Schabziger raw milk cheese, Journal of Food Protection 70:450–455 (abstract read)paper
  8. [lee2015] Lee J.-S., Choi H.-Y. et al. 2015, Physicochemical and sensory properties of Appenzeller cheese supplemented with shrimp powder, Korean Journal for Food Science of Animal Resources 35(2):232 (laboratory version from pasteurized milk)paper
  9. [agroscope2015] Agroscope 2015, press release "Appenzeller® Käse stärkt die Marke", 27 July 2015 (proof-of-origin lactic culture from the raw-milk flora)gov
  10. [luedin2016] Lüdin P., von Ah U., Rollier D., Roetschi A., Eugster E. 2016, Lactic acid bacteria as markers for the authentication of Swiss cheeses, Chimia 70:349 (abstract read)paper
  11. [usda1928] Doane C.F., Lawson H.W., revised by Matheson K.J. 1928, Varieties of cheese, descriptions and analyses, USDA Bulletin 608 (entry "Appenzell")archive