Learn To Make Cheese

While we may experience some discomfort trying to knead our mozzarella straight from the hot water, it’s nothing compared to the century-old cheesemaking process taking place in alpine Switzerland each summer.  With the milk from 51 cows over the course of 90 days, this hardy group produces around 1000 gorgeous rounds of cheese.

FXCuisine beautifully documents the incredible cheesemaking process.  With no electricity, running water or sewers, cheese is made over a wood fire with wood brought in by helicopter.  It’s salted and aged for a minimum of two months before being sold throughout the Alps.

More about cows:

“The secret of these high alpine pasture cheeses incredibly complex taste is in the grass. Each plant contributes toward the final tastes. If your cows change pasture, you can taste the change in the milk. It is not mystery – milk is made from water and grass.

The herd is 51 cows strong, owned by 4 farmers in Münster. Most are the Swiss Bronfi cow and 3 are the famed Evolène fighting cow. They come up for 90 days in late June and visit 4 different pastures/chalet as they exhaust the grass. The rest of the year the cows are down in the village. The cowboys don’t come down at all – it’s a full time 7-days-a-week job. One farmer brings the food up by foot once a week.”

Swiss Alps Cheesemaking.