Gruyère

What is Gruyère Cheese?

Gruyère is a hard cheese from the Swiss cantons of Fribourg, Vaud, Neuchâtel, Jura and Bern, named after the town of Gruyères in Fribourg. It gained appellation d'origine contrôlée status in 2001, which became appellation d'origine protégée in 2013. French producers hold a separate EU Protected Geographical Indication and sell their cheese as "French Gruyère", with holes ranging from pea to cherry size. In the United States, courts ruled the word generic in 2021 and upheld that in 2023, though Swiss producers keep a certification mark as Le Gruyère Switzerland AOC.

Raw cow's milk goes into a copper vat, is heated to 34 °C (93 °F) and set with liquid rennet. The curd is cut to pea size and stirred, then cooked at 43 °C (109 °F) and raised quickly to 54 °C (129 °F). After the whey is strained, the curds are pressed in moulds, salted in brine and smeared with bacteria. Sérac, a whey cheese, is the historical by-product of the process.

The cheese ripens for two months at room temperature, usually on wooden boards, turned every couple of days so moisture spreads evenly. Affinage in the cellar takes the longest. The AOC asks for humidity between 94 and 98 percent and a cave temperature of 13 to 14 °C (55 to 57 °F); cooler cellars leave the cheese harder and more crumbly. Curing runs 3 to 10 months, and the long end produces intense flavour.

Modern Gruyère has few eyes, if any, which separates it from Emmental. Fully aged wheels, from five months to a year, develop small cracks that give a slightly grainy bite. The taste is sweet with a salty edge: creamy and nutty when young, then assertive, earthy and complex. Age profiles run from doux at six months minimum to réserve or surchoix at ten months, with mi-salé, salé, vieux and cave aged wheels also sold in Switzerland. Le Gruyère AOP Premier Cru, matured 14 months in Fribourg, has won best cheese in the world at the World Cheese Awards five times.

It bakes well because the flavour is distinct without swamping anything else, which is why it works in quiche. It melts for fondue alongside Vacherin Fribourgeois and Emmental, and it belongs in French onion soup, croque-monsieur, and chicken or veal cordon bleu. Grated, it goes over salads, pasta and le tourin, a French garlic soup served on dried bread. White wines such as Riesling pair well, as do sparkling cider and Bock beer.