Cheese and charcuterie · International
Le Gruyère
Swiss PDO hard cheese from raw milk; French Gruyère PGI is a separate cheese with holes.
At a glance
- Origin
- Western Switzerland (Fribourg, Vaud, Neuchâtel, Jura, part of Bern); AOP. French Gruyère: IGP.
- Milk
- Raw cow’s milk from cows fed without silage.
- Ageing
- At least 5 months, usually 5–18 months.
- Use
- Fondue, gratinéed onion soup, grated for baking.
- Substitutes
- Comté or French Gruyère, also hard cooked-curd cheeses; taste and melting differ.
Le Gruyère is a Swiss hard cheese with Protected Designation of Origin (AOP) made from raw cow’s milk. It is made and aged only in the cantons of Fribourg, Vaud, Neuchâtel and Jura and in parts of the canton of Bern; the name comes from the county of Gruyère in Fribourg.
The cows may not be fed silage, and apart from adjusting the fat the milk is not treated. The curd is cooked in open copper vats and pressed into wheels of 25–40 kg. They are turned and rubbed with salt water on spruce boards and age for at least five months, usually 5–18 months. The paste is ivory and supple, the taste fruity with a salty note.
French Gruyère is a different cheese with Protected Geographical Indication (IGP) from an arc running from the Vosges to Savoie; it has holes the size of a pea to a cherry. The Swiss cheese belongs in fondue; both suit onion soup.