You are down to earth and happiest outdoors, far from the crowds. Every version of you tastes a bit different, which is half your charm.
Cheese profile
- MildBold
- SoftFirm
- HomebodyExplorer
- SoloFondue crowd
- ClassicWild
The real cheese facts
- Origin
- Alpine dairies, each with its own style
- Milk
- Raw milk, heated over a wood fire
- Type
- Hard and semi-hard cheeses, including Hobelkäse and Mutschli
Source: cheesesfromswitzerland.com · Last checked 28.10.2026
Taste and texture
There is no single taste, because there is no standard Swiss Alpkäse. Each alpine dairy makes its own, and the herbs on the alp end up in the flavour of the milk.
How to eat it
The harder ones go on the cheese board, and the oldest become Hobelkäse, aged for more than two years and shaved thin. Small round Mutschli belong to the family too.
Did you know?
In the alpine dairies the milk is heated over a wood fire, and it is not pasteurised. Together with the cheesemaker’s skill, that is where the flavour comes from.
Alpkäse or Berner Alpkäse?
Alpkäse is the general name for cheese made on an alp. Berner Alpkäse AOP is a protected version from the Bernese Oberland with its own rules: made in summer in copper vats over a wood fire and ripened for at least four and a half months.
More about Berner Hobelkäse AOP →How to keep it
Wrap it in cheese paper or waxed paper rather than cling film, so it can breathe, and keep it in the vegetable drawer of the fridge. Take it out about half an hour before you eat it.
Questions about Alpkäse
Is there a standard Swiss Alpkäse?
No. It is a whole family of regional alpine cheeses, each with the character of its alp.
Is Alpkäse made from raw milk?
Yes, the milk is not pasteurised.