Swiss Cheese Awards name champions from three cantons

Cheeses from Fribourg, Bern and Vaud won the top honours at the Swiss Cheese Awards, SRF reported. They were selected from 1,177 entries and received their awards in Fribourg on Friday.

A 32-member super jury chose the best extra-hard or hard cheese, semi-hard cheese, and soft or fresh cheese from among 33 category winners. Before that, 203 judges had assessed the cheeses, a record number of entries according to the organisers.

The three Swiss champions were Gruyère d’alpage AOP, made by Nicolas Brodard at the La Guignarde alpine cheese dairy in Corbières, Fribourg; Tête de Moine AOP Classique, made by Marc-André Girardin at the Suze cheese dairy in Corgémont, Bernese Jura; and Tomme Fleurette, made by Arnaud Guichard at the Fleurette cheese dairy in Rougemont, Vaud.

All category winners were also honoured. For the first time, judges assessed a category for cheese dairy butter. Fritz Baumgartner of the Mühlekehr cheese dairy in Trub, in the Bernese Emmental, won that prize.

The 14th Swiss Cheese Awards programme runs through Sunday and includes a fondue meal and a market selling cheese and regional products. The event is held every two years and is described by the organisers as the most important event in Switzerland’s cheese industry.