Cheeses have played a significant role in German cuisine, both historically and in contemporary times. Germany has by far the highest variety of cheeses worldwide with 9,500 cheeses coming from Germany. Cheeses are incorporated in the preparation of various dishes in German cuisine. Germany's cheese production comprises approximately one-third of the total for all European-produced cheeses.

German cheeses

A

* Allgäuer Bergkäse – Prepared in

Allgäu The Allgäu (Standard German: , also Allgovia) is a region in Swabia in southern Germany. It covers the south of Bavarian Swabia, southeastern Baden-Württemberg, and parts of Austria. The region stretches from the pre-alpine lands up to the A ...

from

unpasteurized Pasteurization or pasteurisation is a process of food preservation in which packaged and non-packaged foods (such as milk and fruit juices) are treated with mild heat, usually to less than , to eliminate pathogens and extend shelf life. Th ...

cow's milk Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals (including breastfed human infants) before they are able to digest solid food. Immune factors and immune-modulati ...

, it is ripened for a minimum of four months and has a smooth texture.Herbst, Sharon T.; Herbst, Ron (2010)
''The Cheese Lover's Companion: The Ultimate A-to-Z Cheese Guide with More Than 1,000 Listings for Cheeses and Cheese-Related Terms''
HarperCollins. p. 60. * Altenburger Ziegenkäse – a soft cheese from cow's milk and

goat's milk Goat milk is the milk of domestic goats. Goats produce about 2% of the world's total annual milk supply. Some goats are bred specifically for milk. Goat milk naturally has small, well-emulsified fat globules, which means the cream will stay in ...

with caraway seeds in the cheese dough. The surface is covered with white

Camembert Camembert (, also , ) is a moist, soft, creamy, surface-ripened cow's milk cheese. It was first made in the late 18th century in Camembert, Normandy, in northwest France. It is sometimes compared in look and taste to brie cheese, albeit wi ...

mould. Because of its protected designation of origin, the cheese may only be produced in the districts of

Altenburger Land Altenburger Land is a district in Thuringia, Germany. It is bounded by (from the west and clockwise) the district of Greiz, the Burgenlandkreis (Saxony-Anhalt), and the districts Leipzig, Mittelsachsen and Zwickau in Saxony. The district is a mem ...

Burgenland Burgenland (; hu, Őrvidék; hr, Gradišće; Austro-Bavarian: ''Burgnland;'' Slovene: ''Gradiščanska'') is the easternmost and least populous state of Austria. It consists of two statutory cities and seven rural districts, with a total of ...

and

Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...

and the independent city of

Gera Gera is a city in the German state of Thuringia. With around 93,000 inhabitants, it is the third-largest city in Thuringia after Erfurt and Jena as well as the easternmost city of the ''Thüringer Städtekette'', an almost straight string of cit ...

B

* Backstein – similar to Limburger, it is processed in a brick shape. * Bergader - similar to Italian Gorgonzola or French

Roquefort Roquefort is a sheep milk cheese from Southern France, and is one of the world's best known blue cheeses. Though similar cheeses are produced elsewhere, EU law dictates that only those cheeses aged in the natural Combalou caves of Roquefort-sur ...

. * Bonifaz – a soft, white mold cheese. * Butterkäse – translated as "butter cheese" in

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

, it is a semi-soft, cow's milk cheese that is moderately popular in

Germanic Europe The Germanic-speaking world is the part of the world where Germanic languages are either official, co-official, or significantly used, comprising Germanic-speaking Europe as well as parts of North America, Germanic-speaking Africa, Oceania and ...

, and occasionally seen throughout the rest of the world.

C

Cambozola Cambozola is a cow's milk cheese that is a combination in style of a French soft-ripened triple cream cheese and Italian Gorgonzola. History Cambozola was patented and industrially produced for the world market by the large German company H ...

– patented and industrially produced for the world market by large

company Champignon in the 1970s. The cheese was invented circa 1900 and is still produced by Champignon. In English-speaking countries, Cambozola is often marketed as Blue brie. It is a “hybrid” of Camembert and

Gorgonzola Gorgonzola (; ) is a veined blue cheese, originally from Italy, made from unskimmed cow's milk. It can be buttery or firm, crumbly and quite salty, with a "bite" from its blue veining. History Historically, gorgonzola has been produced for ...

cheeses, hence the name.

E

* Edelpilzkäse – Edelpilzkäse is a fine blue-veined cheese with a pale ivory paste. It is similar to

, but milder because it is made with cow's milk. Edelpilzkäse is made by mixing cow's milk with ''

Penicillium ''Penicillium'' () is a genus of ascomycetous fungi that is part of the mycobiome of many species and is of major importance in the natural environment, in food spoilage, and in food and drug production. Some members of the genus produce pe ...

'' spores. The mold grows within the cheese, giving the cheese the internal blue veining traveling vertically throughout and a tangy flavor. It is available in 45%, 50%, and 60% fat level.

H

* Handkäse – a

Protected designation origin (PDO) regional

sour milk cheese Acid-set or sour milk cheese is cheese that has been curdled (coagulated) by natural souring, often from lactic acid bacteria, or by the addition of acid. This type of cheese is technologically simple to produce. When making soft acid-set cheese ...

(similar to Harzer) and is a culinary speciality of

Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

, Offenbach am Main, Darmstadt, Langen and all other parts of southern

Hesse Hesse (, , ) or Hessia (, ; german: Hessen ), officially the State of Hessen (german: links=no, Land Hessen), is a state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt. Two other major historic cities are Dar ...

. It gets its name from the traditional way of producing it: forming it with one's own hands. * Harzer – a sour milk cheese made from low fat

curd cheese Quark or quarg is a type of fresh dairy product made from milk. The milk is soured, usually by adding lactic acid bacteria cultures, and strained once the desired curdling is achieved. It can be classified as fresh acid-set cheese. Traditi ...

, which contains only about one percent

fat In nutrition, biology, and chemistry, fat usually means any ester of fatty acids, or a mixture of such compounds, most commonly those that occur in living beings or in food. The term often refers specifically to triglycerides (triple est ...

and originates in the

Harz The Harz () is a highland area in northern Germany. It has the highest elevations for that region, and its rugged terrain extends across parts of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia. The name ''Harz'' derives from the Middle High German ...

mountain region south of

Braunschweig Braunschweig () or Brunswick ( , from Low German ''Brunswiek'' , Braunschweig dialect: ''Bronswiek'') is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany, north of the Harz Mountains at the farthest navigable point of the river Oker, which connects it to the ...

. *

Hirtenkäse Hirtenkäse, or "herder's cheese", is a distinctive cow's milk cheese made in the Allgäu area of Southern Germany.cow's milk cheese made in the

area of Southern

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

.Fond o'Foods website
Accessed March 17, 2009.Janet Fletcher, "Cheese Course: Hirtenkäse fans party when the cows come home," ''

San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and Michael H. de Young. The ...

'', Februar
SF Gate website
Accessed March 17, 2009.
Accessed March 17, 2009.Barbara Adams, "Cheese and Wine Pairing Recipe: Hirtenkäse Cheese and Gewürztraminer Wine," found a

. Accessed March 17, 2009. * Hohenheim – a soft cheese, produced in a round form.German Cooking: Five Generations of Family Recipes - Eleanor A. Hinsch
p. 16. File:Handkaese 20060117.jpg, Handkäse File:Harzer Käse.jpg, Harzer

K

* Kochkäse – a runny sour milk cheese similar to French

Cancoillotte ''Cancoillotte'' or ''cancoyotte'' is a runny French cheese made from metton cheese, and produced principally in Franche-Comté, but also Lorraine and Luxembourg, where it is also called ''Kachkéis'' or ''Kochkäse'' in German (cooked cheese). I ...

. It is made from quark, butter, soda, salt and caraway seeds.

L

* Limburger – originally created in

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

Trappist The Trappists, officially known as the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance ( la, Ordo Cisterciensis Strictioris Observantiae, abbreviated as OCSO) and originally named the Order of Reformed Cistercians of Our Lady of La Trappe, are a ...

monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...

s, production began in Germany in the 19th century.

M

* Milbenkäse – a specialty cheese made from quark and produced using the action of cheese mites. Historically, the cheese was produced in the Saxony-Anhalt/

Thuringia Thuringia (; german: Thüringen ), officially the Free State of Thuringia ( ), is a state of central Germany, covering , the sixth smallest of the sixteen German states. It has a population of about 2.1 million. Erfurt is the capital and lar ...

border region of

Zeitz Zeitz ( hsb, Žič) is a town in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is situated on the river White Elster, in the triangle of the federal states Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia and Saxony. History Zeitz was first recorded u ...

and Altenburg districts; today it is produced exclusively in the village of Würchwitz, in the state of

Saxony-Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt (german: Sachsen-Anhalt ; nds, Sassen-Anholt) is a state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony. It covers an area of and has a population of 2.18 million inhabitants, making it th ...

. Mites clinging to the cheese rind are consumed along with the cheese. File:Milbenkäse02.jpg, Aged Milbenkäse

N

* Nieheimer – a

made in and named after

Nieheim Nieheim () is a town in Höxter district in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Historical names of Nieheim are: Nihem, Nyem, and Nym. The town covers an area of about 80 km2 and has about 6,250 inhabitants. Geography Nieheim lies roughly 10& ...

, a town in

Höxter Höxter () is a town in eastern North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany on the left bank of the river Weser, 52 km north of Kassel in the centre of the Weser Uplands. The main town's population is around 15,000, and with outlying centres, about 30,0 ...

district in

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more than 18 million inha ...

, Germany.

O

Obatzda Obatzda (also spelt Obazda and Obatzter) is a Bavarian cheese spread. It is prepared by mixing two thirds aged soft cheese, usually Camembert ( Romadur or similar cheeses may be used as well) and one third butter. Sweet or hot paprika powde ...

– a

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...

n cheese

delicacy A delicacy is usually a rare and expensive food item that is considered highly desirable, sophisticated, or peculiarly distinctive within a given culture. Irrespective of local preferences, such a label is typically pervasive throughout a r ...

prepared by mixing two thirds aged soft cheese, usually

(Romadur or similar cheeses may be used as well) and one third

butter Butter is a dairy product made from the fat and protein components of churned cream. It is a semi-solid emulsion at room temperature, consisting of approximately 80% butterfat. It is used at room temperature as a spread, melted as a condimen ...

Q

* Quark - a fresh, mild cheese, in Germany, quark is sold in small plastic tubs and usually comes in three different varieties, ''Magerquark'' (lean quark, virtually fat-free), "regular" quark (20% fat in dry mass) and ''Sahnequark'' (creamy quark, 40% fat in dry mass) with added

cream Cream is a dairy product composed of the higher-fat layer skimmed from the top of milk before homogenization. In un-homogenized milk, the fat, which is less dense, eventually rises to the top. In the industrial production of cream, this process ...

. In addition to that, quark is sold lightly sweetened with a variety of fruits as a dessert (similar to yoghurt).

R

Rauchkäse Rauchkäse (smoke cheese) is a German variety of smoked cheese, known for being semi-soft with a smoky brown rind. The most famous variety is Bruder Basil, named for dairy entrepreneur Basil Weixler, whose dairy company is still in operation today. ...

– a German variety of

smoked cheese Smoked cheese is any cheese that has been specially treated by smoke-curing. It typically has a yellowish-brown outer pellicle which is a result of this curing process. Process Smoke-curing is typically done in one of two ways: cold-smoking an ...

, known for being semi-soft with a smoky brown rind.Encyclopedia of Cheese, igourmet.com
/ref> The most famous variety is Bruder Basil, named for dairy

entrepreneur Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value. With this definition, entrepreneurship is viewed as change, generally entailing risk beyond what is normally encountered in starting a business, which may include other values t ...

Basil Weixler. * Romadur – This is a cow's milk cheese with pungent flavor.Cheese For Dummies – Culture Magazine
/ref> It is one of the most popular cheeses in Germany.

S

* Spundekäs – a spiced

cream cheese Cream cheese is a soft, usually mild-tasting fresh cheese made from milk and cream.Oxford English Dictionary Stabilizers such as carob bean gum and carrageenan are often added in industrial production. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration de ...

, originally from the region of Northern

Rhenish Hesse Rhenish Hesse or Rhine HesseDickinson, Robert E (1964). ''Germany: A regional and economic geography'' (2nd ed.). London: Methuen, p. 542. . (german: Rheinhessen) is a region and a former government district () in the German state of Rhineland- ...

. Nowadays, it is often enjoyed in the areas of Rhenish Hesse and the Rheingau area. It is especially popular in wine houses in the region, served with soft

pretzels A pretzel (), from German pronunciation, standard german: Breze(l) ( and French / Alsatian: ''Bretzel'') is a type of baked bread made from dough that is commonly shaped into a knot. The traditional pretzel shape is a distinctive symmetrical f ...

, accompanying regional wine. It is classically made of

and quark, and seasoned with salt, pepper and paprika. It is somewhat similar to

T

Tilsit cheese Tilsit cheese or Tilsiter cheese is a pale yellow semihard smear-ripened cheese, created in the mid-19th century by Prussian-Swiss settlers, the Westphal family, from the Emmental valley. The original buildings from the cheese plant still exist i ...

– a light yellow semi-hard smear-ripened cheese, created in the mid-19th century by Prussian-Swiss settlers, the Westphal family, from the

Emmental The Emmental ( en, Emme Valley) is a valley in west-central Switzerland, forming part of the canton of Bern. It is a hilly landscape comprising the basins of the rivers Emme (river), Emme and Ilfis (river), Ilfis. The region is mostly devoted to ...

valley.

W

* Weißlacker – (German for "whitewashed" due to the rind color) or Beer cheese is a type of cow's milk cheese that originated in

, but is now known worldwide. It is a pungent and salted surface-ripened cheese that starts out much like

brick cheese Brick cheese is a cheese from Wisconsin, U.S., made in brick-shaped form. The color ranges from pale yellow to white, and the cheese has a sweet and mild flavor when young, and matures into a strong, ripe cheese with age. It is a medium-soft che ...

Z

* Ziegel – prepared from cow's milk.German Cooking: Five Generations of Family Recipes - Eleanor A. Hinsch
p. 24. File:Obazter leicht.jpg, Light Obazter in a tub File:Obatzter-1.jpg, A plate of

, garnished with white and green onion File:Tilsit cheese.jpg,

Tilsit Sovetsk (russian: Сове́тск; german: Tilsit; Old Prussian: ''Tilzi''; lt, Tilžė; pl, Tylża) is a town in Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia, located on the south bank of the Neman River which forms the border with Lithuania. Geography So ...

References

{{Regional cuisine of Germany Cheeses

German cheeses German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

German cheeses

A

B

C

E

H

K

L

M

N

O

Q

R

S

T

W

Z

See also

References