Cheese Database

Appenzeller vs Chällerhocker

Appenzeller

Facts

Milk
Cow
Texture
Semi-hard
Type
Washed rind
Rind
Washed rind
Country
Switzerland

Appenzeller is a firm cow's milk cheese from Switzerland, in the family of Alpine wheels with small eyes. Makers wash the rind with a herbal brine while the cheese cures, and that wash gives a strong smell and a spicy edge. The paste is smooth, pale yellow, and dotted with a few small holes. A younger wheel tastes milder and nuttier, and a longer-aged wheel turns sharper and more robust. It is a cooking cheese and a board cheese, not a fresh slicing cheese.

Chällerhocker

Facts

Milk
Cow
Texture
Semi-hard
Type
Washed rind
Rind
Washed rind
Country
Switzerland

Chällerhocker is a semi-hard cow's milk cheese from Switzerland. The name means someone who sits in the cellar, which fits a wheel that rests in storage until the flavor is deep. It belongs to the broad Alpine family of Appenzeller, but the make is richer and the aroma is stronger. The paste is smooth and pale, with a few small eyes. A washed rind gives the wheel a savory, cellar-like smell before you cut it.