Cheese Database

Bergkäse vs Gruyère

Bergkäse

Facts

Milk
Cow
Texture
Hard
Type
Pressed
Rind
Natural rind
Country
Austria

Bergkäse is a hard cow's milk cheese from Austria, and the name means mountain cheese. It stands for several alpine wheels rather than one single recipe. Makers press the curd into large rounds with a firm paste and a natural rind. The taste is nutty and savory, and it grows a little sharper as the wheel ages. Small openings may show in the paste, but this is not a large-eyed Emmental style.

Gruyère, field guide plate
Gruyère, photographed

Gruyère

Facts

Milk
Cow
Texture
Hard
Type
Pressed
Rind
Natural rind
Country
Switzerland
Place
Fribourg
Status
AOP

Gruyère is a hard cow's-milk cheese from western Switzerland, centered on the canton of Fribourg and a defined neighboring zone. A true Swiss Gruyère has few holes, or none.