Gruyeres - Departures
The Gruyère region’s cheese has been in production for nearly a thousand years, and tradition and automation hang in careful balance. Le Gruyère AOP is the association that oversees 6,600 dairy farmers, cheesemakers and affineurs or “refiners” who ensure the excellence of Switzerland’s most lauded cheese. AOP, (Appellation d’Origine Protégée), is an official EU Classification that identifies an agricultural product from a defined geographical area, created using recognized traditional methods. Among their stringent standards: The unpasteurized milk, which farmers deliver every afternoon and morning, may travel no more than 10 miles from farm to cheesemaker. And 70% of the cattle forage must be grown on the farm where it is raised. Even more historic, are the alpages, where the cheese is produced over a wood fire, according to centuries of established practice. Entire families will occupy these high-altitude rustic mountain cabins during the summer, rotating their herds from pasture to pasture. To be an alpage producer is the ultimate preservation of the tradition.
