This Popular Swiss Cheese Was Named The Best In The World For 2022
The jury's out on this year's best cheese in the world and out of all the delicious and unique cheese out there, it's a Gruyère from Switzerland. The winning entry, dubbed the Gourmino Le Gruyère AOP, has taken first place for the second consecutive time at the World Championship Cheese Contest in Wisconsin (via The Guardian).
Gruyère cheese's origins go back thousands of years to the town of Gruyères in western Switzerland's Fribourg region. The maker of this year's top cheese, Michael Spycher, produces it in their farm Mountain Dairy Fritzenhaus — located in Bern, Switzerland.
Spycher's Gruyère earned a score of 98.423 out of 100. According to the World Championship Cheese Contest website, a panel of expert judges hailing from all over the globe assess entries for any defects in "flavor, body and texture, salt, color, finish, packaging, and other appropriate attributes," which lead to deductions from a maximum possible 100 points.
What the best cheese in the world tastes like
Spycher is a three-time winner in the global contest, having previously won in 2020 and 2008. But despite their award-winning dairy-making prowess, the operations are quite humble in scale and scope. The dairy works with 12 farmers within a three-mile radius and produces about 85 tons of Gruyère annually — out of the total 32,000 tons of the cheese made in Switzerland each year (via The Guardian).
The cheesemaker's acclaimed product is matured to three different ages, as stated on Gourmino's website. The Mild is a 6-month variety that tastes of "melted leeks, fresh corn, and vanilla" and has a "soft, slightly moist" texture with an ivory rind. The Surchoix is aged for 12 months, tastes of "stone fruits, boiled ham, chestnuts, and vanilla," and has a creamy, slightly crumbly texture. Lastly, the Réserve is aged for at least 15 months and also has a creamy, slightly crumbly texture. The Réserve is described as having notes of "roasted hazelnuts, cooked cream, savory broth, baked honey ham, vanilla."
We will have to wait until next year to see if the special Gruyère keeps its winning streak going, but for now, it firmly holds the top spot.