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Fermentation Atlas

Cheese from Switzerland, German-speaking alps and Grisons

Mutschli

Mutschli is a small, mild cow cheese of 0.5–4 kg. Milk is set with lactic cultures and calf rennet at about 32 °C, the curd is cut to coffee-bean size and stirred, and part of it is taken out at about 40 °C, before the rest of the vat is heated on for alp cheese. The little cheeses ripen with a lightly salted smear, ready after two weeks and fully ripe at three months. Made in 7 steps over 14 days – 3 months. The longest step, ripen with a smear, takes 14 days – 3 months (Verein Kulinarisches Erbe der Schweiz (Patrim…) and runs at up to 15 °C (Verein Kulinarisches Erbe der Schweiz (Patrim…). Lactic acid bacteria cultures, different on each alp does most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main step14 days – 3 monthsReported[patrimoine-ch]Ripen with a smear
Temperatureup to 15 °CReported[patrimoine-ch]Ripen with a smear

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedThere is no fixed recipe; "Mutschli" is a general name for small, mild cheeses. Each cheese weighs 500 g to 4 kg.
Cow milk · Raw on the alps; thermised or pasteurised in valley dairies[patrimoine-ch]
Lactic acid bacteria cultures · Each alp has its own cultures, which is why alp-made Mutschli taste different[patrimoine-ch][wp-de]
Calf rennet[patrimoine-ch]
Salt water · For the brine bath and, lightly salted, for the smear water[patrimoine-ch]
Herbs, garlic, pepper or other spices · Optional[wp-de]
Starter: lactic acid bacteria cultures (vary by alp), plus calf rennet

Total time across the recorded steps: 14 days – 3 months

Start
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What changes: Starting material: cow milk, raw on the alp

Step 1 of 7
Collect the milk
Time
Not documented
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Lactic acid bacteria

Raw milk on the alps; valley dairies may thermise or pasteurise it. Output: cow milk.

Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

What makes this one different

Mutschli is split off from the same vat as the big alp cheese. The share for Mutschli comes out at about 40 °C, while the rest is heated to 45 °C or over 50 °C. The small, softer cheeses ripen fast and were kept for the household, while the big wheels were sold.

Milk
Cow milk, raw on the alps; thermised or pasteurised in valley dairies
Cooking
Taken out at about 40 °C, before the rest of the vat is cooked further
Ripening
Ready from about 2 weeks; fully ripe at 3 months
Size
0.5–4 kg

Related ferments

Variants

  • Herb, garlic or pepper MutschliFlavoured with herbs, garlic, pepper or other spices.
  • Valley-dairy MutschliMade from thermised or pasteurised milk.

Safety

Alp-made Mutschli is a raw-milk cheese that is warmed only to about 40 °C and eaten young. ANSES advises pregnant women, people over 65, people with weak immunity and young children to avoid raw-milk cheeses.

Hazards the sources name: Listeria monocytogenes, Salmonella and enterohaemorrhagic E. coli, the main hazards ANSES names for raw-milk cheeses (alp-made Mutschli is raw milk).

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

There are hardly any historical sources. The word appears in the fourth volume of the Schweizerisches Idiotikon (1901) and was known in the 19th century. Export duty was then charged per cheese, not per kilo, so small cheeses made little sense for trade and were mostly eaten at home. Mutschli joined the Culinary Heritage of Switzerland inventory in 2009.

  1. [patrimoine-ch] Verein Kulinarisches Erbe der Schweiz (Patrimoine culinaire suisse), national inventory entry 'Mutschli', no. 435archive
  2. [wp-de] Wikipedia (de), 'Mutschli (Käse)' (outline only)wiki
  3. [ritschard2024] Ritschard J.S. and Schuppler M. 2024, The microbial diversity on the surface of smear-ripened cheeses and its impact on cheese quality and safety, Foods 13(2):214 (abstract)paper
  4. [anses2022] ANSES 2022, Fromages au lait cru, quels risques pour la santé et comment mieux les prévenir (8 April 2022)gov