Gruyere cheese is the world's best cheese!

Among the record-breaking entries to the World Championship Cheese Contest in Wisconsin, a Gruyere from Switzerland has been deemed the world's best cheese. 26 nations took part in this championship and the Gruyere made by Michael Spycher of Mountain Dairy Fritzenhaus is now two times winner. Spycher also won in 2008 contest. The runner-up to the contest also belongs to Switzerland; a hard cheese made with cow's milk called Gallus Grand CRU made by Hardegger Kase AG. (Image courtesy: Facebook/@WorldChampionshipCheeseContest)

Gruyere is a hard yellow Swiss cheese named after the town of Gruyeres. It originated in a landscape entrenched in meadows and grasslands, the canton of Fribourg, Vaud, Neuchâtel, Jura, and Berne in Switzerland. Gruyere is a delicious cheese that is sweet but slightly salty, and a flavour that evolves with age. It is a creamy and nutty cheese but as it matures, the taste becomes more assertive, earthy and complex. Within five months to a year, you will find that the cheese tends to have small cracks and a slightly grainy texture.

The World Championship Cheese Contest is the largest cheese, butter and yoghurt competition in the world. This time had a record-breaking 3,667 entries. During the contest, 55 judges taste, sniff and inspect the 132 types of dairy products. The panel of judges includes cheese graders, buyers, dairy science professors, and researchers from 19 nations and 14 states. Last, when the competition was held in 2018, Esquirrou; a hard cheese made with sheep's milk, made in France Mauleon Fromagerie won the first place. Among the top 20, three Wisconsin cheeses were finalists; a smoked gouda with cumin by Marieke Gouda of Thorp, gorgonzola by Emmi Roth of Seymour and cheddar by Maple Leaf cheesemakers of Monroe.(Image courtesy: Facebook/@WorldChampionshipCheeseContest)

Among the varieties of cheese in the world, gruyere cheese is known as one of the finest ones for baking and its distinctive taste. Gruyere cheese adds savoriness without overpowering other ingredients. As it is a good melting cheese, Gruyere is particularly suited for fondues along with Vacherin Fribourgeois and Emmental. It is traditionally used to prepare French onion soup and a classic French toasted ham and cheese sandwich. Also, it makes for a fine table cheese and when grated, can be used with salads and pasta.