Things That Come in the Mail - Bavarian Alpine Cheese

Aside from monthly bills and the odd newsletter to my local wine store, I love love love getting things in the mail. Postcards, letters, packages, things I've ordered online - it's always a surprise when I come home after a day at work. I've come to value the merits of certain couriers over others. Hermes allows me to send anything back, DHL is the standard of the German Post and DPD - well, it's DPD. The friendly man from DHL came by today with the box of cheese I ordered last week. What did I order? Clockwise from top:


Emmentaler - what is normally referred to as Swiss cheese in North America. This one is old.

Emmentaler - this is a milder version. I need to compare the 2.

Bergkäse - it's Alpine cheese. Literally means "mountain cheese" the milk is from cows who are happy frolicking in the Bavarian alps.

Weisslacker - I don't know what this is but it's small, creamy and the smell could peel the paint off of walls. Kind of like a roquefort but sweet.

Bärlauchkäse - a cheese with wild leeks. This makes me happy.

Camembert - it's not a true Camembert because that must come from France. This is a Mountain Guard Camembert. It'll do just fine.

In the center: Eisenberger - a hard cheese and it looks like Swiss cheese but with smaller holes and the taste is not as nutty.

The place I ordered it from has very amusing video on cheesemaking, complete with Alpenhorn music. It's like being in a Ricola ad. See it here. I visited this cheese place on my way home from Neuschwanstein - the Cinderella castle - a year ago. I saw a cheese place that was open & I insisted that we stop.

Photo taken with new camera phone that has since broken

sign on the side of some barn at the cheese place -
translates to "our milk makes Bavaria strong!"

Dinner for a few nights is saved: nice weather, crusty bread I can get on the way home, cheese and a bottle of wine. I love living in Europe.