A strong trio at the Emmentaler cheese dairy Schlierbach-Krumbach
Craftsmanship, professional pride and a wealth of experience: every day, three dedicated cheesemakers process milk from 26 farms into 12 impressive 94-kg wheels of Emmentaler.
The village cheese dairy in Schlierbach-Krumbach in the canton of Lucerne awakens at 4 am. That’s when the three trained cheesemakers start their work. First, they unpack the previous day’s cheese from the press and prepare everything for making the next wheel. The next step is to prepare the fresh milk.
Cheese production in the ‘Kessi’
The ‘Kessi’ [vat] can hold 6,500 litres of milk. There, the milk is enriched with cultures and pre-ripened at 31°C. Then the rennet is added. After that come three pipettes of Propionibacterium, which help to produce CO2. This procedure is important and responsible for the formation of the characteristic holes in Emmentaler cheese.
After three quarters of an hour, the mixture thickens. The cheesemakers cut the curd into evenly firm pieces with a curd harp. The mixture is then heated to 52°C, pumped into moulds and pressed for 19 hours.
Ageing in the cool cellar
The cheese wheels are treated in the cellar. The cheeses float in salt baths for 48 hours and continue to mature at 21°C. The rind forms and water is drawn out. This process is crucial for the typical flavour to unfold.
The cheesemakers then wash the wheels before storing them in a cool cellar for three months.
Proud of their shared craft
Cheese production requires a fine instinct, many years of experience and a love of craftsmanship. The experienced trio from the Schlierbach-Krumbach cheese dairy are proud to be part of Emmi’s craftsmanship tradition. The three cheesemakers not only get along outstandingly, they benefit from each other and have a common goal: every day, they make the finest Emmentaler cheese from high-quality milk.
Emmi Winning teams
The example of the team at the Emmentaler cheese dairy is not an isolated case. Emmi fosters a working culture that enables all employees to work together well and demonstrate a high level of commitment. Employee development is firmly anchored in our strategy as another way of ensuring that our business stands the test of time. Emmi offers its employees many development opportunities and attaches great importance to modern management and organisational methods. We provide an environment where everyone feels welcome, valued and inspired.
“The most important thing for us? Impeccable milk quality, the right instinct for cheese-making and, above all, passion and professional pride.“
