This Cheese Was Just Named the Best in the World

Slices of cheese arranged on a slate board — Credit:
dvoevnore / Getty Images

Whether you're a fan of hard varieties like cheddar and parmesan or soft ones like brie and mozzarella, cheese is one of those foods that is hard to resist. But how do you pick the very best in the world?

The judges of this year's World Cheese Awards (WCA) in Bern, Switzerland, had the tasty task of determining the competition's top prize: the World Champion Cheese. Beating out over 5,200 cheeses from around the world, they named an 18-month Gruyère AOP Vorderfultigen Spezial, the big cheese. This is the sixth time in WCA history that a Gruyère AOP won the top honor.

Pius Hitz, cheesemaker and managing director of Bergkäserei Vorderfultigen, which produced the winning cheese, said: "It's a very great honour for me and for the daily work that goes into this, seven days a week, 365 days a year. It’s an honour for all the time that the cheese spends with us, around 20 months. The whole team will be very proud, and I am really looking forward to seeing how this impacts our business, but first, we must work out how to celebrate."

A person holding an award and a plaque in a crowded indoor setting smiling — Courtesy of Etienne Francey

To determine the winner, all cheeses submitted are tasted blind by an international jury of around 250 cheese experts. Fourteen winners are sent to a second round of judging and tasted again by a smaller jury who awards each cheese between one and seven points. The cheese with the highest score is crowned the winner.

The Gruyère was selected for its outstanding body, texture, aroma, and flavor. The AOP (Appellation d'Origine Protégée) designation ensures that the cheese is made, processed, and obtained from its area of origin using traditional processes. Gruyère AOP Vorderfultigen Spezial continues to be produced using methods dating back to 1115.

In second place was Crémeux des Aldudes aux Fleurs, a unique French cheese dressed with flowers, while another Swiss cheese—a 9-month Appenzeller Edel-Würzig—took third. The top 14 included four cheeses from Switzerland, two from France, one from the U.S., three from the U.K., one from Spain, one from the Netherlands, one from Japan, and one from Slovakia.

Patrick McGuigan, co-host of the awards, described the winner as a "big piece of cheese" with a "dark orange rind and umami brothy notes." And one of the judges, Perry Wakeman, noted that the winning cheese has a beautiful texture. "It’s flinty as you break it apart, the crystalline in there is so delicate. I found myself going back and back again for it," Wakeman said.

Curious about the competition? Next year's World Cheese Awards will take place in Córdoba in Andalusia, Spain.