A Cheesy Tradition

Chästeilet – Festival for dividing up the cheese
This is not so easy as some cows produce a lot of milk, others not so much; spring cheese is lighter than the cheese made in autumn; some cows give practically no milk because they are carrying; some farmers have used hundred of litres of milk to feed their calves during the summer.

This is how it is done…
«Mäsmälchen» takes place three times per summer. Here the cows are milked in the presence of their owners and the amount of milk per cow is registered. All of the cheeses made during the summer are weighed and numbered individually.

From the total amount of all of the cheeses it is then worked out how much cheese can be given per kilo of milk (according to the amounts given at the Mäsmälchen). Should the total amount of all the cheeses be 2581 kg, and there was a total of 584 kg milk given at the Mäsmälchen, then per kg milk (2581 : 584) 4.284 kg cheese will be given. For the 10,1 kg Mäs milk our cow gave, we would receive 43 kg of cheese. As the autumn cheese is much heavier than the spring cheese it is then worked how who gets what block of cheese. We would receive every 40th cheese.

Understand…? Don’t worry if you don’t! Just make sure you visit this alpine spectacle. The festival takes place on the Hasliberg on the second Saturday in September and is organised by the yodelling club.

Watch a cheese-maker at work
Visit one of the most modern alpine dairys in the Canton of Bern and find out how this aromatic cheese is made. Try some whey and cottage cheese straight from the copper cauldron. Cheese tasting with tour through the alpine farm.