Gruyère, Just the Facts
Posted on October 16, 2008
Filed Under Museums & tours |
Posted by Sierra
Have you ever heard of Gruyère cheese? Have you ever wondered how and where it is made? Well, here are the Answers (A) to all your Questions (Q)!
Q: Where is Gruyère cheese made?
A: Mostly in Switzerland, but also in France.
Q: Why’s it called “Gruyère?” That’s a funny word. “Gruyère, Gruyère, Gruyère, Gruyère.”
A: It was originally made in the town of Gruyères.
Q: How’d the town get its name?
A: A bunch of counts used to live there. Their flag had a crane on it, a “Gruy.”
Q: I’m getting tired of saying “Gruyère, Gruyère, Gruyère” over and over and over and over again and again and again. Can I call it crane cheese?
A: What sort of question is that? Of course you can!
Q: Is there anywhere I can learn more about crane cheese?
A: At Le Gruyère in Gruyères, you can learn all you want to know about it—and lots you didn’t, such as the fact that Cherry the Cow (see below) was born in the cherry season, which is a short season.
Q: How is the tour conducted?
A: Using an audioguide, you push the number for each commentary. Your “guide,” Cherry the Cow, provides information.
Q: How much grass and water does a cow eat per day? How much milk does a cow produce?
A: A cow eats around 100kg of grass and drinks almost 85 litres of water a day. A cow produces around 25 litres of milk a day!
Q: How much milk does it take to make all that cheese?
A: It takes 400 LITRES of milk to make 1 35kg “round” of Gruyère cheese!
Q: And where and how is that crane cheese made?
A: In a room with four pans of milk. Each pan holds 4,800 litres of milk, or 12 rounds of cheese. All four hold 19,200 litres of milk, or 48 rounds of cheese. The first step in making the cheese is to heat it to 32ºC. Then, a local natural starter is added for flavor. Next, rennet is added to coagulate the mixture. The rennet is made of calf’s stomach. After that, the mass is sliced up and heated to 57ºC to make it firm. Finally, the mixture is pressed for 16 hours and is turned regularly.
Q: How is it turned?
A: A robotic arm flips it, brushes in salt for the rind, and replaces it. This robot turns over 110 cheeses an hour! The cellar can hold about 7,000 cheeses.
Q: What do they do with any leftover stuff? Wait, is there any leftover stuff?
A: Yes, there is leftover stuff. The whey is used to make serac, a crumbly white cheese. The rest is fed to the pigs.
Q: How much longer is this post?
A: How many more questions do you have?
Q: None
A: Well then,
Q: The
A: End
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