The 2022 World Championship Cheese Contest brought talented cheesemakers from all over to display their inventive products and high-quality cheeses. Taking home the world champion title this year, Gourmino Le Gruyère AOP—made by Michael Spycher of Mountain Dairy Fritzenhaus in Bern, Switzerland, for Gourmino AG—has been named the World Champion Cheese for the second consecutive time, and its third win overall.
“Cheesemakers worldwide have always been deeply committed to excellence in their craft,” said John Umhoefer, Executive Director for the Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association, which hosts the biennial competition. “That commitment is abundantly clear in the work of this year’s winners. We congratulate them all on this outstanding achievement.”
The acclaimed cheese earned an impressive score of 98.423 out of 100, with 2,978 entries in the 2022 World Championship Cheese Contest, according to a press release. The cheese also earned the title in 2020 and 2008.
A total of 29 nations were represented in the 2022 World Championship Cheese Contest, and United States producers led the pack with 94 Best in Class finishes. Among the 33 U.S. states represented in the contest, Wisconsin cheesemakers were recognized with 45 Best in Class titles, followed by New York with 12 first place finishes, and Idaho with 11 gold medal winners.
Cheesemakers from Switzerland took home 10 gold medals, and the Netherlands took home seven.
The first runner-up in the contest was Appenzeller® Mild-Würzig, an Appenzeller made by Käserei Niederbüren AG of Niederbüren, Switzerland, which received a score of 98.331. Erzherzog Johann, a mature washed rind, smear-ripened hard cheese made by Obersteirische Molkerei eGen of Knittelfeld, Steiermark, Austria, earned the second runner-up position with a score of 98.254.
Congratulations to all those who took home an award at this year’s contest! For more updates from within the cheese sector, leave a tab open for Deli Market News.
