Schlierbacher Käse

 
Record Number: 116 
 
Disclosure Date
The Stiftskäserei (monastery cheese dairy) in Schlierbach was founded by Brother Leonhard Kitzler in 1924. 
 

Photo: BMLFUW/A...

Title
Schlierbacher Käse
(Schlierbach cheese) 
 
 
 
 
 
Abstract or claim
Traditional processing of various types of cheese from cow’s milk, as well as sheep’s and goat’s milk, in the region of Schlierbach, Upper Austria.
Schlierbacher derives its characteristic taste from the quality of milk which is directly related to the local diversity of alpine plants and herbs of the region, as well as the traditional knowledge of artisan cheese making.
By supporting livestock farming throughout the region, production of Schlierbacher Käse contributes to the preservation of the alpine cultural landscape and helps maintain the biodiversity of the flora in the region’s meadows and pastures.
 
Name of product, Product class
cheese, milk products
 
Name of region
Schlierbach, Upper Austria, Austria
 
Field of search
Food and agriculture
 
Name of information provider
Katarina Seebacher
Käserei & Glasmalerei GesmbH
 
Name of applicant for title
---
 
Holder of knowledge or associated resources
Stiftskäserei Schlierbach (Schlierbach monastery cheese dairy)
Numerous milk suppliers and around 90 organic farmers from surrounding regions
 
Grantee(s), holder(s), assignee(s) or owner(s) of title, if any
--- 
 
Descriptors
- History:
The Stiftskäserei (monastery cheese dairy) was founded by Brother Leonhard Kitzler in 1924. Born in the Waldviertel region, he completed his novitiate at the Benedictine abbey of St. Ottilien in Germany, and it was from here that he brought the cheese recipes that form the foundation of Schlierbacher Schloßkäse today. After a number of early attempts showed great promise, Brother Leonhard began developing the cheese dairy commercially, and by 1931 five different types of cheese were being produced. By the time the Second World War broke out, the cheese dairy was employing 20 people. The company was requisitioned by the state in the war effort, and its catchment area drastically cut back.
In 1956, a utilisation contract was concluded with the Schärdinger Upper Austrian Dairy Association.
 
In 1988, the cheese dairy developed the cheese St. Severin. In 1991, production reached a scale of 700 tons of surface-ripened soft cheese with red culture.
 
Austria’s first ‘show dairy’ was set up at Schlierbach in 1994/95.
In 1998, the company management signed an environmental declaration, and the company was awarded an ISO certificate, in the 14001 group. The range of products offered by the company was extended in 1999.
The Schlierbach organic dairy farmers’ cooperative (an agricultural producers’ association) was also founded in 1999, since when it has supplied the Stiftskäserei with organic milk.
 
The Culinary Centre in the monastery building opened its doors in 2004, providing a space for tastings and sales, exhibitions, training and cooking performances.
 
The original Schlierbacher is the oldest type of cheese, and has been in production continuously since 1924.
 
- Region:
The Schlierbach municipality is located in the political district of Kirchdorf an der Krems, in the province of Upper Austria.
Schlierbach lies in a hilly landscape in the foothills of the Alps, at an altitude of 478 metres above sea level, in the Traunviertel region south of the Danube, and crosses into the Alps in the south.
The majority of the milk used in the production of Schlierbacher Käse comes from the alpine foothills of Upper Austria. Only milk from surrounding alpine pastures precisely specified by the organic cooperative (including the pastures of the Steyr Valley, Garsten Valley, Krems Valley and others) is allowed to be used in the production of organic cheese.
 
Climate:
The region is shaped by an alpine climate, characterised by strong fluctuations between temperatures during the day and at night. The region is distinguished by its high humidity.
 
Flora:
The mountain flora of the pastures surrounding the Seebach municipality is caused by the soil and climatic conditions, and is characterised by a wide diversity of alpine plants.
This special diversity of types of grasses and herbs in the green fodder, and the hay produced from them, provide the basis for the unique taste of Schlierbacher Käse.
 
- Schlierbacher Käse:
The traditional Schlierbacher Schloßkäse is a surface-ripened soft cheese with red culture. The original Schlierbacher is the oldest type of cheese, and has been in production continuously since 1924.
 
In addition to the original Schlierbacher, a wide range of speciality cheeses are produced using cow’s milk, goat’s milk and sheep’s milk. The majority of these are surface-ripened soft cheeses. 
  
Method of production:
Speciality cheeses from Schlierbach are produced both using conventional production methods and according to organic guidelines.
More than 80 organic farmers deliver their milk to Schlierbach Monastery Cheese Dairy. So far, 20 % of total production has gone over to organic methods.
 
Production:
Every other day, the raw milk is collected from the farms by tanker and delivered to the cheese dairy.
 
It takes around 9 litres of fresh milk to make one kilogram of soft cheese, with approximately half-a-litre needed for one Schlierbacher Schloßkäse.
The milk is pasteurised and centrifuged, and a starter culture of lactic acid bacteria added to help pre-souring. The milk is then stored in large tanks, before being processed the following day.
 
The milk is coagulated in four vats, each of which has a capacity of 2,700 litres: after being pre-soured with lactic acid bacteria, the milk is fed into the vat and rennet is added. The rennet activates the coagulation process. The natural rennet we use, extracted from the stomachs of calves, is purchased from a Tyrolean firm. In the coagulation process, the solid and liquid elements of the milk are separated to produce curd (consisting of fat, protein and trace elements) and whey. Coagulation itself takes around 50 minutes, after which the gelatinous mass is sliced into small cubes by the “cheese harps” and by the knives built into the covers of the vats. The curd produced by this process, known as “cheese breaking”, is then poured into the proper moulds. 
  
- Drainage phase:
The draining whey is collected in tanks and used by farmers in the surrounding area for fattening pigs. Once filled, the moulds are stacked and turned over 3-4 times over a period of around 12 hours to ensure the water is evenly dispersed within the cheese. As a result of this, the cheese loses two-thirds of its volume and achieves the correct consistency.
 
- Brine bath:
The moulds are lowered into the saturated brine solution (water with around 20 % salt content), after which the cheeses are left in the brine bath for between 1 and 6 hours, depending on the type of cheese. During the osmotic process that takes place, the brine draws the whey out of the cheese while the salt penetrates the cheese, eventually giving the finished cheese a salt content of between 1.5 and 2 %. The salt forms the rind, protecting the cheese and thereby adding to its flavour.
 
- Ripening:
Before the cheese is taken into the ripening rooms, it is sprayed with the red culture bacteria that lend cheeses from Schlierbach their unmistakeable aroma.
The ripening rooms are lined with breathable bricks; these have a fundamental influence on the climate inside the rooms, as humidity of up to 90 % and room temperatures of between 12 and 18°C cause the surface of the cheese to ripen perfectly. The length of the ripening period depends on the type of cheese in question; for the Schlierbacher Schloßkäse, for example, it’s two weeks.
The art of making cheese is all about achieving a constantly high quality of taste, consistency, aroma and visual appearance under different conditions.
 
Annual production is approximately 1,300 tons of cheese.
 
Taste and appearance:
The special surface ripening with red culture lends Schlierbacher Käse its typical aroma and taste. Optimal care and storage conditions let the cheeses achieve their unmistakably strong aroma and delightfully smooth consistency.
The product range extends from traditional types of soft cheese with red culture, through soft semi-hard cheese made using organic milk from the region, to innovative specialities with selected variations on taste such as the aroma of goat’s milk or pear brandy. 
  
Quality control:
The milk undergoes a quality control check at the laboratory stage which determines its composition (fat, protein content, etc.). The finished cheese is also checked. The quality assurance systems (HACCP system and ISO certificate 14001) call for precise computerised documentation of every working process in the cheese dairy, to ensure the sources of any production errors are picked up as quickly as possible. The premises are cleaned regularly using biodegradable cleaning products.
 
Organic farms produce their milk according to strict guidelines, and are subject to ongoing controls.
 
- Marketing:
The Stiftskäserei is a limited company which also includes the stained glass studio belonging to the monastery. The limited company is owned in its entirety by Schlierbach Cistercian Monastery.
 
Since the beginning of 1996, the cheese dairy has been organising the distribution of its products together with the Firma Concept Fresh, with the exception of St. Severin, which is distributed by Bergland for trademarking reasons.
Although the products are mainly offered on the Austrian food retail market, they have also been exported to Germany since Austria’s entry into the EU.
 
They are also marketed directly, and marketed through the catering trade.
 
As well as the richly traditional Schlierbacher Schloßkäse, other surface-ripened speciality soft cheeses with red culture are produced, including St. Severin and organic cheese, the affineur soft cheese Roter Mönch mit Birne with pear brandy, and the mixed-milk cheese 2 Mönche, made from cow’s and goat’s milk.
  
Connection with the geographic region and traditional knowledge:
- The special soil and climatic conditions throughout the Schlierbach region
  produce a rich flora that is typical of the alpine foothills, and enables
  extensive cultivation of dairy cows.
- Traditional mode of production at the Stiftskäserei Schlierbach.
- The special, unique taste and aroma of Schlierbacher Käse are directly
  related to the quality of the milk used and ripening with red cultures.
- The production of Schlierbacher Käse is the result of traditional knowledge
  passed down from generation to generation: Traditional knowledge and
  experience of the cheese dairy and the marketers. 
 
- Utilisation:
Speciality dishes made with the original Schlierbacher Schloßkäse include Schlierbach Cheese Cream Soup and Baked Schlierbacher. 
  
- Protection:
“Schlierbacher” word trademark. (Austrian Patent Office, registry no. 36242, 5 December 1956)
Other word and picture trademarks:
PERNSTEINER, SCHLIERBACHER KLOSTERKÄSE, SCHL0ßKÄSE, PETRUS, LEBON, BACCHUS, PAULUS, SCHLIERBACHER KLOSTERKÄSE BIO, KLOSTERKÄSE BIO, KREMSTALER, 2 MÖNCHE, ALMSEER RAHMKÄSE, ACHLEITNER SCHLOSSKÄSE.
 
Key Words
Food and agriculture, traditional knowledge, Austria, Salzburg, region, Traunviertel, Kirchdorf, Schlierbach, milk product, cheese, Schlierbacher Käse, Schlierbach cheese
 
Bibliography / References
- SIEVERS G. W., Stiftskäserei Schlierbach. In: Genussland Österreich.
  Was Küche und Keller zu bieten haben. Leopold Stocker Verlag;
  Graz-Stuttgart. 2007. S.125.
- Jahrhunderte alte Lagen, besonderes Klima
  http://www.kremstal-wein.at/dac_kerngebiet.html
- Oberösterreich
  http://www.alpen-info.de/html/body_oberosterreich.html
- Region
  www.schlierbacher-gefluegel.at/index.php?id=24
- Schaukäserei Stift Schlierbach
  http://www.stift-schlierbach.at/kaese/geschichte.htm
- Schlierbacher Käse
  www.genuss-region.at
- Schlierbach (Oberösterreich)
  http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schlierbach_(Ober%C3%B6sterreich)
- Weinbau in Österreich
  http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weinbau_in_%C3%96sterreich
 
All internet references last accessed on 28 May 2009.
 
Language Code
German
 
Product of www.genuss-region.at
Yes
 
Regional contact
Käserei & Glasmalerei GesmbH
Katarina Schlierbacher
Klosterstraße 1
4553 Schlierbach/ Oberösterreich
 
Author: Eva Sommer 
 

15.11.2011, Lebensministerium III/4