I wanted to write this blog post for a while – but was thinking “who doesn´t know Willi Schmid – Swiss Mastermind of Cheese? “
The next thought then was that if one writes about him, one should or probably must write a book.
But I figured both might not be entirely true and therefore for all the people who do not yet know Willi Schmid and his cheeses I share the fruits of my research.
Willi Schmid was born into the landscape he now delivers to us in his high quality products.
Son to a farmer family in the heart of Toggenburg, St. Gallen he soon realized that his siblings will take over the parental business and that he had to break off to new shores.
He took with him –a genetic childhood knowledge of animals, landscapes, hidden nature spots, herbs and how it all functions together.
In 2006 he and his wife revitalized in Liechtensteig an abandoned dairy, which over the years managed to win prizes, be served in Michelin star restaurants and maybe most important make us cheese lovers smile when cutting a piece.
His secret? Passion, discipline, and a lot of talent.
Willi Schmid maintains a remarkable quality control despite producing cheeses of a 2000l+ delivery per day for recipients worldwide.
And he does it in person. He tastes every milk that enters his creamery and decides for which cheese a particular delivery is meant to be, and he controls all his suppliers in a collegial but strict way.
He knows which herd grazed where and what herbs and grasses they ate and for which cheese their milk is therefore meant to be.
Willi Schmid´s cheese production follows the cycles of nature. In the wintertime no goat cheese is produced because goats don´t have kids then. Meanwhile it´s mandatory that cows leave the barn during the winter months to catch some sun that influences the vitamin D production and therefore the enzymes in the milk.
Naturally only raw milk is used because only raw and shortly after milking the milk is pure and rich in enzymes, protein and fat.
After all it is the milk that makes the cheese and its quality is Willi Schmids #1 premise.
