Hofkäserei Heggelbach (Hofgemeinschaft Heggelbach)
Demeter community farm whose dairy, its site says, is one of the oldest in Baden-Württemberg. Visit the dairy shop on two evenings, find the yellow cheese van in Überlingen, or join a listed tour.
About Tilsiter
A cut cheese of cow's milk named after the East Prussian town of Tilsit, with a thin, brownish rind rubbed with salt water and red-smear cultures through about six months of ripening. German Wikipedia says it is made from raw or pasteurised milk, in wheels or increasingly in blocks, with a pale yellow, supple paste and holes the size of barley grains; the historical East Prussian wheels were about 25 cm across and 10 cm high. The name is unprotected, and Holsteiner Tilsiter is a separate PGI. Near the Bodensee, the Hofgemeinschaft Heggelbach in Herdwangen-Schönach makes a Tilsiter from pasteurised Demeter milk and calls it würzig, spicy.
Made in: Unprotected name, made in Germany, Switzerland and elsewhere; in this region at the Heggelbach farm dairy in the Linzgau, north of the Bodensee
On the plate
German Wikipedia: from mild and lightly spiced to strong and sharp depending on the maker, with a supple, elastic, fairly moist paste. Heggelbach describes its own Tilsiter as würzig, spicy.
Rind: washed, orange and sticky
Wine and cheese
What to pour with Tilsiter
Riesling, dry Baden
Our pickDry Baden Riesling has high acidity and no new oak. It cuts the supple, fairly moist paste of a red-smear Tilsiter and stands up to its salt and spice, which run from mild to sharp depending on the maker; the fuller Grosses Gewächs suits the sharper wheels.
4.7
Andreas Laible Plauelrain Stollenberg Riesling Grosses Gewaechs
Weingut Andreas Laible
4.7
Andreas Laible Plauelrain Am Buehl Riesling Grosses Gewaechs
Weingut Andreas Laible
4.7
Schloss Neuweier Mauerberg MAUERWEIN Riesling GG
Weingut Robert Schaetzle (Schloss Neuweier)
4.7
Schloss Neuweier Goldenes Loch Riesling GG
Weingut Robert Schaetzle (Schloss Neuweier)
Grauburgunder (Pinot Gris), dry Baden
Our pickDry Baden Grauburgunder is round, medium to full in body, with moderate acidity. Its weight matches a riper, spicier Tilsiter, and its fruit softens the salt of the red-smear rind while the acidity keeps the supple paste from cloying.
Medium-sweet Spätlese (Riesling, Gewürztraminer) Baden
Our pickA medium-sweet Spätlese, Riesling or Gewürztraminer, sets its sugar against the salt and spice of a stronger, sharper Tilsiter, as sweet whites meet other red-smear cheeses, and its acidity keeps the supple paste from feeling heavy.
Riesling Sekt, tank method Baden
Our pickA red-smear Tilsiter is supple, salty and a little spicy, and wants something crisp. A tank-method Riesling Sekt, brut or extra trocken, is light with high acidity and bubbles, and refreshes the palate after each slice.
Chardonnay, fuller style Baden
Our pickThe German Wine Institute says powerful or oak-marked Chardonnays suit hearty cheese, and a red-smear Tilsiter, mild to sharp depending on the maker, is that kind of cheese. A fuller Chardonnay has the weight to meet its supple, moist paste.
The grapes behind these winesRieslingGrauburgunder (Pinot Gris)ChardonnayGewuerztraminer
From the source
Where to buy and taste it
Alles Käs' (Münstermarkt stall)
Cheese stall on the north side of the Münster, run by Eva Hohlfeld since 2021 and on the square since 1993, with Black Forest farm cheeses and Allgäu Bergkäse.
Ziogino (Münstermarkt stall)
Italian cheese and pasta stall on the south side of the Münstermarkt in Freiburg, run by Luigi Turri and Heidrun Armbruster for over 15 years: pecorino young to strong, Parmigiano Reggiano, Taleggio.
Le Gourmet Français (Münstermarkt stall)
French cheese stall at the Münstermarkt in Freiburg, run from Titisee-Neustadt. About 30 raw-milk cheeses from sheep, goat and cow, with cured sausage, ham and duck specialities.
Cheese experiences nearby
Münstermarkt Freiburg
Market round Freiburg's cathedral with about 130 stalls, Monday to Saturday mornings. Cheese stalls include Alles Käs', the Ringlihof goat dairy from Horben, and Italian and French specialists.
Farm and dairy tour at Hofkäserei Heggelbach
Evening tour of the Demeter farm and its cowshed, then cheesemaster Stephan Ryffel shows how the milk becomes each cheese, with a tasting. Listed for Thursday 8 October 2026; register through Linzgau Tourismus.
Frühaufsteher-Markttour (Münstermarkt breakfast tour)
Market breakfast walk with guide Barbara Schneider-Wood and the market master, tasting cheese, ham, bread and Münsterwurst at the stalls; Alles Käs' takes part. 2026 is sold out, 2027 dates open in late November.
Bauernmarkt Überlingen
Saturday farmers' market of about 15 stalls on the Münsterplatz in Überlingen, run by producers from within about 20 km; the Heggelbach and Moser farm dairies bring their cheese.
Tilsiter: questions
Is Tilsiter a protected name?
Not on its own. German Wikipedia says only Holsteiner Tilsiter, from Schleswig-Holstein, is a protected geographical indication.
Who makes Tilsiter in the Bodensee area?
The Hofgemeinschaft Heggelbach lists Tilsiter among its cheeses made from pasteurised milk, sold at the farm dairy on Tuesdays and Fridays.
Same cheeseboard
More cheeses from Baden
Plan the trip
Visit Tilsiter country
Tastings and tours where it is made, and somewhere to stay.
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Sources: hofgemeinschaft-heggelbach.de, de.wikipedia.org. The drawing is made from the cheese's recorded shape, rind and paste, not a photograph.