The local cheeses of Baden with the local wines that suit them, and why they work.
The cheeses of Baden with the wines made beside them. Pairings marked as a local tradition are the ones a regional source names; the rest are our own picks, and say so.
A mild, nutty Bergkäse ripened for at least four months coats the mouth. A dry, bottle-fermented Baden Sekt, light to medium in body with high acidity and bubbles, cleans the palate between bites.
Bottles to try:
The German Wine Institute calls Gutedel mild and says fine Gutedel suits light cooking and delicate cheeses. A dry, mild Gutedel leaves the chives, pepper and light sourness of a fresh herb quark in front, as the dish needs nothing heavier.
Bottles to try:
Dry 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.
Bottles to try:
Andreas Laible Plauelrain Stollenberg Riesling Grosses GewaechsWeingut Andreas Laible
Andreas Laible Plauelrain Am Buehl Riesling Grosses GewaechsWeingut Andreas Laible
Schloss Neuweier Mauerberg MAUERWEIN Riesling GGWeingut Robert Schaetzle (Schloss Neuweier)
Schloss Neuweier Goldenes Loch Riesling GGWeingut Robert Schaetzle (Schloss Neuweier)The German Wine Institute says fuller Spätburgunders go with a cheese board. A medium-bodied Baden Pinot Noir with soft to moderate tannin and fresh acidity sits well with this raw-milk cheese, ripened at least four months, mild and nutty.
Bottles to try:
The German Wine Institute gives Weißburgunder a subtly nutty aroma and refreshing acidity, and calls Baden a stronghold of the grape. Those nutty notes meet a mild, nutty Bergkäse, and the acidity cuts through its fat.
Bottles to try:
Bibeleskäs is eaten mostly in the warm season, fresh and lightly sour with chives and pepper. A well-chilled dry Spätburgunder rosé, light in body and fresh, suits that setting without overpowering the curd.
Bottles to try:
Baden's top Spätburgunder, Grosses Gewächs and its peers, has firm tannin and real depth. Choose an older Bergkäse, whose nutty character grows stronger with age: its salt and fat soften the tannin, and its depth stands up to the wine where a young, mild wheel would fade.
Bottles to try:
Dry 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.
Bottles to try:
A 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.
Bottles to try:
A 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.
Bottles to try:
Dry Lemberger is a medium to full red with moderate acidity and medium to firm tannin. A Bergkäse ripened at least four months, mild and nutty, has the fat to soften that tannin, and an older, stronger wheel matches the barrel-aged bottles.
Bottles to try:
Dry Auxerrois, unoaked and medium-bodied with moderate acidity, is a mild white that leaves the fresh herb quark in charge: its soft fruit sits beside the chives, pepper and light sourness of the curd without covering them.
Bottles to try:
The German Wine Institute describes Silvaner's scent as recalling herbs or gooseberries, which echoes the chives in the curd. A dry, unoaked Silvaner with moderate acidity stays fresh beside the lightly sour quark.
Bottles to try:
The 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.
Bottles to try:
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According to German Wikipedia it is an Alemannic word for quark, and the herb version is widespread in Baden and neighbouring Alsace.
German Wikipedia says it is served mostly with potatoes (boiled, baked, fried or as rösti) or with fresh farmhouse bread.
German Wikipedia's Baden cooking article says south Baden calls it Bibbeleskäs and north Baden calls it weißer Käs; its Bibeleskäs article adds that Württemberg says Luggeleskäs.
The EU summary sheet lists the districts of Lindau, Oberallgäu, Ostallgäu, Unterallgäu, Ravensburg and Bodenseekreis and the cities of Kaufbeuren, Kempten and Memmingen.
German Wikipedia says at least four months; the EU summary sheet gives four months and raw milk only.
Alles Käs', a stall on the Münstermarkt in Freiburg, says on its own site that it sells the Sellthüren dairy's organic Allgäuer Bergkäse, young and aged, and that it has been offered at the market for over 30 years.
Not on its own. German Wikipedia says only Holsteiner Tilsiter, from Schleswig-Holstein, is a protected geographical indication.
The Hofgemeinschaft Heggelbach lists Tilsiter among its cheeses made from pasteurised milk, sold at the farm dairy on Tuesdays and Fridays.
