Milbenkäse
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Milbenkäse | |
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Cow | |
Pasteurized | Yes |
Named after | Würchwitz |
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Milbenkäse ("
quark (a type of soft cheese) with caraway and salt, allowing them to dry, and then leaving them in a wooden box containing rye flour and cheese mites for about three months. An enzyme in the digestive juices excreted by the mites causes the cheese to ripen.[1] Milbenkäse tastes similar to Harzer
cheese, but with a bitter note (increasing with age) and a zesty aftertaste. Mites clinging to the cheese rind are consumed along with the cheese.
Historically, the cheese was produced in the Zeitz and Altenburg districts of the Saxony-Anhalt / Thuringia border region; today it is produced exclusively in the village of Würchwitz, in the state of Saxony-Anhalt.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/40/K%C3%A4semilben-Denkmal.jpg/220px-K%C3%A4semilben-Denkmal.jpg)
The traditional method of making Milbenkäse, which dates back to the Middle Ages, was nearly lost by 1970, with only the elderly Liesbeth Brauer knowing the technique. Local science teacher Helmut Pöschel was taught the proper way to make it and together with his associate, Christian Schmelzer, succeeded in revitalizing the tradition. A Cheese Mite Memorial was later erected at Würchwitz to celebrate the renaissance of Milbenkäse production.[citation needed]
Production
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b6/Milbenk%C3%A4se02.jpg/220px-Milbenk%C3%A4se02.jpg)
fermentation
; the flour is added because the mites would otherwise simply eat the whole cheese instead of just nibbling away at the crust as is desired. After one month, the cheese rind turns yellow; after three months, reddish brown. Some producers allow the cheese to ripen for up to one year, until it has turned black.
Legality
Milbenkäse falls into a legal grey area:
Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points compliance of the product is enforced.[citation needed
]
See also
References
- ^ "Würchwitzer Milbenkäse". Slow Food Deutschland e.V.
- ^ Article 2(b) at eur-lex.europa.eu
External links
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
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