Unterst-Hütte Alpine Cheese Dairy

Niederbauen

Alpine cheesemaking is a tricky and time-consuming handicraft. Matthias and Clelia Waser-Kempf and Flurin are highly skilled at it: under the label of ‘Schweizer Alpprodukt’ (Swiss Alpine Product), they lease out the Alpine cheese dairy to the third generation of the Waser family. The alp at the foot of the Niederbauen (1,500 m above sea level) is part of Genossenkorporation Ennetbürgen. From the summit station of the Emmetten-Niederbauen aerial cableway, it is a 20 minute walk towards Choltal. Grazing on its 30 hectares are 37 dairy cows, mostly with horns, a bull, 14 Toggenburg goats, five cattle and 50 fattening pigs. From late May until late September, the family processes around 70,000 litres of milk to create the savoury Niederbauer Alpkäse cheese, which is known as a speciality.