The History of Bergader

Bergader has been synonymous with delicious cheese and premium quality for more than 115 years. The first-class cheese specialities are produced with passion and attention to detail in Waging am See and Bad Aibling.

Basil Weixler

Building the foundations for the company that Bergader is today needed courage and the spirit of a true pioneer. The 21-year-old Basil Weixler had both and in 1902, he founded a company that has been producing the best cheeses for four generations: Bergader.

At just 21 years old, Basil Weixler worked as an independent cheese-maker – five short years later, the company started to expand. After the First World War, one success followed another, culminating in the development of Bavarian Mountain Roquefort, a unique cheese creation at that time. Today, the cheese goes by the name Bergader Edelpilz and is much loved around the world.

The Roquefort Trial

Inspired by the popular French Roquefort, Basil Weixler developed his own version using cow’s milk. The painstaking and lengthy development process finally achieved success and was awarded the Bavarian State prize – much to the displeasure of the French, who sued Basil Weixler for using the Roquefort name. Several legal battles later, Basil Weixler lost the court case – but won something much more valuable: publicity.

The Bergader Brand

The new cheese creation deserved special attention – inspired by the Watzmann mountain, Basil Weixler came up with a distinctive name and design. The water veins running through the mountain range reminded him of the mould veins in his cheese and this gave him the new brand name. A fusion of “Berg” (mountain) and “Ader” (vein) became Bergader.

 

dairy farm Basil Weixler, 1935

The Premises

The steady success of Bergader Edelpilz cheese demanded more production capacity and led to the company’s further expansion.

In 1935, the cellars and stables of the old brewery in Waging became the first Edelpilz cheese dairy, which moved again 25 years later to a new larger building on the outskirts of the town. Further construction followed over the decades and added improvements that contributed to it being heralded Europe’s cutting-edge soft cheese dairy in 2012.

The Milk

From horse and carriage and dog-drawn carts to flatbed trucks to new-generation high-tech vehicles with fully automated sampling systems. Our core ingredient – the milk for the Bergader cheese specialities – has been transported from the dairy farms to our dairy in various ways over the past few decades. Today, independent freight forwarders make daily trips, bringing about a million litres of milk to Waging and Bad Aibling.

 

Quality is Paramount

The best cheese needs the best milk. Basil Weixler knew this and early on, he began to pay his milk suppliers according to the fat content of the milk. If the milk quality in the 1930s was rather low, this changed dramatically in later decades. Technical developments led to more accurate laboratory results – the basis for milk quality assurance.

Bergader’s high standards are attested by multiple awards: First prizes, gold medals and certificates bear testimony to the premium quality of Bergader’s special cheeses.

The Bergader Brand Identity

The creativity demonstrated in its founding years has continued through the company’s history. Bavaria blu, launched in 1972, came to represent a new generation of blue-mould cheese. In 1979, Bergader became the first German dairy to be distinguished for this entrepreneurial achievement with the Golden Sugarloaf (Goldener Zuckerhut) award – a coveted prize in the food industry. Brands such as Bavaria blu, Bergbauern Käse and Bergader Almzeit ensure the family-run company remains one of the leaders of the cheese counter and self-service chilled section. The company’s success is based on offering top-quality Bergader specialities.

One thing will never change:
Bergader was, is, and will remain a family-owned company.

Learn more about Bergader

Cheese production

Learn more

Our Cheese Dairy

Learn more

Quality & Origin

Learn more

Tasty recipes with Bergader cheese

VIEW MORE RECIPES

 

Bergader info bites