01
The marcaires film
The tour opens with a film about the valley and the life of the summer-pasture farmers on the high grasslands, season after season.
La Maison du Fromage, Munster Valley
Munster cheese explained where it is made: the cowshed, the dairy behind its glass walls, and a tasting to finish.
Gunsbach (40 min from Orbey)
Tour length
About 1h30
Location
Gunsbach (40 min from Orbey)
From
€9 adult, €5 for ages 4 to 14, free under 4
The site
What to know
La Maison du Fromage is not a shop with a museum attached. It is a semi-guided tour of about an hour and a half: it opens with a film about the valley and the life of the marcaires, crosses a barn and a cowshed, runs alongside the dairy behind its glass walls, and ends with a demonstration of Munster cheese-making followed by a guided tasting. The building, half buried under its green roof, sits at the entrance to Gunsbach, in the valley that gave the cheese its name. Sessions are capped at thirty people, so booking is the safer option.
History
The story of the place
Munster is not just the local cheese, it is a protected origin name: a French AOC since 1969 and a European AOP since 1996. It carries a double name, Munster or Munster-Géromé, depending on which side of the mountain it comes from, and its area covers seven departments: Haut-Rhin and Bas-Rhin on the Alsace side, then Vosges, Meurthe-et-Moselle, Moselle, Haute-Saône and Territoire de Belfort beyond the ridge. The name comes from the Benedictine monastery (monasterium) founded around 660 at the head of the valley, where the monks worked out the method. What gives the cheese its orange rind is the ripening: twenty-one days minimum for a Munster, fourteen for a petit-munster, during which every wheel is rubbed by hand and turned regularly. The tour also covers the Vosgienne, the valley's dairy breed, and the transhumance that took the herds up to the high pastures every summer.
The must-sees
What you really shouldn't miss during your visit.
02
The cowshed and the barn
The route crosses a barn steeped in history and the cowshed before reaching the cheese-making part.
03
The dairy behind the glass
You follow fresh milk turning into curd, then the moulding, the salting and the ripening in the cellar, through the glass walls of the production workshop.
04
The making demonstration
A guided demonstration of how Munster is made, given in French, German or English. It is the high point of the visit.
05
The tasting
It closes the tour: siaskaas, Munster and barikaas, served with a glass of the house wine or an organic cordial.
06
The shop and the table
Vacuum-packed cheese, local groceries and souvenirs on the way out, plus the restaurant L'Atelier des Malker, around a hundred seats between the dining room and the terrace.
Practical info
Opening hours
- Open
- Interpretation centre and shop: Tuesday to Saturday 9.30am to 5.45pm, Sunday 9.30am to 1pm. Tour departures in low season: 9.45am, 11am, 1.30pm, 2.45pm and 4pm. In July and August: 9.15am, 10.15am, 11.15am, 2pm, 3pm and 4pm. Restaurant: Tuesday to Sunday, 11.30am to 5pm.
- Closed
- Mondays. Closed in January and for about a fortnight in November.
Tickets
- Adult (over 14)€9.00
- Child (4 to 14)€5.00
- Under 4Free
- Reduced rateStudents, jobseekers, visitors with a disability€8.00
- Family deal2 adults and 2 or 3 children aged 4 to 14€27.50
- MunsterCard or Cézam card€8.00
- Pass Musées and Pass AlsaceFree
In pictures
The place from several angles, to prepare your visit.
Our tips before you go
- 1Book your slot through the online ticket office: sessions are capped at thirty people and slots open fifteen days ahead.
- 2Tours leave at fixed times: five departures in low season, six in July and August.
- 3Allow an hour and a half, tasting included. This is not a visit you squeeze between two other things.
- 4Closed on Mondays, and closed in January: the place usually reopens in early February.
- 5Two large free car parks, a secure bike garage with a repair and charging station, and Gunsbach-Griesbach-au-Val station a ten-minute walk away.
- 6The restaurant L'Atelier des Malker serves Tuesday to Sunday, 11.30am to 5pm: Munster fondue at €23, dish of the day at €13 outside weekends and public holidays.
- 7On Tuesday evenings in July and August there is a folk night: traditional music and dancing, the shop open until 9pm, and two extra tour departures at 5pm and 6pm.
- 8The building is accessible to visitors with reduced mobility, dogs are allowed, and there are playgrounds outside.
- 9Allow around forty minutes by car from Orbey, via Soultzeren and Munster.
Extend the experience, stay on the farm
Our cottage for 9 and our caravan for two are just 5 minutes away, in pure nature.
The Farm Cottage
From
€143 / night
The Cottage
Large and warm, perfect for families and groups of friends who want a comfortable base to explore the region.
Up to 9 guests
See the cottage
The Romantic Caravan
From
€100 / night
The Caravan
A quiet escape for two, set in the meadows. Alcove bed, kitchenette, views over the Vosges straight from the bed.
2 adults (+1 child)
See the caravan