Cheeses of Monroe, Wisconsin
A Swiss-settled Wisconsin town known for Swiss cheese, Limburger and Green County Cheese Days.
Made, aged and sold here
Best time: September of even-numbered years for Cheese Days; summer for the farms.
Monroe is the seat of Green County in southern Wisconsin, a dairy landscape settled by Swiss immigrants from the canton of Glarus in the nineteenth century. They brought their cheese-making skills, and the county became the centre of Swiss-style cheese in the United States. Monroe is also known as the home of the only Limburger still made in the country.
Swiss and Limburger
Green County's dairies make Swiss cheese with holes, Gruyère-style cheeses, brick cheese and Limburger, a pungent washed-rind cheese brought from Europe. A Limburger sandwich, with onion and mustard on rye, is a local tavern tradition. The National Historic Cheesemaking Center in Monroe tells the story of the county's many small cheese factories.
Cheese Days
Green County Cheese Days has been held in Monroe since 1914, now in September of even-numbered years. It brings parades, yodelling, cheese-making demonstrations and tours of local dairies. Nearby New Glarus keeps Swiss architecture and festivals of its own, and the rolling farmland of the county, dotted with barns and small cheese plants, is good for cycling.
A trail idea for Monroe, Wisconsin
- Monroe square The courthouse square, with cheese shops and taverns.
- National Historic Cheesemaking Center Learn the history of Green County's cheese factories.
- A tavern Try a Limburger sandwich with onion on rye.
- New Glarus The Swiss village a short drive north.
Written by the EveryCheese desk with AI assistance. Background: "Monroe, Wisconsin" on Wikipedia. Opening hours, markets, caves and tours change; check locally before travelling. If something is wrong, tell us.
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