Cheeses of Nieheim
A small Westphalian town known for Nieheimer, a sour-milk cheese with caraway aged in hops, and a cheese market every two years.
Made, aged and sold here
Best time: Early September for the cheese market; May to October for walking.
Nieheim is a small town in the hills of eastern Westphalia, between Paderborn and the Weser. It gives its name to Nieheimer, a small, strong, sour-milk cheese flavoured with caraway and traditionally aged in hops. Every two years the town hosts a large cheese market that draws makers from Germany and beyond, and a museum in the town is devoted to cheese, ham and bread.
Nieheimer
Nieheimer is made from sour-milk curd, the same kind used for quark. The curd is left to ripen for some days, then kneaded with salt and caraway, shaped into small round cakes and dried. Traditionally, the cheeses were laid in hops to ripen, which gave a bitter, herbal note. It has a strong smell and a sharp, tangy taste.
Westphalian food
Westphalia is known for its ham, smoked and air-dried, and for pumpernickel, a dark rye bread baked slowly for many hours. Nieheim's museum, the Westfalen Culinarium, brings cheese, ham, bread and schnapps together in old town houses. The town's cheese market is held in early September in alternate years, when stalls fill the streets and squares.
A trail idea for Nieheim
- Westfalen Culinarium The museum of cheese, ham, bread and schnapps.
- Nieheim cheese market The large cheese market held every two years.
- Old town Half-timbered houses in the small town centre.
- Externsteine A row of sandstone rock towers in the forest to the north-west.
Written by the EveryCheese desk with AI assistance. Background: "Nieheim" on Wikipedia. Opening hours, markets, caves and tours change; check locally before travelling. If something is wrong, tell us.
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