Bergkaese — mountain cheese — is a hard cheese from unpasteurised cow milk in Switzerland, Austria and Germany, traditionally from cows grazing mountain pastures. Similar to Emmental, with its firm texture, nutty flavour, and occasional eyes, it develops characteristic depth during long ageing in cool cellars. The alternative spelling bergkase cheese appears in some markets. As a raw-milk Alpine cheese, its safety depends on healthy herds, scrupulous milking hygiene, and the protective effects of long maturation; its flavour reflects pasture, season, and traditional copper-vat cheesemaking that mountain dairies have practised for centuries.