Gruyere Semsales

Emmanuel Piller began running the Semsales cheese dairy in 1994 after obtaining his master qualification in cheese making in 1992. In 1997, Mr. Piller was one of the 20 delegated cheesemakers to lead the Interprofession du Gruyère (IPG). Four years later, this creation led to the recognition of the Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) for Gruyère. Manu Piller is still involved in the IPG, including his work as a cheese expert who checks on the excellent quality of the cheese produced by the association every month.

Today, the Semsales cheese dairy is a small operation, now run by Manu’s son Loïc, who is also a master cheesemaker. He also employs an assistant and a few other apprentices, demonstrating the dairy’s commitment to training.

The cheese dairy transforms the milk of 14 regional farmers. It produces mostly Gruyère AOP, but also Vacherin Fribourgeois AOP, and Niremont, a semi-hard speciality reminiscent of this mountainous Veveyse peak. All these products can be found in the tea-room shop, the village's meeting place.

 The Piller family is happy to be able to count on its enterprising cheese company, which made it possible to build new cellars in 2000 and then completely renovate the facilities in 2015.

As a result, Semsales has all the assets needed to produce a quality Gruyère AOP that is sold in an optimal way on the various markets by the cheese maturing company Fromage Gruyère SA in Bulle.

The Piller family and their entire team are proud and honored to be able to fly the colors of the Fribourg Government.