A soft, rich, seasonal cheese made from cow's milk which is traditionally unpasteurised, usually in villages of the Jura region (there is also a Vacherin made in the Vaud canton of Switzerland but this uses thermised milk). It has a grayish-yellow washed rind with a pale yellow paste.

Vacherin is traditionally made in the winter months when the cows come down from Alpage (mountain pastures) and there is not enough milk to make Comté cheese. It is marketed in round boxes of various diameters made of spruce and often served warmed in its original packaging and eaten like fondue.