The Story of Trappist Cheese and Beer in Banja Luka

Finding out a little bit about Beer and Cheese from Banja Luka

In this post we're going to find out a little bit about beer and cheese from Banja Luka. Most people aren't familiar with those two things.

They might be familiar with the Dajak. They might be familiar with the big Mosque here, and they might be familiar with the earthquake of 1969.

But they're definitely not, too aware of the beer and cheese story.

The History of the Trappists of Banja Luka

The arrival of the Trappists in Banja Luka, was 152 years ago.

When they came they started a revolution not only in the production of cheese and beer which has persisted today but also in other things like in culture, education and certain architectural endeavours that they worked in.

This was of great significance for the area.

Franz Pfannerr the founding father was an extraordinary person. His original decision was not to go to Banja Luka. His first idea was to establish a monastery in Croatia, but he was denied. Then he came up with the idea to establish an orphanage for children.

Through communication with a priest from Banja Luka he learned about the very difficult life there and about the abandoned children who did not go to school, so he decided to come to Banja Luka and start building a monastery.

At that time Banja Luka was part of the Turkish Ottoman Empire, so Franz Pfanner came from Austria to Turkey. He first bought a property near Banja Luka from a Muslim, but when he realised that Franz was a Catholic, he refused to sell it to him, and then Franz came to Delibašino selo and bought this property from a merchant, Tomo Radulović.

The property on where the Monastery stands today was at that time only an old wooden hut which the Trappists called the cradle, from which the whole story begins.

A Small History of the Trappist Cheese Museum near Aleksandrovac