For this post, we are doing something different. The makers of a brined, smoked braided string cheese sent us their product and we decided to check it out. Since this type of cheese is to be paired with beer, we poured a couple of pints and tried it. See our review of Chechil Beer Snack.

Let’s Learn About Chechil

As you may have guessed, we didn’t know about this type of cheese when we were first contacted buy the Chechil USA company. After some research into the topic, we found out it is an Armenian brined string cheese. It is produced from cow’s milk and stretched into strings which are braided.

At some point, but looking at the product we figure it gets smoked as a braid. We are guessing it is brined before the braiding, but it is definitely brined. Before we get to far into the taste, let’s wrap up with how this product is packaged. This particular company packs the braid into clear plastic and it allows you to see it before you open the package.

Once it’s opened up, you need to take some steps to make it ready to eat. I took a knife and cut the knot at the bottom of the braid. After the knot is cut, you tear apart the strings to make more manageable pieces. With the strings separated, they can be selected from a plate or a bowl for eating.

Our Take – It’s Different But Good

After you pull apart the strings, the smoked aroma permeates the room. Eating the cheese, it has the consistency of other string Mozzarella cheeses we have had. The big difference is the salty, smoky notes.

It presents like a big pile of thick noodles but once you get past that, the cheese is good and fun to eat. The beers we chose (Miketoberfest and Amarillo Pale Ale) paired well with this smoky snack. We think it would go well with some other spicy meats and crackers.

Thanks for much for the sample. We appreciate it.

BREW ON!