I love cheese. There, I said it…you name the flavor and I’m on board. A few years back a friend of mine start smoking his own cheese and I thought the flavors were amazing, especially when paired with beer. So naturally I was excited to find a sample of Chechil Smoked Braided String-Cheese Snack had arrived at mybeerbuzz headquarters.
First off a little history. Chechil originated in Armenia and it’s grown to become one of the most popular bar snacks in Europe…but not in the U.S….that is until now. A group of New York cheese makers is now producing Chechil in the U.S., and based on how well it pairs with beer, I suspect you’ll all know the name very soon.
Chechil is a braided, smoked, salty, string cheese snack and it’s really unique. If you’re thinking this tastes like traditional Mozzarella string cheese, you’d be wrong. 
As you can see from the photos, Chechil is a really distinctive snack, with a LOT more flavor than traditional string cheese. The taste is salty and smoky and the consistency and texture actually make it fun to eat. When you unbraid the cheese you actually get softer smoother cheese on the inside and a firmer smokier texture and flavor on the outside.
We paired up Chechil with two beers. First off a mild saison from Dupont. This beer is one of my favorites, and the peppery dry saison pairs up nicely with Chechil. The smokey flavor of the cheese shines through and the salty finish cleans up the lingering palate of the saison.
Next we decided to throw a hoppier beer at this snack, and Chechil stood up well. We paired Ithaca Flower Power with the cheesy snack, and the mix was really good. Again the smoky nature of the cheese isn’t overrun by the hoppy IPA and the salty finish actually makes you want to drink more beer (and have more Chechil.) 
We sat the Chechil out before sampling and actually had a lot of fun unbraiding it. As the cheese dried, it got even better, so be sure to unbraid it and let it sit (if you can resist eating it) before you sample.
Overall I think this is a great snack to pair with beer, and I suspect we’ll see a lot more of it showing up in bars in the future. My thank you to Sergy for allowing me to taste an early sample. Be sure to check out their website http://chechilusa.com/ for more info and be sure to try it for yourself.
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