What types of cheese are there in Georgia?
Imeretian, sulguni, guda and more.
Short answer
Georgia makes Imeretian cheese, imeruli, sulguni, smoked sulguni and guda. Imeretian cheese is made by hand, sulguni from cow's or buffalo milk, and guda from sheep's milk.
Why
- Sulguni was first made by Mingrelians and Svans; its layers are a key quality marker.
- Smoked sulguni in Samegrelo is smoked for at least two months.
- Guda, the Tushetian cheese, ripens for about 60 days in a bag of sheep skin.
Details
Imeretian cheese is salted with rock salt and stored in brine. Khachapuri is made only with natural Georgian cheese; Imeretian khachapuri uses imeruli and sulguni. A wedding table usually has a cheese board: Imeretian cheese, sulguni, smoked sulguni and curds wrapped in slices of sulguni. Sulguni is on the list of Georgia's Monuments of Intangible Cultural Heritage.
Tip
When choosing sulguni, look at the layers: they are an important quality marker.
What may differ
Common misconception
What actually happens
People also ask
- What does kveli mean?
Sources
- Georgia Travel: Types of Georgian CheeseChecked at:
- Georgia Travel: SulguniChecked at:
- Georgia Travel: Georgian Ritual FoodsChecked at:
- Georgia Travel: Rediscovering Khachapuri, Georgia's Must-Try ClassicChecked at:
Cheese names are transliterated; on packaging they may be spelled differently.
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