Sulguni

Sulguni is a brined cheese from Georgia, associated above all with the western region of Samegrelo and also made in Svaneti. It is a semi-firm cheese with a dense, elastic body and a dimpled surface, and its flavour is sour and moderately salty, which is why it is also called pickle cheese locally. The colour runs from white to pale yellow, and a smoked version exists as a separate cheese. It is made from cow milk, from buffalo milk, or from a mixture of the two, curdled with rennet and shaped into flat discs, then cured in brine for a short time, so it is a quick cheese that is ready within a day or two. Cooks serve it in wedges, grill it, or deep fry it, and frying softens its sharp smell. Sulguni has been a protected geographical indication in Georgia since 2012.