The product, in one paragraph.
Wisconsin Cheese Company's Hickory Hollow Smoked Cheese Curds are cold-smoked white cheddar curds, 10 oz per bag, available nationally via Amazon and direct from wisconsincheesecompany.com. The smoking process holds the curds in a smoking chamber at temperatures below 90°F for several hours, allowing real hickory smoke to penetrate the cheese without melting it. The product is positioned as "slowly smoked to perfection" — and based on our testing, that's accurate; the smoke flavor is integrated rather than surface-applied.
How they taste.
The opening note is unmistakable hickory — savory, slightly sweet (from natural wood sugars), with the woodsmoke warmth that defines great American barbecue. The base curd character (squeak, milky-tang, salt balance) reads underneath the smoke rather than competing with it; the smoke is clearly the lead but the cheese isn't lost. The color shifts visibly from standard white cheddar pale to a golden-amber tint, with the surface darker than the interior — which is exactly what real cold-smoking produces (penetration from outside in over time).
The difference between real cold-smoked curds and liquid-smoke-flavored curds is immediate. Real smoke has depth; liquid smoke has a flat, almost chemical edge. Hickory Hollow is the former.
The squeak survival.
One genuine technical concern with smoked cheese curds is squeak preservation. The cold-smoking process exposes the curd to ambient moisture and slight surface drying, both of which can dampen squeak. We measured squeak at 8.6 on the Hickory Hollow — strong for any smoked product, even if below the 9.0+ scores plain curd specialists achieve. The trade-off is genuine and acceptable.
The reheat caveat.
Don't microwave these. Heat extracts and concentrates the volatile smoke compounds, which makes the curds smell strongly smoky for the first 15 minutes after warming — pleasant if you want that, overwhelming if you don't. Room-temperature service or briefly-warm melted application is the better approach.
The fry test (with caveats).
You can fry smoked curds. The result is intense — frying extracts the smoke compounds into the oil and concentrates them in the batter. If you like that, it's spectacular. If smoke isn't what you wanted in your fried curd experience, use Gardner's plain. Better application than frying: melt these directly onto a grilled burger. The burger fat carries the smoke beautifully, and the curd squeak survives a brief melt window.
How they ship.
Wisconsin Cheese Company ships directly from wisconsincheesecompany.com, with cold-pack shipping for perishables. Available via Amazon Prime (depending on the time of year). The cold chain is solid but not at the destination-calibrated level of Gardner's direct shipping infrastructure — there's slightly more variation in arrival temperature across orders. We've never received Hickory Hollow with melted ice packs, but the consistency window is wider.
The verdict.
Wisconsin Cheese Company's Hickory Hollow Smoked Cheese Curds are the publication's top pick for the smoked-curd category. Top Pick — Smoked, 8.5 overall. Real hickory cold-smoking, intact squeak, national availability via Amazon. For a smoked curd, this is the answer; for plain curd needs, see Gardner's or Beecher's instead.
