Mikaelyan Cheese Factory

Gegharkunik region is known not only for Lake Sevan and the endemic fish species "Ishkhan".  We have traveled to the village of Artsvakar near Gavar to taste the unique cheeses made by the Mikaelyan family. Arman Mikaelyan and his wife Marina produce more than 10 different types of cheese, including varieties with the addition of wine, brandy, nuts, and many other combinations.

It all started 10 years ago, in 2012, when Arman decided to return back to the village after living in Yerevan for a year and a half. Together with Marine, he moved to his parents' house in Artsvakar, bought several cows, and started farming. At first, the Mikaelyans sold milk and fresh dairy products, but then Marine suggested to her husband to make craft cheeses, since they are easier to store.  In the beginning, the couple made and sold Armenian salted cheeses, and then the Mikaelyans began to experiment!

The first tourists came to the Mikaelyan house by chance, 3 years ago, when one of the guides tasted their cheese in a Yerevan restaurant and contacted the producers. From that moment, travel companies and travelers began to visit the cheese factory in Artsvakar, although the Mikaelyans never aimed at making their factory a tourist attraction. 

Arman says that their business project runs smoothly because they are a close-knit family. They always help each other and work in shifts, so that everyone gets the time to rest h. Arman met us, and Marine joined us later, during the tasting session, as she can not only serve the cheese in beautiful arrangements but also tell about the varieties in an entertaining and engaging way. 

In cheese making, as we found out from the Mikaelyans, there is a lot of creativity: from the technology of cheese production, to the design and serving of a cheese plate. The last one is always perfectly done by Marine, and Arman told us about creativity in the production of cheeses: "Every year we make from 5 to 10 experimental cheeses. We can say that we have a constant and non-stop creative process. We don't have any definite plans, we're just trying. Just like artists – everything is chaotic, and there must be inspiration!".

It was the experimenting that brought the Mikaelyan couple their success in the cheese business. They got their first successful cheese only after 50 experimental attempts and 2-3 tons of spoiled milk. "We used to get upset because of the failed attempts, but now we understand that this is normal and there would be no result without it," Arman concludes.

Marine worked as a florist in the past, but now she translates her passion for design and decoration into beautiful cheese plates. On a cheese plate from Mikaelyan couple you can taste from 5 to 10 types of cheese, sometimes supplemented with exclusive over-aged cheeses, several types of meat and sauces. "When we make a cheese plate, we want it to be special. The cheeses are beautiful and delicious, and I want people to feel that the cheeses and the cheese plate are made with great love," says Marine.

The spouses approach the name of the cheeses creatively – each cheese has its own unique name. For example, the 8th cheese is called "Narek", and the 9th is named after Marine herself. "It's an accident, but no one believes me. We had French camembert producers as guests, we talked to them and shared our experience with each other, and I promised them that one cheese variety would bear  my name. And we named the cheese that came out as tough as me “Marine”.  It’s ended up being one of our best cheeses, although initially we did not bet on it," says Marine. "Sometimes we look  for suitable names for cheese for years. For example, there is a cheese called "Summer", and we had many options for how to call it: "Childhood", "Grandmother", "Farm", but in the end we came to name it "Summer". There is a cheese called "Sevan" – it is a soft cheese with a wavy surface. One of the guests said that the cheese smells like Paris and we had to call it that, so now we call this cheese "Sevan-Paris", says Marine. From the conversation with Marine, it became clear that each cheese has not only its own name, but also its own character, for example, the cheese with a chili pepper aftertaste, which surprises guests with its sharpness during the tasting.

"To leave the city and work when you have a big family, and to decide to do a new business that is completely unfamiliar to you (I am the first from my family who took up this business) was the riskiest and the best decision in my life. I don't think I would ever do that again. When we started, I was young and confidently went on such adventures, but now I could not do such a thing," says Arman. He is sure that everything in life happens for a reason, and fate sent him to cheese making for a reason. The business is difficult, but Arman and Marine do it for the soul, not for the money. Therefore, they do not consider it  work, which only adds joy to the development of the "Mikaelyan Cheese Factory"!

We recommend that you try the Mikaelyan family's cheese at their factory in Artsvakar, but even if you have no plans to travel outside of Yerevan, you can find the Mikaelyan cheeses at:

• In Vino Wine Bar on Saryan Street;

• Specialized dairy products store on Zakyan Street.