That's the stuff right there . This stuff was part of our lives for over 40 years.....Christmas ? get yourself some Echo Lake cheese spread . Company coming over ? get yourself some Echo Lake Cheese spread. Somebody die ? get yourself some Echo Lake cheese spread . For 20 years Hobo Jim would serve it every Friday and Saturday night at BJ's bar along with wonderful servings of home made music. Jim swore that not only was it the best Cheese he'd ever ate and that it also had restorative qualities and was the best hang over cure he had ever found !
Through the years MP has made our version of it but , well , it just ain't the same. The original recipe is creamy and has a subtle smokey taste along with jalapeno. She thinks one of the secrets is the cheese that's used and how it it extruded or blended to make the texture right....in any case this stuff is so good it can make a Bulldog break his chain.
And the story goes like this : Echo Lake Lockers was started in the 1970's south of Soldotna about 8 miles . It was and still is a butcher shop that sold meat and processed fish and game. They had many specialty items of which tons of this stuff was sold annually, no doubt their most popular product. The store was started by a guy from Montana named Bob Biastock who the legend goes invented the receipt and guarded it for years before selling the recipe along with the business and moving back to Montana. We've pined away for this stuff ever since we left Alaska. We've seen similar cheeses but...it just ain't the same.
So the other day at the gym I was telling a new friend that we were going to Butte for lunch at Pork Chop John's and to buy Truzzilini Tamales....they know how to eat in Butte. He suggested we go to this place as he thinks it's the best Butcher Shop in Montana.
Western Meat Block on Dewey Street has got the goods ! Wonderful store made sausage and 7 different types of bacon. Gourmet cheeses and seafood etc. So we bought the ' original ' sausages, Sweet Bourbon bacon and a couple of Tamales and then it happened....in a smaller cooler case I spotted this .
At Echo Lake Lockers Bob always had samples but yesterday we had to wait until we got home. MP hadn't been in door 5 minutes when it was open and she got out the chips. She looked at me and said ' do you suppose this could be it ' ? AND Yahtzee ....IT IS !
So , inspector Clueso here sees another trip to Butte in our future. I gotta find the origin of the recipe and who knows the trail may lead to Bob and maybe even an Echo Lake Montana reunion. Who knows ? But I'll tell ya this my FootBall Sunday just got way better.
