Cheese wire
A taut steel wire, on a handle or a board, used to cut soft and semi-hard cheese without crushing it.
Also: wire cutter, cheese cutting wire
A cheese wire cuts by pressure along a thin line rather than with a broad blade, so it passes through sticky, crumbly or soft cheese without dragging or smearing. Cheesemongers use large wires with two handles to divide big blocks of cheddar or Stilton, and board-mounted wires with a hinged arm to cut neat portions for customers. Small wires on a handle are sold for home use, and a length of clean string or dental floss does the same job for a log of goat cheese. Blue cheeses in particular cut better with a wire, which keeps the veins intact. Wires are cleaned between cheeses so that moulds and smells do not spread.