I Tried The New Cheese-Topped Tea Drink And I Have So Many Thoughts

tea
Lily Rose|

I am a big cheese person. I will always add cheese to my order if the option is available. I find a wheel of Brie preferable to a slice of cake. I have been to Wisconsin's Mars Cheese Castle (twice) and posed both times with one of those embarrassing cheese wedges on my head.

So when I came across the idea of cheese-topped tea I was more than intrigued. 

Cheese-topped tea has been popping up in Asian tea houses around the U.S. due to its apparent major popularity in Taiwan, China, Singapore and Malaysia. It looks more like an extra foamy macchiato than a piece of cheese floating on top of liquid, which is what I'm sure you were imagining. Some people seem to love it and have compared it to cheesecake or a savory milkshake. Others seem unsure of the flavor combination.

In actuality, it's an aesthetically pleasing drink with tons of Instagram potential, especially when ordered from Little Fluffy Head Café in downtown LA. Your swirling tea comes in a specially made cup that lets you sip your beverage without getting hit with just the cheese foam. Plus the packaging is done in that cool minimalist style that millennials like me, love.

When I placed my order I decided that I was going to try a rose oolong tea topped with Little Fluffy Head's original cheese topping. Unfortunately, they were out of the original flavor and wouldn't have any more for 20 to 30 minutes. Since I am a woman on the move and could not spare the time (my parking was almost up), I explored the other options. I could either try crème brûlée-flavored cheese foam or cheddar cheese foam.

Since I have a taste for adventure and sharp cheddar, I went with the cheddar cheese foam. The Little Fluffy Head employee asked if I had ever had their cheddar cheese foam before, to which I replied no, I had not. She then told me that it would not pair as well with the rose oolong and suggested I try it with the matcha milk tea instead.

On her advice, I made the switch and exited the shop feeling a lot like matcha-enthusiast Kourtney Kardashian. I forwent any tapioca pearls, as I felt they would be a distraction in my taste test.

My first sip of the drink was ice cold and delicious. The matcha milk tea was smooth, earthy, and ice cold. There was no cheese topping in that first sip, so I sort of swirled my drink around a bit and tried again. On my second sip my silky matcha was met with this tangy, salty, cheddar-y flavor not wholly unlike biting into a piece of cheddar cheese. My brain was confused. My taste buds were going nuts at the wild combination. I took another sip — a bigger sip, admittedly — and closed my eyes to try to sort out this matcha-cheddar pairing. I had a tiny bit of something in my mouth that could either be matcha or cheese? It was mildly reminiscent of the times in college I wasn't feeling well and would stay in bed eating handfuls of M&M's and Cheez-Its (a truly winning combination). It was sugary like a dessert but tangy like a savory snack — and so, so cold. (The bit was matcha, by the way.)

I took the lid off out of sheer curiosity because I wanted to try the cheese foam on its own. Revealed inside the cup, it resembled whipped cream cheese. It was deeply salty but still sweet, sort of like salted caramel if the caramel tasted more like cheddar cheese. I can't say I was a fan of the foam on its own.

Cheese-topped tea is the Bloody Mary of the milk tea world. Not saying that it will cure your hangover, but it's salty and savory and, I think, more of an acquired taste than just your run-of-the-mill tea. If I ever ordered this again I would go the sweeter route and try one of Little Fluffy Head's crème brûlée topping or even their "Dirty Mess" milk tea, which is topped with crushed Oreos.

I would recommend this tea drink to anyone who has complex cravings or to anyone who thinks they want a dessert but isn't 100 percent committed to the idea. Honestly if all you really want at the end of the day is the cheese part anyway, check out the 34 gooiest, creamiest, most over-the-top macaroni and cheese recipes. You might be better off.

Recommended