Of late, cheese tea has been on our tea-based minds. We’ve ranted quite wildly about it, annoying many people in the process. But we’d never even tried it!

That all changed on 30/04/2021, when we finally went out into Manchester and visited Ohayo Tea in Chinatown. Yes!

Black Jade Tea With Cheese Foam (From Ohayo Tea)

Now, this stuff isn’t just tea with a slab of brie chucked into it. It kind of looks like the way a cappuccino does.

Yet it’s still one of those things that’ll cause a reaction in many folks. “Cheese tea!?” It’s kind of like the modern version of, “Garlic bread!?”

We do think most people will envisage a dirty builder’s brew, loaded up with sugar and milk and with a few Babybel floating on the surface.

But as you can see with that nifty video above, these things look stylish! The strawberry cheese tea is one we’re going to go back and try as it looks super tasty.

There’s the standard tea stuff at the base of the beverage, with the foamy cheese resting on top. And we found it very tasty!

Our order was black jade cheese tea. It was served cold with ice (but you can have it heated) and you can either drink through the cheese foam, or mix it all together like a milkshake.

A medium size one was only £3.20, so it doesn’t bust anyone’s bank account.

And there are plenty of other varieties available:

• Osmanthus oolong
• White peach
• Strawberry
• Gyokuro green tea
• Pineapple

All of them have the foamy tea option available to splat on top, if you so wish.

And we have to say we thoroughly bloody enjoyed our Ohayo Tea beverage. It was refreshing and tasty!

The cheese foam on top tastes a bit more like whipped cream than anything else. Just with a slightly saltier punch.

With our order, we also asked for no added sugar and found it perfectly sweet enough minus any of that stuff.

As this isn’t a particularly healthy drink. But as a treat, it’s a mega tasty option to consider.

Of course, you could always drink the cheese tea and then burn off the calories during the Running of the Cheese in the village of Brockworth, Gloucestershire. Up to you.

Where’s Ohayo Tea?

Sound like the drink of your dreams!? Ohayo Tea is located on 95 Princess Street, Manchester, M1 4HT.

That means it’s right in the city centre near to Chinatown, Portland Street, and St. Peter’s Square. Like a 10 minute walk from Piccadilly Gardens.

It’s a nifty little café and, as you can see above, we enjoyed our visit (click on the little arrow in the pictures to see the full set).

So, yes, the bad news is you’ll need to live in England to get your hands on this particular brand. But, hey ho, just find your local café and they’ll probably do a version.

For anyone still panic-stricken about the idea of cheese tea, it’s really no different to adding milk or cream to your drink.

It’s still dairy. But the likes of Ohayo manage the whole shebang with a classy, elegant looking number that is refreshing and highly edible.

The Brilliance of Cheese Tea

Chinese drinks chain 喜茶 (Hey Tea, which translates to “Happy Tea”) invented the aromatic drink, foaming the cheese up good and proper.

To be fair, Professional Moron did invent the concept of cheese tea in 2015.

But whatever, Hey Tea had the gumption to go ahead and make the thing. And on its website, the brand states:

“The ‘Wonderful Idea’ that combines salty cheese with natural tea fragrance is the original Hey Tea. The original cheese tea series highly respected by consumers Choose imported New Zealand milk-sourced thick cheese, the taste is dense, layered with the mellow tea fragrance, the two intersect with each other, and it is indescribable.”

Unfortunately, you can only come across Hey Tea over in Guangdong Province and most of China. Although if you’re in Singapore, you’ll find some there as well.

But whilst you can’t try the originator’s take on the drink, the spread of cheese tea worldwide has been utterly unstoppable.

So, find yourself a café somewhere and indulge. You’ll be bloody surprised how good it is.