Did you know that cheese and tea are surprisingly good friends? A cheese platter with wine or Port is the most common pairing. Tea and cheese are for most people still unknown phenomena. In this blog, we share a few combinations to inspire you to experiment with tea and cheese combinations.

The complexity of tea

An average way to make tea is to use tap water, boil that for 3 minutes and sweep a teabag 3 times through the water. Technical you can call this tea. But if you used the full potential of the tea? You can answer that question yourself.

Tea can be found in many gradations and flavors. If you make tea with filtered water at the right temperature according to the right steeping time, you will enter a 'new world'. You will notice that the same tea you are used to drinking suddenly has so much more flavor, aroma, and more complexity than before. Tea can enhance flavors but also bring them together. Just like wine, but without alcohol.

Ran Watte with Tomme Crayeuse cheese

Ran Watte is a black tea that people compare to champagne. The tea is elegant with aromas from peach, citrus fruit, and a bit of spiciness. Tomme Crayeuse is a French cheese from Savoie. The lactic curd gives a chalky character. If you combine this cheese with our Ran Watte tea, you will get a true explosion of flavor in your mouth.

Green jasmine tea

Green jasmine tea is green tea flavored with jasmine flowers. This tea has a floral scent and has a fresh flavor.

Green jasmine tea with L'Amuse Signature Brabander goat cheese

When you ripen goat cheese for six months, you will create a cheese with a creamy and soft taste. When you take the time to taste this cheese you will taste tones of caramel and red fruit. If you combine this cheese with green jasmine tea, the soft character of this cheese will disappear and a meaty, nutty, and bold flavor will appear.

Earl Grey

Earl Grey tea is black tea flavored with Bergamot. The Bergamot gives this tea a citrusy character.

Earl Grey with Terschellinger samphire cheese

Samphire is a salty vegetable that among other things grows at Terschelling, one of the Dutch islands in the north. Terschellinger Samphire is a sheep cheese from the sheep farm De Zeekraal in Oosterend. The sheep eat samphire (and other things). Because of the samphire, the milk of this sheep tastes a bit salty but also light sweet. When you combine this cheese with Earl Grey tea, you will taste deep umami flavors. A nice combination when you like savory dishes.

Earl Grey with farmers Gouda cheese

Some pairings are so easy and delicious that you would almost forget them. Young farmer Gouda cheese is everyone's favorite. The cheese is soft but full of flavor at the same time. When you combine this cheese with Earl Grey it's like you are drinking tea with milk. In your mouth, the cheese melts together with the tea and together they make a perfect harmony, while you can still taste both flavors. A true winner combination.

Tie Guan Yin Oolong tea

Most of our Dimah Tea colleagues consider this tea as one of their favorite teas. The Tie Guan Yin Oolong is a semi-fermented tea. The tea contains all the good befits of green tea but because of the fermentation, it also has an elegant herbal aroma. This tea is elegant with hints of olive and orchid.

Tie Guan Yin Oolong tea with Manchego cheese

Manchego is a Spanish sheep cheese that got the time to rip. This process creates a slightly salty and spicy flavor. The Manchego from L'Amuse has a nutty flavor and has tones of butter. When you combine this Oolong tea with this Manchego you create a rich and define flavor combination.

Tips

The options for cheese- tea pairings are endless. Experiment with different combinations to discover your personal preferences. Keep the following in mind:

Steep your tea with filtered water at the right temperature. You can find the temperature on the package of your tea. Taste, taste, and taste even more. Use your nose and tiff so that the tea combines with oxygen. Adding oxygen allows you to taste the tea better.

Source: The cheeses from this article can be bought at Fromagerie L’amuse. This article is a summary that of an article that has been published in koffieTcacao Magazine #37. Photography Jurriaan Huting.