The Cheese (Yes, Cheese) You Should Try Garnishing Your Next Espresso Martini With

A cheese garnish on an espresso martini sounds like a cruel joke at first, but there's some kind of magic to this unlikely trend. It certainly looks interesting; A martini glass filled with espresso and liquor, with parmesan cheese dusted on the top like snow. The colors of the parm espresso martini provide striking visual interest, but its intrigue goes so much deeper once you try a taste. It's a sophisticated combination of sharp and bitter flavors — sweet, with an unmistakable martini vibe.

Bartenders have been tweaking espresso martinis for decades. There are double-strained espresso martinis for an extra frothy finish; the winter woods espresso martini with maple syrup, smoked salt, and fresh rosemary; and you can always swap out the vodka and give your espresso martini bold, new depth with Irish whiskey. Parmesan cheese ups the ante on flavor, offering you one more option to play with when it comes to the sweetly bitter beauty of espresso martinis. And, if you're lucky enough to get a bartender that knows good showmanship when it comes to craft cocktails, you'll enjoy watching them shake up your drink and grate an avalanche of cheese on top.

You'll have to dive into the culinary weeds to truly understand the reason parmesan cheese pairs with an espresso martini. The reason this cocktail tastes so good has everything to do with the five elements of flavor: bitter, sweet, sour, spice, and umami (or salt). The two standout flavors in the parm espresso martini are the bitter coffee and the umami-packed cheese.

You may have had a cream cheese bagel with a cup of coffee, or paired a cheese plate with an espresso. In Scandinavia, it's common to drop chunks of Finnish squeaky cheese into black coffee to create a drink called "kaffeost." Different varieties of cheese add unique flavors to coffee in all sorts of foods. (Ever tasted a creamy hazelnut tiramisu?) These two flavors have a centuries-old relationship that shines when it's presented in cocktail form.

Next time you slide up to the bar, see if the bartender feels like experimenting with the TikTok-trendy parm espresso martini — or, you can make it yourself. Just mix up a classic espresso martini with vodka, coffee liqueur, and espresso. Then grate a high-quality parmesan cheese over the top. From there, sit back and let your taste buds wander the globe until the very last drop.