A transparent milk tea from Japan has piqued the curiosity of Singaporeans:

The transparent milk tea, by Suntory from Japan, tastes like milk tea but is completely colourless, making it a mind-boggling brew.

Available in Singapore

After some snooping and tip-offs by readers, the transparent milk tea was found to be available at selected FairPrice Finest outlets, such as Marine Parade, Bishan and Changi Airport Terminal 3, as well as Choco Express outlets.

It is imported directly from Japan. It retails for S$2.60.

Here is the ingredient list:

According to the FairPrice staff, the product is relatively new.

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How it is made

In order to dispel the notion that the transparent milk tea is nothing but artificial flavoring, Suntory produced a simple video demonstrating the method of how it is made.

Tea leaves

Water is first boiled to produce water vapour. The water vapour is passed through loose black tea leaves and becomes infused with aroma. The gas then gets cooled in a condenser, leaving behind crystal clear liquid that still retains the tea flavors.

The tea leaves in the video do not come into full contact with water, meaning that not all chemical compounds and taste will be extracted. So, even though it won't taste exactly like rich black tea, it is pretty close.

Colourless milk

Suntory also provided a diagram to show how the transparent milk tea gets its milk taste.

Apparently, milk is broadly made up of milk fat, milk protein, lactose and milk minerals.

Lactose and milk minerals are transparent. By simply utilising lactose and milk minerals, Suntory can impart the flavour of milk into drinks while the liquid remains crystal clear.

This means the transparent milk tea is unsuitable for people who are lactose-intolerant.

Photos by Yeo Tsiuwen