A Lesson In Pairing Tea, Wine, and Food at Baccarat Hotel

I recently had the pleasure of attending an exquisite tea, wine, and food pairing event at the Baccarat Hotel in NYC. I picked up tips for pairing tea with champagne and food in the most beautiful room, while sipping on the most delicious tea, champagne, and food. Sounds like a dream, right? It was quite an evening.

This incredible event was created by Gabrielle Jammal, the incomparable tea sommelier at Baccarat. Over the past year she has been working tirelessly to create tea events in this luxurious yet intimate setting, to show guests the true magic of tea. So, on to the magic...

World Tea Expo 2018: Tea Pairing Workshop with Virginia Utermohlen Lovelace M.D.

 Virginia Utermohlen Lovelace

One of the most memorable experiences I had at World Tea Expo this year was attending the workshop "Learn To Pair Teas & Build Menus from Scratch" with Virginia Utermohlen Lovelace, M.D. Virginia uses science to explain the art of pairing tea and food, and she is an expert instructor. I love pairing tea and food, as you can tell from the Tea Pairing 101 series I've been doing with Jee and Georgia. Our approach is a bit subjective, as taste is very personal. Actually, if you peruse Virginia's blog, you will see that she takes each of our pairing sessions and explains our findings with science! Virginia's workshop also brought this fascinating scientific approach to tea pairing, and I couldn't believe how useful the information is.

Flavors as Temperatures
The first thing we learned was how the chemicals in food activates our Trigeminal nerve temperature receptors. Basically, flavors we taste will be detected on a temperature scale! Thinking of flavors in terms of temperature is fascinating to me. We discussed words for how we detect the flavors. For example, spicy and peppery foods are on the hottest end of the temperature scale, then drop in temperature to sweet and umami flavors, then down to mellow and balanced foods, finally to cool and milky, refreshing, frozen, and pungent foods at the coolest end of the spectrum. It's important to consider the 'temperature' of the flavors in a dish when selecting a tea to pair it with. Think of a chili pepper vs. a cucumber. They are opposite on the temperature spectrum, and therefore will require a different tea pairing.

Flavors that are opposite on the temperature spectrum may not work well together, or they even can cancel each other out. Just as you can't feel hot and cool simultaneously, you cannot taste a 'hot' and a 'cold' food at the same time. To illustrate this point, Virginia had us put a cinnamon candy in our mouths for a few seconds to get the flavor, and then taste a mint. The minty flavor completely masked the cinnamon! You can't taste them both at the same time. The trigeminal receptors detected the cinnamon as hot, and the mint as cool. Hot receptors are slow to develop, but they linger. The cool receptors are much faster to turn on and off, so once the flavor of the mint candy dissipated, the cinnamon flavor came right back! It actually lingered for quite some time. If paired correctly, food will enhance the tea you are drinking, but if incorrect, flavors can be inhibited.

Tasting Teas
In order to further understand how teas fall on this temperature scale, we naturally had to taste a few! We tasted three teas from Yatra Tea, and one from the Great Mississippi Tea Company. Here's a brief rundown of the teas and the flavors we experienced:

Yatra Fatikcherry Estate Tripura Green Tea, Autumn 2017- Virginia asked for this tea to be a bit oversteeped, so we could taste the astringency. I noted this tea as 'moderate' in bitterness, astringency, and low in sweetness and other flavors. The best part came next- we were asked to taste the tea, and then taste a tiny bit of salt. When I tried this, I actually gasped out loud. The bitterness completely disappeared! I could now taste the floral and green notes of this tea. With the addition of salt it became a 'soothing' tea, flavors were fairly balanced and nothing was particularly dominant. This put the tea in the 'cool' to 'middle' temperature range. I am definitely going to remember how salt masked the bitterness and astringency.  Pro tip: In my notes I wrote that both salty and vanilla flavors tame bitterness.

Yatra Goomtee Estate First Flush Darjeeling, April 2017- this tea also hit the 'middle' temperatures for me. It was not bitter or astringent, but delicate with sweet, nutty, and floral notes. Virginia pointed out that first flush Darjeelings are in a similar temperature level as oolongs, activating the 'medium-warm' trigeminal nerve receptors. This made sense to me, since they are both partially oxidized (just as there is a range of oxidation, there is also a range of medium temperatures).

Yatra Halmari Estate Second Flush Assam, 2017- my note for this tea is 'hearty'. It was strong in sweetness and nuttiness. It wasn't super astringent though. A rich black tea such as this assam activates the warmer temperature receptors, for sure.

Great Mississippi Tea Company Black Magnolia- I've had this tea before, and really enjoy it. My notes for this tea includes no bitterness, with moderate sweetness, and strong nuttiness. I circled both 'soothing' and 'hearty' on my rating sheet, as it's sort of in-between. It's not as 'hot' as an Assam; it's more delicate, but still on the hotter end of the temperature spectrum.

Pairing Teas
Snack time! After assessing the teas alone, we then paired them with a few different bites. We had blueberry, raisin, and chocolate scones, along with blueberry, strawberry, and raspberry jams. The variety of scones were important, as pairing tea and scones is a classic afternoon tea choice. But not all scones go with all teas! When creating a tea menu you need to decide what flavors you'd like to emphasize, and what flavors to dampen. Then you can start to figure out how to pair.
Here are some of the flavor highlights:

Green tea went really well with blueberry! The sweetness of the tea was enhanced, and the bitterness disappeared. The green flavors were also highlighted with the blueberry. So if you are selecting a scone to go with your green tea, go for blueberry if you can! The other teas didn't work as well with the blueberry. We learned that blueberries activate cold receptors just like green tea does.

Darjeeling tea worked well with the raisin scone, and also when the strawberry jam was added. This brought out the floral notes. Darjeeling activates the 'warm' receptors, as does the raisins and strawberries, so it makes sense that this pairing worked so well.

The best pairing for me was the Black Magnolia tea with the chocolate scone and raspberry jam. It was heavenly! Very balanced, floral, and rich. Why is this? Chocolate and raspberries activate the hot receptors, which is where the black tea falls on the temperature scale. Fascinating, right?

In the case of the tea and scones, if you activate both the 'hot' and 'cold' receptors at the same time (say pairing the green tea with chocolate), it clashes, and doesn't work at all. When building a tea and food menu, it's important to take these things into consideration. Of course, it's difficult to offer only certain teas with certain foods, but if you are armed with the temperature receptor information, you'll know how to choose your foods wisely, and create successful pairings. As a class, we decided that the best way to offer successful tea and food pairings is to have a 'tea tapas' restaurant where the diner can choose one tea and one small plate of food at a time. Quick, someone run with that idea!

As you can see, this workshop was an amazing experience. I cannot wait to put this knowledge to good use! A huge thank you to Virginia for letting me attend the workshop! I hope I can attend more of them in the future.

Tea Pairing 101: Black Tea and Tea Sandwiches

That's me, steeping our first tea, capture by Jee

I'm pleased to finally present the next Tea Pairing 101 installment. You may remember this is the series that fellow tea bloggers Jee, Georgia, and I have been working on. We take three variations of one type of tea, and pair them with a specific type of food. It's always a fun and delicious afternoon.

This time we focused on black tea. Black tea can be paired with a range of different things from savory to sweet. I almost always pick a black tea when I'm enjoying an afternoon tea spread (unless an oolong steals my heart), because it will usually pair well with a range of sweet and savory items. We decided to run with this idea and pair black teas with savory tea sandwiches, the type that you'd typically serve for afternoon tea.

Tea For The Super Bowl

Do you enjoy watching football, or is your idea of a Super Bowl using your biggest cereal bowl to make matcha? Well, whether you watch the Super Bowl attentively or sit near the TV while scrolling through Instagram, this weekend is the 'big game' and I thought it would be fun to suggest ways to infuse the festivities with tea. From tea and food pairings, cooking with tea, to straight up 'tea beer', there are many ways to celebrate the day with your favorite beverage.

Tea Pairings
Game-watching food is meant to be grazed- you know you'll be picking at various snacks for a few hours, basically non-stop. The common theme is heavy, greasy, and spicy. There may be some veggies on a platter, but you know they're meant to be dunked in the onion dip. If you'll be nibbling on spicy wings, nachos, and seven-layer dip until the final touchdown, go for a puerh. I'd choose a silky, deep shou to wash down the spicy and greasy treats. Bonus points if you drink your shou gongfu style, set up among the wings and dip.

If you're more likely to stick with chips and a creamy dip, or maybe veggies and cheese for most of the evening, I think a vegetal green tea such as bancha would work well. It's got a bit of astringency to work with through heavy chips and dip, but will also compliment veggies and milder cheeses. Or if you'll stick with noshing on a bowl of potato chips, a White Peony would work quite well (but probably not a Silver Needle). The hay-like flavors will enhance the potato.

If you'll be eating pizza, I think a kombucha would really win the day. Whenever I think about pizza, I just love a good, fizzy drink to go with it. Kombucha's got the fizz,  a sour punch, and a nice sweetness. The perfect foil for that oily pizza, and a great substitute for soda. There are so many different varieties of Kombucha out there, so pick up a few and see what you like. If I had to choose, I'm partial to GTs and Health Ade.

If chili is on the buffet, I think a Keemun tea would be great. The smooth chocolate note in a good keemun will really round out the chili. Or a malty Assam would be a nice choice as well, to highlight the earthy and spicy notes. Are we getting a bit too highbrow with the pairings? Any tea with a bit of heft will work well with most Super Bowl-approved foods.

Beer Tea?
Apparently, beer tea is a thing. I've seen matcha beer served at 29B in NY, although I haven't tried it. For straight up beer and tea recommendations, I found this page, which lists many varieties of tea beer. No time to order? Check out stores that have a large beer selection, you never know what you'll find! I also noticed that Owl's Brew (they make some very tasty tea cocktail mixers) sells Radlers which are a blend of tea, beer, and other flavors. Now you know!

Make Tea-Infused Chili!
Why not add tea right into your party food? Last spring I posted my recipe for Lapsang Souchong infused chili. It's quite delicious, and perfect for a crowd. The slightly smoky flavor works really nicely with the beans and spices. You can serve it alone or pile it on chips for amazing nachos.

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There you have it, lots of different ways to enjoy your tea during the Super Bowl. What's your plan for the big day? I'll be at a party with tea in hand and one eye on the game, and one scrolling through Instagram.

Tea Pairing 101: Oolong and Fruit

It's finally time for the next installment of Tea Pairing 101! This is the series Georgia, Jee, and I have been working diligently on, pairing interesting flavors together while making sure the ideas are easy to recreate at home.

This time around we decided to pair oolongs with fruit. We wanted to use seasonal fruits, and since it is early autumn we chose pears, plums, and persimmons. All three of these fruits have very different flavor profiles, but still paint a picture of early autumn. We decided to include fresh honeycomb on our fruit plate to enhance flavors and appearance. We discovered the honey was a smart addition, which I'll explain later.

We had the unique opportunity to have our pairing session in a super-swanky NYC apartment. Thanks to Lizzie at Compass, we spent the afternoon at 286 Spring Street, a dreamy penthouse filled with natural light, modern fixtures, and terraces for days. Quite an exclusive backdrop for enjoying tea and fruit.

It wasn't easy to pick just three oolongs to use for this pairing. If you're an oolong drinker you know there are many different styles to choose from, and they have a wide range in flavor. Oolongs are typically produced in China, and Taiwan, but you can find oolongs from other tea growing areas. Should we pick a region? Stick with similar oxidation levels? What about roasting? In the end we decided on three oolongs that are good examples of their style, and not difficult to find. The whole point is to enjoy the experience and not get stressed out about finding the most perfect thing.

As before, we took three teas and paired with three foods. We used 3 grams of tea steeped for 2 minutes each in professional tasting cups. We nibbled some fruit then sipped the tea to see how the two worked together.

Tea pairing Round 1: Bao Zhong
Our first tea was Wenshan Bao Zhong (2017) by Tillerman Tea. This is a lightly oxidized tea from Taiwan. Bao Zhong means 'wrapped style' which is the rolling style reflected in the slightly twisted leaves. Quick story: the first time I had a beautifully floral Bao Zhong, it was purchased by my husband for me on our second date! We went to a tea store that called it Pouchong, another way it may be referred to. I remember it being beautifully floral but also vegetal, and the tea from Tillerman also has these qualities.

The dry leaves have a dark military green color, with twisted inch-long leaves. The leaves have a needle-like shape. A floral aroma like a bouquet of fresh flowers emanates off of these leaves.  After steeping the aroma is still floral, but vegetal notes are also sneaking in. 

The tea has many layers of flavor. It's savory, creamy, and floral. We tasted steamed bok choy and creamed spinach. This is a smooth, medium bodied tea without a hint of bitterness. A tea I could drink all afternoon.

For the pairings, we had two options that could work. The pear was mild enough to accent the floral tea and also enhance the savory flavor. However, the pear didn't really add much to the experience. The plum turned out to be a better choice. Its sweetness worked well with the floral and savory notes, but didn't overpower the palate. The tart plum skin transformed the tea flavor, creating an interesting depth. The persimmon didn't work with this tea. The fruit was cloyingly sweet, and strangely the tea canceled out the flavor in the fruit. It was a peculiar experience, and not particularly appealing. The plum was the clear winner for me.

Tea Pairing Round 2: Tie Guan Yin
The Tie Guan Yin (TGY) we used is from NYC's T-Shop. This is a  heavily roasted TGY which is how I prefer to drink it, and is also the more traditional way to process the tea. I'm sure most of you have also had the lighter version of TGY, which is more floral and aromatic.

The dry leaves are tightly rolled dark reddish brown pellets, which is characteristic for this type of tea. The leaves have an aroma of fresh walnuts and dried cherries, reminding me of lazy autumn picnics.

The wet leaves present a roasty aroma, filled with chicory and dry twigs. It feels similar to kukicha in the dominance of that twiggy roasted goodness. The tea's flavor consists of chocolate, roast, and that chicory. A tea that reminds me of falling leaves and crisp mornings.

Time for the fruit pairings. I was expecting the plum to work, mostly because it feels like an early fall fruit. My instinct wasn't correct. The plum didn't have much flavor when paired with this oolong. The tartness didn't combine with the roasty tea. The pear also didn't work well- it was just too bland for the tea. It didn't enhance, and it didn't compliment. The super-sweet persimmon actually worked beautifully with the tea. The cloying sweetness is rounded out by the earthy strength in the tea. The two contrasting flavors played off each other well, making a harmonious pairing. Winner!

Tea with a view of One World Trade Center

Tea Pairing Round 3: Xiao Hong Pao (little red robe):
This tea is from Seven Cups. I'm sure you've heard of Big Red Robe (Da Hong Pao), the most famous Wuyi mountain oolong tea. Be sure to visit this page to learn about the processing of the Xiao Hong Pao. According to Seven Cups, the primary difference between Xiao Hong and Da Hong is in the special drying process that keeps the Xiao Hong from tasting too toasty. It allows for other flavors to come through, which is something we noticed more in the aroma than in the flavor of the tea.

The dry leaves are dark brown and quite beautiful- long, twisted, and varying in size. The leaves have a rich chocolate aroma. Very sweet, a little bit of roast, and something a bit syrupy. Lots going on with this tea.

After our infusion the wet leaves were still twisted, which made me think we could steep this tea many times before we really learn its secrets. The aroma of the wet leaves conjures up honey, dried fruit, and roasted butternut squash. Again, an autumn-appropriate tea! The brew tastes quite roasted with that chicory flavor we found in the TGY. It was a little bitter with a pleasing roundness and full body. I found this tea to be very comforting. It was interesting that the aroma was so sweet, but the tea itself was quite roasty. It's possible that we needed to play around with the temperature (we brewed the tea at 212º) and time, to get the brew just right.

For the fruit: The persimmon worked nicely to tame the bitterness, but it didn't do too much for me. I think the flavors were polar opposites (very roasted, and very sweet), and perhaps they were too far apart to truly be a pleasant balance. We had a strange experience with the pear- it seemed to erase the flavor of the tea, but then a moment later the tea lingered on the palate. Jee decided that the pear was similar to a palate cleanser, which was an interesting thought! The plum turned out to be our goldilocks- it created a nicely balanced flavor with the roasted tea. Sweet and tart worked well with the rich, roasted tea.

From left to right: Bao Zhong, TGY, XHP

The Outcome: Sweetness and Seasons
One of the important things we learned in this pairing is that the level of sweetness really makes a difference. The semi-sweet plum paired very differently than cavity-inducing persimmon. Making sure the fruit is ripe and in-season is also key. Fruit that is at the peak of flavor will pair very differently than unripe, bland fruit. The texture also influences the way the flavors feel on the palate. Since the flavor and texture can be unpredictable, it's important to taste all of your fruit to make sure it's how you imagined it would be. Pairings don't need to be limited to flavor profiles (plums with a tea that reminds you of tart plum skin, for example), but consider seasons. Teas that are picked in the same season as the fruit are an interesting study, or try to intentionally contrast the seasons and see how it changes things up.

Epilogue: Honey Is a Super Power:

Remember the honey I mentioned earlier? Honey turned out to be a unifying factor on the fruit plate. The honey always linked the tea and fruit together, and seemed to enhance the flavors. So, if you are using fruit that's perhaps a little out of season or not ripe enough, adding a little honey will work wonders. The pairing doesn't work quite so well? Try adding a little drizzle of honey. I don't think honey should be relied on to make the pairings work, but it is certainly a delicious way to harmonize flavors.

It's also important to remember that there are no right or wrong answers here. If you prefer a different flavor combination, great! Go with what you like. I hope you enjoyed our swanky paring adventure, we certainly did! Don't forget to check out what Georgia and Jee had to say.

You can read about our last two previous pairings here and here. Stay tuned, we'll be brainstorming another Tea Pairing 101 soon.

Flights of Fancy: A Green Tea Tasting

 

Imagine a day where you get to drink green teas all afternoon, chat with some of your favorite people, and munch on perfectly paired sweets. I won't deny it, being a tea blogger has its advantages. It's always an adventure when tea people get together, and our last tasting is no exception. I had the privilege of joining some of my favorite tea friends for an extremely memorable afternoon, and thought it would be fun to share it with all of you.

To begin the day we started with a tasting of the new Matcha Gyokuro selection at La Colombe, expertly prepared by Alexis of Teaspoons and Petals, the resident tea consultant. She brewed the tea to perfection using a Silverton pour-over brewer, which was also fun to watch. I arrived late to our first tasting, so sadly I didn't get any good images. Needless to say, after a few sips of this well-balanced tea and exchanging hugs with some friends, I was ready for the adventure yet to come. 

We made our way to the International Culinary Center (ICC) and up to library, the perfect venue for our Rishi Tea tasting. The ICC library is a special place. The walls are made of glass and lined with shelves upon shelves of culinary books. I think this is what the library looks like in foodie heaven! We were greeted by the always elegant Keiko from Rishi Tea, and were sat at a long table decorated with flowers and adorned with plates of decadent French macarons and mochi. Like I said earlier, being a tea blogger has its advantages. 

Keiko chose the sweets well. The macaron flavors paired perfectly with each green tea, highlighting savory and vegetal notes. We had the chance to try Rishi green teas of various cultivars, something I've never done before. I don't know as much about Japanese green teas as I should (except that they are delicious), and I was grateful to learn and taste so many high-quality teas. This was a unique opportunity.

The teas were broken down into 'flights', small groups of tastings where we could compare and contrast (many of you have had either tea, beer, or wine flights before, I'm sure). I won't go too deep into specifics so be sure to check out Nicole's post for a look at the entire tea flight menu, as well as more photos from the day. I was focused on the experience and not as much on notes and photography.

The first flight had Sincha Machiko and Matcha Okumidori. The Shizu (aka machiko) cultivar is known for its cherry blossom floral flavor, and the tea certainly kept its promise. It was like tasting a fresh blossom. The okumidori cultivar made a chocolatey thick matcha, which reminded me of a roasted tea. After these two teas, I was eager for more. A great way to start.

The second flight was dedicated to teas of the Sae Midori cultivar.  We had a hand-picked shincha which surprised me with its delicate flavor. It wasn't grassy or the slightest bit bitter. We then had an extremely savory and light gyokuro, and a matcha that was a touch more bitter than the first, but still chocolatey with an interesting buckwheat note. I usually stick with fairly cool water for teas such as these, but I was surprised to learn that Keiko slightly warmer water for the gyokuro, at 170°. It's a good reminder to keep an open mind about water temperature- experimenting a little bit can help enhance the flavor of the tea, or at least change the flavor to something your palate prefers. 

We then moved to the Yabukita flight, a cultivar that is more common than the others. But these teas were anything but standard. This flight started with a super sweet shincha without a hint of bitterness. We then moved to an even sweeter 'Nishi family Shincha' that was a bit deeper, with a little hint of bitterness. Oh and in case you were wondering, all the sips were interspersed with mochi and macaron goodness. Tough day, right? Unfortunately I had to leave the festivities early because responsibilities were calling. I didn't have a chance to try a few of the teas, but Keiko made sure I tasted one more before I left.

I finished the afternoon on a perfectly sweet note. Keiko whipped up Matcha Hekisui for me, and it tasted like vibrant sweet peas. It was my favorite of the various matchas we had. It wasn't easy to leave such a cheerful room of fabulous women, but obligations were calling.

Needless to say I was flying high on tea happiness by the end of our tasting, feeling grateful to have so many amazing women in my life. Thank you to La Colombe, Rishi, Keiko, and the ICC for such a dreamy afternoon. Being a tea blogger is, to quote Larry David, pretty, pretty, pretty... pretty good.

Tea Pairing 101: Green Tea and Mochi

Tea, sweets, and art. Add in a dash of fashion, and I'm one happy gal. What do all of these things have in common? I'm excited to present the next Tea Pairing 101 collaboration with Jee and Georgia! In this pairing we combined a few of my favorite things into an afternoon of green tea and mochi magic. Read on below to see how to pair green tea with a variety of flavors.

Tea Pairing 101: White Tea And Cheese

When tea friends get together, ideas start flowing. We sip and talk about anything and everything, and of course conversation always comes back to tea. After one of our tea meet-ups, Georgia, Jee, and I decided to work on a special collaboration together. We wanted to combine our passion for tea and our love of food.

An Evening of Tea And Cheese At The French Cheese Board

I'm that person, the one that's always thinking about my next meal. "What will I cook? Where can I shop for the best ingredient? Where are we going to eat?" are just a few of the insufferable thoughts always in my mind. But because of this, pairing food and tea has become a fascination of mine. So of course when I was invited to a tea and cheese pairing at the French Cheese Board in SoHo, I immediately cleared my schedule.

Since taste is subjective, it's difficult to critique a tea and food pairing. But, when the pairings work particularly well, it's easy to praise. I have quite a bit of praise for this particular tea and cheese event. I love having hot teas with cheese. I find that the warmth of the tea uncovers hidden flavors in cheese that may go unnoticed when nibbling with a cold beverage.

The decor at the French Cheese Board

The cheese of course came from the French Cheese Board and the teas were provided by Royal Tea New York. I had the pleasure of meeting Ravi Kroesen, the Director of Tea Operations. He's had some incredible tea adventures, and selected thought provoking tea pairings for each cheese. I was so happy to see two fellow bloggers at this event! Nicole from Tea For Me Please (check out her writeup of this event), and Natasha who has done some fantastic video tea reviews and has spent quite a bit of time in France.

The first duo was a light sencha paired with epoisses (the first picture above). The sencha is a slightly steamed (asamushi) tea grown in southern Kagoshima. One sip and you can hear the ocean and taste gentle marine mist and steamed greens. Epoisses is a washed-rind cheese from Burgundy that pretends to be a bit stinky, but really is just gooey and gorgeous. I just loved this pairing- the creamy epoisses has a bit of tang and saltiness that worked really nicely with the green yet oceanic sencha. There is a creaminess to this Kagoshima grown tea that enhanced the texture and flavor of the cheese. Quite a way to start the tasting!

Next came a wedge of mimolette with Phoenix oolong. This Dancong oolong is more specifically called mi lan xiang, or honey orchid fragrance. The tea is fruity and sweet and has a nice roasty comforting hug. The mimolette is a hard cheese from Pas-de-Calais that has deep fruity smoothness and a nutty aroma from a nice bit of aging. These two complimented each other quite nicely. When I closed my eyes, the heat of the tea made me think the cheese was actually a fruity butterscotch candy.

Our third pairing was an organic 2nd flush Darjeeling from the Phuguri estate with a chèvre from Loire valley. If you read one of my recent tasting reviews, you'll know 2nd flush Darjeeling is a particularly nostalgic tea for me. This one was quite nice, with the sweetness and muscatel flavors I love in a Darjeeling. It had the right amount of astringency I was looking for as well. This chèvre was a Bûche de Chèvre, which is a soft ripened goat's cheese. Let me admit I usually can't stand fresh goat's cheese. It just tastes like dirt to me. I've tried and tried to like it, but usually come up short (and why is it always ruining a good beet salad??). The only exception was a very hard, aged goat's cheese I had a few years ago. This cheese was very similar- it didn't have that dirt-gamey flavor I associate with goat's cheese! A gamey flavor was whispering in the background, but not screaming to take over. It had a pleasant tang and was quite milder than I expected and quite sweet. The sweetness in the tea complimented the cheese, and the astringency helped cut through the creaminess.

The final pairing was perfectly placed, because it tasted like dessert! Golden Yunnan tea was served with a cracker topped with Brillat-Savarin from Ile de France. Golden Yunnan tea is one I always enjoy, and I was happy to see it on the agenda. This one was smooth and sweet with sticky sweet potato and strong notes of chocolate. The Brillat-Savarin may sound familiar, as it's named after the famous french gastronome known for the phrase "Tell me what you eat, and I will tell you what you are". This cheese elicited happy noises from the group. Another soft-ripened cheese, this one is just the epitome of fromage decadence. Creamy, smooth, and very satisfying. The cheese and tea together made me immediately think 'chocolate cheesecake!!'. What else needs to be said?

I wish I had thought to take home some of that heavenly cheese! I'll definitely be stopping by to pick some up next time I'm in the area. To learn more about the cheese you can visit The Cheeses of France website. For the teas, go to Royal Tea New York.

Thank you to Royal Tea NY and the French Cheese Board for a creative and delicious event! I enjoyed seeing tea friends, meeting new ones, and filling my palate with interesting flavors.

Curious to see more about tea and food pairings? Well, stay tuned- a couple of my blogger friends and I are creating a fun series that will debut soon.