Saicho Osmanthus Sparkling Tea with a seafood starter
Saicho Osmanthus Sparkling Tea with a seafood starter
(Image credit: Saicho Osmanthus Sparkling Tea with a seafood starter)

The idea of drinking tea with a meal is, of course, nothing new. As a teen I used to do it regularly in Chinese restaurants with my parents – inhaling the sweet, heady scent of jasmine, watching the chrysanthemum flowers unfurl. And tea lists have been common in high-end restaurants for a while, particularly those with an Asian clientele.

But tea pairing, especially as part of a tasting menu, is relatively new and increasing in popularity due to the growing demand for sophisticated no/low alcohol options. One third of diners at London’s Ikoyi restaurant go for the tea pairing, particularly early in the week and at lunch, says head sommelier Federico Quintavalle.

Tea has much to offer the wine lover, with a similarly diverse range of styles and origins. ‘True, it has no acidity, no sweetness and no alcohol, but it compensates in terms of tannins, texture and flavour profile,’ says Quintavalle. Added to that, you can play around with the brewing technique: ‘Each tea has its own temperature and timing.’

There’s a theatre to it, too, if brewed at the table, akin to decanting. While Ikoyi brews tableside and serves in traditional pottery, at Michelin two-star The Clove Club they brew in advance and serve teas at room temperature in elegant bottles. ‘We like the idea of teas served in wine glasses as it allows the non-drinkers to have a grown-up, elegant experience alongside wine drinkers,’ says chef Isaac McHale.

The terroir of tea

Andrew Wong, chef at A Wong inPimlico, London

Andrew Wong, chef at A Wong in Pimlico, London.
(Image credit: Jutta Klee)

The other major plus is that teas often have a fascinating back story. ‘The fact that these leaves come from some of the most remote corners of the Earth, from artisanal growers and their “gardens”, really helps us tell a story on how terroir can have an impact on the end product,’ says Matthew Davison, restaurant director of Michelin three-star Moor Hall in Lancashire, which also offers a tea pairing.

‘It’s just like wine – terroir and craft are every bit as important,’ agrees Henrietta Lovell of The Rare Tea Co. ‘You need really good tea to make a really good pairing.’

The most versatile style of tea is oolong, I’ve found, but green tea has its place, particularly with lighter fish- and vegetable-based dishes. ‘We like serving grassy green teas with fish, and floral white teas with dim sum,’ says Mickael Metayer, head sommelier at Michelin two-star A Wong in London. ‘Pu-er works best at the end of the meal with spicier dishes like our Wagyu beef with chilli.’

Tea beyond tea

There’s also a new generation of tea-derived drinks to explore. Sparkling teas, for example, are a convincing alternative to sparkling wine as an aperitif. One of the best is Saicho – I particularly like the nutty Hojicha (£17.99-£20/75cl Harrods, House of Clarity, Master of Malt, Not Another Bill, saichodrinks.com, The Whisky Exchange), which is brilliantly good with any dish rich in umami.

The other popular ready-to-drink option is kombucha, a fermented beverage made with tea, sugar, bacteria and yeast, which bears more than a passing resemblance to natural wine. ‘Kombuchas work well to replace the acidity often missing when forgoing wine, although we are careful to work with producers, like Ama Brewery, who ferment at low temperatures over a longer period of time to prevent the spike in acetic acid that is common among many shop-bought kombuchas,’ says Honey Spencer, co-owner and sommelier at east London restaurant Sune and author of Natural Wine, No Drama.

As more and more of us focus on moderating our alcohol intake, particularly at this time of year, tea provides a satisfying alternative to wine as a taste experience, certainly much more so than many no/low alcohol wines.

Five winning tea and tea-derived pairings

Roast chicken with toasted hay mayonnaise and horn of plenty mushrooms with Master Xu’s Rou Gui from Wuyishan, China

This richly toasty roasted yancha (rock tea) Oolong chimes perfectly with this umami bomb of a dish, served at The Clove Club.

Shui Lian Dong, £17.95/20g Postcard Teas

Roast Peking duck with Saicho Osmanthus sparkling tea

The rich duck brings out the tea’s fruity apricot notes, the bright acidity cuts through the richness of the meat and the sweet hoisin sauce enhances the tea’s creamy texture, says Charlie Winkworth-Smith of Saicho.

£22/75cl Harrods, saichodrinks.com

Smoked jollof rice with Pu-er

smoked jollof rice at Ikoyi restaurant

Smoked jollof rice at Ikoyi restaurant.
(Image credit: Irina Boersma)

This spicy, smoky dish is of West African origin but is elevated at Ikoyi by a lobster custard. It’s served with an earthy 8582 raw Pu-er tea from Yunnan, China.

Aged beef tartare with a 1998 vintage oolong

The oolong mimics the smoky flavours running through this Moor Hall dish really nicely, without overpowering, nor getting lost in the other flavours.

Mr Jian’s Shan Lin Xi, £252/100g Lalani

Mussels, salsify and pickled chanterelles with kombucha

At Sune, Honey Spencer likes to pair cured and pickled vegetables, and fish such as boquerones (unsalted anchovies), with kombucha.

Fiona Beckett
Fiona Beckett

Fiona Beckett writes Decanter’s regular features on food and wine matching and runs the website matchingfoodandwine.com, which also includes pairings with beer, cocktails and other drinks. An award-winning journalist, Beckett has written regularly for many of the UK’s leading newspapers, including The Times, The Guardian and the Daily Mail. In 2002, she was nominated for The Food Journalist of The Year Award by the UK Guild of Food Writers. Beckett has written 15 books about food and wine, including How to Match Food and Wine, Cooking with Wine and Wine by Style.