Award-winning bar director Chris Amirault is among those leading the trend of using specialty teas in inventive cocktails. Bars from Austin to Chicago are incorporating designer teas for their unique flavors and depth. At Scotch Lodge in Portland, one-third of their cocktails feature tea, demonstrating its capacity to elevate drinks by providing a mysterious flavor profile that enhances the overall drinking experience. Additionally, the tannins in tea contribute texture, as explained through the example of a Lychee Martini utilizing over-steeped white peony tea for added dryness and complexity. This innovative use of tea is reshaping cocktail culture.
"It's a good hack for adding instant depth of flavor to cocktails," says bartender Jeremy Bro. "We love our tea at Scotch, that's for sure."
"For the Lychee Martini, I use white peony tea. It's pricey, but it's essential to this drink because it dries out the whole thing and adds subtle earthy and nutty notes," says Gregory Kong.
Collection
[
|
...
]