For his chocola"tea" mousse, Young makes a "very strong tea syrup by bringing tea leaves and water to the boil". He then strains this and lets it infuse for five minutes before incorporating it into a sugar syrup. The chocolatier explained, "tea and chocolate make a wonderful pairing as they both have tannins in common in their tasting notes". Tannins give foods like tea and chocolate their signature bitter tang and also appear in coffee and wine.
"First of all, one should use Indian or Ceylonese tea. China tea has virtues which are not to be despised nowadays - it is economical, and one can drink it without milk - but there is not much stimulation in it."