The HK Society is delighted to collaborate with the International Wine & Food Society (IWFS), established in 1933 (https://www.iwfs.capital/) on this exclusive opportunity to have the art and history of tea-tasting explained by renowned tea expert Will Battle to mark the launch of the publication of the 2024 IWFS Monograph – Tea, authored by Will.
Will has 20 years’ experience in the tea trade, is a trained tea taster and has authored The World Tea Encyclopaedia: The World of Tea Explored and Explained from Bush to Brew. He will also be available to sign copies of the monograph (£10.00 per book.)
Date: Saturday, 25 May 2024
Times: Morning session: 11 am – 1 pm or Afternoon Session: 3 pm – 5 pm
Location: Fortnum & Mason Food & Drink Studio (3rd floor), 181 Piccadilly; London, W1A 1ER
Price: £36 for HKS and IWFS members; £46 for non-members
Capacity: Maximum of 20 people for each of the two sessions, so please book early
To register: Please contact communications@hkas.org.uk.
This unique and private event will be held in Fortnum & Mason’s new state-of-the-art food and drink studio on the 3rd floor of their flagship London store.
Owing to the increasing global interest in no and lo-alcohol drinks, tea is seeing a resurgence with ‘flights’ being offered in top-end restaurants (alongside wine lists). Sparkling tea is even being sold by the bottle.
Tea also shares some similarities with wine. The tea plant takes 3-4 years to be productive, natural yeasts play a part in the production process, as does the careful cellaring for some styles. There are as many varieties of tea as there are terroirs that grow it.
Will Battle will describe the development of the tea industry and different tea making processes, then guide us through the pleasure of sampling the following drinks:
• a sparkling tea
• an English Breakfast tea with some CTC (cut, tear and curl) inclusion
• a first flush Darjeeling
• a second flush Darjeeling
• a light Oolong
• a current spring crop green China tea
• a Pu Erh
Light nibbles from Fortnum & Mason’s Diamond Jubilee Tea Salon menu will be provided.