Last Sunday I had the absolute pleasure of attending ChocolaTea - a collaboration between tea ninja/educator Sarah Cowell from Teasense and Georgie Castle, chocolatier extraordinaire from Citizen Cacao.
Hosted by Kinfolk Cafe on Bourke Street, this event celebrated the unconventional pairing of two things that I have loved my entire life: chocolate and tea.
The afternoon consisted of some very educational and inspiring talks by Sarah and Georgie and of course a few tastings of their beautiful teas and chocolates. We started off our tasting with a vegan chocolate chai tea, the perfect embodiment of Sarah's tea expertise and Georgie's skills with chocolate coming together. The chai was warm and creamy with the right balance of spice. It was served with a 70% cacao shard, which when dipped made the drink even more indulgent.
Even though I spent an afternoon eating chocolate and drinking fine teas, Sarah's talk about the history of tea and what it means to her especially resonated with me. It was perhaps my favourite part of the whole afternoon. Her passion for tea is very clear and her belief that tea isn't just a beverage but more an experience is something I can strongly relate to. Her talk reminded me of my own travels in Yunnan and how tea played such a huge role in some of my fondest memories there. I was very moved, to say the least.
Afterwards, we tried a Dong Ding Oolong tea from Taiwan, it was a lovely full bodied tea and its leaves were sprinkled on top of one of Georgie's hand dipped truffles. The chocolate was divine, the tea added depth of flavour and complexity to the rich chocolate.
Sarah also prepared for us a very special Oriental Beauty tea in a traditional Chinese 'gai wan' for us. It was the only packet of that tea in the whole of Melbourne and we were lucky enough to drink it. The tea was insanely fragrant with sweet notes of honey or citrus, which is created by insect bites on the leaves which begin the oxidation process.
Georgie's talks were also very inspiring. I realised I knew very little about the history of Chocolate and its origins so I learned quite a lot. Whilst she dipped her truffles for us, it became apparent that Georgie has a very carefree but strong spirit and the story of how she became a chocolatier is testament to that. I truly admire her passion for chocolate and the transparency with which she runs Citizen Cacao. I think even if you aren't into tea or chocolate, Sarah and Georgie are wonderful examples of following your dreams and doing what you're passionate about.
Finally our afternoon ended with one final treat from Georgie to pair with the Oriental Beauty tea. Orange zest and juice were added to the chocolate truffles to match the citrus notes in the tea and then painted gold as a small homage to the ancient Mayan origins of chocolate. It tasted amazing, so I took some extras home with me to share with my family.
It was an honour to be apart of such a special event, I really think Melbourne is the only city in Australia where a tea culture can thrive and I love how it has evolved in recent years. For those who are even a little bit interested in tea, I urge you to participate in a class or attend another Teasense collaborative event.
some photos are courtesy of Carmen Nguyen
