What is Nitro Tea?
One of the latest trends in the tea world has arrived: Nitro Tea, liquid nitrogen tea. Have you ever heard of it? I had seen a picture on the Instagram profile of Canadian tea blogger Lu Annunzio, author of Tea-spiration.
I could describe liquid nitrogen tea as a different way of making iced tea. I will describe more about the taste of this drink later…now let’s see how to prepare it. The very nice guy who served me at Starbucks explained that Nitro Peach Tranquility® (this is the name on the card) is prepared hot like any tea. Once cooled, it is blended with liquid nitrogen using a special machine. Kind of like what happens with carbon dioxide in sparkling water.
I found this Youtube video that may clarify the process:
According to the Tea Perspective website, Nitro Tea was created by Paul Del Mundo, now owner of Contra Coffee & Tea in Santa Ana, Orange County, California. He used to add condensed milk to his Thai tea, but dairy products were starting to give him some problems. Taking a cue from the brewing world, which first added liquid nitrogen to beverages (Guinness is an example), Paul and his partner Julie Nguyen, both food science majors at California State Polytechnic University, successfully experimented with the recipe. I don’t know if this is exactly how things turned out. What is certain is that today Contra Coffee & Tea specializes in various liquid nitrogen drinks, including matcha and oolong.
There is also uncertainty about the origins of nitrogen coffee, the precursor to Nitro Tea, but many, as the Specialty Tea Alliance website reports, attribute this idea to Cuvée Coffee in Texas. Since 2013, this recipe has become a full-fledged part of the menu at Stumptown Coffee in Portland, an establishment now famous for this preparation, so much so that some say this is where nitro coffee was born. But that’s another story….
Let’s get back to talking about tea. Here in North America and the United States it is not hard to find Nitro Tea is there is already someone offering Nitro Matcha in cans, such as the company B Sweet Coffee Co. reported by the Specialty Tea Alliance website.
What does Nitro tea taste like?
I know, this is surely the question that has been nagging at you ever since you read the title of this article…here then is my experience. At first taste there are two tactile perceptions: coldness and creaminess. The first thing that came to mind was the well-crafted foam of a cappuccino. Checking the description on various sites, I found that indeed this is the case: liquid nitrogen is supposed to give a velvety feel on the palate and a natural sweetness. Comparing with experts, I realized that this process creates tiny bubbles in the drink, smaller than the carbon dioxide in sparkling water. These change the texture of the liquid and inhibit the sensation of bitterness.
As the Nitro Tea heats up the flavor of the tea prevails, which in my case had an intense peach flavor. I tasted it while enjoying a slice of margherita pizza and I must say I liked the combination.
Please note: I went home to check the ingredients of Starbucks’ Peach Tranquility® blend – Teavana and it is actually not a tea but an herbal tea. There is some confusion in the Anglo-Saxon world on this subject. Indeed, it has caused a stir when British actor Benedict Cumberbatch stated in an interview, “I’m tired of hearing people call chamomile tea ‘tea’” (Source: The Guardian).
Why can’t chamomile or Peach Tranquility® blend be called tea? Simple, because they do not contain the leaves of the tea plant, Camellia Sinensis. This is the extensive misunderstanding we encounter with rooibos, mistakenly called “red tea.”
Also worth trying is Nitro Dirty Chai, which mixes chai tea with espresso.