Does Whiskey And Tea Taste Good?
It is not quite clear how old the origins of proper tea are. What we certainly know is that it is an all-English way of drinking tea and originated no earlier than the Victorian era. What is proper tea? Simply tea with an addition of alcohol. The most commonly used alcohol products are whiskey and gin. In recent years tea and alcohol have come together again in tastings and certainly in a more refined and technical way than in the past. Consumers are becoming more and more product study oriented, this leads to the search for quality in both products and pairings, so here are developing themed tastings and lots of experiments in the world of mixology!
Today I am talking to you about tea laced with malt whiskey, that is, whiskey obtained from the fermentation of cereal malt and the consecutive distillation. This is what I would call a fortunate combination, fortunate because although whisky and tea are two worlds that are decidedly far apart, both physically and in terms of processing, they have some very common aromatic matrices. In this article I propose six pairings.
Tea and whiskey: how to pair them up
The first piece of advice I would give for pairing tea and malt whiskey is to start by tasting both separately. It is important to learn to recognize the main characteristics of both worlds so that you can then combine them.
As I wrote above, whiskey and tea have often very similar flavor components, even chemically, this means that in pairing you can play with both related aromas and contrasts, which will tend to remain harmonious anyway. It is usually recommended that lighter, floral whiskies be paired, by category, with highly charged white teas or low-oxidation oolongs; fruity, cherry barrel-aged whiskies with Chinese blacks or high-oxidation oolongs; and peaty and smoky whiskies with stronger teas, such as cooked pu-erh, intense blacks or smoked teas. The pairings you have just read about, however, are recommended for a tasting of the two drinks separately, that is: you taste the whiskey first, hold it on the palate, swallow it, and only immediately afterwards drink the tea, in this way the aromas mingle in the oral and nasal cavities. I wanted to focus on a combination obtained directly in the cup, a real proper tea! In the next paragraphs I describe one by one the six different corrected teas I tried.
Tea and whiskey: keemun congou and Mortlach 15
Keemun congou is a Chinese black tea with distinctly balanced aromas and taste. The aroma is elegant, there are no notes that stand out more than others, there is an intense sweetness and delicate aromas of vanilla and cocoa blended together. The elegance of this tea is repeated on the palate, it is all perfectly linear, round, full and with the right accent of a bitter, slightly tannic finish.
Mortlach 15 is a scotch whisky, single malt, from the Higlands, aged for 15 years. The nose is very balanced, with notes of vanilla, malt, spice and green grass. In the mouth it confirms the sweetness of the aromas, in this case also cocoa, almond and more spices are perceived. Giving it some complexity are the final notes of leather, citrus, wood and ripe fruit.
To combine the characteristics of keemun and Mortlach first I infused the tea. The infusion was in gaiwan, 4 g of tea in water at about 90°C for 30 seconds. For the pairing, the first infusion was not used, but the second infusion, the parameters used were identical to the first. During the infusion the whiskey was placed in a glass to oxygenate. Before blending, care must be taken to allow the tea to cool slightly; whiskey is a very alcoholic product; temperatures higher than 65-70°C
could compromise its aroma and taste. Once the tea had cooled, 0.30 ml per cup (20 ml) was added and tasted, obviously passing first through the nose and then through the palate.
Elegance and refinement are the watchwords of this pairing; there are no particularly predominant aromas, but the Keemun congou accentuates the malt note of the Mortlach more than the others. The whiskey tends to reinforce the tea aromas, making them more persistent, and these come through to the finish. The sweetness dominates while still remaining balanced thanks to the slight tannic touch and leather note.
Tea and whiskey: kway flower Oolong and Glenfiddich 12
Kway flower Oolong is a medium/low oxidation (about 30 percent) Chinese oolong; it has a sweet and very intense aroma in which notes of honey and ripe fruit, such as peach and apple, stand out, accompanied by light floral and herbaceous hints (dried grass, hay, straw). On the palate the sweetness persists, while remaining a light tea, with no particular tannicity or bitterness.
Glenfiddich 12 is a Highland scotch whisky, single malt, aged 12 years mainly in oak casks from bourbon processing. On the nose, just like the tea I decided to pair with it, it is sweet herbaceous and fruity, although in this case the pear definitely stands out, compared to other fruits. The sweetness of the aromas is reconfirmed in the mouth, in the retronasal pathways, where we can also discover notes of hazelnut and malt, ending with a trace of smoke.
The procedure to combine the two beverages was more or less the same as for the first pairing: first the tea infusion, which underwent two infusions with 4 g of tea in gaiwan, water at 80°C and respectively 30 seconds for the first infusion and 25″ for the second. The second infusion was used and once the tea was stiepidified, 0.40 ml of whiskey (made oxygenated first) was added to a 20 ml cup. Again, no contrasts are present, the combination is very harmonious and balanced, and the aromas amplify each other, although the honey note of the oolong is overpowered and replaced by the malt note of the Glenfiddich. As in the first pairing, the sweetness is well balanced on the finish by the smoky note, which is not at all intrusive.
Tea and whiskey: Hojicha and Nikka from the barrel.
With this pairing I take you straight to Japan, tea and whiskey used in fact both come from the land of the rising sun. I confess to you right away that this was one of the correct teas that particularly excited me. I will describe it to you now.
When we talk about hojicha or we mean a green tea, usually bancha, roasted. The characteristic aroma of this tea is the note of roasted hazelnut, cocoa, and dried fruit. It is a tea that remains very smooth and velvety on the palate, sweet with no presence of bitterness or astringency.
Nikka from the barrel is a malt whiskey from, as I anticipated, Japan. Obviously it tends slightly to deviate from scotches in its aromaticity: it is very floral on the nose, with spicy, sweet and fresh fruit, fruit and spice notes that it maintains once in the mouth where woody notes also appear on the finish.
The infusions for hojicha took place in gaiwan with 3 g of tea and water at 90°C, in 30 seconds for the former and 35″ for the latter. The latter was used for pairing. The whiskey, as before was oxygenated and then combined with the tea when the temperature of the tea did not exceed 70°C. Nikka from the barrel tends to be decidedly lighter in aromas than its Scottish cousins, so this time the addition was 0.60 ml in 20 ml of tea. The result is surprising; on the nose the tasting is opened by a scent of flowers perfectly combined with that of dried fruit and cocoa, and then continues to be pleasant in the mouth, in which there is an extraordinary union of hazelnut and wood. The taste is broad, round and balanced. Absolutely to try.
Tea and whiskey: Yi Mei Ren and Kilchoman machir bay
Yi Mei Ren is part of the so-called red teas, or those Chinese black teas whose infusion has a very bright orange color. This is an extremely fragrant tea; the infusion on the nose is a prelude of exotic flowers and fruits accompanied by a delicate note of chocolate. On the palate it remains fresh, round and well balanced.
Kilchoman machir bay is an island scotch whisky, single malt, characterized in the processing by the combination of aging in ex-bourbon (80 percent) and ex-sherry (20 percent) casks. It is a whisky that has citrus and floral aromas on the nose, medicinal notes, smoke and ash that then reoccur in the mouth, along with pepper and ginger aromas.
For pairing, the mode is always the same: infusion first! I used 3 g of Yi Mei Ren, in gaiwan, with water at 90°C for both of the two infusions, the first lasting 30 seconds and the second 35″. The latter infusion, once the temperature dropped to 65°C, was corrected with 0.30 ml of Kilchoman per cup, what resulted was a real accompaniment of the tea’s aromatic notes, especially the sweeter, fruitier and chocolaty ones, which surrounded those of the whisky enhancing its citrus and floral aromatic complex.
Tea and whisky: Darjeeling and Talisker 10
Darjeeling is undoubtedly one of the most famous teas in the world; it is also called the champagne of teas or the muscat of teas, due to its extremely elegant aromatic complex that is especially evident in the very first harvests. Darjeeling’s characteristic aromas are a delicate floral complex, accompanied by hints of spice and aromatic wood, especially with regard to Darjeelings made from black tea (the one I used for this pairing). It is firm, full and slightly astringent on the palate.
Talisker 10 is a scotch whisky produced on the Isle of Skye. It is one of the great whiskey classics. The nose is pungent with sweet aromas of smoke, malt and seaweed followed by pepper, which recurs in the mouth and on the finish. It is full on the palate, confirming the sweetness of the malty note and yet has a slight acidity that makes it very balanced.
The tea was infused twice, using 3 g of leaves, in gaiwan, with water at 95°C, first for 35 seconds, then for 40″. Having oxygenated the whiskey and reached the right tea temperature to be able to combine it with the alcohol, I placed inside a cup of the second infusion, 0.3 ml of Talisker in Darjeeling. This tea and this scotch blend perfectly with each other, in fact the result is surprisingly rounded, both on the nose and palate. The flavor complexes are similar to each other, so they tend to match very well, slightly enhancing the marine notes of the Talisker. In the mouth, the taste is full, balanced and a hint of tannin from the tea is slightly prominent.
Tea and whiskey: Pu-er 2012 Menghai ripe and Laphroaig 10
Before I start describing everything I would like to anticipate that this is by far the pairing that excited me the most. Both the tea and the whiskey used will not sound exactly inviting from descriptions alone, but I highly recommend that everyone take a breath and try to dive into these very particular scents, as frightening as they may seem, trying to get to know and understand them a bit, you will be far from disappointed.
The Pu-er 2012 Menghai ripe is a Pu-er shu, hence cooked, dating from the 2012 harvest. It is a tea with aromas derived purely from cooking, fermentation and aging. Forget the fresh notes of grass, flowers and fruits. In the infusion of this tea we find what one might find on a rainy summer day: a warm, enveloping hint of wet earth, mushroom notes of fresh mushrooms and mold, and warm aromas of wet wood and light spicy notes on the finish. On the palate it is a tea that can be sweet, full and velvety. Beware of brewing, as it can become bitter and very strong if not prepared properly.
Laphroaig 10 is an island scotch characterized more than anything else by a medicinal scent, like apothecary, band-aid, or even disinfectant. The medicinal aromas of this whiskey are followed by hints of seaweed, seaweed, and sweet notes of unripe berry fruit, such as gooseberry or white currant. It is oily and savory on the palate.
To combine these two very special products, I proceeded with two gaiwan infusions of 1.5 g of tea in 95-100°C water. The infusions were short and each lasted 15 seconds. With more tea and prolonged times the infusion tends to become very bitter and very strong. In the meantime that the infusion cools slightly, it is good to let the whiskey oxygenate for a few minutes, after which the pairing is done. In the tea coming from the second infusion, 0.30 ml of Laphroaig 10 per cup was added, what resulted was not a proper tea, but a real journey: imagine that you are at the entrance of a cave, while outside, in the forest, not far from the sea, a storm is raging, all the smells you can imagine in such a context you will find inside that cup. The medicinal note of the whiskey, in fact, barely appears and enhances so much the wet earth and rainy aromas of the tea, a mineral hint appears that entangles with the woody and spicy notes, the marine notes are light, but present, a bit like when the wind carries the sea breeze. On the palate, the strength of the Laphroaig is well balanced by the sweetness and roundness of the pu-erh, retaining the savory accent that lends a slight freshness.