This summer’s coolest drink: Six sparkling teas you need to try?
You would think the founder of a brewery that specialises in tea-based drinks would be a big tea drinker, but no, Louise Avery, founder of LA Brewery, isn’t a fan of a builder’s brew. Instead, “I love tea when it’s cold, fizzy and fermented. It completely transforms it,” she says.
Hence, LA Brewery, which produces a range of non-alcoholic sparkling teas to be drunk whenever you’d ordinarily quaff a bottle of sparkling wine, be it with dinner or at aperitivo time.
But what are sparkling teas exactly? And is it the same as kombucha?
“Sparkling tea covers drinks that are wine proxies. They’re served in a wine or champagne bottle, and can be unfermented or fermented, but primarily tea is the base, and then it’s often mixed with fruits and botanicals,” explains Avery, noting that kombucha is largely considered a “soft drink alternative” rather than a wine substitute.
“Where wine uses grapes, sparkling tea uses tea and there are a huge number of varietals,” she explains.
“For instance, if you use black Assam tea leaves, you could go more towards ciders. You can make teas that taste more like beer or champagne, depending on the varietals you use.”
And some producers do add kombucha cultures for flavour.
“Kombucha can be part of the base, but the end product resembles something much closer to a wine, often much less sweet,” notes Avery.
“They can really lean into the tannins of the black tea or the finer flavours of the green tea.”
As a result, the price tag tends to hover around the same price as you’d pay for a bottle of wine.
“Sparkling teas are not straightforward and people think, because it’s tea, it should be cheap, and that’s very far from the truth,” says Avery.
“It’s going through a very fine process, which is as complex as making alcohol. There is a huge amount of skill and craft involved.”
But don’t let that put you off. “In Britain our main thing is builders’ tea and the odd Earl Grey, but there’s a whole world of taste out there, and it’s worth trying,” encourages Avery.
“It’s very far from that milky, muddy drink people love. Be adventurous!”
SIX SPARKLING TEAS TO TRY…
Saicho Jasmine sparkling tea: Coming in a cheering sky blue box, this sparkling drink is made using green tea from Fuding, China in Fujian province, which is actually renowned for its rare white tea production.
That’s not to say the area’s green tea isn’t up to scratch though. The makers argue this Jasmine scented bottle – which should tick your tastebuds’ apple sherbet, lychee and vanilla flavour boxes – makes for a great aperitif. It will also pair nicely with a sharp, chilli-strewn salad or a creamy dessert, like panna cotta.
Saicho don’t just do Jasmine teas either, they cover Darjeeling (spicier) and Hojicha (smoky) too. £17.99, saichodrinks.com
LA Brewery Sparkling Non-Alcoholic White Rose & English Blush: Founded by a female brewer, Louise Avery, L.A Brewery creates booze-free drinks using lightly and naturally fermented tea – all with an eye on health.
Their drinks are low in sugar and the fermentation process takes around six weeks, which helps make it super gut-friendly.
The brand’s White Rose features fermented sencha green tea blended together with rose and elderflower while the English Blush also uses a green tea base with strawberry, rhubarb and floral hops layered over the top. Twin pack £25, labrewery.co.uk
JING Jasmine Pearls Sparkling Tea: The makers of this fizzy jasmine green tea literally roll dried tea leaves through pearls which have been hand-scented with jasmine – it sounds really quite a magical process.
It’s an ideal swap in if you’re a fan of a dry white wine, although it does still have a honeyed flavour to it as well.
Have with fish or a bowlful of fancy ready salted crisps – the green tea in it keeps it refreshing, which offsets nicely against anything salty. (740ml) £22.80, jingtea.com
Twinings Refresh, Defence and Boost: For a quick pick-me-up, Twinings’ new range of sparkling teas could do the trick. Coming in three distinct flavours: Refresh has a white tea base and is packed with raspberry, lemon and hibiscus flowers, which have a sour but fruity taste, with added magnesium, niacin and vitamin C to up the health benefits.
Boost is super zingy, pairing black tea with lemon, ginger and hints of lemon balm, as well as added vitamins B6, B12 and C. While Defence combines green tea with orange, passionfruit and elderberry, plus extra zinc, and vitamins C and D.
If you can’t decide which to try, order a selection pack of all three flavours. £3.94 for four, twinings.co.uk, Tesco Express stores, Sainsbury’s, Waitrose, Holland & Barrett, Amazon
Fortnum’s Sparkling Tea: Things are improving in the low and no-alcohol wine stakes, but the options can still be limiting, and still don’t always look the part.
A bottle of this stuff though could easily be confused with a proper decadent bottle of bubbly. And it’s from Fortnum & Mason, a department store famed for its vast range of tea blends and elegant tea caddies. This sparkling tea is 100% organic and completely booze free – Fortnum’s even state it’s suitable for drinking during pregnancy.
Flavour-wise, expect tropical fruits, lemongrass and water mint, on top of a classic Darjeeling tea. Fortnum’s recommend having a glass with a slice of pork pie, and we reckon it’d suit a plate of cucumber sandwiches and jam scones, too. 0% ABV, 75cl, £19.95
REAL Dry: REAL was born from a dearth of decent no-alcohol wines too. The brand uses pan-fired (the tea leaves are basically fried on large pans usually by hand) Dragon Well green tea and their bottles are available in high end restaurants, like The Pig, as well as for buying and drinking at home.
REAL Dry is their answer to sparkling white wine and carries memories of lemon meringue followed by a nutty finish. Have it anytime you’d reach for a bottle of white, but especially when eating seafood or lots of summery veg.
The “buttery” Real Blush is worth a go as well. It really looks the part, has nougat and berry flavours in its depths and subs in for sparkling rose. Six bottles for £63, realalcoholfree.com