BUSINESS FORUM

REAL - Adorning Christmas tables of the ‘sober curious’

This Christmas - the non-alcoholic sparkling alternative to wine, comes from REAL, the Michelin starred restaurants’ favourite with their new 750ml cork-and-cage bottled sparkling fermented tea. Sustainably produced in Wendover, REAL’s signature pour, Royal Flush, is made from a first flush Darjeeling tea, known as the ‘Champagne of Teas.’ Offering notes of rhubarb and gooseberry and rounding off to white fruits and a touch of blackcurrant, the delicate floral acidity make Royal Flush fresh and bright, comparable to a well-made sparkling wine.

Similar in character to a Sauvignon Blanc, Dry Dragon is produced with Dragonwell, a panroasted green tea from the area around Longjing Village, China. Fresh leaves are brushed around a piping hot wok to stop the natural oxidation process early, a method which reveals more complex, nutty and straw-like flavours than other green teas. Much like a winemaker would ferment greenskinned grapes, REAL ferment the tea resulting in a drink with notes of citrusand fresh apples, grounded in a definite vegetal, green tea back note and a longer, fuller-bodied finish.

REAL’s Royal Flush and Dry Dragon are available from https://realkombucha.co.uk/real-kombucha-shop/ and stockists around the UK including Budgens, Wendover.

Whitewaters

In September 2020, Birchall’s Great Rift Breakfast Blend tea was acknowledged for its impeccable taste by The Guild of Fine Food, scooping its 10th annual gold star accolade ina-row at the Great Taste Awards, the 'Oscars' of the Speciality Food & Drink industry. No other breakfast tea on the planet has achieved this sustained level of success.

In recognition of this achievement, every Monday to Thursday throughout November, Whitewaters is giving you the chance to enjoy a really tasty cup of Birchall’s tea from our range, coupled with a slice from our selection of homemade cakes and tray bakes for the special price of £4.50 per person.

Whitewaters has chosen Birchall as their supplier due to their quality teas and fruit and herbal infusions and their commitment to the environment – their everyday tea bags and prism tea bags are made from plant-based material, are plastic-free and are 100% Carbon Neutral.

Birchall have also become the first tea company in the world to achieve the Carbon Neutral International Standard, which they obtained by measuring and offsetting their greenhouse gas emissions and supporting verified volunteer reforestation projects around the world. This means that all their products are completely Carbon Neutral. See advert page 6.