Celebrating the Tea Harvest: The REAL Podcast with Jane Pettigrew

Explicit content warning

03/05/21 • 52 min

In episode 26 of the REAL Podcast, we discuss the tea harvest and the rituals and traditions associated with tea growing in the Longjing and Darjeeling regions. We do so with Jane Pettigrew, Director of the UK Tea Academy.

Previous Episode

The Science of Flavour: a Podcast with Christine Parkinson

Welcome to episode 25 of the REAL podcast, brought to you as always by REAL - purveyors of award-winning non-alcoholic alternatives to sparkling wines. Have you heard that we’re available now in Waitrose? If you haven’t, you’ll want to add a beautiful bottle of Royal Flush to your basket or online trolley next time you’re doing the weekly shop.
Ever wondered what’s going on in your mouth when you taste a great drink? How about the technique behind formulating a winning food pairing? It’s something we think about all the time. Here at REAL we’re lucky enough to meet some wonderful, highly skilful people, and occasionally, when we invite them to come and share their wealth of knowledge on our podcast, they say yes.

We first met Christine Parkinson when she was Head of Wine for Hakkasan, the world-renowned restaurant specialising in modern Chinese cuisine. At the time, her team was looking for a kombucha to be served as a non-alcoholic food pairing and our drinks slid onto the menu very comfortably indeed.

Since then, Christine has gone on to form the Brimful Drinks consultancy – a particularly interesting venture that specialises in helping companies working in the low/no world, some of whom have already been guests on this podcast.

This development fascinated us. That someone who has won Industry Legend awards after her years spent in the wine world should choose to move her attentions to the burgeoning non-alcoholic space... well, that really said something about the sincerity with which this category is being taken.

In this episode, Christine will talk to us about the tips and techniques she learnt for tasting drinks, the science that accompanies taste, the art of creating a great food pairing, and – of course – the considerable interest she has in the world of non-alcoholic drinks. We also learn some of that all-important drinks-tasting vocab – vital if you want to sound like you know what you’re talking about.

Adjust your napkins and set your tongues to drool. It’s going to be a tasty one.

Next Episode

Talking flavour journeys with the Belazu Ingredient Company

As we continue our journey at REAL Kombucha, we love meeting and working with people that really seem to be on the same wavelength. Take this week’s guests, for example. The folks at the Belazu Ingredient Company specialise in foodie items that can turn a good dish into something truly exceptional. They talk regularly about living life in full flavour, and about how life is too short for bland food. Living life in full flavour is something we can all aspire, so for this episode, we were delighted to invite their product specialist, Bob Curbishley, and their innovation chef, Henry Russell, to chat about what living a flavourful really means.

Over the next hour or so, we’ll be discussing how travel inspires culinary creativity, and how a little bit of that creativity can also fire the imagination and get the mind traveling, even when you’re stuck at home. We’ll also discuss the origins of Belazu, way back in Borough Market when they were known as The Fresh Olive Company, and how inspiring flavours and high quality have been at the heart of what they do from day one. Bob talks about how he became an olive oil sommelier, and also explains why it’s worth spending a bit extra on a good balsamic, while Henry tells us a bit about what an innovation chef does, answering the time-honoured question: what can I do with a jar of pesto that doesn’t involve pasta?

Along the way, we take in all kinds of food history and even find time for a kombucha tasting, asking Henry how he goes about pairing our fermented drinks with his ingredients. It’s worth noting, too, that the delicious new range of nuts he talks about at the end of the episode is now on the shelves in Waitrose, not too far from our own REAL Kombucha bottles, so you can put both into your shopping basket next time you’re shopping and try the pairing for yourself.

In short, this is a fast and friendly ramble through all things flavourful, on which you’re more than welcome to eavesdrop. Strap on your ear goggles, fire up your imaginations... things are about to get very tasty indeed.