Not content to limit themselves to beer, Tuatara have extended themselves to brewing tea. Well, sort of. For the recent Visa Wellington on a Plate event, Tuatara Brewing Co. was inspired by the tradition of hosting a high tea at their Wellington CBD trial brewery and bar The Third Eye, and created a range of beers infused with different tea varieties.

“Visa Wellington on a Plate offers a great opportunity to put together a unique, one-off event that celebrates the art and craft of what we do on a day to day basis, as well as collaborating with other local businesses to showcase the best of our region,” explains  The Third Eye manager Scott Boswell.

“The world of tea is rich in tradition and culture,  covering a huge range of styles and flavour profiles that can complement some of the flavours we're working with in beer - sweet, nutty, caramel, toffee, earthiness, herbs, spices, citrus, tropical and stone fruits, smokiness. I also think the social context of beer and tea also overlap - an opportunity to take a break, to pause for reflection, or to connect with friends and family.”

For the event, Tuatara partnered with T Leaf Teas, who were the perfect partner given the wealth of knowledge and enthusiasm they bought to the event. Nairn Street Cottage, part of Museums Wellington, provided side plates and tea cups to add an old-world charm to the event.    

THE BEER/TEA COMBINATIONS

For the event Tuatara created four combinations:

• An Oolong Island Iced Tea – a combination of cold steeped orange oolong tea, Tuatara Sauvinova and a Margarita sour brewed at The Third Eye. This tasty brew was served with a lemony apple tart with cream and rosemary flowers.
• A spicy brew made by combining a spiced pumpkin ale with a foam made from chai tea, matched with a pumpkin custard with candied pecans and maple bacon.
• An aged Belgian Dubbel served in a tea cup with homemade teabags of toasted spices: cardamom pods, cloves, star anise and pink peppercorns, to infuse it with warming flavours. This brew was matched with a fil cigar with dried cherries, dates, currants, cranberries and pistachios, drizzled with Turkish apple tea syrup.
• An orange oolong tea smoked onto Tuatara’s roasted malt Tu Rye Ay beer, served with a moreish Scottish tart of dried fruits in a butter pastry and served with a whisky cream.

DO TRY THIS AT HOME

While you might not be able to get your hands on Tuatara’s experimental tea beers, you can recreate your own beer-focussed high tea, by matching some brews with dessert courses…

• Tuatara Tomahawk American Pale Ale with a sticky triple ginger cake
• Tuatara Belgian Dubbel with spicy fruit cake and whisky cream
• Tuatara Tripel with a decadent apricot and almond slice
• Tuatara Moolah Chocolate Milk Stout with something rich and dark like a black forest gateau
• Tuatara XV bottle conditioned (for two years… Mmm..) Russian Imperial Stout with a good quality vanilla bean ice cream or earl grey gelato