Rosé Sparkling Tea
Fortnum's Rosé Sparkling Tea
100% SUMMER, 0% ALCOHOL
With a summer of get-togethers on the cards, it’s time for a rosé with a difference. Enjoy a perfectly dry sunny season with Sparkling Tea’s newest incarnation.
We introduced our Sparkling Tea to the world, which has been one of the biggest innovations in our three-and-a-bit centuries of tea history. An organic and complex blend of our most famous and rare teas, it has rewritten the rule book on zero-alcohol tipples and has made a name for itself as a light and refreshing alternative to Champagne.
But as this summer approached, our tea experts looked at our Sparkling Tea and decided they could make it even more summery. And what is summerier than rosé?
Hibiscus was to be the key ingredient in giving this extra boost of sunshine. Not simply to lend the liquid the pleasingly pale pink colour that seems to make rosé such a hoot, but also to give dryness, bursts of summer fruit flavours and complex herbal tannins.
So pink, yes. Oh, and bubbly too. But don’t mistake these traits as frivolous, because its quality and provenance are unmatched too. The liquid inside each bottle is hand-brewed by our sommelier. Before blending, each tea is handled individually, with production done in small batches to ensure no detail is overlooked.
After brewing, the various teas – all eleven of them – are bottled together along with a dash of white grapes that provides a natural sweetness and enhances the flavours of the teas. Next, they add a spritz of lemon to hit just the right notes. With Sencha, Silver Needle and Darjeeling at the very heart of the blend and more tea per litre than before, the result is a wonderfully complex, crisp and elegant Rosé Sparkling Tea.
Perfectly Paired
Just like its sister product, it works brilliantly as an aperitif, while being versatile enough to pair with a variety of food.
Serve alongside cured ham, smoked fish and summer salads.Tasting Notes
First, the nose offers a heady mix of raspberry Pavlova, sherbet, wild strawberries, elderflower and Oolong. The palate opens to tropical fruits, cranberry, hints of ginger, and deep layers of Darjeeling complemented by light, fresh Japanese Sencha. Meanwhile delicate tannins from the teas and hibiscus lend firm, precise structure and herbal complexity.
The finish is long and satisfyingly round, with white tea, a touch of baked dough, and delicate spice inviting the next sip. As we cautiously emerge from lockdown, at a moment in history where al fresco dining is more de rigour than ever before, perhaps we just might feel like popping the cork on something a little different.
Serve in a Champagne flute. Sip with abandon. It is zero alcohol after all.