Flavour Analysis - Not Your Usual Tea & Chocolate Pairing Event

Dear Tea Lovers,

Have you ever been to a food pairing or tasting event and had trouble finding the exact flavours or interactions in the food and/or beverage described to you? If you answer yes, you are not alone. I often feel the same way, but am too embarrassed to say something about it. So instead of enjoying the experience, I always end up racking my brain to detect the flavours or interaction that was “intended” by the curator, only to feel frustrated that I “don’t get it”.

So when my friend Olivia invited me to collaborate on an event about craft chocolates and Japanese teas, I immediately knew I wanted it to be an open experience for everyone. This means the participants are free to explore the teas and chocolates for themselves with minimal influence from us. The power of suggestion is very hard to dismiss after all.

With this in mind, we decided to structure the workshop where we share our knowledge on how to taste teas and chocolates, and discuss how we detect flavour. After this, we let the participants “play” with a curated set of teas and chocolates through blind tastings instead of prescribed pairings. We encourage them to use their senses to discern what is in front of them and write down their thoughts. Then they are asked to pick different pairs of chocolates and teas as part of an exercise for noting interactions through prompts like “find contrasting flavours” or “find complementary flavours”.

The pairing exercises generated fascinating results. Some people tried the same pairs of chocolate and tea, while others opted for something entirely different. It was delightful to see the participants’ reactions and share their findings, whether it was discovering harmony in contrasting flavour profiles or detecting interesting changes in mouthfeel. When someone asks me what Flavour Analysis is about, I call it a sandbox for our senses. I look forward to creating more opportunities like this, and I hope those who join me will enjoy the freedom to play in this sandbox.

Have you discovered an amazing tea and chocolate pairing? Please share with me as I'd love to try your combination!

Cheers,
Jan