The world drinks six billion cups of tea per day, making tea the second most popular beverage in the world after water. With different varieties and flavors of tea around, it’s no doubt that tea is the next big thing when it comes to cocktails.
Lipton, the world’s number 1 tea kicked off its Teamagination campaign at Alamat Foraging Bar and Kitchen in Poblacion, where they gathered some of the local drink scene’s top bartenders to showcase their craft and passion, and the versatility of Lipton teas when it comes to concocting mocktails, cocktails, and iced tea.
Faye Fernando, Diageo World Class 2017 finalist and mixologist for Cove Manila in Okada made a mocktail called Floral Sunset, that she came up with in a competition in La Union. Floral Sunset (Lipton English Breakfast Tea, Monin Orange Spritz, Monin Flower Blossom, lemon juice) is easy to drink, earthy, floral mocktail that’s also easy to make at home. With accessible ingredients, you can buy them and mix yummy drinks in the comfort of your own home. She is no stranger to using tea in her concoctions. “I experiment a lot with tea,” shares Faye. “Like infusing them as a base spirit to create tea-infused-vodka which gives the basic spirit a twist.”
For Jay Natividad, Nokal Restaurant and Bar’s mixologist and Giffard West Cup 2019 Philippines Champion, took advantage of the milk tea craze by making #MTotd, a milk tea-inspired cocktail that will be familiar to consumers. #MTotd (Lipton 14g Pouchbag, Cointreau Noir, dark rum, fresh milk, cream, Monin Toffee, tapioca) is the milk tea for adults, with layers of deep sweetness and just the right punch of rum. “What I like about the Lipton premium teas is they have the real flavor, you can really taste the flavor,” he says. This isn’t the first time he’s used tea in a cocktail, as Nokal serves a chamomile tea that’s a hit with their customers.
DBWY (Drinks Be With You) co-founder Glenn Talavera took a different approach in making iced tea. In his drink, Bakit di CoCohanin (Lipton Tea 14g Pouch and coconut soda, Monin Pineapple Puree, Cointreau Guignolet, honey syrup, sour salt solution), he used coconut water instead of regular water to steep the tea. The result is a refreshing drink that reminds you of the tropics. Tea is a staple ingredient for them, as they use green tea and peppermint for their syrups and liqueurs, and use the tea leaves for smoking cocktails.
Liquid Maestro Kalel Demetrio, co-owner of Agimat, showed off three drinks as well. Tsa Uggh! (Lipton 14g Pouchbag, lemongrass, mint, rosemary, ginger syrup, calamansi), Teamahinasyon (Lipton Green Tea with Jasmine, lemon, spritz, topped with Lipton Ice Tea Foam), and Agimat ng Kanto (gin, panutcha syrup, Lipton Tea-infused Kanto Vodka), featured different ways to enjoy the line of Lipton Teas. Kalel uses Lipton Tea as well to make their in-house kombucha that they use in their cocktails. “Ever since I started concocting, it’s been a staple ingredient for me,” he shares.
“This event is really about encouraging our mixologists to be able to develop a lot of different concoctions in drinks using Lipton Tea base,” explains Allan Servera, Portfolio Marketing Manager at UFS. The event was also the launch of their premium line and new variant. “We just launched a new variant, Lipton Tea 14g pouch bag,” he says. “Aside from that, we also have our tea infused line. We call it Sir Thomas Lipton line, so we have four: English Breakfast, Earl Grey, Peppermint, Chamomile and Green Tea with Jasmine.”
With Lipton Tea range, the possibilities for good drinks are endless.
