Don Mei : Hey Teaheads. This is Don from Mei Leaf. In this video : Infusing Tea and Alcohol.
In this video me and my brother are going to experiment with infusing tea leaves in
alcohol, and we're going to see what delicious results we can find. This video is going to
go under the "Tea Recipes" and the "Drinking With Friends" playlists. If at any point in
time you enjoy this video then please give [it] the thumbs-up. The more thumbs in the
air the more tea videos are going to come your way. If you haven't subscribed to our
YouTube channel yet then go click that button! I am in "Seven Suns" in Ekamai, Bankgok [at]
my brother's teahouse. This is my brother Han. Say "Hi."
Han : Welcome. Welcome. Hello. Welcome. [Let's do this.]
Don : We've shut the doors, and we are doing some experimenting. My brother and I have
been talking about doing some "Tea After Dark" sessions, both in the Mei Leaf teahouse in
London, and also at Seven Suns in Bangkok. We're thinking about maybe doing some after-hours.
Han : Yeah, like some little, kind of, classically simple infusions.
Don : Yeah.
Han : You know, something simple.
Don : Work in progress, basically. So what I thought I would do today - or we would do
- is show you guys how to infuse tea in alcohol. [It] is super simple.
Han : Super simple.
Don : So what we have here - we've got a couple here we're going to talk about - but what
we have in here... I don't know if Celine can [do] a little shot in there, and get that
in focus. What we have in here is a whisky which has been infused with ...
Han : Amethyst.
Don : Amethyst GABA. [For] those of you who don't know what Amethyst GABA is we did a
video on that. I'll put a link - which [a card should] pop up here, and there'll be
a link in the description below - talking about this. Well, it's quite a funky tea,
isn't it?
Han : It is a very funky tea. I actually tried this only [a] few days ago, when you brought
it over. [That's] when it clicked in my head [that], " Hmm..." It's a very dark, rich,
tarmac-[like] tea, so I thought it would kind of blend well with a very kind of smokey whisky.
Don : Yeah. [This] is his idea, and I think it actually really could work, because you
know how you get those very peaty whiskeys, like a Laphroaig, or something like that,
that have those really smokey notes, The Amethyst GABA has those kind of smokey, but more kind
of burnt, tarmac-[like] kind of notes, which are really, really interesting.
Han : [There's some] very dark fruit as well. You know, like raisins in there as well, and
prunes.
Don : Yeah. So [it has] flavor profiles that lend [themselves] really perfectly to whisky.
[We've] got a high quality whisky. We're not going to mention brands, but we've got a high-quality
whisky. We've poured a little bit off here, so this is the whisky which has been [non]
infused. [Then] my brother [infused] it. Do you want to tell them how you did that?
Han : Super simple. I used about 500 milliliters of whisky, and then [about] 10 grams of Amethyst
GABA. [You] just brew the Amethyst first, I think which is about the third infusion.
Don : So brew it Gong Fu style in water, so you get to enjoy the tea beforehand. [Then]
with the leaf that's leftover...
Han : The leaf that's leftover just throw it in with the whisky, and leave it in there
for - [I] like to do it for about 45 minutes. I think that's [kind of] the right balance.
[You] don't want to overdo it as well.
Don : Okay, so 10 grams of Amethyst GABA infused a few times in water, so you get to enjoy
the tea. Then you let the leaf dry, right? That's quite important.
Han : Yeah.
Don : So you leave it for a couple of hours [to] let it dry, otherwise you're going to
put too much water into the alcohol. [Then] you infuse it in 500 [milliliters] of whisky
for 45 minutes. [This] is the result, and we are going to taste it now.
Han : Let's do it.
Don : So let's first see if we can notice a color difference, which I can immediately.
Celine, can you see a color difference? Go on, nod with the camera if you can see a color
difference.
Celine : [laughter] Uh?
Don : From here it's really obvious.
Han : Maybe put the light.
Celine : Oh, [tip it]?
Don : Yeah. If I tip it that way you might see it. This one is definitely a lot darker.
Okay?
Celine : Yeah.
Don : Got it? Okay, so you go for the original first, just so we've got a base.
Han : Yeah. Nice whisky.
Don : It's a blended whisky. It's not single malt.
Han : It's a little more smokey whisky.
Don : Yeah, I don't know if I would advise you doing this in single malt, or something.
Han : Mmm, No.
Don : Just get a good blended whisky. All right, go for it. You've tried this already.
I haven't. I haven't, so I'm interested to see what this is like.
Han : Right. For me it's a lot richer, [and] a lot bolder in flavor. [It's] a bit more
complex. It coats the tongue a little bit more, if that makes sense.
Don : So the body becomes bigger, and actually what's amazing about it - and I think you've
got a really good pairing here - is that [the] tea doesn't fight with the whisky, and it
doesn't overtake the whisky. In fact, it just complements it. If you gave me that whisky
and you said it's a really good whisky, but you didn't tell me about the tea, I would
think that that was a really rich, smokey, slightly nutty, [and] a little bit fruity...
Han : A little bit fruity.
Don : Yeah, like kind of dark - like you said - raisins.
Han : Raisins.
Don : Like dark, roasted raisins kind of taste.
Han : That's always the trick with infusing tea - [or] anything - infusing with liquor.
You want it to complement the liquor. You don't want it to overpower or change the taste
of the original.
Don : Mmm. That really complements the whisky. That really does. In fact, if you put these
two in front of me and said, "Try these two whiskies." I would think they were different
whiskies, and I would definitely pick that one out as the winner.
Han : And we're drinking it straight.
Don : The way I like it. [laughter] Here you go. This is Amethyst GABA after it's been
infused, so you can see the leaves are still very much intact. [I] have to say [that] this
is an experiment. This is real experimentation. I don't know -- I mean, it stands to reason,
right? [It's] alcohol, so it's a solvent - which is much stronger than water - extracting,
and therefore it's going to be pulling out a lot more of the catechins, a lot more of
the caffeine, a lot more of the theanine...
Han : It definitely pulls out different [tastes].
Don : It's definitely going to do things. I mean, [we're] entering a bit of unknown
territory here. There aren't studies that I've seen about what alcohol extracts. [You've]
said to me that someone got really drunk on this tea.
Han : Yeah. I actually gave it to a friend of a friend. He just had like a few sips of
it and then he was out of it. He was telling me it was really strong.
Don : So this video comes with a warning. This is up to you.You do this at your own
risk. I don't know what it's going to extract, but it certainly extracts good flavor from
the Amethyst GABA, and as I said, brew it Gong Fu style first, so you get to enjoy the
tea, and then use your leaf afterwards. All right. [That's] the Amethyst.
Han : That's the Amethyst.
Don : Amethyst whisky. What do you have here?
Han : Then I have a vodka which I infused with Royal Peach Orchid.
Don : So [this is] vodka with Mi Lan Xiang Dan Cong (Royal Peach Orchid).
Han : What I wanted really to do is, [because] I love the taste of Royal Peach Orchid - it's
like really fruit - and I wanted to try and bring that across.
Don : Oh, you can smell it.
Han : Yeah. [Vodka] is a very pure spirit, so it works well worth kind of more delicate
teas, with more fruit [and] floral flavor. Yeah, I quite like the...
Don : Ah! It's delicious.
Han : Yeah.
Don : What's great about it is that you do get to taste exactly the same flavor profiles
that you do when you extract with water, but with the alcohol just somehow -- it's hard
to say. It concentrates more.
Han : It tastes a little more [like] honey.
Don : Yeah. You can taste the honey and the peach.
Han : [It's] sweeter.
Don : That's really, really nice. [What's] this one here?
Han : This is a Jasmine Jade Oolong with Gin.
Don : So this is a scented Oolong, but naturally scented - [with] no artificial [stuff] and
with flowers - and with gin.
Han : Gin - a London Dry Gin.
Don : [A] classic London drink. I love gin. Oh wow! That works so well.
Han : Again, the botanicals of the gin kind of work with the floral notes of the [tea].
Don : [I] know that they have been experimenting with gin and tea. Like if you go to London
there [are] tea and gin combos, but it's mostly like Earl Grey [teas] and things like that.
[They're] not that particularly exciting. Jasmine jade and gin - as you say - the botanicals
in gin - the natural kind of [botanical] flavors of all the botanicals that they use in gin
at distillation, just pairs really well with these botanicals.
Han : Yeah.
Don : Okay, so we've got an Amethyst whisky, which is dark and smokey. You've got a kind
of honey sweet and fruity vodka, and you've got this kind of floral, botanical slight
bitters of a Jasmine Jade, which is a lightly oxidized Oolong, so it's kind of got that
grassy greenness to it, with the gin. Those work really well. So now we're going to try...
Han : i do want to mention that [with] these that we've now created there were a lot of
failed attempts as well.
Don : Yeah.
Han : So, probably out of 10 different experimentations one might be okay, you know?
Don : So that's pretty much the same with all the experiments that we do at Mei Leaf.
It's usually a one to ten percent success rate, but when you get the right ones they
do work. Those, I love them all. I think they work really well. All right, so why don't
we make some drinks with them.
Han : MmmHmm.
Don : I think,[for] this one, do you have some ice?
Han : Yeah. I can get some ice.
Don : Get some ice, and then we're going to have some fun experimenting a little bit with
tasting these. I think that the Amethyst GABA we should just do on ice, right?
Han : Yeah.
Don : Just keep it simple, because the Amethyst GABA - again, this has GABA in it, so I don't
know how the alcohol is extracting that GABA content, [as in] if it's going to make it
even more powerful. GABA is a neurotransmitter which helps to calm and relax, but also stimulates
creative thought as well. So this is going to be your late night, creative thinking,
[whisky].
Han : All right. Well, we don't have the more cocktail ice cubes.
Don : No, that's alright. Yeah, I'm disappointed. I want the big, fat, cut ice one.
Han : Hey.
Don : All right. Do you want to wash those, and then we can make some drinks. I like my
alcohol pure, like this. Look at that. [It's] gorgeous. A stunning color, it is. It really
is. It's an amazing color, when you compare it to this very much lighter whisky here.
Okay, so here's one. What do we have for the next one?
Han : Um, I think we'll do the Royal Peach vodka with plum. [We'll] keep it simple. I
don't like to add any kind of syrups.
Don : Is this the vodka?
Han : I think that's the vodka.
Don : No, that's the gin. Okay, so ice in it as well?
Han : Yes.
Don : [It's] holiday. Okay. You do that one. What is the gin to [liquor] ratio, three to
one?
Han : Uh, I like to use two to one,..
Don : Two to one.
Han : ...personally, but I like to...
Don : You like to drink.
Han : ...I like to drink.
Don : Okay. Something like that? A bit more?
Han : Maybe a bit more.
Don : Okay. Pour some gin in there.
Han : [We] should really be using the jigger.
Don : A jigger? No, go one. Pour more in. Come on. It's holiday. Okay.
Han : Holiday for you!
Don : [laughter] Not holiday for you, but you know [that] when I come over it's holiday
for you too. Okay. We've got a couple of little accoutrements here. [This] is a lychee. Then
we're thinking [of] the fruity one with the Royal Peach, so we stir that in. [We] don't
want to, again, mess with the flavors of the alcohol too much. Let's put this away. [Then]
we have here...
Han : Some very nice Chiang Mai orange.
Don : Some Chiang Mai oranges. Look at the color of those.
Han : Super sweet.
Don : [You] see, that's the thing in London, you can get pretty good things, but fruit
is one of those things.
Han : Mmm.
Don : So I'm just going to throw a slice in here. [Let's] just keep that in here. Do you
want to take your close-up, Celine, of this? Yup, those are looking very, very nice. I'm
excited to try them. Yeah? But we need an independent taster. We can't do this ourselves,
[because] we're too biased, right?
Han : Nope.
Don : So if you just step that way, and I step this way -- well, move a bit closer so
you stay in the shot. Okay. Ready? We need an independent taster, and preferably someone
who has local taste - a Thai person. So here we go. Ready? One, two, three [SNAPS FINGERS]
Pak is here. This is Pak. This is my brother's girlfriend, and she also works at Seven Suns,
and she is representative of Thai taste, yes?
Pak : Yes.
Don : [Those] oranges are from your family, no?
Pak : Yes. It's from my family.
Don : So Pak is from Chiang Mai, in the north of Thailand. [It's a] beautiful, beautiful
part of the country. If you ever come to Thailand I recommend you visit.
Han : Amazing food too.
Don : Amazing food, amazing environment, [and] really spiritual, with lot's of amazing temples,
and good fruit, right?
Pak : Yes.
Don : The best.
Pak : Yeah. [laughter]
Don : Okay. Which one do you want to try first, Pak?
Pak : Uh...
Don : This is the gin, this is the vodka, and this is the whisky.
Pak : Gin first.
Don : All right. [Gin] first, okay.
Pak : [SIPS GIN] Mmm. I quite like this one. I don't know why...
Don : You like the gin, huh?
Don : What does it taste like? Do you taste the tea, or do you just taste gin?
Pak : Gin first, and then after that you feel a little bit of the tea, and a little bit
smell of the -- what is this?
Don : Orange.
Pak : [It's] orange, huh?
Don : But can you notice the flower in the tea - the floral notes in the tea?
Pak : It's got some, but I can't tell which flower [it is]. Mmm. Mmm [it's] quite nice.
Han : Can I have a sip?
Don : Yeah. You have a sip. Okay. You move onto the next one. Which one do you want to
try next, the strong whisky, or the...?
Pak : This one.
Don : You're just trying to avoid the whisky, aren't you?
Pak : [laughter]
Don : Come on, have the whisky. You need to try the whisky.
Pak : Why?
Don : Why? [laughter]
Han : Come on. Be brave.
Pak : [HOLDS BREATH]
Don : You don't like whisky?
Pak : No.
Han : Maybe not for her.
Pak : Not for me, yeah.
Don : Do you like whisky normally?
Pak : Not really.
Don : Okay. So that was never going to be a winner for you. [Finally], lychee and Royal
Peach with tonic water.
Pak : Ooh! Royal Peach. [SIPS DRINK] Mmm! This one is quite sweet, yea.
Don : Okay. Thai taste buds. All right. You think about which one is your favorite. Don't
tell us. Don't tell us. I want to taste them all as well. I love that one. That, to me,
is one of the ...
Han : [laughter] I thought I would surprise you with it.
Don : I love that one, [SIPS DRINK] Nice. Very nice. I would say that you can still
just about taste the tea, but it's not as strong, because ýou've [diluted it for a
longer time]. [But] you can still taste the tea.
Han : Bear in mind that this tonic is not the best.
Don : Yeah. We won't mention brands, but it is not the best tonic water.
Han : Yeah.
Don : Oh, wow! This one, actually, is quite surprising. You can really still taste it,
but I guess it's because ít's got those floral notes to it. I like that.
Han : The orange actually works.
Don : The orange really works well with it. Okay, so we're going to count to three, and
then you can point to your favorite one. You too. Ready? One... two...three.
Pak : [laughter]
Don : Yeah. [Of course], we like the whisky.
Pak : I like this one.
Don : You like this one.
Pak : It's easy to drink, and I think women can drink it [more] easily than this one,
[which is] quite strong.
Don : So would you say this is a man's drink, and this is a woman's drink?
Pak : Yeah.
Don : How sexist of you. [laughter]
Pak : [laughter]
Don : No, but I know what you mean. This is a real easy drink, isn't it? This is more
of a kind of summer's evening drink, [while] this is more late night, when you want that
GABA hit, [like] when you want a bit of the creative - and a bit of crazy...
Han : This would mellow you down as well. It's got the GABA, doesn't it?
Don : It's got the GABA, [but] it's also got caffeine, so I don't know how much it extracts.
You know what? We're going to have to do a bit of late night experimentation.
Han : MmmHmm.
Don : Just all for the benefit of you guys out there, we're going to have to experiment
a little bit here, I think. But your oranges are wonderful.
Pak : Thank you.
Don : Yeah. So you can [give] compliments to your family.
Pak : Compliment?
Han : Do you like it?
Pak : Oh yeah!
Don : I sense that the night is very young. All right, that's it teaheads. If you made
it to the end of this video then please give [it] the thumbs-up. Check out our YouTube
playlists and let us know if there are any videos that you would like us to make. If
you're ever in London then come visit us in Camden to say "Hi!" and taste our wares. If
you're ever in Bangkok then come visit "Seven Suns" and taste their wares. Maybe some of
these will be on the menu. If you have any questions or comments then please fire them
over. Other than that, this is Han, this is Pak, and I'm Don, from Mei Leaf. Thank you
for being a part of the revelation of true tea. Stay away from the tea bags, keep drinking
the good stuff, and spread the word, because nobody deserves bad tea.
Don : Bye!
Don, Han, and Pak : [WAVING]