PRESS RELEASE | Mon Amour & Valentine's Menu at TWG Tea

This Valentine’s Day, TWG Tea invites you to embrace the season of flowers and romance with TWG Tea’s collection inspired by the blush hues of the delicate rose. Capturing the essence of love in a sensual Darjeeling tea blended with delicate rose blossoms, Amour de Thé is an enchanting potion elegantly packaged in blush pink and gold caviar tin tea and gift box, making it the ideal gift to dazzle the hearts.

On February 14th, beckon your beloved with a cup of Mon Amour Tea, a magical potion composed of a rich black and sweet notes of quince, the sacred fruit of the Goddess of Love.
Perfuming the air with rare and precious essences, the Bain de Roses Tea Scented Candle perfectly accompanies evenings of sweet romance. The dusky Grasse roses of envelop you in an intoxicating perfume combined with a secret bouquet of black tea, heady notes of white sandalwood, warm vanilla and fresh grapefruit.

The Valentine's Day Menu will be available on the following dates & times:

February 1-13:

Monday to Friday, 10am-7pm
Saturday & Sunday, 10am-8pm

February 14:

10am-9pm

Reservations may be booked by phone at (604) 692-0071 or by email at TWGCanada@VanSingDG.com.

PRESS RELEASE | 12 Days of Christmas by TWG Tea

Vancouver, B.C.: On December 25th, awaken to chilly winter mornings with TWG Tea's ultimate festive offering, the 12 Days of Christmas Gift Box, composed of an enchanting collection of 12 ornament-sized mini 25 gram tea tins filled with our favourite fine harvest teas and most beloved blends.

Enclosed in a gold and ruby-red chest and elegant sleeve, the 12 Days of Christmas Gift Box is an advent calendar in your teacup. On thefirst day of Christmas, unravel the chest and awaken the frosty morning with a spirited cup of Joy of Christmas Tea, a tantalizing mélange of black tea blended with warm spices, rare fruits and malty chocolate. On the days following, discover other classic favourites such as Milky Oolong Tea, White Night Jasmine Tea and Darjeeling Princess Tea, the perfect accompaniment to a new Epiphany.

Photo Credit: TWG

For the season that keeps on giving, TWG Tea also celebrates the blessed time with a limited edition Joy of Christmas Tea as part of TWG Tea's seasonal Haute Couture Tea Collection®. As the fiery yule log crackles in the fire and family and friends gather to celebrate, indulge in a warm and sparkling cup of black tea blended with spiced fruits and velvety chocolate just in time for the joyous festivities.

The 12 Days of Christmas Gift box retails at $198 and the Joy of Christmas in Haute Couture Tea Collection retails at $48. Available at the TWG Tea Salon and Boutique in Vancouver from 10 November 2017.

Photo Credit: TWG

Jubilee Tea Set at TWG Tea

TWG is the world's première tea brand. It is a brand synonymous with luxury and quality from Singapore to Saigon to Surrey. Everywhere you go, where they give a damn at least, you'll see TWG and now you'll know you're in the presence of tea with a high assurance of freshness, unbeatable terroir and flavour combinations the folks over at Tetley, Earl Grey or Lipton simply can't pull off or wouldn't even try. TWG Vancouver does tea better than anyone in the city! Sure luxury restaurants and lounges have jumped on the bandwagon and offer a small selection of TWG wares, but you can rest assured they aren't getting the absolute freshest teas and I will bet $1,000,000 that they won't have half the selection!

The Jubilee Tea Set, created by the venerable Chef Cliff Hohl, - celebrates Canada turning 150 by offering ingredients that are truly Canadian. There's elk, salmon, all maple erythang and Canadian bacon so delicious it will satisfy even the ficklest of swine enthusiasts. The Jubilee tea was made specifically to celebrate the Canada's centennial and a half and is the first tea inspired by Canada. 

Iced French Earl Grey

Now Chef Cliff, happily a friend of Jenn and I, will take his recipes to his grave, but I can tell you this: if you crack these secrets you too can be the Executive Chef at one of Vancouver's best eateries. Miso sablefish is an iconic TWG staple; delicious, light and flaky, but TWG has added Canada's national treasure, maple syrup, to the mix and the results are deafening. Run, don't walk, and get down there and try it!

Jubilee Tea Set

Ahhhhhh Wagyu... Why are you so delicious? How do you get that sought after marbling? The answer to these questions is... I haven't the faintest, foggiest idea, but what I do know is I once had a $152 Wagyu steak that changed the way I look at cows. Literally. For their Jubilee tea set TWG included a Wagyu beef burger that was so incredibly tender and savoury that I got angry. I was noticeably irritated. How do you do it Chef Cliff!?

Wagyu Beef Slider with Maple Beef Bacon and Moroccan Mint Tea infused BBQ sauce, Miso Maple Sablefish infused with Caramel Tea

The salmon came poached and accompanied with lemon Panna cotta and popcorn. I don't know about you, but when I think about going to the movies I invariably also think about eating fistfuls of buttery popcorn and getting 3 out of every 5 kernels into my mouth as the blur that is my eating arm pitches them from waist height to reduce the time it takes to reach back into the tub and repeat the process. You'd be hard pressed the find a dish that includes popped corn that I wouldn't like and today is not the day I start. Delicious!

Salmon Confit and Lemon Bush Tea infused Panna Cotta, Tourtière with Weekend in Hong Kong infused rhubarb chutney, Imperial Lapsang Souchong infused Chicken Cone

There is a movement in the foodie community that has been around for a whole, but is really starting to take hold of late as we destroy our planet just a little bit more every year: sustainability. It can mean different things to different people, but the gist is "eat in a manner that is viable long term." So how do we do it? It must start by moving away, ever so slowly, from beef. Yes, I waxed poetically about my Wagyu lust above, but then just said that. But why? There are 3 main arguments against beef: Deforestation. We clear more carbon dioxide guzzling trees to accommodate these three-stomached behemoths than most other pursuits. Farts. The methane emitted from the flatulence of these giant beast is a major contributor to global warming. Google it. And finally shipping. Do you live near the Amazon where millions of these creatures roam where once the pieces of the mighty Amazon jungle stood majestically? Me neither. That's a lot of trucks and a lot of kilometres to cross before it gets in my tummy! Wild game is becoming more and more common on dining tables and restaurants and it is a good thing! The tourtière at TWG is a blend of Wagyu beef and elk, baby steps, and was my favourite dish in the tea set! It has amazing flavours words won't do justice. You'll have to go check it out!

Once you get to the dessert level of the tower of deliciousness (my suggestion for any possible future renaming of this tea set) your expectations are high. TWG wouldn't dare disappoint you at this point. Included is a maple eclair, delicious and not as sweet as you would imagine. Insider's tip: eat it upside down to avoid a mess! There was also a croque en bouche and a passionfruit and mango tart. The croque is worthy of any French bistro and the tart is absolutely delicious and the mousse just melts in your mouth! This post may spur you to try TWG for the first time, but service, their incredible newly renovated dining room and quality, absolute top quality, will be what keeps you coming back!

Sweets: Petite Maple Éclair, Red Balloon Tea Macaron, Napoleon Tea infused Croque-en-bouche, Passion Fruit Tea infused Passion Fruit and Mango Tartlet

Special Canada 150 Jubilee Tea

Words: Scott Allan
Photos: Jenn Chan

Afternoon Tea Series: TWG Tea Canada

Have you ever noticed that some days you learn a couple new things and some days you learn nothing? Since TWG Vancouver, which, it turns out, stands for The Wellbeing Group (learning) made its debut in Vancouver in 2016 their offerings seem to be constantly improving. The service has evolved in lockstep with our host Brady and server Donnie making us feel stupendously welcome! We started our visit with the Tea Party Tea, a delightful black tea with sweet undertones, and the White Spring Yin Zhen Silver Needles. The White Spring is renowned for its health benefits and is easily added to ones health regime because it is really delicious.

TWG Tea Canada Tea List

Tea Party Tea - Perfect for Easter!

The West Coast Tea Set is a uniquely Vancouver, three-tiered teatime experience crafted by the very talented Chef Cliff Hohl. Japanese Miso Sablefish, Follow Me Tea Albacore and Steelhead Hawaiian poke with uni, Sencha infused Spicy Scallop Tempura Roll and Wagyu Beef and Burgundy Truffle with Hidden-Pu-Erh infused Vietnamese Pho. Yes Pho, properly pronounced fuh (think duh with an 'f'), in a tea set; amazing! Chef Cliff makes my favourite Sablefish. To say it's delicious cheapens the meaning of the word. It is incendiary. Having visited Hawaii for the first time in 2016 I came home with what some may dub an "unhealthy poke lust". I would dub it love and the poke done at TWG in a way that would make my Oahu brethren proud! The Spicy Scallop Tempura Roll is very good and the Pho, with its incredible Wagyu beefy goodness, wouldn't feel out of place in Saigon. In all an incredible and satisfying meal, but we were fortunate enough to indulge in another tea set right after we devoured this one.

TWG Tea Canada West Coast Tea Set Menu

West Coast Tea Set

Tier One - Sencha Infused Spicy Scallop Tempura Roll & Wagyu Beef and Burgundy Truffle with Hidden Pu-Erh infused Vietnamese Pho

Tier Two - Japanese Miso Maple Sablefish & Follow Me Tea Infused Albacore and Steelhead Hawaiian Poke with Uni

Tier Three - Lemon Bush Tea Infused Mousse Tart, Napoleon Tea Infused Jivara Petit Four, 1837 Black Tea Infused Pâte De Fruit, TWG Tea Macaron

The Chic Tea Set, unlike the temporarily available West Coast tea set, is a bonafide, tried and tested TWG menu staple. It features: Smoked Salmon and Horseradish Cream with Nori and Genmaicha Furikake, Mimosa Egg Sandwich with Aioli and Mirror Quail Eggs, Smoky Russian Tea Infused Tomato Bread with Pesto Chicken and Stracciatella Cheese. We had our arms twisted and added the Finger Sandwiches plate so we could enjoy two additional sandwiches not included in the Chic Tea Set, the Foie Gras Medallion and Atlantic Lobster Salad.

Smoke anything, salmon, beef, leather or bicycle, and I'll eat it. I will. The smoked salmon sandwich has a really nice popcorn-y flavour to it and I could have eaten 50 even after the West Coast Tea Set! The Mimosa Egg Sandwich's yoke pops as soon as you put it in your mouth and the flavour is fabulous. The pesto chicken sandwich is literally the best chicken sandwich I've ever had! Somewhere between the unique cheese and tomato bread a new level in chicken sandwichery is reached. Lobster is the most expensive crustacean on Earth and it isn't because they're beautiful. It isn't because they're hard to catch. It is because they taste like a sunny walk through a dewy meadow on your birthday. The lobster salad sandwich tastes like that walk times 10; it is incredible! The foie gras offering is equally delicious with a tangy mustard kick.

TWG Tea Canada Tea Time Menu

Chic Tea Set

Smoked Salmon and Horserash Cream with Nori and Genmaicha Furikake, Mimosa Egg Sandwich with Aioli and Mirror Quail Eggs, Smoky Russian Tea Infused Tomato Bread with Pesto Chicken and Stracciatella Cheese

2 Freshly Baked Scones Served with TWG Tea Jelly & Whipped Cream

Finger Sandwiches - Smoked Salmon and Horserashish Cream with Nori and Genmaicha Furikake, Mimosa Egg Sandwich with Aioli and Mirror Quail Eggs, Smoky Russian Tea Infused Tomato Bread with Pesto Chicken and Stracciatella Cheese, Foie Gras Medallion with Homemade Summer Palace Tea Infused Cherry Jam, Atlantic Lobster Salad bound with Geisha Blossom Tea Infused Créme Fraîche, Meyer Lemon and Norther Divine Caviar

The TWG desserts are worth the trip alone: Lemon Bush Tea infused Mousse Tart, Napoleon Tea Infused Jivara Petit Four, 1837 Tea Infused Pâté de Fruit and TWG Macaron. The Pâté de Fruit is amongst the tastiest things I've ever masticated. I have a sweet tooth, all my teeth really, and this soothed the lot. The lemon tart harkened back to my sweet Granny's homemade lemon meringue pies and I like things that make me think of the dearly departed Francis Allan so I liked this tart. Like a lot. The TWG macarons wouldn't be easily discernible sitting beside their $100 a pop, bejewelled Parisienne cousins and the Jivara Petit Four would satisfy any chocolate hounds cravings.

TWG Tea Pâtisserie in TWG Trolley

TWG is the best tea house in Vancouver. Full stop. It is wondrously beautiful inside and it, like the world's best athletes, the world's best anything really, strives to improve itself everyday. Chef Cliff Hohl is passionate about his craft and is also very, very good at it. Their upcoming Easter Tea Set will no doubt inspire me to wax poetically and I look forward to trying it. As you should.

TWG Tea Selection

TWG Tea Macaron