C&V x be.llong: The flavour of Formosa (Taiwanese tea x food x natural wine workshop)

Taiwanese Food x Tea x Wine Tasting Workshop

Mult-flavours through Multi-cultures

A Flavour of Formosa

Tea. Wine. Food Workshop

// Highlights //

In this workshop, you will be able to taste a variety of Taiwanese Oolong Tea, natural wines and Taiwanese street food inspired canapés. You will get to know the similarity between the notes of teas and wines. The workshop will lead you through a palatable journey focused on three different key flavour notes - Floral, Fruity and Woody, all three notes are paired with Taiwanese street food-inspired canapés.

Level: Suitable for anyone who doesn’t have any prior wine or tea knowledge

Duration: 2 hrs

Participant: Need to be 18+

Vegetarians & Vegans are welcome! ( Please let us know after booking)

Tickets: £66

Your ticket includes a complimentary drink and secret snack on arrival.

#FlavourOfFormosa

Tea and wine selected by Found of Camellia and Vine Leona De Pasquale DipWSET

All canapé by Chef Longlong of be.llong dining

What’s included in the price:

14.30 - Welcome drink

14.40 - Introduction and flavour workshop

Our wine and tea expert Leona will kick off the workshop by guiding everyone through different flavours that you will come across in tea and wine. You will learn how to taste wine and tea like a professional.

15.00 - Set One (花Flower)

Seaweed Cracker (海帶米餅) / Osmanthus Rice Cake (桂花黑糖糕) / Four Season Oolong (Spring 2021) 四季春/ A beautiful white wine made by a female winemaker in Machuela, Spain

15.30 - Set Two (果Fruit)

台式握壽司Taiwanese Nigiri / 青心烏龍 Handpicked Chin Shin Oolong (Spring 2021) / An intriguing and delicious orange wine from Romania

16.00 - Set Three (木Wood)

Roasted Han-tsî (烤地瓜) / Black baked Oolong (重焙火烏龍)/ A fabulous natural sweet red wine from Maury, France.

16.30 - End of the workshop

// What is Formosa? //

"Formosa" is a nickname Taiwan gained in the Age of Discovery in the early 16th century, when first Portuguese sailors sighted the Taiwanese island, they made a note on their world map and call Taiwan "Ilha Formosa" which means "the beautiful island”.

// Why Flavour of Formosa? //

Taiwan's street food and tea culture are full of characters, you probably already know the famous bubble tea, bao or popcorn chicken in London. It's hard to describe Taiwanese food and drink in one word since its dynamic history had resulted in great diversity in its food and culture.

You may not know but Taiwan’s indigenous Austronesian ancestors went through a mixed ruling by Dutch, Spanish and Ming dynasty from the early 17th century, then the island was ruled under Qing dynasty (1683-1894) and Japan (1894-1945). After Japan's surrender ended WWII, Taiwan's sovereignty was left uncertain due to the US intervention in Asia Pacific area at the time, the whole area became the sphere of influence of the US. A few years later, when a Chinese political party Kuomintang occupied Taiwan as its defended military base after losing the Chinese Civil War to the communists (the nowadays PRC) in 1949, the Chinese immigrants brought in more Chinese influences to the modern Taiwanese culture.

Taiwan probably has the most complex cultural background among all Asia Pacific countries - mixing European, American, Japanese and Chinese influences all in one go, the cultural impact had made Taiwanese food so rich and full of flavours. This Flavour of Formosa workshop will introduce you to the fun of Taiwanese food!