Guest Contributor: Kiona Malinka
Introduction Kiona – Marco
Kiona Malinka is a tea fanatic, she has been traveling around the world for about twelve years in search of knowledge, stories, and tea. From Nepal to Japan, from Sri Lanka to Taiwan. She always travels alone, to get so close to the farmers and be a part of life there for a while. And the tea? She sells them under two tea labels in mainly European hotels and restaurants. Her brands are called Kiona Malinka Tea (by invitation) and Crusio tea. She works closely with Marco Beverage Systems, in search of the ultimate way of making tea in the hospitality industry.
Japanese cool
When I sit on the floor with a Japanese farmer, deep in the tea mountains of Kyoto, without any doubt or lightness, this farmer takes me along in the preparation process of his fragile steamed Japanese Sencha. The freshly harvested and processed tea is carefully poured with water at the right temperature, it is cooled down by pouring it into different containers, otherwise the tea will not be soft and full, but bitter and tight. I write, study and store all the information in my head, but I quickly think, how are my customers going to fix this behind their bar? And when I get handed a mini cup I know, wow these flavors are in this tea, and the trick is getting them out. In a cup I find flavors like seaweed and cucumber, but especially the mouthfeel is so soft and the aftertaste so compelling, delicious!
Hotter the better
A month later I fly to China. Same setting, sweet farmer, tea set in front of us, we pour on a delicious solid dark oolong. But wait, this farmer emphasizes, the hotter the water, the better. Compared to the Japanese farmer, this looks like a water ballet, but with boiling hot water. In this cup I find strength, nuts and moss in the taste, but above all as if you can taste the rocks on which this tea grew. On the way back in the plane I realize, every farmer, every tea, every region, or variety has its own way of brewing.
Art of making tea
And now the art, how are we going to translate these findings into everyday life? Because let’s be honest, in the European catering industry we usually don’t have the time or staff to cool water with beautiful Japanese cups. On the menu you will usually find different types of tea such as green, white, black or oolong and a growing category, infusions. From mint to Verveine, everything comes along. And I can already see my Japanese farmer startled when we tap boiling water from the coffee machine on that frail green tea. If you look at most tea selections, with three temperatures you could already brew all kinds of tea, so that those flavors can come out, the guests can enjoy beautiful tea and that farmer can also be a little proud of us. And then we are only talking about warm tea, but which catering business does not want to turn this tea into a great summer iced tea or a non-alcoholic cocktail without too much hassle.
Innovation vs craft
And so, my two worlds come together. That of the craft on the plantations, but also the innovation that offers us the possibility to make tea in a fast, efficient way in all kinds of shapes, temperatures, and structures. Irish company Marco Beverage Systems has two innovative water taps that help me with the mission on a daily basis.
Marco Beverage Systems designs and manufactures innovative and energy-efficient beverage dispense solutions. Their clients are some of the biggest names in the coffee, foodservice and catering industries, and their beverage solutions can be found in coffee shops, offices, hotels, and restaurants all over the world. Recently, I started using the Marco MIX boiler, an award-winning, undercounter water dispense system to brew my tea.
It’s all In the mix
The Marco MIX is a water tap system that offers me the possibility to set three different temperatures of water with one push of a button in order to put my entire tea menu at the right temperature. So I can set button 1 at 65 degrees for green Japanese tea, for example, button 2 a step higher at 80 and then button three nice and hot at 95 degrees.
Sparkling or a tea cocktail?
The ever-growing category in the hospitality industry is surely iced tea and non-alcoholic drinks with tea that are homemade! With Marco’s other water tap system, the FRIIA you can quickly dispense hot water for a cup of tea at the desired temperature, but because there is also sparkling water and cold water from the tap, you can also make iced tea and cocktails in no time. In short, no more excuses not to take the tea brewing to the next level! Time for Tea!