TWG tea salon

Teas are the new wines without the crazy sommelier talk.

After a long wait, the TWG Tea Salon has finally opened at i_on a week ago. This is the first branch of the, still little known, tea salon (not including the 2 retail corners they currently run at Takashimaya and Changi Airport), operating in a more shopper-friendly location at Orchard and longer opening hours compard to the original TWG tea salon at Republic Plaza, which only opens on weekdays till early evening. With more than 20types of darjeeling tea alone, together with numerous other teas and tea blends that makes up the staggering 6 page long tea list, they are people genuinely interested in teas. Being one of the few shops at i_on that I was eagerly awaiting, I dropped by on opening day, initially only wanting to take a look at the shop, but it eventually became an extremely late pre-dinner tea session with 3 friends who were quite the tea afficionados.

Taking up a central space among the shops on level 2, TWG adds a much needed buzz to the under-patronized upper levels of the mall. Enclosed by a transparent glass, the shop is made up of 2 parts, the first is a tea shop, selling loose tea leaves, house blends and smal pastries and macarons off the counter; the other portion is the sit-down tea salon serving the full range of teas and an all-day dining menu. The space is dominated by a wall of niches behind the counter in which a matrix of big yellow tins filled with tea leaves from around the world are displayed. Turning the corner into the tea salon, the niches become smaller, holding tea leaves meant to be used inhouse. An extended sliding shelf unit glides along the wall as tea leaves are taken out to be brewed at the counter. The vibe of the shop is one of an old Parisian tea shop, with deep brown timber panels accented with gold paint, polished gold frames holding up the glass windows which one might very well imagine to look into a Parisian arcade; a pair of (obviously unecessary) electrical bulbs light the sign board at the entrance, intentionally made to flicker as if tey were gas lamps from the late 1800s. The tea salon is small, perhaps seats only 25 people, on wicker chairs around square tables laid with jacquard tablecloth and folded napkins with the TWG logo on it. The metal utensils, too, are logo-ed.

With the full intention to have dinner later, and adnittedly, quite skeptical of the quality of the kitchen on the first day, we only had tea and some pastries. I had the Smoky Earl Grey, which I was told was a lapsang souchong and eatrl grey blend. Tea purists might find such a blend (in fact, any blending and flavouring) a ?? adulteration of tea, but i really have no objections to tea blends, as long as the inherent flavour and aroma is not overwhelmed or desroyed by the additives. And with two of my favorite tea types in one, I was intrigued. The tea arrived in a big tea pot encased in a polished gold spherical tea cosy,holding enough tea to last quite a few cups. I had imagined the tea to have a more dominant lapsang note, and indeed when the tea was poured into the tea cup, the lapsang note was uverwhelming. But with a sip, the smoky pine notes of the lapsang gives way to the earl grey notes which become more apparent on the palate. The aromatic flip-flop was rather interesting, though I would say the combination is not 100% synergistic, with the constituents still clearly distinguishable.



We also had a few pastries to go with the teas. I had the lemon tart which was a refreshingly light, with a sweet and citrusy lemon curd on a crumbly almond tart base. My tea mates ordered the Opera cake, and also a muffin and a couple of madeleines which came with cream and 2 types of tea jelly. Though more suited for scones, the tea jellys were truely delicious. Chilled, gelatinous and bursting with the fragrant sweetness of the infused teas (we had rooiboos and sakura tea jellies), the jellies dissolve immediately in your mouth and are good eaten on their own.

I enjoy teas a lot, though I am perhaps not as educated about teas as much as I would like to or should be. Looking at the long queue when I walked past the following saturday, I think TWG will be around for quite a bit and I forsee many more future visits. And with the i_on shop, TWG have just opened up a niche that is currently missing in the local food scene, a recognizable and legit tea shop run by knowledgable people selling an unparalled variety of good quality teas.