Rishi Tea & Theo Chocolate Pairing

Few things in life pair more perfectly than tea and chocolate. That’s why we’ve paired up with Theo Chocolate, the first and only organic and Fair Trade chocolate factory in the country. Theo appreciates origin as much as we do; buying direct from cacao farmers and grower cooperatives and creating small batch artisan chocolate produced both ethically and sustainably.

Our friends at Theo sent us a box filled with beautiful and equally delicious chocolates which we tasted and paired with a few of our favorite teas. The assortment of creative and tempting chocolates made us giggle with excitement and proved to be one of the best ways to spend a Friday evening.

Theo’s beautifully presented Aphrodisiac Collection features 8 unique confections created with herbs and spices recognized for their aphrodisiac qualities. Each confection is a handmade masterpiece containing imaginative ingredients that achieve their intended goal of arousing and enticing the taster.

Instead of pairing each confection to a particular tea, we narrowed down two teas that complemented the entire set. Golden Yunnan and our new Pu-erh blend, Vanilla Mint were both perfect matches. Their naturally sweet and subtle spicy flavor profiles provided the right amount of character without overpowering any of the unique chocolates. The peppermint in Vanilla Mint also added a very pleasant cooling sensation that lingered on the palate.

Theo's creamy and delicious Jane Goodall Milk Chocolate Bar (45% cocoa) and Dark Chocolate Bar (75%) also paired perfectly with both Pu-erh Vanilla Mint and Golden Yunnan. Surprisingly, we found Organic Sencha, a Japanese green tea with deep grassy flavor and juicy mouthfeel to nicely complement the Dark Chocolate. The vegetal profile refreshes and enhances the rich cocoa while simultaneously cleansing the palate.

Next was Milk Chocolate with Pink Peppercorn & Cherry – creamy milk chocolate with bits of cherry and peppercorn that evokes both sweet and spicy. Our Cinnamon Plum both enhances the fruity sweetness and cools the peppery spice from the chocolate - a great match.

Dark Chocolate with Ginger Rose is rich dark chocolate infused with essential rose oil and candied ginger. As huge fans of both rose and ginger (see Wild Rose and Pu-erh Ginger tea), we found this bar to be one of our favorites. Osthmanthus Silver Needle was amazing paired with this bar. The osthmanthus blossoms and nectar like sweetness from the Silver Needle white tea enhanced the floral notes from the rose while cooling the heat from the ginger.

Try your own Rishi Tea and Theo Chocolate pairing! Email us your pairing recommendations to rishimarketing@rishi-tea.com by February 15^th for a chance to win our new Tsuki Teapot! We will choose one winner based on their recommended pairings and pairing descriptions. Good luck!