Hot stuff: Warming new options
Bored with the tea, coffee, milk or sugar routine? Julie Baxter discovers a few
hot beverage alternatives
The winter season doesn't bring much joy except, perhaps, the burgeoning range of warming comforts offered by the hot beverage market. Seasonal flavourings are now as much an indicator of the time of year as falling leaves and tree lights, with the likes of gingerbread, pumpkin and eggnog lattes now staples on the high street and mulled wine or cider-scented hostelries and festive markets the world over. The range of alternative hot beverage
optons is increasingly easy to
offer onboard as suppliers adapt their formats to suit the on-the-go market.
Herbal and fruit teas have been in the mix for a while but now there are some new evolutions.
Get fresh
TEA REX is the world's first fresh fruit and root infusion range. It offers a 100% fresh single-serve fruit and root tea which is brewed using an over-the-cup filter. Delivering flavour and the nutritional benefits of raw ingredients, it is gathering popularity in health and wellness sectors and among those looking for innovative food experiences. Created using HPP
(High Pressure Processing), a unique formulation and packaging, the infusions come in two blends. Wakey Wakey Rise & Rawr is a colourful yellow beverage zinging with lemon, earthy turmeric, ginger and lemongrass; and A Rip Rawring Berry Time is a fruity tea of blackberries, blueberries and raspberries mixed with warming ginger root and balanced with lemon.
Andrew Walker, TEA REX founder, says: “In a rapidly-
growing fruit and herbal tea market, with an increased consumer demand for natural products, there is a game-changing opportunity to create a new category in fresh infusions.”
Hot British Drinks (hotbritishdrinks.co.uk) has sought to reinvent the fruit tea too, with a cordial formula designed to be served hot. Created from fruit and vegetable juices, it comes in two flavours: Appey Original with apples, beetroot and pears, and Appey with Honey which combines Appey Original with honey. It is quick and easy to serve, just diluted with hot water. The team says: “Sticking the kettle on just got a whole lot more exciting.”
Positive publicity for the health merits of turmeric has also spawned a number of beverages based on the distinctive yellow spice. New brand Turmerlicious makes this option easy on the move with instant, turmeric lattes of coconut, turmeric, ginger, cinnamon and a hint of black pepper. Just add hot water and stir.
Turmerlicious (turmerlicious.com) has been formulated to help the body absorb curcumin, the active ingredient said to support wellbeing. It is dairyand largely caffeine-free, and has no artificial additives. It comes in Vanilla, Ginger, Choco and Chilli Choc flavours.
New powdered drinks brand Noble (madebynoble. earth) offers plant-based powders which added to hot water, milk or mylk (plantderived milks) create healthy alternatives to coffee lattes, hot chocolate or matcha tea. They have Vegan Society and organic certification and come in five flavours, including Wild Green which mixes matcha, apple, avocado and mint, and Golden, comprised of turmeric, ginger, cinnamon and black pepper. They are high in fibre and contain no refined sugar, additives or fillers. Founder Kate Prince says: “All our blends are nutrient- dense and would be wonderful on a long flight with key anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. Also great for sleep.”
Sticking on the kettle just got a whole lot
more exciting
Sweet dreams
And if your onboard priority is encouraging passengers to take a doze, check out a new milk drink specifically designed to make the consumer relax and sleep. Made from Jersey milk, valerian and honey, Sleep Well was conceived during a sleepless flight between LA and London and can be drunk hot or cold. It is said to contain the perfect blend of fructose and glucose to support sleep and is high in antioxidants.
Valerian root has been used to induce sleep for centuries. There are vanilla and chocolate flavours and they come ready-mixed in 200ml sip and sleep cartons.
Sam Watts, founder, says: “I am a fearful flier and was inspired to create Sleep Well on a flight from the U.S. I bought a bottle of something that claimed to help you sleep but it contained all sorts of synthetic ingredients and made me wonder if we could create a natural drink that would help you relax and sleep. Valerian root became our magic ingredient.”