Considering how stressful 2020 has been, sometimes, the best thing you can do is to sit back, relax, and calm down with a nice pot of tea. And whether you’re already a tea aficionado or completely new to the scene, there’s probably something new you’ll discover at the 2020 Singapore Tea and Coffee Festival.
Taking place from 28th November to 6th December across both the physical and digital space, the 2020 Singapore Tea and Coffee Festival will showcase some of the world’s most exciting coffees and teas from artisanal brands, across a range of workshops, live chats and live sales events. Presented by teapasar, over 50 tea and coffee vendors will be exhibiting as part of the festival, alongside complementary food and lifestyle products from Australia, Hongkong, Malaysia, Russia, South Africa, Singapore, Taiwan
and the USA.
General Manager of teapasar and the Singapore Tea & Coffee Festival, Ms Nicolette Yeo
said: “The last three years of the annual Singapore Tea Festivals have been successful and growing rapidly in terms of merchants and visitorship. Despite new challenges this year, with overwhelming support from the community, we pressed ahead and are proud to present our first ever phygital festival. This year, we’re taking on a decentralised festival approach, so that visitors can choose to engage brand owners directly via live video-chats or pop by participating physical outlets; participate in virtual live-streaming sales events, attend in-person workshops or chose to take it fully digital. In addition, we have also expanded our Discover Your Perfect Blend feature to include coffee recommendations so there’s definitely something for everyone.”
Physical experiences at the festival will be taking place at various vendors across the island – Parchmen Academy of Coffee and Tea up north, Camelia Tea Bar in the east, teapasar in the south, Lemuel Chocolate in the west, and The 1872 Clipper Tea Co in central Singapore. At these venues, purchase three taster cups of tea or coffee at just $5, and receive a $5 voucher to offset your purchases at sgteacoffee.com.
On the website itself, teapasar has crafted an experience that allows you to pop by individual brand pages, meant to recreate the usual booth-style setup of an actual exhibition space. Here, you can browse available products, prices, and find out more about their brands via virtual real-time chats with the vendors through a Zoom call, narrowing the space between screens.
Live streams will also be happening over the nine days, where you can chat with brand owners and find out more about their brews, along with flash sales to get the most out of your purchases. On opening day (28th November) at 11am, during teapasar founder Alan Lai’s opening address, guests should look out for the exclusive Singapore Tea and Coffee Festival goodie box at 50% off (usual price $75).
Have no fear when you purchase – using the patented ProfilePrint technology, identify your taste profile online and find the perfect tea and coffee to match. And the options of course, are many – look out for returning favourites and new launches such as Pryce Tea’s NOËL Collection that includes an advent calendar of limited-edition blends, Nespresso capsules and even Grab vouchers, a perfect holiday gift.
If you’re moderating your caffeine intake, consider Botana & Tea Organic Green Mountain Tea – a caffeine-free herbal tea that can only be found in Mediterranean
countries. For timeless treasure lovers, explore the Infusion-de-vie aged white tea collection, made from the youngest silver-needle white tea, highly prized for its health benefits and rich flavours which continues to mature over time, becoming sweeter and mellower with age.
International brands will also be exhibiting their wares, such as Taiwanese brand OKLAO Speciality Coffee – the only coffee chain in Taiwan that produces and sells its own grown coffee. Or for something more festive, consider German brand The Barn’s Christmas Coffee Blend, which includes hints of cookie dough, honey and
blueberry.
For those with a sweet tooth, check out chocolates from local specialty chocolate bar, Lemuel Chocolate, with popular flavours such as toasted cookies, or fruitier ones like plums and citrus. The health-conscious can also indulge in gluten-free bakes in all-time favourite flavours like Nutella and PBJ by Some Days We Bake, before ending off with rich and creamy delights like the Oat Coffee and Strawberry Rose Balsamic Gelato by Empirical.
Aside from filling your tummies up with scrumptious delights, Singapore Tea and Coffee Festival provides a line-up of lifestyle products perfect for the gifting season. Treat your body with products from natural, vegan, cruelty-free and eco-friendly local skincare brand, Maia Botanicals, or enjoy a warm cup of coffee with the 2-in-1 tumbler that doubles as a sleek cup and drip coffee maker from Holoholo. You can also consolidate your orders from selected brands in one single shipment and pay a fixed flat shipping fee.
For those looking to expand their knowledge, there are also eight workshops available for you to choose from. Refine your tastebuds at a tea taster course by Parchmen Academy of Tea and Coffee, create your own tea-flavoured cocktails at a tea mixology workshop by Blue Brew Tea, or join the workshops offered by the Australian Tea Masters – TEA 101, Online Certificate in Advanced Black Tea Cupping or Online Diploma in Advanced Tea Blending to put you en route to becoming a tea expert.
You can even join a free virtual DIY Acupressure Massage to help relieve yourself from your late nights with Eight Healer, or head down to Westway for a Craft Chocolate Appreciation session with Lemuel Chocolate. Or become a kombucha expert in just 90 minutes with Fizzicle, and make your own kombucha with a starter kid before the
online workshop led by Melissa Mak, founder of SG Fermentation Friends.
You may not be able to travel for now, so instead, let tea and coffee take you on a global journey instead, and taste the world at the 2020 Singapore Tea and Coffee festival, celebrating both local and international food and lifestyle brands, and the global tea and coffee community this festive season.
The 2020 Singapore Tea & Coffee Festival runs from 28th November to 6th December 2020 both online and across various venues. More information available here
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