Luxury floating hotel, Fingal, announces its first tea guru

Fingal, the luxury floating hotel docked in the historic port of Leith, has announced its first tea sommelier, to further enhance its afternoon-tea experience.

The hotel’s restaurant manager, Judit Toomey-Kovacs, has taken up the new role as the ship’s official tea guru, to help diners find the perfect blend this spring. 

Fingal’s spring afternoon-tea menu is being launched in time for Mother’s Day on Sunday 30 March and will be available daily from 12pm until 3.30pm in the hotel’s  Lighthouse restaurant. 

Judit has selected two tea varieties for the new spring afternoon-tea menu, including Yunnan moonlight white tea and jasmine yin hao green tea.  The former is made from the early harvest buds and leaves of the ancient tea plant and gets its name from the process of withering the leaves under moonlight. The latter is scented using a traditional process, which involves layering the tea leaves with jasmine petals.

Judit said: “My passion for tea began while working and training with some of the world’s leading experts at top luxury hotels.

“My favourite tea is our Fingal blend, which is a balance of different Ceylon teas, combined with Assam Yunnan and first-flush Darjeeling to create a refreshing and uplifting afternoon tea. This variety is the perfect pairing with savoury food like fish, meat and eggs.

 “There are lots of options to pair with desserts, but I would recommend our Yunnan moonlight white tea. It has a slightly woody, but clear scent, a soft flavour and a light amber colour.”

The spring afternoon-tea menu includes cured sea trout, nori and avocado purée, with  crème fraîche; and Wye Valley asparagus and chorizo tart with sauce gribiche.

The freshly prepared sandwiches have fillings of chicken, spring onion and smoked bacon; roast beef and rocket with beetroot and horseradish; glazed ham with English mustard mayonnaise; and Belhaven crab Marie Rose with cucumber relish.

The choice of sweet treats includes raspberry pâte de fruits with an almond sablé biscuit; Yorkshire rhubarb-and-ginger cheesecake; Valrhona chocolate moelleux with Glenmorangie Chantilly; and pistachio and amaretto macarons.

Fingal’s spring afternoon-tea menu is priced from £65 per person. Advance reservation is required.

www.fingal.co.uk/restaurant/afternoon-tea

Image: Fingal, of Judit Toomey-Kovacs