An evening reception dedicated to strengthening friendly business and cultural ties between India and Russia was hosted at Four Seasons Moscow Hotel, on September 19. The event was named Indian Tea Samovar Dinner and was organized by Tea Board of India, Embassy of India, Moscow.
Over 200 representatives of the Indian and Russian tea industry visited the Indian Tea Samovar Dinner, among them were representatives of the restaurant business and the media. The Ambassador of India in Russia Mr. Venkatesh Varma arrived at the reception, also Ramaz Chanturia, CEO of the “Roschaykofe" Association attended the Indian Tea Samovar Dinner. The official part of the event included speeches of high-ranking guests on the topic of new opportunities for the development of trade relations between the two countries. The presentation of professional tea masters who demonstrated non-standard brewing of popular tea varieties was a milestone of the event.
Polina Sagara, the winner of the Russian Championship Tea Masters Cup 2018 in the category "Mastery in Tea Making", shared with the guests an amazing history of acquaintance with the culture of India and Darjeeling tea, which she brewed using both traditional and alternative methods by allowing tea to infuse in cold water. The tea master Yevgenia Yarchenko attracted the guests' attention with her story about the flavor characteristics of Sikkim tea and a wonderful combination of this marvelous drink with the traditional Indian dessert "Rasmalay" based on milk and saffron. No less interesting and cognitive was the performance of a tea master and mixologist Vladimir Dobrovinsky, who demonstrated the brewing of Assam tea according to the author's recipe with alcohol, milk and citrus syrup.
Throughout the evening, guests could enjoy national music and dances in an informal atmosphere, taste traditional Indian cuisine. The friendly atmosphere of the evening invited to easy communication and establishment of new business contacts between the tea business of Russia and India.
The ensemble of performances included mesmerizing classical Indian dance performances of Bharatnatyam and Kathak along with Russian folk dance Berezka. The performances received standing ovation from enthusiastic audience.
Moscow, September 25, 2018
