Discovering Breton tea

Mathilde Bourge | 6/15/24, 2:14 PM

The aptly named Émile Auté grows and processes tea leaves for infusion between Finistère and Morbihan. This expert now supplies some twenty top restaurants in France, whose teams he trains in the "tea ritual", a step that enables them to appreciate the particularity of Breton teas, reflections of a specific terroir.

Since 2018, a highly prized plant has been growing at the Kérouzéré mill in northern Finistère. The name? Camellia sinensis, a tea plant native to the Far East that adapts perfectly to the Breton climate: "Even if the weather is fine several times a day in Brittany, the weather conditions are fairly regular. Our shrubs come from Yunnan, China, where morning mist gives way to afternoon sunshine, just like in Brittany", comments Émile Auté.

This former restaurateur and business manager first became interested in the idea when he was running a cocktail bar: "I wanted to make an Earl Grey infusion for a cocktail, but the tea, from a big house, wasn't of great quality. It hadblueberry petals instead of bergamot zest", he explains. Émile Auté began making his own blends of tea and fruit, before taking the plunge and becoming a "tea farmer".

After living on a market-garden farm, where he was able to run experimental plots, and training with the Confédération paysanne, he tried his hand at a solo venture insolo in 2015, first in the Perche region, then in partnership in Brittany, with Michel Thévot, owner of the Kérouzéré mill, not far from Morlaix."Initiator of the plantation, Michel Thévot called on me to manage harvesting and processing," explains Émile Auté. In this exceptional setting, he plants, harvests and transforms the tea leaves, true "otnis" (unidentified theicultural objects) made in Breizh! "I'm not trying to do what they do in China or Japan. For me, the notion of terroir is very important. Even if we start with the same plant, the soil, climate and iodine of the sea offer a completely different rendering."

Picking time. Atelier Tsukimi

Although Maison Émile Auté offers seven different teas, from white to green to black,"Glaz" tea remains its finest signature: "It's somewhere between green and blue tea. In Breton, glaz is the word for the color of the sea, right between these two shades. It can be infused up to seven times, and develops different aromas with each infusion," assures the producer, who visits his restaurant customers to teach them the correct serving techniques."It 's important that they pay the same attention to the teas as to the other products on the menu", he assures us. Jean-François Piège at the Grand Restaurant and Eugénie Béziat at the Ritz in Paris, or, more locally, Nicolas Conraux at La Butte in Plouider, are already fans of his creations.

Three questions for Nicolas Conraux, chef at La Butte in Plouider

Why did you choose Émile Auté teas for your establishment?

Nicolas Conraux: We work as much as possible with local products, including beverages. Tea isn't endemic to the region, but I've discovered that it grows on our land, so I might as well make the most of the opportunity. To me, it's just common sense.

What are the special characteristics of these teas?

N.C.: The main characteristic is that they are much less bitter than the others, and also very floral. I think that, in any case, when you have the face of the producer in mind and he works in the most exemplary way possible, your perception of the product is bound to be better.

How do you use these teas?

N.C.: Of course, we serve them at the end of meals, but we also use them in cooking, to make broths. I like to serve fish with delicate flesh, like pollack for example, in a broth with subtle notes. Finally, we use these teas to make our own kombucha and other living drinks.