gourmet Archives - Page 4 of 4 - Four Seasons Magazine

Souvenirs That Will Change Your Life

Posted on March 10, 2016March 16, 2022 by FourSeasonsMagazine.com

For the traveller, destinations are far more than the sights they see or the mementos picked up along the way. The places they visit offer new perspectives and unforgettable experiences with the power to enrich their lives long after they return home.

This November, embrace your inner traveller and embark on a Cultural Escape aboard the Four Seasons Private Jet. During this 19-day journey, you’ll travel to six destinations across three continents, including Dubai, the Seychelles, the Serengeti, Florence and London. Follow a customised itinerary and experience the art, history, landscapes, food, traditions and people of each unique destination.

The difference between a tourist and a traveller lies in the way they perceive their destination. For the tourist, their destination is a place, an endpoint on an itinerary that offers access to a checklist of attractions and souvenirs.

At the end of this incredible journey, you’ll carry home with you new passions, tastes, lessons and perspectives forged from intimate interactions with local cultures—which only Four Seasons can deliver. Here, we highlight some of our favourite souvenirs.

Spiritual serenity in Seychelles

Take home a new feeling of tranquility and sense of spirituality after a yoga practise in Seychelles.

In the Seychelles, all paths lead to beauty. The African nation comprises 115 islands in the Indian Ocean, and it’s a favourite destination for romance, outdoor adventures, wildlife sightings and relaxation.

From your base at Four Seasons Resort Seychelles, located on the archipelago’s main island of Mahé, you can dive, snorkel, hike through nature preserves and shop local markets. Yet it’s difficult to find a better way to soak in the spirit of this beautiful setting than through a yoga session.

At sunset, accompany an expert yogi on a short hike through the forest to a mountaintop overlooking the ocean. Your yogi will guide you through peaceful meditation and yoga, teaching you breathing and relaxation techniques to the sights and sounds of nature. You can also practise a hatha flow out on the open water during a one-on-one paddleboard yoga session. It’s a great way to lose yourself in the tranquility of the sea.

What you’ll take home: Once you’re back in the real world, summon your new meditation techniques, pranayama breathing exercises and Technicolor memories as a reminder to slow down, find peace and live mindfully. “At its core, yoga means union of mind, body and soul,” says Arun Dev, one of the Resort’s yogis. “Union of ego and the spirit, union of the mundane and the divine.” Embrace that unity to find solace in the hustle and bustle of everyday life.

Four Seasons Resort Seychelles

Check Rates & Availability

A rekindled love for Mother Nature in the Serengeti

Appreciation for nature is deeply rooted in the Maasai people. Learn why it is so important to have a profound respect for the wildlife during your stay in the Serengeti.
Photography courtesy Robb Aaron Gordon

Most who travel to Africa’s fertile plains seek views of the Big Five: lions, leopards, Cape buffalo, elephants and rhinos. If, after your game drive or hot-air balloon safari, you still crave a deeper understanding of the Serengeti and its wildlife, look no further than the Maasai.

The semi-nomadic Maasai tribe inhabits the Great Rift Valley region of southern Kenya and northern Tanzania. Members are known for their athleticism, craftsmanship and superior knowledge of and respect for the landscape and its animals.

During your stay at Four Seasons Safari Lodge Serengeti, accompany a Maasai warrior on a walking safari to learn how to identify animal tracks, plants and insects, or venture out with your guide for a full-day visit to a Maasai village. In the evenings, the Resort’s Maasai guides congregate for traditional dance ceremonies.

What you’ll take home: The Maasai are known for masterful beadwork, particularly ornate and colourful necklaces. You can buy one of the locally made varieties, but your true souvenir is a newfound appreciation of nature inspired by the Maasai people. Before formal religion was introduced to East Africa, nature played a large role in the Maasai faith. Plants and animals hold a cultural significance for the Maasai, and many plants are still used in traditional medicines. Learn about the importance of living alongside and preserving nature, as well as the Maasai’s high respect for local wildlife.

Four Seasons Safari Lodge Serengeti, Tanzania

Check Rates & Availability

Tuscan flavours in Florence

At Four Seasons Hotel Firenze, and throughout Italy, food is meant to be savoured and prepared only with the finest ingredients.

In Italy, food is more than just fuel for the body. Italians take pride in preparing cuisine, using the finest and freshest ingredients to produce dishes that rival works of art. In homes and restaurants from Florence to Palermo, mealtimes are never rushed. Instead, they are savoured moments for tasting and enjoying every flavour together.

During your three-day stay in the city, you’ll gain exclusive access to exhibitions and artisan studios, and travel to the vineyards of the Chianti wine region. But gourmands shouldn’t miss the full-day culinary excursion at Villa Monteoriolo, a 15th-century estate that has been producing olive oil for more than 200 years.

Using the estate’s homemade olive oil and locally sourced ingredients, an expert chef will teach you Tuscan cooking techniques and guide you through the preparation of a multi-course dinner, which you’ll enjoy in the villa’s intimate dining room.

What you’ll take home: Tuscany’s climate and soil produces a low-acidity olive oil that is one of the freshest and most flavourful in the world. Pick up a bottle at Villa Monteoriolo so you can practise your new Italian cooking skills for loved ones at home, using only the most authentic ingredients.

Four Seasons Hotel Firenze

Check Rates & Availability

Evolved coffee rituals in Dubai

In Dubai, coffee is more than a caffeine fix—it is an art and a symbol of joy, carefully tasted and enjoyed.
Photography courtesy Bateel International L.L.C.

Though this seaside metropolis is decidedly modern, with its steel-and-glass skyscrapers and over-the-top attractions, Dubai’s multicultural population imbues it with charm and character.

Throughout the city, you’ll find cafés serving Arabic coffee, a blend of coffee beans and spices such as cardamom, cloves, ginger, rosewater and saffron. The coffee is often served with dates rather than sugary confections, and it’s poured from a dallah, an ornate pot made of brass, steel, silver or gold.

The drink is traditionally prepared to welcome guests, and it plays a distinct role in your most exhilarating adventure while in Dubai: a journey by 4×4 into the desert for a royal dinner under the stars. You’ll be welcomed by a traditional Arabic coffee service before you go sandboarding, watch a falconry demonstration and feast on an elegantly prepared dinner.

What you’ll take home: Arabic coffee, dallahs and finjaans—the small round coffee cups that accompany the traditional service—can be found at Dubai’s souks and luxury shopping centres. Even if you don’t purchase a set for yourself, take home the spirit of community inspired by the Arabic coffee ritual. Bring the symbol of hospitality to life for guests in your home for years to come, sharing your understanding of coffee-drinking etiquette with every sip.

Four Seasons Hotel Dubai International Financial Centre

Check Rates & Availability

Trip details

Throughout the journey, travel aboard the Four Seasons Jet, a retrofitted Boeing 757 that is spaciously configured with only 52 seats – leaving ample room for you and the souvenirs you pick up along the way.
Photography courtesy Robb Aaron Gordon

Your cultural escape through Europe, Africa and the Middle East begins and ends at Four Seasons Hotel London at Park Lane. From London, you’ll travel aboard the custom-designed Four Seasons Jet and enjoy Four Seasons accommodations and renowned service at every step of the journey. The trip begins on November 4, 2016.

Discover more about the Cultural Escape itinerary and begin your journey >

YOUR JOURNEY BEGINS HERE

Select a destination and start exploring

Inside Bogotá’s Burgeoning Café Culture

Posted on February 17, 2016January 9, 2018 by Nell McShane Wulfhart

Colombia’s coffee has long set the standard for quality, since the first beans were planted in the 16th century and exports began in the 1800s. But until recently, it was nearly impossible to get a good cup in Bogotá.

Lately, Colombia’s capital city has experienced exponential growth, sparking a cultural revitalisation. Experimental theatres, art galleries, restaurants, nightclubs and trendy boutiques began percolating in neighbourhoods like the fine-dining Zona G, the nightlife-filled Zona Rosa and the upscale 93 Parque. And that growth is now expanding to coffee shops, vibrant new spots to fuel up for deep conversation or a night on the town. Finally, it’s possible to find excellent Colombian coffee – in Colombia. Why did it take so long?

The rise of the local roast can especially be seen in Bogotá’s Zona G neighbourhood, where cafés are joined by restaurants and shoppes.

Photography courtesy Piers Calvert

The problem was everyone else’s love for the country’s coffee: Nearly 90 percent of Colombia’s beans were being exported. From October 2013 to October 2014, more than 10.8 million 60-kilo bags were consumed outside Colombia, of a total production of 12.1 million bags.

The beans left behind were of the poorest quality. And the traditional method of brewing didn’t help – scalding the beans with too-hot water until all that’s left is a burnt, watery brown liquid often called tinto. On Bogotá streets, coffee vendors sell small plastic cups of this brew, heavily sugared, for around 1,000 pesos (US$0.35).

A new roast

Happily for locals and visitors alike, things are changing fast. First, in 2002, came the Juan Valdez Café coffee shops, which are to Colombia what Starbucks is to the U.S. – a chain of cafés serving perfectly acceptable coffee that raised the bar on tinto.

Then, to target an emerging new breed of higher-end coffee drinker, the company opened Orígenes de Juan Valdez Café, a high-design concept café. Patrons take a seat on the rooftop deck and order a Sierra Nevada French press whilst gazing down at Zona G. The area’s couple of square blocks are packed with popular restaurants such as El Cielo (molecular gastronomy), Bruto (Spanish Basque cuisine) and Criterión (Colombian ingredients meet French techniques).

Four Seasons Hotel Bogota

And now, more-creative spots are eclipsing chain shops. Walk around Bogotá today to find a handful of standout independent cafés where devotees handcraft long blacks and lattes that rival the best coffee houses in New York or London. With their modern design, rows of AeroPresses and bearded baristas, these places may look as if they’ve been transplanted from Brooklyn.

But there’s a distinction that makes the experience here even better: The beans are exclusively Colombian, steeped in Bogotá’s heritage and sourced from micro-lots all over the country.

Cafés in Bogotá

Azahar

Often referred to as the Container Café, Azahar is dedicated to serving local brew to a community of coffee aficionados.

Photography courtesy Piers Calvert

In the 93 Parque neighbourhood, a great place to grab lunch and people-watch, a shipping container painted slate grey now houses Azahar, one of the rising stars of this new Colombian coffee movement. Nearby you’ll find a variety of boutiques such as local jewellery designer Mercedes Salazar, and an independent theatre, Cinemanía.

Bourbon Coffee Roasters

The sleek, modern Bourbon Coffee Roasters also feels warm and inviting, thanks to its location in a Victorian-style home in the Quinta Camacho district.

Photography courtesy Piers Calvert

Bourbon Coffee Roasters, owned by Paola Laguna and Jose Alberto Rosero, is a sleek wood and glass café with a peaceful enclosed garden. It’s located in Quinta Camacho, a hub of trendy shops and restaurants that draws some of the city’s chicest for live music and multi-course meals.

To complement a cup of delicious coffee at Bourbon Coffee Roasters, order from the selection of light breakfast and café fare.

Photography courtesy Piers Calvert

Devoción

Devoción serves 17 varieties and offers five preparations: espresso, siphon, pour-over drippers, French press and Kyoto cold slow drippers.

Photography courtesy Piers Calvert

On busy Carrera 7, Devoción – which recently opened an outpost in Brooklyn, a true sign that a “scene” has emerged – sports marble countertops and antique bottles on wooden shelves. It also produces world-class coffee, made in Kyoto-style cold slow-drippers and siphons.

Your coffee tour of Bogota

The best part? Each of these cafes are within a quick walk or ride of Four Seasons Hotel Casa Medina Bogota and the soon-to-debut Four Seasons Hotel Bogota.

Colombian beans

These local cafés have one major thing in common: a single-minded dedication to local sourcing to achieve the highest quality roast.

Photography courtesy Piers Calvert

Bourbon buys from micro-lots in different areas of Colombia, such as Santander, Huila, Nariño and Cundinamarca. Varieties include Caturra and Castillo, and the beans are roasted on site.

Devoción buys directly from micro-lots in every coffee zone in Colombia. In 2014 alone, Azahar sourced coffee from more than 420 different Colombian farmers, all of whom processed the beans on their own land: de-pulping them, fermenting them overnight and drying them on wood beds.

The fruits on coffee plants mature in 7 to 9 months and typically contain two flat seeds, which are the coffee beans. Tours of Colombian coffee plantations are available for visitors to see first-hand where and how coffee is grown.

Photography courtesy Piers Calvert

These carefully farmed beans generally score above 86 points – a classification of excellent – on the Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) “cupping” scale. They are noticeably sweet, clean and juicy, exhibiting unique terroir. Most of them, grown in partial or full shade, come from farms above 1,700 metres. (Higher altitudes usually yield better beans.)

It’s this attention to buying distinctive beans from small-holder farms – under 5 hectares (12 acres) of land – that characterises this new third wave of Colombian coffee.

Four Seasons Hotel Casa Medina Bogota

Behind the trend

What led to the demand that’s allowing a greater share of the best beans to remain in country? In recent years, more Colombians have travelled abroad and returned with a taste for fine espressos and lattes. Knowledge about roasting, brewing and barista techniques is a big part of this growth.

Azahar co-founder Tyler Youngblood says, “If specialty roasters like ourselves are buying coffee directly from farmers, cooperatives and growers’ associations, then milling, sorting, roasting, packaging and serving the product, we’re certainly not going to be changing the cost of a cup of coffee every day.”

Photography courtesy Piers Calvert

Joshua Maidan, co-owner of Devoción, and Bourbon’s Laguna both give some credit to Starbucks for educating travelling Colombians and promoting a coffee culture. Another factor is the positive impact the new cafés have on farmers. Coffee farmers are largely at the mercy of the “C” market (coffee priced as a commodity), which almost all exporters and importers use to determine what farmers are paid. This number, however, has almost no relation to the actual costs of production. Being able to sell more coffee locally means less reliance on the international price.

I believe it’s predominantly about educating local consumers about the benefits of drinking better coffee, and how to taste the difference of a good cup. – Joshua Maiden, Devoción co-owner

“We can offer farmers stable prices that allow them to make a living and maintain the quality of their product,” Tyler Youngblood, co-founder of Azahar says. And with lower transportation costs, plus the benefit of fresher beans, consumers benefit as well.

A local movement

Waking up to smell the coffee, indeed. This is a country just beginning to enjoy its own best product – and the chance to start sharing it with visitors.

Photography courtesy Piers Calvert

“The domestic consumption of Colombian coffee is on the rise, in large part spearheaded by specialty roasters,” Youngblood says. “Regular roasted coffee sales are the highest in over a decade, and premium coffee sales have been growing by as much as 10 percent. Growth as high as 20 percent is expected for specialty coffee retail, as more and more people here are drinking coffee away from home.”

This means that locals are filling the new breed of cafés. Youngblood says that just 10 percent of Azahar’s customers are foreigners. “Often the coffee or farm names on chalkboards in cafés in the United States, Europe or Asia are so foreign to your average customer that they don’t really mean much to them,” he says.

“In Colombia, it’s not that way at all. People are really moved when they discover that the coffee they’re drinking comes from an individual farmer in a part of the country they’re familiar with. There’s a growing pride in Colombian beans.”

Your Journey Begins Here

Select a destination and start exploring

Explore

6 Ways to Drink Tea Around the World

Posted on October 10, 2014November 6, 2017 by Jennifer Sanchez

Since it was first cultivated 5,000 years ago in China, tea has become one of the most popular beverages in the world—one with a rich history that spans continents and cultures. Today tea is revered for its pleasing taste and endless varieties, as well as its rejuvenating effects and health benefits.

Whether you prefer green, black, white or oolong—all types of tea that stem from the same plant, Camellia sinensis—tea is an excellent source of both disease-fighting flavonoids and antioxidants that help detoxify damaging free radicals in your body. Strong evidence links regular consumption of tea (two or more cups per day) with a reduced risk of heart disease, lower cholesterol and possibly even prevention of cancer, not to mention its soothing properties.

Not only can sitting down with a cup of tea be relaxing—and good for you—it is also a valued social tradition observed in cultures all over the world. In many places, the ritual of the tea service is as important as the beverage itself. Here are some memorable ways to savour tea at Four Seasons hotels and resorts around the world.

Longjing tea, which grows in the rich soils of Hangzhou in China’s Zhejiang Province, is used in multiple skin-nourishing treatments at the Spa at Four Seasons Hotel Hangzhou at West Lake.

View photo

Not only a delicious refreshment, mint tea is also an institution of Moroccan culture, still used today to welcome guests or help pass a leisurely afternoon.

View photo

Floral notes of blooming Jasmine and earthy tones of Japanese sencha are only two of the flavourful blends featured on the global tea menu at Café Prato at Four Seasons Hotel Mumbai.

View photo

Steeping single-origin whole-leaf teas in an innovative, single-use tea infuser, TeaVert is revolutionising the modern tea experience while preserving traditional practices.

View photo

During an afternoon picnic at Four Seasons Hotel London at Park Lane, admire the surrounding landscape from the uniquely designed split-level terrace as you polish off a variety of classic tea treats.

View photo

Request the Cocktail Afternoon Tea service at Four Seasons Hotel Singapore and enjoy a spread of pastries and sandwiches as you sip on a non-alcoholic cocktail infused with Darjeeling tea.

View photo

Tap or click a photo to launch slideshow

Green tea in Hangzhou

Longjing, or “dragon well” tea, is the world-renowned green tea grown on the hillsides surrounding West Lake and throughout China’s Zhejiang Province. The bright emerald leaves are picked by hand, as they have been for centuries, and dried using a large metal wok in order to stop the fermentation process; this treatment gives the tea its distinct flavour. Enjoy a cup of longjing during the daily traditional tea service at Four Seasons Hotel Hangzhou at West Lake, or head to the Spa for a one-of-a-kind Dragon Well and Jade Spring Ritual. After a bath containing the extract of 60,000 tea leaves, enjoy a body scrub, wrap and massage that all utilise the tea’s restorative properties.

Mint tea in Marrakech

At the Maarifa Cultural Centre at Four Seasons Resort Marrakech, take part in Morocco’s artistic and cultural offerings—including a mint tea ceremony. Throughout the country, the ritual is performed to welcome guests into one’s home; at the Centre, guests are taken through the elaborate ceremony, which involves steeping tea leaves and sugar in boiling water, then serving the tea with handfuls of fresh mint in small glasses. It’s a refreshing and hospitable way to enjoy Morocco’s beloved beverage.

Global offerings in Mumbai

Four Seasons Hotel Mumbai pays homage to local and global tea flavours with a Tea Connoisseur’s Delight menu at the Hotel’s Café Prato. Guests choose from blends sourced from India, such as Kashmiri kahwa from the Himalayan foothills or southern India’s Blue Mountain nilgri. Japanese sencha, African rooibos and herbal infusions fill out the menu.

Sustainable tea in Seattle

Seattle may be known for its outstanding coffee, but discerning tea enthusiasts can now enjoy premium, single-origin whole-leaf tea at Four Seasons Hotel Seattle. Partnering with TeaVert, a Seattle-based company that sources its tea leaves using sustainable cultivation practices, the Hotel is the first to introduce four of the company’s unique tea blends, now available in ART Restaurant. Each tea is presented with a handcrafted single-use tea infuser, made in the U.S. from a fully biodegradable, FSC-certified white birch raw veneer without the use of harmful chemicals.

Tea for two in London

Afternoon tea is a cultural institution in England, and Four Seasons Hotel London at Park Lane is now offering a charming afternoon tea picnic—complete with a wicker basket filled with the proper British sandwiches, cakes and scones wrapped up in vintage tins, plus a half bottle of Bollinger Rosé Champagne. Each basket also includes a tea-brewing egg timer to ensure that the accompanying tea is served precisely to your liking. Enjoy your picnic on Amaranto Restaurant’s lovely landscaped terrace.

Afternoon tea with a twist

In a fun variation on tradition, One-Ninety Bar and Terraza by Javier de las Muelas at Four Seasons Hotel Singapore now offers a Cocktail Afternoon Tea Service, which joins the Classic and Champagne Afternoon Tea offerings on the menu. Choose your drink from the exclusive Diva Cocktail Collection, which features non-alcoholic or low-alcoholic-content beverages infused with ingredients like Darjeeling tea and ginger and named after powerhouse women such as Elizabeth Taylor. When they’re served in glass teapots, accompanied by an assortment of sweet and savoury bites, teatime has never looked (or tasted) better.

Your Journey Begins Here

Select a destination and start exploring

Explore

Tag: gourmet

Souvenirs That Will Change Your Life