Engineering the Ultimate Boba Milk Tea, Part 1: Introduction

First, I want to acknowledge that Camellia Rd’s boba tea is not for everyone. And that’s 100% OK. Taste is subjective. Some people want more dessert-y boba, and others want stronger creamer powder flavor. When it comes to food and drink, there are certainly better and worse ingredients and techniques. But there are so many styles and types of boba tea that all have different appeals. The "best boba" or best anything really depends on you and your preferences. 

Secondly, it feels a little silly to talk about boba tea in a way that feels so serious. I want to acknowledge that as well, because boba tea is so inherently inclusive and our goal is not to alienate anyone. But since Camellia Rd Tea Bar opened 8 years ago, we've done hundreds of drink tests and iterations and we want to share some of those experiences and lessons. And this is how I actually think and talk about boba tea internally.

So consider this series a look behind the curtain. If you want to learn more about how we think about making the best boba milk tea in the world, continue on:

Reference points

Familiarity and nostalgia add to our experiences. Food and beverage is subjective and internally we often talk about preferences and develop reference points. One of my favorite comfort foods is a double-double burger from In N Out. It's a California legend, and a late night trip there after a long shift is so satisfying. You can feel how each step and each ingredient is prepared intentionally and adds to the overall experience*.

This is probably best described by the TV character Marshall Erikson from the sitcom How I Met Your Mother:

The first sip of boba milk tea I ever had was a from a local chain next to a supermarket while I was waiting for my grandma to finish shopping. I got a simple boba milk tea, but the drink was somehow creamy, bitter, sweet, and fun to drink at the same time. Each component; the milk, the tea, the sugar, and the boba all worked in a way to make the drink taste much better than any drink I'd had before.

The whole is greater than the sum of its parts

With Camellia Rd's boba milk tea, there's no one "secret ingredient". It's just a lot of attention to detail. Each step, ingredient, and technique ladders up into a better boba as the final result.

In the next series of blog posts, I'm going to dive into the different aspects and decisions along the way towards engineering the ultimate boba milk tea. You can expect to read about the following topics and categories:

• drink cup
• ice
• sweetener
• milk
• tea
• boba

So if that interests you, or if you have any questions or specific topics, let us know in the comments below or send us an email! Would love to hear from you.

-Ricky

*Ricky's preferred In N Out order: Animal-style, add raw whole onion