What is ESEA Heritage Month?
Firstly, it’s good to understand what the acronym “ESEA” stands for: East and/or Southeast Asia(n). The ESEA region includes around 20 countries and territories such as China (plus Hong Kong, Macau and Tibet), Taiwan (where our Chief Tea Officer Tina is from), Japan, Malaysia (where our PR and Marketing Specialist Choon’s family is from), Thailand, and the Philippines. In the UK, there an estimated 1-2 million people of full or partial East or Southeast Asian descent, making them the third largest pan-ethnic minority group. However, they are perhaps the most underrepresented, with low figures across many industries, including in the media and arts, and at all levels in work, particularly senior management and C-Suite.
ESEA Heritage Month was founded by besea.n (Britain’s East and Southeast Asian Network) in 2021 and invites everyone – no matter their background – to enjoy a month-long, collaborative programme of events, dedicated to East and Southeast Asian heritage, culture, history and everything in between. It’s a chance to celebrate, acknowledge and learn about the incredible ways in which our communities have helped shape the UK. This year’s theme is “Changing Seasons”, which offers a reflection on the cyclical nature of life.
Just as the seasons transition, so too do our experiences, cultures, and identities within the ESEA communities and beyond. From the tangible shifts in weather to the evolving cultural zeitgeist, this theme encapsulates our collective journey towards new beginnings and growth. It is certainly a theme that gets creative and interpretive juices flowing and conversations started on what it could mean to each individual.
5 great fellow British ESEA-owned drinks brands to check out
Because we love to support other ESEA companies, here we have listed five great British ESEA-owned drinks brands we admire whose products you should definitely look out for.
1. JIN JIN (Thai)
Using traditional methods from East Asia, JIN JIN is a non-alcoholic enzymatic concentrate with a fruity, sour, subtly tart and earthy flavour profile. Made with 35 fermented natural ingredients from fruits, vegetables, mushrooms, and cultures it is a transformative lifestyle drink that enhances wellbeing, so is one that definitely aligns with our healthy oat milk tea lattes! We have previously collaborated with JIN JIN founder Sohn Aursudkij and are doing so again for our ESEA Heritage Month giveaway – check it out on our Instagram to win one of their lovely tote bags!
2. Mothaiba Vodka (Vietnamese)
“Một hai ba” means one, two, three in Vietnamese. Now it’s also the name of a brand new unique vodka. Their first is Pandan flavoured, which is a tropical plant that grows in Southeast Asia. Pandan leaves have a naturally sweet taste and soft aroma and is often described as reminiscent of vanilla. Sustainably distilled in the UK, Mothaiba caters to both the many Asians who would be familiar with the taste and something new and exciting to those who aren’t. Owner Liliane also co-founded Hút, which sells long-lasting edible straws made from rice & tapioca, with all natural food based ingredients including food derived colours.
3. Nomad Bean Coffee (Asian – Indian and Malaysian)
Shining a light on Asia’s best coffees and the hospitality and coffee drinking traditions you would find across Asia, Nomad Bean Coffee was founded by Arjun and Akid, whose heritages are Indian and Malaysian, respectively. They aim to make high-quality Asian origin coffees accessible to everyone, starting with their flagship Vietnamese Coffee, which is the second largest exported coffee in the world.
Furthermore, each cup of Nomad Bean Coffee supports their mission to make the traditional Asian coffee drinking experience ethical, sustainable and accessible. Nomad Bean Coffee are also participating in our giveaway, so you can win a month’s worth of Vietnamese pour over coffee – that’s 30 pouches!
4. Tarsier Spirit (Philippines)
Intermediate in form between lemurs and monkeys and measuring no more than six inches in length excluding the tail, tarsiers are a little known primate that lives only in a few Southeast Asian islands. Bringing awareness to these cute critters which are vulnerable to extinction is Filipino-owned gin company Tarsier Spirit. Co-founded by Sherwin Acebuche and his partner Tim, Tarsier is not only named after the animal but features it in their logo.
Sherwin and Tim were inspired to start Tarsier Spirit after a backpacking trip around Southeast Asia after discovering so many amazing flavours of the region. They then decided to distill the essence of Southeast Asia and bring something new and innovative to the spirits category with their range of gins, of which there are now six and one vodka. And to help the tarsier, they donate 10% of their profits to conservation projects.
5. Saicho (Hong Kong Chinese)
Founders of Saicho Drinks Charlie and Natalie have created a non-alcoholic drink with ingredients that possessed the same sort of complexity and heritage that wine does. Because Natalie does not drink alcohol and found limited soft drink options she could enjoy on the same level wine drinkers do, Saicho Drinks was the perfect opportunity to fill this niche and bring in her Asian heritage. And of course, that means TEA! As we have already explored, tea has an amazingly rich history and culture akin to wine, so these sparkling teas make perfect sense.
Celebrating ESEA Heritage Month with HumaniTea
As an ESEA-owned social enterprise founded by our Taiwanese-born Chief Tea Officer Tina Chen, we are proud be able to support a number of ESEA groups doing amazing work with and for the community across the UK. For Heritage Month we have donated or will be donating cans to:
- Voice ESEA‘s ESEAHM x MCR Celebration (as a raffle prize)
- ESEA Authors Lit Fest at SOAS on the 14th (for the first 48 people attending)
- Sheffield Chinese Community Centre meet-up on the 19th
- besea.n’s flagship event on the 28th (for their goodybags)
We have also showcased or will be showcasing our drinks at:
- Meta’s APIs@EMEA event
- Imperial College
- EVR‘s Community Care Retreat
- ESEA Heritage Market at Sky on the 10th
You can find out about all the events happening throughout September in the UK here. If you are interested in collaborating with us in the future for other events, ESEA-related or not, please do not hesitate to contact us.