Healthier in-between drink

Infuusa

THERE are only two types of drinks people bring to spin class, observes product designer by day and fitness instructor by night Ng Wei Lieh: plain water and energy drinks. The former is a little plain for those who want a bit of kick in their workout drink, and the latter is unnecessary. "It's like driving a Ferrari to the supermarket just to do grocery shopping," he says. "You burn about 300-400 calories in a one-hour spin class, but you're consuming 200 calories from one bottle of energy drink - and it's full of chemicals."

So the 39-year-old decided to come up with a healthier in-between. He first started experimenting with cold-brewed teas - teas made by steeping them in room temperature water for two to 12 hours - which results in a smoother and sweeter taste, and retains more antioxidants, but the wait time proved too impractical his busy lifestyle.

A few trials later, he came up with Infuusa, his own range of cold-brewed fruit infusions. A "teabag" - there are actually no tea leaves involved - of his Quad Berry flavour contains fruits such as blueberries, blackberries, strawberries and raspberries first dehydrated and then milled down to near-powder form before being packaged in finely meshed Japanese teabags - all to accelerate the steeping process.

Each sachet contains only five calories and is best steeped in 500ml of water for 3-10 minutes. His second flavour, lemongrass and ginger, has a curious transition from a bitter entry to a lingering sweetness on the back of the palate from the inclusion of licorice root, a TCM favourite for soothing coughs and inflammation.

Both the Quad Berry and Lemongrass Ginger flavours are entirely caffeine-free, though Mr Ng is working to launch two new tea-based flavours, a rose green tea and a peach black tea naturally sweetened with organic stevia leaves for those who need a subtle post-workout buzz, he reveals, followed by further flavours and potentially a ready-to-drink line for retail in gyms and cafes.