Got a bit of bubble tea fever? Add another contender to those battling for your top bubble tea spot.
If you're new to bubble tea, it's a drink that has been popular with Asian cultures for many years. It usually involves fruit teas or milk teas with added "toppings" like chewy tapioca balls (pearls), jelly or pudding.
Gotcha has several stores, with their latest at 59 Elizabeth St, Melbourne CBD
The classic is a cold milk tea with pearls but nowadays you can get so many more combinations. There are several bubble tea stores every few metres in the city. Warning: once you try it, you might get a little addicted.
The neon shopfront will catch your eye as you walk down the street
So what's the difference with Gotcha? Some stores use syrups and powder to make their tea, but Gotcha uses freshly brewed tea, grown from their own plantation in Mount Ali, Taiwan. They brew each order and have a focus on the customer as well as the health benefits of tea.
The brewing staff
Meanwhile, their bright and pastel pink interior design welcomes the customer. It invites them to stay and enjoy their tea. You'll find many other shops only have a shopfront for takeaway drinks.
Pinks and neons welcome you into the store
When it came to the tea, we tried a range of flavours. Like many shops, you also get to choose how much ice and sugar you want, as each customer has a personal taste. Some flavours even come as a hot version rather than the common iced version.
The top 20 list will make it hard to choose just one flavour to try
We ended up with Black Sugar Fresh Milk, Honeydew Fresh Milk and Kumquat Lemon Tea. Brown Sugar Pearl drinks seem to be the latest trend at bubble tea shops, so the number 1 is not surprising, and my favourite. It gives you more of a milky taste but the sugar really sweetens the milk and pearls.
There was no more jelly available for the Honeydew, but to our benefit, they replaced it with their Golden Pearls, which are honey-soaked and also delicious.
My friend had the Kumquat drink but asked for no sugar, so it was quite sour with a hint of sweetness - suitable for those who like their lemonade sour!
Our choice of bubble tea flavours
I also saw their latest promotion when I left - their new Black Sugar collection now has a chocolate and matcha version. I have also tried their Springvale outlet before and enjoyed the Mother's Favourite, another milky option.
There is a big focus on their farmed tea
With four stores already in Melbourne and plans to expand, look out for Gotcha because it might just become your new favourite beverage. Their range caters to everyone from those who prefer more milk-based drinks to those who like fruity teas. I know I'll be returning to try their Black Sugar Chocolate edition!
To more brown sugar bubble teas
