The Barbote tea farm is nestled in the steep hills of Ilam, Nepal, planted by his grandfather and tended by his father but grower Narendra Kumar Gurung spent most of his working years with the Japan International Cooperation Agency. Like most of Nepal’s new-generation farmers, specialty tea is a new endeavor built on a century-old foundation of commodity production.
The Satemwa Tea Estate, founded in 1923, began to revive the production of orthodox teas about 15 years ago. It is the only estate in Malawi crafting orthodox teas. Taster Alfred Mwase says, “my only experience prior to 2010 was CTC. My first tasting of specialty stimulated interest in these unique teas. Satemwa is a pioneering estate that is open to experiments with new tea cultivars, withering times, rolling techniques, oxidation times, and drying cycles.”
“Down-chain tasting invites creative adventures into language and experience that is independent of a single lexicon. The focus is on concrete references to scents and aromas but abstract descriptors that personify overall quality are effective. Of course, your words have to describe something that touches on a shared experience — otherwise, it’s useless.”
Tea Journey readers span the globe. Half of the magazine’s subscribers reside in Asia and Europe and Africa. That’s why this year’s last-minute gift guide features festive items from India, Europe, and China. These gifts bring to mind holiday celebrations around the world
While hot tea still cools millions worldwide, it is iced and cold-brewed tea that quenches the thirst of urban dwellers on the go. Our Summer Fun gift issue offers some great iced teas, pitchers, tea makers and teaware. Now is the perfect time to review the terrific selection of recipes for A Summer Barbecue by Culinary Tea author Cynthia Gold. Recipes include tea-smoked salmon, tea-grilled wings with hot dipping sauce, matcha and white bean dip, and gourmet s’mores.
Tea is proven to enhance the well-being of those who drink several cups a day. It inspires a process of discovery among imbibers, cultivating a deep appreciation for the growing, crafting, and preparation of great tasting tea. Finding your own favorite tea leads to a daily ritual and, in time, a healthy life-long habit.
Long before cut, tear and curl (CTC) dominated tea processing in the West, India exported sizeable quantities of handmade orthodox tea to an appreciative world market. Small factories at small gardens cultivated the art of rolling
Eons of evolution in the ancient tea forests of China has established a complex and delicate biomass. The gnarled, pale-grey and green trunks of the oldest trees are home to myriad adaptations of spiders, lichen, and the tree parasite known to locals as crab pincer, a tea mistletoe.
Tea is a culinary wonder prominently on display in spice racks around the globe. In ancient times tea traveled the Silk Road and shared cargo space on ships inbound from the Spice Islands (in the 16th Century, the Moluccas, now Indonesian Maluku, were known as the spice islands for their nutmeg, mace, and clove), a destination for European traders.
Tea drinkers are thoughtful, socially active people attuned to the needs and interests of others. They experience life deeply and appreciate its simple pleasures. The ritual and silent meditation that accompany a daily tea break encourage self-reflection. These times call for reflection as we count our blessings and consider the sacredness of our time on earth with those we love. – Dan
A beautiful tea tray byThéières du Monde will bring your tea ceremonies to another level. This finely crafted wood tray is ideal for a traditional gong fu style tea tasting for mom.
Consider one (or more) of these gift possibilities for the Valentine who loves tea and chocolate. Sweetly sentimental!
Teasy is an innovative infuser designed to bring out the delicate flavours and true taste of your loose-leaf tea. With Teasy you can see the tea as it steeps, and with just a twist of the wrist, you can separate tea from the leaves at just the right moment. Your tea will have its full flavour without being over-steeped.
Nepal’s altitude, seasonality, soil, and various microclimates combine to establish a remarkably well-suited terroir for growing tea. The country’s finest teas are delicate with subtle aromas; Handmade teas are an expression of the tea maker’s art, inspired by new demand for delicate whites, oolongs, and airy black teas sold directly to retailers in Europe, Asia, and North America.
Annual subscriptions for tea are growing in popularity more many reasons. Subscription plans are convenient and encourage tea discovery. Tea sellers love the flexibility of offering a range of teas that reveal current trends and consumer preferences for organic teas, for example. Bagged or loose-leaf, herbals or single-origin limited editions, tea clubs are a good value and great way to learn about tea.
BRU is on a mission to simplify the tea-making process. This innovative brewer offers the freedom to set your brewing time, water temperature, and cup size at the twist of a dial and push of a button that allows you to perform a ”stacked steep” with three different infusions. The first infusion maximizes the tea’s aromatics, the second extracts natural sugars, and the third extracts phytonutrients and polyphenols. The machine saves your previous settings so you can quickly repeat the process without changing the settings every time.
Travel Mug Reinvented. This leak-proof traveler features patented steep control. Makes Tea or Coffee Hot or Iced — Anytime, anywhere. Stainless Steel Cup, Triton Infuser, Plastic Leak-Proof Cap, Silicone Seal. | Height 23 cm, 9.1 in x Width 7.5 cm, 3 in | Volume with Infuser 460 ml, 15.5oz – without 520 ml, 18 oz | Colors: Mint, Mustard, Raspberry, Gray, Royal Blue, Grape.
Sri Lanka celebrated its 150th anniversary of tea beginning in 2016 and culminating in the International Tea Convention and Expo in Colombo in August 2017.
The KitchenAid Pro Line Series Electric Kettle is a versatile multi-purpose holiday gift. Designed to deliver exceptional performance and intuitive functionality, the electric kettle provides precise temperature selection and dual wall construction that keeps beverages warmer inside while staying cool to the touch on the outside. The base rotates 360° for easy lifting from any direction, and an external circular temperature gauge provides continuous temperature measurement, even when the kettle is removed from the base.
As the global popularity of tea soars, so does the ingenuity of candy makers, who are now incorporating many types of tea into their tasty products. Holiday time is perfect for exploring all the new gift options this presents. Be sure and order early, though, or risk being disappointed if your choice sells out.
Rains essential to the 2016 flush throughout East Africa arrived too soon or they arrived in torrents too late — but mainly they didn’t arrive at all.
The Barbote tea farm is nestled in the steep hills of Ilam, Nepal. It was planted by Narendra Kumar Gurung’s grandfather and tended by his father. Narendra spent most of his working years with the Japan International Cooperation Agency. Like most of Nepal’s new-generation farmers, specialty tea is a new endeavor built on a century-old foundation of commodity production.
The harvest is just beginning in Argentina, the southernmost tea growing region in the world. This year November temperatures were unusually cool at the beginning of spring in the Southern Hemisphere.
Long before marketers labeled it organic, Nepal tea was grown with care. Harmony with nature was always the province of the nation’s 18,000 small tea farmers clinging to the mountainsides like the trees they nurtured.
This has been a year for reflection, an opportunity to re-examine our habits and everyday routines. Lockdowns and losses re-emphasize the importance of maintaining our good health―both physical and mental. Tea calmed us during the pandemic, it provided a pleasant daily pleasure―a welcome break. Tea became an at-home habit worth preserving.
These exquisite teas make perfect samplers to tantalize the palette. From shop favorites to a collection of chai Cornelia Bean will customize your order. Enhance the experience further, infuse these teas in the beautifully hand crafted glass tea infuser, The Wall.
Tea vendors make something special of the holidays with seasonal blends, special gift tins and packaging and scented teas to warm the home.
Shopping for a brewer? Tea Journey covers the globe looking for innovative and advanced tea brewers to make every kind of team from matcha to machine-learning internet operated models.
Four Symbols teas are sourced in the unique tea lands of China, harmonizing the artisanship of man with nature to produce authentic specialty loose-leaf tea.
Almost everyone has a secret charm secretly locked in the back of the mind: a magic word, favorite number, or familiar habit – in short, something guaranteed to bring good luck. A star has fallen from the sky on top of this teapot like a lucky star to brighten your table, guaranteed to make a wish come true with every cup of tea.
Ah, nights by the campfire under the stars with a warm cup of camp-brewed tea! Designed with both safety and practicality in mind, this kettle’s ergonomic handle is wrapped in insulated plastic to protect hands from heat. A pointed continental spout allows for easy steam exit, lowering the risk of scalding injuries. The kettle can be used on an open fire, and heats water in only 3-5 minutes.
During these difficult times, tea’s calming effect comforted many, but mothers most of all. If there is something missing that will make her everyday tea ritual more pleasant, now is the time to purchase that convenience. Consider a bright teapot, a brewer, tea caddy, porcelain cups, or mug. If mom has everything she needs close at hand, consider a gift of tea-themed jewelry or a book to curl up with till normalcy returns.
Tea Journey’s first annual harvest review gives you the big picture on the global tea business in 2016 along with insider information from local experts on some of the year’s most interesting teas. Especially for tea enthusiasts in the West, we hope this issue brings you a step or two closer to your favourite tea gardens – and your next new favourites!
Fine teas reveal their elegance in layers. Rock oolongs, for example, respond to short, controlled steeps in small volumes of water. Teasy offers that level of control with greater convenience and a larger volume than a gaiwan.
Gift sets make any tea occasion special. Matching teapot, cups, saucers, creamer, sugar bowl, and even a flower vase make this rose adorned teatime set from Théières du monde the ultimate for entertaining.
Considered a basic for a tea book library, this gorgeous volume is by the chef-owners of Quebec’s Camellia Sinensis Tea House and covers history, farming techniques, and tea culture, among other subjects. You can buy it directly from the Tea House’s website, which is in French, under “Cadeaux Pour Debutants” (Gifts for Beginners).