Families And Festivities
When the tips of leaves start to turn yellow and fallen chestnuts scatter on the sidewalks, it’s time to bake pumpkin cookies—because Thanksgiving is coming.
Families And Festivities
When the tips of leaves start to turn yellow and fallen chestnuts scatter on the sidewalks, it’s time to bake pumpkin cookies—because Thanksgiving is coming.
Inspiring enthusiasts to refine their taste in tea
13 Spooky Tea Reads For Halloween
We associate tea with soothing, calm moments (can’t you just feel yourself relaxing?). What better way to keep readers interested than to lull them into a happy, tea-induced mood and then BAM! throw the unexpected.
Jérémy Tamen: The Earth and the Senses
When asked what the key to a successful blend is, the first word that comes is “love,” love of the plant and love of the producer, from which stems a desire to always enhance the products and never distort them.
On A Chai Trail: Laal Saah in Assam
“Right from the tea workers who pluck the bud at the crack of dawn to the manager of the tea estates who still live in a time-warp in their colonial bungalows, laal saah rules the roost from morning to sunset. But don’t be fooled by its outwardly egalitarian existence, it is only a ruse. If one is inclined to look hard, then the differences unravel themselves…”
Maria Kockmann: Tea With Consciousness
Bringing consciousness to tasting, not just in the sensory experience of the mouth or intellect, but also in the body. Sometimes these approaches face each other: the very Western sommelier side, especially French, and the very experiential Chinese approach.
Kumaon Adds New Chapter To An Old Tea Story
Kumaon was where a lot of British tea experiments took place. It’s land-locked location led to its losing out on what Darjeeling or even Kangra saw. In the last decade there has been a revival taking place led by Raj Vable in the US and Desmond Birkbeck in Kumaon.
Selling Tea In Shanghai
John Smagula stopped for tea at the Nan Yuan tea store in Shanghai. He chatted with Zhou Yin and learned about the changing dynamics for tea sellers.
When Tea Became Chai
If you imagined that Chai was part of the traditional Indian kitchens and comes with a long history, you’ll be surprised to know that chai is very much a 20th-century creation.
Argentina’s Matcha Style Powdered Tea
In our Tea Discovery series, we make our acquaintance with Argentinian powdered tea, resulting from experiments by farmer Mario Paredes. “Tea plantations were being destroyed because black tea had stopped being profitable. Matcha caught our attention, because we saw it as one of the healthiest drinks in the world,” he says.
Book Review: Tea Leaf Reading
We all enjoy a good cuppa tea, but why not take that enjoyment step further with doing a little tea […]
Tea Discovery: Lumbini Tea Valley White Tea
In the lower elevation gardens of the Lumbini tea estate, bordering the pristine Sinharaja Forest, a decade-long pursuit has led to a special white tea range, produced in small batches for discerning tea seekers.
Aspiring to Be Good Fathers: The Dreams of Boys
Fatherhood is not just about being there physically but also about being emotionally present and engaged. Boys are motivated to create and sustain meaningful relationships when they witness this healthy behavior in their fathers.
OXALIS: Connecting Czech Culture and Spirit
Tea culture in the Czech Republic got a boost when Petr Zelik decided to revive it with his company OXALIS. Inspired by Eastern cultures and Western preferences, this is the story of a tea brand that has kept up with changing times and continues to make its impact in tea.
The Botanical Magic of Tea in Gin
Because of their affinity, gin and tea are natural botanical bedfellows, adding complexity to one another when used in concert. In the early 2000s, Desmond Payne, Master Distiller (now emeritus) at Beefeater Gin, created Beefeater 24, which included Sencha and Chinese green teas as key differentiators in the botanical list. Since then, thanks in great part to the cocktail renaissance, multiple companies have incorporated teas into their gins, producing spirits whose profiles can gently or aggressively reflect the types of tea they employ.
Withering Enhances Florals in Japanese Tea
Ichō or ichoucha is withered tea. The first process in producing Japanese green tea is steaming the leaves as soon as they are picked to stop oxidation and keep their strong green color. However, by withering them first, the leaves undergo a slight oxidation between harvest and steaming, bringing out the floral notes.
Journeying on the Darjeeling Train
In 1881 when it was completed, the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway was the only option to commute. Anyone who missed the train boarded a bullock cart on a much longer journey. There was no concept of a “Toy Train” back then. In the decades since it was constructed the commuter railway with its 55 miles of zig-zags and loops has established itself as a tourist attraction. It was a welcome change for those who prefer a closer look at the Hills instead of just check-boxing! Among those who came were authors, filmmakers, poets, scholars, and artists. When the Buddhist monks traveled on regular passenger trains, they also had opportunities to interact with residents, which brought them closer to the realities of daily life at the hills.
Pyrénees: The Birth of a New Tea Terroir
A tea enclave has emerged amid the Pyrénees Mountains, a natural barrier between France and Spain that runs over 430 kilometers from the Mediterranean Sea to the Atlantic Ocean. A young agronomist, Lucas Ben-Moura established a new terroir in the Argelès-Gazost valley, a few kilometers south of Lourdes.
Mother’s Day Teas that Empower Women
The tea industry relies on women whose strong yet nimble fingers pluck the delicate buds from the trees and sort the imperfect from the perfect leaves. Yet women are far more likely to live in extreme poverty and have less access to education. This Mother’s Day Tea Journey celebrates the companies and individuals change that narrative by educating, empowering, and enabling women in tea. Join us in supporting those who a difference for mothers and female tea workers worldwide.
Hien Minh and the Evolution of Vietnamese Tea
“There are nights when the full moon is clear, and the golden light radiates like a warm forest. The ancient tea trees lit up magically, their warm, sweet fragrance mixed with a little bit of night incense… We would love to capture that magical moment through the tea which holds in it a feeling of mystery, something shrouded in the darkness.” – Nguyen Viet Hung
Araksa Tea Room
With every delicious sip and satisfying bite, the Araksa Tea Room in Bangkok is revolutionizing Thai tea culture. Araksa means “to preserve” and both the tea garden and restaurant promote Thai traditions while simultaneously elevating the way tea and food are produced and consumed.
On a Chai Trail: The Bengali and their Cha
That the Bengali love tea is now legendary. And in Kolkata, the capital of West Bengal, tea is part of the social and cultural fabric. Our Chai Trail series takes readers up close and personal to the tea culture across India, and this story is a peek into the Bengali homes and the place that tea has in their lives.
Who’s Cooking Badaga Food?
Badaga food from the tea-growing Nilgiri mountains is distinctive from all other Indian tea-inspired cuisines. Tourists drawn to South India are fascinated by the stories of this indigenous tribe that has lived in the Blue Mountains for centuries.
Tea and Romance Between the (Book) Covers
Teatime allows us to slow down and savor life – and what better way to savor life than by escaping with a good book? Put on the kettle and nestle into your favorite chair to celebrate Valentine’s Day with a romantic read. These tea romances explore many relationships: romantic, friend, family, and even our relationship with ourselves.
Romantic Tea Infused Chocolates
There’s an ideal pairing for every kind of tea and chocolate. Finding the right combination produces a union that delights the palate and raises the individual components to a higher level.
Anything for Tea: Budget Backpacking in Nilgiris
Buddies Cafe in Ooty. This cafe is the largest tea room in India, which features over 220 varieties of tea: artisanal and hand-crafted single-origin teas, orthodox blends, tisanes, and CTC dust. When I first entered the cafe, Nirmal Raj stood next to a wall of transparent glass tea canisters and opened them enthusiastically to allow customers to inhale as he spoke animatedly about each tea. After leaving my non-heated hostel, I chanced upon the cafe, searching for a warmer place to write from. As a shoestring budget backpacker, I had traveled to the Nilgiris tea-growing region on an overnight bus from Bengaluru, India, and soon found myself returning daily to Buddies Cafe.
Taster Profile: Chandra Bhushan Subba
“My decision to embark on the path of professional tea-making and tasting was deeply rooted in my upbringing. Surrounded by the intricate dance of tea artisans and the fragrance of freshly plucked leaves, my fascination with tea began at a tender age. I’ve been living with tea for over three decades now. The stories shared by elders and how the plant encapsulated my entire world captivated me from early on. I never thought there was another option and never truly looked for one.”
An Unforgettable Holiday Tea Feast
This holiday season, use tea as a special ingredient to elevate your main dishes and cocktails. From prime rib to mushroom risotto, tea makes everything taste better.
Festive Holiday Tea Desserts
The holidays are perfect for combining your favorite teas and festive desserts. Bakers from around the world share their best tea-themed recipes with Tea Journey readers.
Cocooned in Darjeeling: The Mayfair Manor, Jungpana
Stay in a restored bungalow originally built in 1910 and once the residence of the Nepali royal family. It offers 12 exquisitely decorated and spacious suites, each named for an historical figure attached to the estate.
Tea Tourism Offers Panacea for Darjeeling’s Woes
Experience a holiday in the tea gardens and hotels near Darjeeling where lodging is an indulgence, with old-world charm and gorgeous vistas.
Drinking Tea History in Nara, Japan
The Butsuryu-ji Temple grounds are a treasure trove of historic tea memorabilia that includes statues of the famous Japanese Buddhist monk Kukai and his disciple Kenne and artifacts so significant to Japanese heritage that the national and local governments registered them as cultural properties.
Artisanal Tea Maker Utilizes Rare Roseate Cultivar
Rose reserve tea is not just a mark of the enchanting flavors fostered by Nepal’s unique high-altitude micro-climates and terroir but also an embodiment of the keen talent of a new generation of tea-makers.
Mai Tea Estate Breathes Life Into Nepal Community
Mai Tea Estate Breathes Life Into Nepal Community | Ritu Rajbanshi | The Mai Tea factory, located in Mai Pokhari wetlands near Ilam, Nepal, has been a boon to the 180 local farmers who earn a stable income from producing high-quality teas. Tea maker Thribikram Subba honed his tea-making skills for nearly two decades, slowly gaining opportunities to work with experts from India who came to the factory as consultants. Over the last two years, he has started making his own tea without supervision. “I feel like I have finally mastered the language of tea,” he says.
Reinventing Darjeeling Tea
Planter Rishi Saria is reinventing tea production in the fabled Darjeeling hills. “It has been over a hundred fifty years since the British brought Chinese tea to Darjeeling and over three-quarters of a century since they left,” he says, “yet we Indians continue to process tea the same way the British did rather than learning from our fellow Asians.”
“Hello Love” the Teas of El Salvador
Marcela Figueroa held a vision and a mission to convince the people of El Salvador to become tea drinkers. Twelve years ago, she began experimenting with local herbs and flowers in blends to meet the demands of consumers seeking health benefits. Four years later she started LAFIROA tea to realize her vision. Marcela spoke with South American correspondent Horacio Bustos about her award-winning teas.
Hand Processing Tea in Yamazoe, Japan
Farmers and other locals run the five-hour tea-making workshop near Japan’s Yamazoe Village. Tea Journey contributor Greg Goodmacher attended to learn from teacher Kenichi Ikawa Sensei how to select, pan-fire, and hand roll freshly picked raw leaves transforming them into sencha tea using centuries-old techniques.
Pairing Tea With Alcohol: Dad’s New Favorite Hobby
This Father’s Day give dad the gift of a new favorite hobby, pairing tea with alcohol.
Misako Lelong-Nohsoh, a Tea Ambassador’s Journey
Misako Lelong-Nohsoh shows us that Japanese green tea is nothing to fear. She takes away the formality of the Japanese tea ceremony and introduces us to Japanese green tea as she wants us to experience it: as a beverage like wine, coffee, or black tea that is woven into the everyday fabric of our lives. This is the delightful story of her journey from Japan to France and from violist to Japanese Green Tea Ambassador.
Tea Under the Palms
This book is for every person who has ever dreamed of having formal tea with the upper classes, perhaps at Downton Abbey. The photographs of bone China cups and saucers, three-tiered plates of scones, savories, and sweets, and settings for enjoying afternoon tea’s decadence will make you swoon — a true hedonist’s delight.
Celebrate Mother’s Day with Tea-Infused Recipes
Use the magic of tea to delight and honor your mom this Mother’s Day. These tea-infused recipes are the perfect way to celebrate!
The Teahouse Experience
“Stepping into the teahouse should feel like stepping out of the daily world into a place of beauty – of carved wood, paintings, sculpture, calligraphy, and delicate porcelain. It would be lit with silk and stone lamps. Music would be playing at just the right volume, and the tea served must exceed the drinker’s expectations even more than the environment where it is done.” – Austin Hodge
A Nerd’s Tea Lab
This book is a sensual delight: in it, you learn to explore tea using your senses, including sight, smell, taste, and even sound. Dr. Lovelace describes experiments you can try at home with tea using budget-friendly materials. This is a fascinating journey into the science of tea you can take without leaving home.
Authentic and Sustainable Tea Tourism
Consumers who experience the origin, terroir, and processing of the leaves in the cup can engage more deeply by visiting tea-growing regions to learn about tea. Visiting origin forever alters one’s relationship to tea. But before delving into the myriad tour options it is important to reflect on how our actions may impact others. Namely, while simultaneously seeking an authentic, hands-on tea tour, one must also consider which programs are sustainable and respectfully engage the host culture(s).
A Bowl of Matcha at Hosen-in, Kyoto
Hosen-in is not just a gorgeous place to enjoy tea. The gardens are a marvel of meticulous care and attention to detail. The Buddhist temple, part of a group of temples on a hillside overlooking the village of Ohara, was founded 800 years ago. Hosen-in has stood the test of time.
Cooking A Romantic Valentine’s Day Dinner With Tea
Make this Valentine’s day unforgettable by cooking a romantic dinner with tea as your captivating and alluring secret ingredient.
Katrin Rougeventre: Immersed in Asia
Katrin Rougeventre’s journey is a singular one. She is France’s leading expert on Chinese tea and Chinese culture and has contributed to its diffusion in Europe. Among all the great French tea experts, what distinguishes Katrin is undoubtedly her roots in Asia, where her entire gustatory and sensory training took place.
Taster Stefan Gieschke On Doing Justice to Good Teas
It is demanding to do justice to the “good teas” in their characterization and description, to capture and describe the nuances accurately and all the work that goes into these teas. It is also crucial to find a price that does justice to the work that the tea pickers, the tea makers, and the garden management put in. – Stefan Gieschke
Honing Oolong Cha Qi Through Fire
Before the advent of electricity, all oolong tea was charcoal roasted to reduce moisture in the leaf. It’s only natural that many producers choose the gentle, stable heat of electric burners and ovens. It makes tea roasting easier and more consistent. The tea makers who remain loyal to the charcoal fire often learned by tending the coals at a young age as part of a long-standing family tradition. Others find that they simply cannot resist its captivating call.
A Tale of Two Kathmandu Tea Shops
Bhairab Risal, a veteran journalist with a sharp memory at 94, speaks with ease and zeal of his memories of the early days of Kathmandu’s tea culture. In 1948, at the age of 20, he recalled his first cup of tea at Tilauri Mailako Pasal, one of Kathmandu’s earliest and best-known tea shops. In this article, Kathmandu journalist Prawash Gautam shares tales of two storied tea houses.
Kazakh Culture is Centered on Tea
Tea plays an essential role in Kazakh culture, as no celebration or family feast is held without drinking tea. Sharing tea is a ritual of unity. When someone visits a Kazakh family, tea is served first. The custom, called syi-ayak, begins with the washing of hands. The tea is ladled into a ceramic drinking bowl called a Piyala (Piala). The head of the family (husband) is the first to be served; the guests thereafter. Tradition holds that after dinner, everyone remains seated until the last person has finished drinking their tea, then everyone leaves together.
Camellia Sinensis: The Evolution of Experiential Retail
“Our stores have always offered the option to smell the tea, and clients really appreciate the opportunity to select their tea sensorially. We are done with the impracticalities of the sit-down visit, but we wanted to capture that special tasting moment and offer the possibility to take it further.” – Kevin Gascoyne, partner Camellia Sinensis, Montreal.
Taster Profile: Carine Baudry
The world of smells is closely linked to our experience. We work on memory, and so everyone describes tea with different terms. My role as a tea taster is to understand each one and say, “you are actually talking about the same compound.”
Hengzhou is Jasmine’s Promised Land
Spring begins a romance as jasmine flowers meet the newly plucked tea. Spring green tea and summer jasmine flowers are mixed at a strictly-calculated ratio. Hundreds of processes exist to make the miracle tea. The bitterness of tea and the sweetness of flowers are a perfect compliment. Jasmine grown in Hengzhou meets the high expectations of famous brands at home and abroad.
Taster and Pioneer Tea Sommelier Lydia Gautier
A pioneer tea sommelier in France and the author of several reference books on tea, Lydia Gautier has been a consultant for many international brands. Her 25 years of experience and proximity to producers have led her to become one of the major figures in tea expertise in the world, and in 2107 to create her own brand, Lydia Gautier Thés et Tisanes.
China’s Gou Gu Nao “Dog’s Head” Mountain Tea
Mountainous Suichuan county in Jiangxi Province offers an incomparable microclimate for local cultivars, producing an exceptionally tender leaf. Gou Gu Nao Green Tea is highly prized. The processing method is quite complicated. It is refined through eight processes. The shape of Gou Gu Nao Tea is tight and rolled to a slight curl. The color is bright green, the aroma is fresh and elegant, and the taste is fresh and thick with a sweet and long aftertaste.
Azerbaijan Growers are Restoring its Tea Legacy
Depending on the variety and quality, the price of local tea in the domestic market ranges from $4.70 to $29 (8-50 manats) per kilogram. Recently, farmers say, the demand for higher quality has increased markedly. People have discovered that local products are of better quality, and therefore they are willing to buy Azerbaijan tea, despite the apparent high cost.
Beyond Tea Cuisine
What’s changed is what I hoped would change. There is no such thing as ‘Tea Cuisine;’ it is no longer an oddity or a fad. It’s just another palate of ingredients and techniques that can and do inspire many chefs and mixologists. – Cynthia Gold
Argentina’s Catalyst for Tea Innovation
Argentina’s National Institute of Agricultural Technology (INTA) is a cutting-edge organization in the Agro-technological sector in agricultural research, extension, and innovation. The institute is a decentralized state organization with operational and financial autarchy, associated with the Ministry of Agroindustry. INTA operates in the five ecoregions of Argentina (Northwest, Northeast, Cuyo, Pampeana, and Patagonia) through a structure that includes: a central headquarters, 15 regional centers, 52 experimental stations, six research centers, 22 research institutes, and more than 350 Extension Units.
Meitan County’s Tribute to Tea
Meitan Cuiya is an early spring green tea oxidized for a few hours in the shade before processing. It is made from high-quality fresh and tender tea leaves and undergoes 20 complex processes, including spreading, fixing, shaping, and drying. The leaves appear straight and flat. The aroma is long-lasting above a bright green liquor. The tea has a fresh taste with abundant amino acids, polyphenols, and vitamins.
Q|A Ceramic Artist Luo Shi
Luo Shi uses iron-rich Miaoli clay and traditional methods to bring his vision of nature to life. His work, such as his wonderful teapots, sell for hundreds of dollars each in his homeland and have earned him celebrity status in Taiwan’s fine arts and tea-drinking circles.
Nepal’s Specialty Tea Evolution
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.
Magnificant Mozambique
Once the most productive growing region in Africa, Mozambique’s tea gardens lay idle during decades of war until investors realized the potential of rejuvenating millions of mature tea trees naturally purged of pesticides and chemical fertilizer.
Herbal Teas: Know the Risks So You Can Enjoy the Benefits
Many tea drinkers enjoy the benefits of herbal teas, but are they receiving herbal tea’s health benefits? The critical question is, “are herbal teas good for you?” This article addresses the risks of herbal teas and aims to answer that question.
La Ruta del Té
Knowledge of how tea is grown and processed came naturally to fourth-generation Argentine grower Carolina Okulovich but she observed that was not so for the tourists and visitors to the farm who found tea cultivation and processing fascinating. That was how the idea arose to create a learning experience for visitors touring the 15 hectares known as La Ruta del Té.
Cultivating Tea in Colombia
Tea in Colombia was first planted 75 years ago. Joaquín Llano González and his son, Alberto Llano Buenaventura, became the first commercial tea growers and their farms La Sofía and Hacienda Himalaya, located in the mountains of the western Andes above the Pacific Coast, continue producing Colombia’s sole domestically grown brands.
The Tea History Collection
The Tea History Collection fills a huge gap in the documentation of the history of the business of tea the world over. Very few individual tea companies possess archives that relate to their own history, and many other tea businesses simply disappeared when they closed or were bought out.
Fine Tea from the Island of Jersey
With its 1,800 hectares of soil, the Jersey Royal is spoilt for choice when it comes to deciding where to plant tea. The islands’ acid soil is perfect for the tea plant to grow. Thanks to the Gulf Stream, Jersey winters are mild, without any risk of frost, while summers are moderately warm and sunny. The island’s high humidity also provides ideal conditions for the tea plants to thrive.
Tea from the Clouded Mist of Huangshan
For centuries, in southwest Anhui, Huangshan Mountain has endeared itself to scenic seekers, poets, and tea lovers. During the Five Dynasties, Shezhou Dafang tea was a tribute tea favored by the imperial family. In the Song Dynasty, at the onset of commercial trade, the acreage under tea expanded continuously and a variety of famous teas emerged.
Rediscovering 174 years of Tea
The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew houses a remarkable cache of tea leaves and tea material culture collected over the past 174 years. Kew, a 326-acre botanical garden southwest of London opened in 1759 and today houses one of most diverse living and dried botanical and mycological collections in the world.
Cultivating Tea in Coastal Portugal
In 2011 Portuguese wine maker Dirk Niepoort and his wife Nina Grutkowski planted two hundred seedlings in their garden adding a little at a time until, in 2018, there were 12,000 seedlings. Last spring Camélia Tea processed its first commercial crop, with a distinctive flavor that is the result of a terroir of its own.
A Remarkable Quest Reveals Untold Chapter in Tea History
From Hwuy-Chow Foo, a tea-growing district in Anhui, China to Pauri, India, the Nilgiris, Munnar, and Chennai … the Ajoo family story traverses an untold chapter in the history of Indian tea, a road James Ajoo is trying to retrace, “to say I landed my feet where my ancestor had walked.”
Anhua’s Dark Allure
Growers in Anhua county invented the dark tea processing technology before 1524, which led to the rise of dark tea production and marketing. The compact and easily transported tea was very popular locally and in 1595, Anhua dark tea was formally designated as the “Official Tea” of the Ming dynasty government making it a regulated form of currency.
Tea from the Heights of Bolivia
The Bolivian government has invested in tea production as part of its Poverty Alleviation Program leading to the creation of ecological brands pioneered by ChaiMaté Tea, an IMO certified supplier producing teas competitive for export.
Kérouzéré Mill’s Botanical Garden
The Léonard region of Brittany in Northern France has been considered a land of plenty for centuries; but who would have thought that a tea perfectly expressing the alliance between land and sea would grow from its soil?
An Organic Tea Grower from the Land of Tie Guan Yin Oolong
Tie Guan Yin oolong, the quintessential “slow tea of China,” is time-consuming to produce and meant to be savored slowly. In Anxi, Fujian, the birthplace of Tie Guan Yi, the locals, like organic tea grower Rong Feng Wang, are fiercely proud of their oolongs. Here’s Wang’s tea journey.
A Heritage Tea for Modern Times
Tanyang Gongfu tea is experiencing notoriety as well as increased demand that dates to the 1980s when local growers collectively raised their production standard, earning a reputation for quality hongcha (red tea). The tea is grown in Fu’an which takes its name from a poem in which a Song dynasty emperor bestowed five blessings: “Lucky Heaven, Lucky Earth, Lucky Mountain, Lucky Water, and Lucky Tea.”
Alfred Mwase: Crafting Orthodox Teas Amid a Sea of CTC
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.”
Remote Farming During a Pandemic
The pandemic was the worst thing to happen to Nepal’s Kanchanjangha Tea Estate, but there is a silver lining. “It radically changed how we work,” says Nishchal Banskota, who manages operations via Zoom calls between Long Island, New York, and his family’s tea estate. It’s early morning for me and the end of the day for my father, but after nine months, he says, “I have more confidence that I can manage a farm remotely.”
Andrew McNeill on Down-Chain Tasting
“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.”
Last-Minute Holiday Gifts
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
Gyokuro: Deep Sea Savory and Sweet
The aroma that swirls from a package of gyokuro, especially one of the highest grades, is so extraordinary that you could stop right there and be satisfied.
Holiday Gifting 2020
Orit Eisenberg is irrefutable proof that it sometimes takes 25 years to become an overnight success. During the recent World Tea Virtual Summit, Eisenberg, a product development specialist and production designer, told her founding story with humor and extraordinary passion. She launched the Mennä ONE in September 2019 after testing 20 prototypes over five years, gradually refining the elusive challenge of controlling steep time on the go.
Reach Out to Students, the Next Tea Frontier
Given the interest among young adults, tea promoters would be wise to expand their outreach to places where these folks congregate: colleges and universities.
Harvest Review: Tea in the Cordillera
Chileans drink an average of 427 cups of tea a year, more than any South American country and almost as much per capita as the Chinese, placing them among the top 20 tea consuming countries.
Taster Sensation Kevin Gascoyne
My introduction to tea was unspoken and visceral. Humble mugs of the strong, milked ‘builder’s tea’ of my youth in the North of England still fill me with nostalgic pleasure whenever I’m in the U.K. My body chemistry has never been without the magic nectar. – Kevin Gascoyne
Japan’s Cultural Tea Bridge to Europe
The currents of Japanese tea culture are flowing outward to Europe. In the past 50 years, Europeans have been diving and delving into the green waters. What is it about Japanese tea that attracts Europeans, and how is it pouring into European culture?
Sri Lanka’s Artisan Tea Collective
Sri Lanka celebrates diversity in tea. A new generation of Ceylon tea growers recently established an artisan tea collective to showcase exceptional teas produced to interest a niche domestic market and equally, the international market.
Destination Songyang China
Modern Songyang integrates the essence of mountain and river, the taste of the countryside, and the beauty of folk art and local customs. The terraced hillsides are typical of traditional tea-producing regions, but Songyang is also a model county for national tea industry development. Plantations cover 20,403 acres of plants used in making 76,000 metric tons of Yinhou and Xiang green tea.
Harvest Review Argentina
Uniquely positioned in the southern hemisphere where the harvest will soon be underway, Argentina is one of the world’s great tea producing nations. The first few months of the November 2019 harvest were very rainy. Growers report achieving normal volumes of good quality black tea for export.
Garden of the Fairies
In 2014 in Brittany, France, Denis and Weizi Mazerolle processed 50 grams of their very first green tea using traditional Chinese methods. The tea had its own typicity, expressing aquatic, greeny, and seaweedy notes, it was a pure evocation of its terroir. Two thousand trees now make their garden, Filleule des fées, one of the largest in Europe.
Tea’s Immunity Boosting Properties
In marketing tea, health has always played an important role. In her book Tasting Qualities, Sarah Besky writes that back when the Indian Tea Association (ITA) was promoting “Empire Tea” (teas originating in the colonies), medical journals were linking the increased consumption of these malty, astringent teas from British colonies to a population-wide rise in indigestion and constipation. Tea’s most important benefit today is boosting immunity.
Roy Fong: A Chinese-American Journey
At age 6, on his way to school, Roy Fong would linger at a Hong Kong food stand where day laborers were making gongfu cha. Sometimes someone would offer him a cup, and he never forgot the wonderful aroma and taste.
Three Mindful Tea Drinking Experiences in Japan
The originators of the Japanese tea ceremony believed that the simple activity of sharing tea with a friend was like the path of a falling cherry blossom. It is a fleeting encounter on a path that can never be exactly repeated.
Harnessing the Inherent Charm and Potential of Farm and Forest Tea
There is no doubt that in this golden age of tea quality frontier teas are precious opportunities to increase the spectrum of possibility. With the right care, everybody could win as producers gain a new source of income and the flowering of that beautiful craft-pride from focused artisanal activity. We should never forget, when tasting new tea, to exercise reverence for the passion and determination it takes to harvest and convert any form of the leaf into a finished tea.
The Importance of Water
Shun the expensive spring water If you want a better-tasting cup of green tea ― your water of choice should be from the tap. If it is health benefits you seek, choose bottled or deionized water for superior extraction of catechins, nearly double that of tap water.
Review: Tasting Qualities – The Past and Future of Tea
Tasting Qualities: The Past and the Future of Tea by Sarah Besky manages to easily deconstruct and demystify the space between the plantation and the cup of tea.
Craft Tea for Younger Generations
During the past few decades, all types of tea, from herbal to Pu’er, have re-emerged in premium formats favored by younger generations. “What makes the super-premium tea category unique, in my view, is the importance of storytelling with regard to ingredient origin, processing, and functional appeal,” says Euromonitor Beverage Analyst Howard Telford.
Advocating Artisan Tea for Smallholders in Assam
The Tea Leaf Theory team is very lean, choosing to remain independent, bootstrapped, refusing certifications, they represent a new kind of startup, modern yet rooted in something traditional, ancient even. There’s the social impact but Tea Leaf Theory is not an NGO working for small farmers. “We want to make them entrepreneurs, not beneficiaries,” say co-founders Upamanyu Borkakoty and Anshuman Bharali.
Mother’s Day Teas That Empower Women
The tea industry runs on the backs of women. Their strong yet nimble fingers pluck the delicate buds from the trees, and sort the imperfect from the perfect leaves. Yet in many tea-producing countries, women are far more likely to live in extreme poverty and have less access to education. However, some people are striving to change that narrative by educating, empowering, and enabling women in tea to rise up and bring others with them. This Mother’s Day Tea Journey wants to celebrate the companies and individuals who are helping make a difference for mothers and female tea workers around the world.
Argentina’s Matcha Style Powdered Tea (Spanish version)
En las tierras misionales existen muchos cultivos diferentes, desde los más exóticos y novedosos como la moringa hasta los tradicionales […]
On a Chai Trail – The Parsi Choi
Parsis call tea choi, not chai, cha, or tea, but choi. Choi was never, ever consumed on its own. There were always Bhakras, the soft cookies made with dough fermented using palm toddy, or chaapat, a flat, mildly sweet pancake. For special occasions, ghaari – thick dough discs filled with a mixture of bananas cooked in ghee, dates cooked till gooey, or a sweet dal paste were served.
Beyond the Brew: Immersive Tea Tours
Immersive tours are a remarkable equalizer, bridging the gap between seasoned tea connoisseurs and novices. Through shared experiences of plucking tea leaves alongside local farmers, crafting their blends, and witnessing the alchemy of leaf to cup, they forge bonds that go beyond language and cultural barriers.
Tea Discovery: Indian Chai
Masala chai is like a mini meal, as it not only includes the well-documented health benefits of tea but also has protein and calcium from milk, anti-inflammatory properties from ginger, and superfood benefits from spices.
Tea for Dummies
Coming up with the (right?) words
When I do a tea tasting with customers or friends, I often give them our tasting wheel to help them figure out words to best describe their experiences. It is a bit more fun than using a rating scale. If you have ever been to a tasting, you’ve probably seen something like this before. The same words can describe flavour for almost anything you are tasting.
It is important to keep in mind that many flavors are actually composed of the same chemical compounds. A great example is isoamyl acetate. For some, this organic compound can taste like bananas, whereas for others, it has a distinct pear flavor. Another is benzaldehyde. This organic compound smells and tastes like peaches, cherries, apricots, or almonds, depending on the chemical compound experienced on your tongue. Two tasters can taste these compounds differently. My friend Phil, who wrote Chapter 21 on tea cocktails, is a chemist who works as a distiller. He explained this to me one day at a whiskey tasting when I could swear that I tasted pear when my colleague said he tasted bananas. Though I, to this day, say that I was right, we both tasted what we tasted, and neither of us was wrong.
Again, it is helpful to learn words that best describe your tasting experience—but it’s important to remember to enjoy the experience and worry less about sounding like an expert.
Easy Leaf Tea, by Timothy d’Offay
Easy Leaf Tea is a tea recipe book with a difference. This sumptuously illustrated book focuses on recipes for brewing tea and tea-centric kitchen creations. This isn’t a book about cakes with a dash of tea thrown in; this is tea, tea, and more tea, but with a twist. Tea is, as it rightly should be, the star of the show.
Take Your Tea on a Picnic
Enjoying tea and food outside allows you to soak up nature’s vibrant energy. Tea-party picnics act as a soothing tonic for our overstimulated bodies and remind us that the simplest things in life often come with the greatest rewards.
How to Host the Ultimate Tea-Themed BBQ
Tea makes everything taste better, from BBQ sauce to spice rubs and frozen desserts. Learn how to use tea to cook delicious party food. Whether grilling outdoors with friends or enjoying a picnic on the beach, the Summer Fun issue is packed with suggestions for entertaining outdoors with tea-themed recipes and iced and cold-brew teas, pitchers, brewers, utensils, and gifts.
Taking Tea in the Wild
Camping season is in full swing. Whether you’re into car camping, hiking, backcountry camping, or canoe camping, one thing you will not want to leave behind is your favorite tea. In this article, Tea Journey explores five teas that are perfect for camping, considering their portability, ruggedness, flavor, and functionality.
How Much is Too Much?
“We all know that green tea is healthy,” read the 2018 article “Tea Nuances: Exploring the World of Green Tea […]
Important Notes about Teabag Teas
Teabags are easy to deal with; sachets are also easy but somehow fancier and certainly more expensive; and loose leaf is even more expensive and is often much more complicated to brew. As a nerd, I decided to look into the issue by buying the same tea packaged as a teabag, sachet, and loose leaf, to see the differences. Presumably, then, they will all taste the same when brewed. (Spoiler alert: they don’t!)