A Month of Tea

January is almost over and my adventure of drinking a different tea every day for the whole month is also ending. It has been quite the journey! Here are a few discoveries from along the way...

* Tea has so many amazing aromas and flavor profiles to offer... it dizzies the mind. I knew this already, of course, but there's nothing like a month-long reminder of the fact. :)

* Changing caffeine levels in my diet was harder than I thought it would be! I went from drinking four cups of white tea, to one to two cups of green tea and oolong (depending on the type), to one to two cups black tea (depending on how overloaded my work schedule was at the time -- one was more my tolerance level by the end), to two to three cups of pu-erh (depending on how aged it was). Despite the changes in quantity, it was still a challenge finding that caffeine sweet spot between not enough and too much.

* Sometimes, you're simply in the mood for a certain type of tea. I thought I could overcome my tendency to be inordinately particular about my tea selections by the end of the month, but no... I still found myself craving teas that were not in my tasting routine.

* For me, different tea types are conducive to different activities. White tea is great for chilling out. Chinese green teas are good for before or after yoga and stretching. Japanese green teas are better for mental and physical tasks that need to be completed quickly. Oolongs are perfect for writing (which is part of why I drink them so often). Black teas are better for physical activity and gut decisions. Puers are more introspective and reflective. This exercise was a firm reminder of which teas help me the most in my daily life.

* This kind of exercise really does improve your palate. I was a doubter in the beginning. I thought, "I could just taste everything in a day..." but tasting one each day is like that "eat a single Oreo and truly enjoy it" thing they do for food addicts. It forces you to concentrate, to savor, to exist in the moment. Tea becomes far more profound when viewed in these discrete moments over time. It's a singular and a cumulative effect that's completely different from the many cuppings (and casual cuppas) I've enjoyed over the years.

* Planning a trip during my oolong tasting week was not the best decision I've ever made. (Still, the Fancy Food Show and time with friends and tea people in SF was worth it!)

* Sometimes, one tea a day is just not enough! I'm not talking about caffeine, here -- I'm talking about the need for different teas for specific reasons. I didn't make any rules about sticking to the one each day, but if I had, I would have broken them for three reasons: 1. Oolong really does help me write (and I swear it's not just a mental thing). 2. Sometimes, the cravings for specific teas can get out of hand. There is nothing quite like pu-erh by a roaring fire or watching the sun rise over a cup of Genmaicha. 3. I write about tea for a living. I can't exactly tell clients, "I'll get to cupping all these teas next month." (Well, I suppose I could, but it would be a really bad business decision.)

Writing this over my second cup of Imperial Tea Court's Imperial Pu-erh for the day, I am thoroughly satisfied with this "month of tea" experiment. Of course, for me, every month is a month of tea (this is just a different KIND of month of tea)... and I'm looking forward to drinking a wild-crafted white sage and mint tisane for focus after I finish the pu-erh (After all, I have serious deadlines and can't exist in a pu-erh-induced introspective state all day!)... but I'm really glad I did this and would definitely consider repeating it next year. Maybe by then, I'll have a few more people to actively share the adventure with! (Marilyn? Steph? Jan? Am I sensing potential for a Portland group here?)

Top Ten West Coast East-Meets-West Tea Spots

Sunset Magazine's current issue includes a great list of the West Coast's top ten East-meets-West tea houses. Cool! The fantastic Teance tops the list, and some of my other favorites (Imperial Tea Court, Tao of Tea, Le Palais de Thes) also make the list. I hope to visit some more of the tea houses listed in my future trips out West. Have any of you tried them? What's your opinion?

New Vee Tea Article (SF Roundtable Part 2)

Two weeks ago, part one of an SF roundtable on tea I lead went up on World Tea News. Today, part two is going up. It gets more into depth about the national and international economy and tea with top tea professionals in the Bay area, and even touches on the idea of growing artisanal tea near SF. Excerpt:

WTN: How have national and international sales changed since the economic downturn began?

Portman: We were growing strong through February and March. Our clients (for the ML premium tea line) are restaurants, cruise ships and hotels throughout the world, so we’re seeing reduced volume in our current clients, but we’re picking up more clients. Our retail growth has been very strong nationally and internationally because people are looking for sensory ways to enjoy themselves at home instead of going out. We are striving for strong two-digit growth this year. Tea is going to continue to have higher demand to counter all this tremendous fear and stress over the next year, plus as a result of what’s around us.

Zheng: I don’t feel a major impact. Some customers have reduced orders somewhat compared to last year, not because they’re selling less, but because they are reducing their inventory to have more cash on hand. I think the tea industry will only see moderate downturn.

Fong: My order numbers are up, but the order sizes are smaller. Things aren’t so bad that people are ready to go back to lower grades of tea. We have this very exceptional Dragonwell once a year. We sold 14 pounds at $600 a pound. We still sold out in three weeks and have a waiting list. If you do your job right, people will look for the easy comfort of tea.



You can read more on tea in the Bay area on World Tea News. I'll be off until after Christmas. I hope you all have a fantastic holiday season and enjoy your tea!!!

New Vee Tea Article

World Tea News put a new a new article I "wrote" out yesterday. I use quotations because, well, I used quotations. It's an edited collection of interviews with SF Bay area tea professionals, so I asked questions, transcribed and edited a lot, but didn't really write anything outside of what my sources said. Here's an excerpt:

WTN: What are your thoughts on the current state of tea in the Bay Area?

Yu: We call this city “the hotbed of the tea renaissance.” Tea houses showcase teas through fusion and bridge the gap between ethnic shops that offer teas and more accessible, modernized and mainstream, but authentic, formats.

Jacobs: I believe the Bay Area is the epicenter for tea culture in North America, due in part to the weather, which works for hot and iced tea, and because there are many different cultures in a small area. Also, San Francisco is very progressive. It’s a hotbed of new ideas. I can’t think of another area in the world that has all those three things together. It has allowed tea culture to take off. Sure, people drink Moroccan mint tea in Morocco as daily life, but they definitely don’t drink Japanese gyokuro or tea from a samovar. There’s nowhere else with a more international tea culture.

Zheng: San Francisco is pretty provincial and small compared to New York. There’s less distraction. If you have five or six tea stores in the city, everybody knows. The level of competition is very high in terms of getting high quality teas. People in Berkeley and Palo Alto are also very into tea. I live in Marin County, and they include tea tastings in county fairs along with the art, crafts and local foods.



The people I interviewed had some very interesting things to say about tea, SF, America, the economy and the world. You can read the rest of the SF roundtable tea talk on World Tea News.

Leaving SF...

So sad to be leaving San Francisco today... I can't wait to come back! It's on my short list of cities to live in once I tire of NYC, so we'll see -- maybe I'll end up there soon! :) In the meantime, I have a few goodies to take back with me -- amazing oolongs and an "eight treasures" herbal tea from Teance. (Next time I go to Imperial Tea Court, I'll have to be sure to save time for selecting pu-erhs, instead of just interviewing the owner (at the Ferry Building location) and enjoying the incredible hand-pulled noodle soup with friends (at the Berkeley location). Still, I'm very glad to have the teas I managed to pick up!) What's your favorite tea from a vacation/business trip?

More from SF

Yesterday, I interviewed tea professionals at Imperial Tea Court and The Urasenke Foundation (wonderful!), and checked out Chinatown (way less crowded than the ones in NYC) and Leland's Tea Lounge (not bad). Today, I'm visiting Google and interviewing people from Mighty Leaf and Red & Green. Tomorrow is my last day. I wish I could stay longer!


Roy Fong at Imperial Tea Court in Ferry Market







Ten Ren in Chinatown










Tea bowls on display at Urasenke










Masala chai and scones at Leland's