Tea Evangelism

In my guest-blogger role on T Ching this month, I wrote a post about "Familiarity", talking about how people are more comfortable with coffee, and asking how tea lovers can promote tea as a more universal beverage. I got a lot of great comments on the post, including one that said, "Tea has a perception of ‘old/female’ and that’s a bit hard to break but not impossible, as more and more young men get hooked and the ‘red hat’ image is broken. Tea is cool." Which is absolutely true, but I'd add to that by saying that tea is for everyone--young, old, male, female, from any country, of any economic strata.

So the question is, how do we promote the image of tea as the new, cool beverage, replacing a latte or a capuccino? How do we make tea more accessible to everyone? By highlighting the health benefits of the catechins, flavonoids, and other anti-oxidants that tea is packed with? Or by talking about the huge range of flavors available from different types of tea? Or simply by saying "Coffee is over. Drink tea!"?

One of the sticking points may be that many of the tea blogs that are out now concentrate solely on reviewing teas, and I think the plethora of detailed flavor descriptions (alluding to fruit, mushrooms, leather, etc.) may be a bit overwhelming to a novice tea drinker just looking for a bit of info.

“Aha!” I thought, “This may be why people are so intimidated about drinking tea.” If you think you need to be able to articulate the mouthfeel, astringency, and aromas of the tea, not to mention describing why the leaves remind you of your childhood searching for truffles in the south of France, you might be prone to say, “I’ll just run to Starbucks and get a cup of coffee. At least no one will expect me to write a book about it.”

When I read the details of the water temperature, brewing times, and first, second, and third steepings, it seems like in order to enjoy tea, you have to have such a huge base of knowledge that it’s not worth the price of entry. Of course, if you’re interested in tea and lucky enough to know someone with a bit more knowledge—or can find a welcoming tea shop where you can learn—trying your first Darjeeling or oolong can get you hooked for life, and blogs like this are like reading a great novel (or at least a short story).

That’s why I'd like to have a tea shop that is an open and welcoming place where people can come and relax over a cup of tea…whether or not they know the difference between a sencha and a souchong. I know there are shops like this—I’ve been in a few of them—but there aren’t enough of them in the US to make tea the ubiquitous beverage that coffee has become here.

We need to keep pushing forward until there is a tea shop opposite every coffee shop. Until you can order tea at a restaurant, and get an actual tea pot with loose tea, instead of a cup of lukewarm water and a box of tea bags. Until you’re not looked at like a freak if you say to a flight attendant, “I’d like hot tea, please.” (Of course, that applies only to US airlines—airlines like BA or Singapore Air actually ask you if you’d LIKE tea.)

But the only way that’s going to happen is if tea lovers and tea purveyors work to demystify tea for the general public. Kind of like what’s happened with wine: there are still plenty of people who are incapable of drinking a glass of wine without rhapsodizing over the rich berry-toned bouquet of a Cab, or the oakiness or lack thereof of a Chardonnay, but the man or woman on the street now seems to feel that they know enough to enjoy drinking wine without being intimidated.

So I say to my fellow tea drinkers: share your love of tea...and sneak in the education when you can. Get people hooked on it first with the fantastic flavors, then gently work in some tidbits on health benefits, types of tea, brewing pointers, history, processing, etc.

Or, in the spirit of tea evangelism: "Tea drinkers of the world, unite! Go forth and multiply! Spread the word among the non-believers!"

That Sunday Morning Feeling

I love Sunday mornings. I always make a big pot of tea--flavored tea, for the weekend--and listen to some classic tunes like Ella Fitzgerald singing Cole Porter, or Frank Sinatra singing anything, or a little Peggy Lee. And if I've planned ahead, I might even have some fabulous baked goods to round out my morning--this morning I have some yummy lemon-blueberry oatmeal muffins with my spice tea.

Sunday mornings always seem like a pause in a busy week--a time to reflect on the past week, plan for the following week, and just take a breath. When I was working at my last job, it was always the last bit of fun and relaxation before the Sunday evening blues set in, but now it's just my time to think about what I'm doing before acting on it all week.

I think a big part of the meditative feeling I get is from making and drinking my pot(s) of tea. As many others have pointed out, just the activity of making tea gives you time to slow down and reflect while it's brewing. And yes, I may be a Godless infidel who doesn't go to church every week, but I think that many years of going to church instilled in me a need to take time out on Sunday for contemplation.

So, what am I contemplating this week, you might ask? I'm trying to figure out how I could translate that Sunday-morning feeling into the overall atmosphere of my tea shop. I'd like my tea shop to be a place where people can take time out from their busy lives and relax. Whether that's reading a book with a cup of tea, chatting with a friend over tea and scones, or getting together for a small celebration, I'd like to have a place where people could come and take a break.

I've talked to quite a few people about what a tea shop would mean to them, and even though most have a slightly different view of exactly what the details are, everyone seems to be looking for a relaxing spot with a feeling of community and welcome. So, if anyone is out there reading this, I ask: what would you look for in a tea shop (tea room, tea cafe, whatever you want to call it)? Inquiring minds want to know!

Positive Reinforcement

I'm drinking up the last of my first-flush Darjeeling from last year, and today I'm enjoying the wonderful one from Tindharia Estate that I bought from Upton Tea Imports (http://www.uptontea.com/ ). Fabulously fruity aroma with winey undertones, and a soft, almost peach-like flavor and very little astringency. (See, I'm practicing those descriptive words.) It's kind of like drinking wine, with none of the aftereffects.

As I drink my lovely "Champagne of teas", I've been smiling over all the positive reinforcement I've been getting on my tea shop plans. I've been to 2 or 3 meetings and a networking happy hour in the past few days, where I was introducing myself to people and telling them of my plan to open a tea shop. The overwhelming reaction was "Oh, that sounds great!" At one large meeting where I stood up and introduced myself to about 100 people, there was a collective "Oooohhhh" from the room when I said I was planning to open a tea shop.

I also got very good reactions to my proposed business name, so I'm feeling very good about that right now, too. I'm actually a little surprised that I've been getting such an overwhelmingly positive reaction when I talk about my plans--everyone is interested, everyone has a good experience with tea to relate, and everyone seems to think that there is a need in the market for this business. No one has said, "That will be hard to do with the economy the way it is."

One of the meetings I attended was a discussion of what it takes to be an entrepreneur and get your business going, and one of the things the presenter said really hit home with me. He said that when he is considering whether to invest in a business, he wants to know that the person who is asking for the money is totally committed to making their idea succeed. He wants to see that they have invested in themselves before he's willing to invest his money.

The reason this hit home with me is that even though I have a vision for my tea shop, and feel that there is a need to be filled with it, I've also been a little hesitant to throw everything I have into it, because I'm afraid it won't succeed and I'll be left destitute. The idea of starting all over again in my forties is NOT a pleasant one, believe me.

However, as the Cowardly Lion once said, "I DO believe, I DO believe, I DO believe"...in my idea. So even as I continue to look for a full-time job, I'm going to be doing a lot of soul-searching and even more research to figure out how I can make my tea shop dream a reality.

Because if my idea is hitting such a chord with most of the people I've spoken to about it, I think the time may be right to move forward with it, the economy notwithstanding. So I'll let my lovely Darjeeling tea help me ruminate on this, and try to come up with a path forward. Stay tuned!

Old Friends

One of the things I did today, along with trolling a million websites for job postings, was meet my best friend from grade school's best friend from college for coffee. I know, it should have been tea, but it wasn't. It was very interesting to meet Liz, who I hadn't met before even though we've been living in the same city for a year or so. We had a great time talking and getting to know each other, and filling each other in on gaps in our friend Cindy's life.

Of course, I also spent an inordinate amount of time complaining about the flat spot in my hair that seemed to result from going to a new stylist over the weekend, which Liz kindly said she didn't notice. These are the kind of friends you want to keep!

Before I went out, I had brewed a pot of a tea called "Natela's Gold", which is one of my favorites. I hadn't been drinking it lately, after my oolong tea indoctrination in San Francisco, but this morning I wanted something familiar and relaxing. Clearly it didn't help enough, since I still got agitated over my hair, but I think it helped to make me just a bit more zen.

"Natela's Gold" is a black tea from Georgia (the country, not the state) that I bought at a local tea shop called Tea Embassy (http://www.teaembassy.com/ ). Although it's a black tea, it's very mellow, with an almost sweet flavor to it naturally. The liquor is a clear coppery color, and the aroma has just a hint of nuttiness (kind of like me, my friends would say). See the slightly blurry picture above. I'm not very good at coming up with adjectives to describe tea flavors--my favorite being "like an orange stuffed with capers"--so I don't know if my descriptions will ever want to make anyone drink the tea I like. I guess that's something I need to work on if I ever want to have a tea business of my own, huh?

Anyway, I always love drinking this particular tea, and today it felt singularly appropriate, as I was meeting an old friend of an old friend, and I feel like this tea is an old friend. One whom I love to spend time with, whether I'm working away at my job hunt and business plans, or just relaxing with a book in front of the fire. It's not a demanding tea, but one that gives quiet rewards every time you brew it, and therefore always has a place in my tea cabinet.

An Abrupt Start

I've been meaning to start my blog for quite a while now, and finally sat down to do it this morning...ten minutes later, here I am, with my own blog! How did that happen? Wow, now I actually have to have something to say.

So I'll introduce myself: my name is Nancy, and I love tea. Wine & chocolate, too, but primarily tea. My dream is to start my own tea shop--well, actually a tea cafe or lounge would more properly describe it. So I hope that this blog will document my progress toward that dream, and that it will come to fruition. And somehow I think there will be plenty of laughter as I stumble toward my goal. (Or gaol, as I just typed!)

I'll also be talking about tea that I'm trying, tea spots I've visited, the tea industry in general (what I know so far), and my adventures as a budding entrepreneur; as well as other random things that cross my mind. I hope you'll join me on my little journey as I navigate through a whole new world.