Teaze Tea Infuser

The Teaze Infuser is quite a nice product. It works quite well and the material and design are top notch. I can see it being used heavily at restaurants and upscale cafes, lounges and tea bars.

Sitting Down and Enjoying Tea with David Lee Hoffman

We have a nice chance to sit with David Hoffman to try a small set of his vast collection of pu-erh teas.  David Lee Hoffman is one of the pioneers in bringing artisan, handcrafted tea to America. He has been steadily building a personally selected set of loose and cake form puerh teas. As you may know, tea all comes from the same tea plant, Camillia sinensis.  Puerhs are slowly fermented over time. As the microbes interact with the stored tea, the flavor of the tea begins to mature and develop.

We tasted about 15 teas in our visit. Our visit was soon after the Chinese New Year in 2010, which is why you see the traditional candied winter melon and licorice watermelon seeds.

David prepared some hand made flatbread, made with locally grown wheat. This was topped with spanish boquerones, homemade tomato sauce. We also sampled some locally made soft cheese and lamb sausage. David generously accompanied this with a sweet, chilled Riesling.

It has been over 6 years since we first had a chance to visit David’s home. Much has changed and much continually is being developed.

We could have spent hours talking about his other interests in tea and sustainable agriculture.

We hope  you enjoy the Teacast broadcast. The other voice you hear in the background is Suzie, his new business manager.

Hatsugama 2010

Each year we have the pleasure of attending Hatsugama, the Japanese tea ceremony of the year. What a nice tradition to experience a tea ceremony among friends and to enjoy a high quality Japanese bento lunch as well. To the right is a picture of some of the colorful kimonos worn as part of the ceremony.

Conversation with Winnie Yu, Founder, Teance

We speak with Winnie Yu, Director, Teance, a specialty, direct from garden wholesaler and retailer of Chinese and Taiwanese teas. Ms. Yu has been instrumental in the reemergence of tea as a beverage of cultural and historical significance in the United States. Her writings, lectures, and interactive demonstrations have encouraged us to position tea as a lifelong study of the mind and spirit.

Ms. Yu also provides insights into her personal efforts to identify remarkable family operated tea gardens as she pursues buying high quality teas for a thirsty and inquisitive American population.