Hip, Fun and Sassy at the NYC Tea and Coffee Festival 2014

What can be better than great style and good tea?  At the Tea and Coffee Festival in New York City this past weekend that’s what I found…vendors with style and good tea.  Vendors marketed their tea in bold eye catching packaging, expressing that New York spirit of hip, fun and sassy.

Damn FineTea caught my attention first with their fun cartoon style prints on brightly colored tins of tea.  My favorite had a playfully exaggerated cartoon horse on a package of Yunnan tea.  The horse color was bright yellow with a dash of pink.  I asked Charles Andrew, co-founder of Damn Fine Tea, about his company.  Andrew emphasized that he and his co-founder Erik Dunham carefully select their estate teas to guarantee the quality.  They frequently have limited additions and my favorite tin, the Yunnan horse, is a limited addition of only 150 tins.

  Another vendor who caught my attention was Fashionista Tea.  Besides tea, do you love shoes?  Carrie Bradshaw of Sex in the City does and this organic tea from Fashionista Tea would be her favorite.  Sassy six inch leopard print stilettos top the packaging logo – giving it a Vogue-worthy aesthetic.  The Fashionista Tea’s founder, Brenda Dillon Cavette, earned a degree in fashion merchandizing as well as in communications. She combined her love of fashion with her lifetime love of tea.  I tried her Creamy Earl Grey sample, it was smooth and delicious.  Brenda explained she added vanilla to this tea and less bergamot to create the creamy taste and texture.  I stopped at her booth for the fashion but stayed for the tea.

Fancy Hat Tea Party

I’ve always wanted to go to what my daughter calls “a fancy hat tea party” and last month I got my chance.  The ladies at the party were adorned with stylish head apparel and tea, of course, was the beverage we drank.  

The tea party was held in the afternoon.  With a little research, I found out the historic and cultural connection between afternoon tea and fancy hats.  The tradition of afternoon tea, in the Western World, dates back to the 1840s in England where, as legend has it, Anna, the seventh Duchess of Bedford, would become hungry in the afternoon before dinner and would request a tray of tea, bread and butter, and cake be served to her.[1].  She began inviting friends to join her, sparking the very English ritual of afternoon tea.  The wearing of hats to afternoon tea parties became fashionable in the late 1880s when women adorned themselves with long gowns, gloves and hats for their afternoon tea.   

 The Afternoon Tea Party 
by Mary Cassatt, 1891, {{PD-US}}

In 1891, the American Impressionist painter, Mary Cassatt, captured the style of the ladies of her era during afternoon tea parties.  Today, hats are no longer the norm for afternoon tea but are reserved for special tea parties.

My party invitation to afternoon tea indicated there would be recognition for best hat.  I decided to go all out and make a fashion statement. The only problem was, I didn’t have any hats, other than baseball caps and boring cold weather winter hats.   Just where do you shop for tea party hats?  I was envisioning dramatic hats like those you see at the Kentucky Derby or Easter Sunday. 

I was lucky enough to know of a hat boutique called Tops of Old Town, in Northern Virginia.  Having been in the hat business for a couple decades, they expertly walked me through a selection of original and one-of-a-kind hats perfect for the occasion.  I selected a tall hat with a satin sash and feathers that rested sideways on my face slightly covering one eye brow.  This hat looked best with a raised chin and long neck.  I was ready to make my debut!

Although I did not win, the winner of the “most fabulous hat” award was indeed fabulous.  She wore a striking high feather white fastener (hat attached to hair like an ornament) that matched her feathered shoes.

Well, the truth is, the tea and food at the party were easily eclipsed by the theatrics of fashion.  For the strict tea connoisseur, hat tea parties may be too much of a distraction from the actual tea beverage.  I admit that I do like my tea time to be all about the tea.…but I hope I get invited to another fancy hat tea party soon, because I like to play dress up.  Take a look at the silhouette of me in my hat looking fabulous!  

_________________________

[1]  UK, the History and Heritage Accommodation Guide, http://www.historic-uk.com/CultureUK/afternoon-tea/)

Frothy Tea Adds Festivities to Tea Dream's Anniversary

It’s been 12 months since we began sharing our dreams of tea.  To celebrate our one year anniversary, we returned to the site of our first blog posting, Le Pain Quotidien in Old Town, Virginia.  This bakery chain was founded in Brussels and sells organic breads, cakes, light food fare, and delicious teas.  

I ordered a chai tea.  To my surprise, the chai tea looked quite festive.  It was as if it were decorated just for our blog celebration.  The tea arrived in a handsome red cup, perfectly round with no handle.  The surface of the tea liquid was divided in three frothy sections with complimenting colors of sprinkled spices.

Even before I tasted the tea, I couldn’t help but smile.  I was tickled at the playful presentation.  Yes, I realize that I can become quite happy just at the sight of beautiful tea.  I’m not used to having froth at all in my tea.  Except for green tea lattes, teas where I’m from in the U.S. are generally not frothy. Froth is made from whipped or steamed milk.

 

For what I ordered, chai tea, milk is frequently added as it is prepared.  When I make chai at home with dairy milk, soy milk or even almond milk, there isn’t any froth. Now that I’ve seen how delightful it can be, I might have to add creating and styling froth to my tea repertoire. 

Having a pretty froth design in my chai tea was a nice way to herald the second year of our tea blog.  We have discussed all things tea, ranging from tea popsicles to tea terminology.  Some of my favorite postings have been about Japanese tea pottery, Chinese dynastic tea fashions, equestrian tea salons and Indian-style chai wallahs selling on U.S. streets.  This year, stay tuned for more on all things tea!

 

Kenya’s Golden Jubilee and Foray into Purple Tea

Photo by Quadell

December 12, 2013 marked the Golden Jubilee of the Republic of Kenya, one of the world’s top tea exporting countries.  The Golden Jubilee and its celebrations commemorate Kenya’s 50^th anniversary of independence from British colonial rule.  Kenya has much to celebrate.  It is one of the more stable governments in Africa with not only a growing economy and solid credit rating [1], but with also a thriving tea industry.  According to a 2013 USDA Foreign Agriculture GAIN Report, Kenya is the world’s largest black tea exporter. [2]


Photo by Steve Connor

The tea plant Camellia Sinensis is not native to Kenya.  It was first introduced by the British when colonial settlers recognized the potential for tea farming in Kenya. Many regions there are perfect for growing tea due to high elevations, plenty of rainfall, good temperatures and great soil conditions.  In 1903, colonist C.W. Cain first planted tea in Kenya and commercial tea production began in the 1930’s.  Just 30 years later colonial rule ended, but tea farming remained and the Kenyans developed a successful tea industry from it.  Today, in black tea exportation, Kenya surpasses both China and India whose populations consume much of the tea they produce.  The Kenyan population doesn’t have a strong tea drinking culture and consequently about 95 percent of the tea produced in Kenya is exported. [3]

Photo by Ninara

Photo by Neil Palmer

Kenya continues to make strides in its tea industry.  Kenya has successfully developed resilient, high yield varietals of Camellia Sinensis.  Recently the Tea Research Foundation of Kenya released a purple tea variety, TRFK 306/1.  This purple tea is considered extra rich in flavonoids and anti-oxidants.[4]  The leaves of this variety actually look purple as they grow.  This tea, grown on Mt. Kenya, is prized and still quite rare.  It took Kenya 25 years to develop it and it is expected to earn farmers 3 to 4 times more than green tea plants.[5]

Kenya and its tea have come a long way in the last 50 years.  It will be exciting to see what new developments come from Kenya in the next 50.


Photo by Ceci

____________________________________________
[1] Business Daily, March 12, 2013, Nation MediaGroup of Nairobi, “Agency retains Kenya on stable outlook rating after poll”
[2] USDA Foreign Agriculture GAIN Report,10/31/2013
[3] Monitoring African Food and AgriculturalProject (MAFAP) Policy Brief #5, June 2013, by the Food and ArgricultureOrganization of the United Nations
[4] Tea Research Foundation of Kenya, Purple Tea
[5] New Agriculturalist

Tea Tasting in the Capital

I recently attended a tea tasting seminar organized by LivingSocial in downtown Washington, D.C.’s Penn Quarter.  LivingSocial is a web based social events network that features deals on the best things to do in your city.  I once bought a 50% discount gift card from them for dinner at a great French restaurant near me and since then I regularly check LivingSocial for more deals.  I wasn’t expecting to see a tea tasting event, so I was thrilled to see LivingSocial featuring one.

 

The tasting was held at a beautifully renovated Georgian/Romanesque style building at 918 F Street in downtown Washington.  It’s a majestic 1890’s building with original Seneca sandstone façade, exposed brick walls, and a cage elevator.  By contrast, the interior rooms are thoroughly modern and minimalist in style.

Capital Teas, headquartered in Annapolis, Maryland, co-hosted the event and provided the teas.  Their Vice President, Mr. Nkaiso Akpabio, presented the class “Five Tea Tastings From Around the World” to a group of fifty or so students.  Some attendees came with friends, many came alone, and all came to sample and learn about the teas.  Akpabio’s enthusiasm was infectious and he had the class laughing and asking questions such as: “Is it safe to drink the tea leaves at the bottom of the cup?” [Yes];  “Why do some add milk and sugar to their tea?” [taste and tradition]; and, “What is the process to decaffeinate tea?” [one way is to rinse the tea leaves with hot water before steeping].

We sampled 5 teas – or 4 “real” teas and 1 tisane.  Akpabio explained that technically all “real” tea comes from the Camellia Sinensis plant.  Teas such as green, black, yellow, white, pu-erh and oolong are from the Camellia Sinensis plant.  Tisanes, on the other hand, are beverages brewed from herbs, spices, or other plants.


Unmodified photograph.
License & credit: Jon Aslund

Of the “real” teas we sampled, the Genmaicha green tea from Japan stood out. It looks like it is mixed with pieces of popcorn! Actually, those bits are roasted rice kernels, which also burst open upon roasting like corn kernels of popcorn do.  This Genmaicha had a toasted wheat-like flavor balanced by the more earthy taste of the green tea leaves in it.  According to Akpabio, Genmaicha is considered the “People’s tea of Japan.”  Originally, the rice was used as a less expensive filler for the less affluent tea drinkers.  Now it’s popular across all segments of society.

The Earl Grey tea from Sri Lanka also stood out.  It smelled chocolatey.  Ironically, there was no chocolate in it.  Instead, it had vanilla mixed with the oil of bergamot and the Ceylon tea.  In general, bergomat oil is what makes an Earl Grey an Earl Grey.   Bergamot oil comes from the rind of a Bergamot orange.

The class sampled an Oolong from the Fujian province of China, an Indian Darjeeling with a TGFOP Grade – that’s Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe (we’ll cover grading in a future posting), and a Chamomile tisane from the Nile Delta in Egypt.  With so many teas to sample and lively questions and answers, the 90 minute lesson ended all too soon.

Click here to find a Capital Teas organic

Cherry Blossom Rose black tea blend on Amazon.com



Leland Tea Company in Nob Hill

In the outskirts of Nob Hill, one of San Francisco’s most well-known neighborhoods, is the Leland Tea Company.  Nob Hill is known for its SF landmarks such as Grace Cathedral, the Masonic Temple, and the Fairmont and Mark Hopkins Hotels.  It also holds cultural institutions like the Alliance Française, which is where I was coming from after a French class when I happened upon the Leland Tea Company, a tea cafe just a block away.

The first thing that drew me to the Leland Tea Company was the French music wafting from its doorway. Naturally I had to look inside. The antique looking decor and jazzy music is reminiscent of a chic 1920’s Parisian cafe.

At the front counter, customers get to handle and smell mini-containers of loose dry tea leaf mixes to choose from. Tea names like Rhett Butler, Casablanca and Ginger Rogers fit the theme of another era. Scones and french madeleine cookies can come with your order of tea. I like that they're not too sweet. That way they don't overwhelm the flavor of the tea.

The friendly beaming personality of the owner, Will,  who created and mixed the blends himself makes your tea service truly enjoyable.  Will seems to be a very busy guy.  Each time I’ve seen him there he’s been behind the counter preparing for catered events.  Nevertheless, he goes out of his way to stop by each table to say hello and have a quick chat.  There are quite a few regulars, cool hipster types (skinny jeans and fedora hats), and he really does know them by name. Will frequently jokes and reminds customers to take a deep breath and relax because afterall, “it’s just tea!”

And the tea…there’s a wide variety of house mixed blends to choose from.  The options are arranged in order of most caffeine to least.  The tea is sourced from fair trade and organic vendors.  Custom blends infused with spices and flavors at your direction are available.  All the teas I’ve tried there taste great.  They’re served in individual pots that are timed during brewing.

It feels like a lot of thought was put into this establishment - homemade tea blends, delicious pastries, lovely atmosphere.   Here’s a glimpse in a video moment from my first visit:

Take the A Train to Harlem’s Serengeti Tea

If you miss the A train, you'll miss the quickest way to Harlem’s chic new tea salon.  Serengeti Teas and Spices sells organic teas and tea blends of dried herbs, spices, fruits and botanicals from Africa. The tea salon opened in the fall of 2013 and is located on Frederick Douglass Boulevard near 125th St. in New York City.

When I went to check out Serengeti Teas, two unique things stood out to me before I even entered. One, a smiling and charismatic tea barista stood outside on the sidewalk offering pedestrians free fresh and hot tea samples.

D. Gordon E. Robertson

 



And two, the salon's beautiful entry door is an art piece.  The wood and glass are designed in a pattern resembling the spots of a giraffe. 

Once I entered the tea salon, a strong smell of fragrance greeted me. The salon is airy and bright with a glistening marble tea bar that gives the space a modern and sleek appearance. The artwork in the décor is evocative of Africa.

We sat at a beautiful long wooden communal table that we shared with other tea drinkers.  For my seven year old daughter, the owner recommended the Bassa Blood Orange, a tea blend of rooibos, hibiscus, dried fruits and agave.  My daughter took one sip, hummed "yumm!!" and kept drinking until the cup was empty.  A few more child friendly elements such as booster seats or kid food items could make this salon appealing to children too.

While I was visiting, a trio of ladies and self-proclaimed tea divas were also on their first inspection of this tea salon.  They were thrilled with the salon's décor as well as their tea. One diva, who claimed to be a snob from Brooklyn, said her visit to the Harlem tea salon was well worth the trip uptown.

The owner, Liberian born Doughba H. Caranda-Martin, clearly knows the business and benefits of tea. He can describe his teas – over 450 - based on their distinct flavors and he can expound upon the health benefits that the specific ingredients are reputed to have.   He attributes much of his knowledge and love of ingredients to his holistic botanist grandmother.  She was his inspiration when he started his organic African tea businesses, the tea sells on Amazon.com (affil.) as the Caranda Fine Foods Brand.
His teas are blended by hand in small batches.  Caranda-Martin explains, that machine mixing typically breaks fragile botanicals and thus jeopardizes the zenith of their flavors.[1].  Caranda-Martin creates his tea blends in what he refers to as an “atelier,” which is French for "an artist’s work shop."   Which is no surprise because the owner is an accomplished visual artist.[2]  He is clearly an accomplished tea blender as well. 

Japanese sencha tea drinkers beware!  You may fall in love with the Toasted Kenyan Green Sencha – a blend mixed with lavender and cardamom.
  
____________________________
[1] Interview with Doughba H. Caranda Martin, Founder, Caranda Fine Foods, Aired on August 16, 2010, CNN

[2] Doughba H. Caranda Martin, Dak’Art 2012