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At TeaSource we aren't just interested in great teas - we are interested in the people behind our great teas.
In August of 2017, Bill and his family visited the Lumbini Tea Factory in southern Ceylon. The folks at Lumbini make some of our favorite teas.
Upon arrival, Bill discovered they had a special event planned; the dedication of a new nursery/daycare/preschool for the young children of the tea workers on the estate. This is something Chaminda Jayawardana (the GM of Lumbini) and Bill had talked about doing for a long time. The dedication consisted of a blessing ceremony from the local Buddhist priest, a celebration to lay the cornerstones of the building, and some treats with the kids. TeaSource is proud to offer financial support to this school on an annual basis.
The kids who will be using the new daycare and pre-K in a few months.
After the blessing and dedication, all the kids (and adults) got a treat of sweet rice.
All who took part received a blessing from the Buddhist priest who lives and serves in the Lumbini Valley.
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The blending of tea leaves and the scenting of tea leaves are often conflated. Even at TeaSource we categorize blended teas and scented teas together, for simplicity sake. But they are different. Technically, blended teas have other components mixed into the tea leaves and the presence of these other components is what brings out different tastes, aromas etc. Scented teas are teas that have been exposed to powerful aromatic components and have absorbed the aromatic chemicals into the tea leaves themselves, regardless as to whether the aromatic components (like jasmine petals) stay in the blend or not. This is why the most expensive jasmine teas somewhat surprisingly will not have any jasmine petals in the mix. The tea leaves have already absorbed all of the aroma producing chemicals from the petals, so after hours of scenting the tea leaves, these petals literally have nothing left to contribute to the blend; so with the most expensive Jasmines these spent petals are actually removed as a final step.
Jasmine Dragon Phoenix Pearls is a great example of a scented tea.
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Tea blends are a great way to introduce someone new to tea. They are also a great way for an experienced tea drinker to discover new favorites. Enjoy!
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Golden Buddha is a black tea from Anxi County, Fujian Province, China.
A close-up of the leaf.***Golden Buddha black tea is made by Mr. and Mrs. Tang. Both of them graduated from Fu'an Tea School (this school is nearby the Fujian Tea Research Institute). They were reunited a couple years after their schooling and decided to move to Xiamen, where they have a small tea shop and are raising two kids. They make tea in the spring and autumn and spend the rest of their time selling tea in the city.
Mr. Tang in the field.
Mrs. Tang at their tea shop.
Mr. Tang's uncle***The Tang's are very knowledgeable about tea processing and have experience in the tea fields. They have fully harnessed the character of the Ti Kwan Yin cultivar by strongly rolling the leaves and also slightly shaking them during production. This tea comes out extremely fragrant and the leaves themselves are fat and downy.
Shaking the leaves.
Notice the red edges of the leaves after shaking.
Withering room
Close-up in the withering room***This tea is grown at over 800 meters of altitude and the PH value of the soil is 5.5. These are perfect conditions for this cultivar.
Mr. Tang and his uncle***We hope you enjoy the Golden Buddha! -
Check back OFTEN! This blog will be updated over the next several weeks with more photos from Bill's trip!
TUNE IN FRIDAY, JULY 28, at 11:30 p.m. CST to FACEBOOK LIVE to see Bill lay the first brick of a new school that is being built at the Lumbini Tea Factory in Sri Lanka. The school is for the children of the workers at the tea garden. Bill is honored to be a part of the ground breaking ceremony.
Bill is traveling around Sri Lanka with his family for a couple weeks! He is spending 4 days at the Lumbini Tea Factory, attending the Colombo International Tea Convention to meet with tea growers and find sources for new Ceylon teas, and traveling to other tea areas in the country such as Nuwara Eliya, Kandy, and Dimbula.
Bill's daughter Maggy is going to be posting on social media about their adventures, so if you don't follow us on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, now is the time!
Maggy, Bill's daughter, plucking tea leaves at Lumbini with the guidance of experienced workers.This is a tea education experience that Chaminda, owner of Lumbini, has developed for visitors.
Each morning, workers prepare for a day of plucking tea by receiving blessings at a Hindu shrine.
Maggy's make shift skirt.
Bringing tea to the factory to get weighed and spread out for withering.
Lumbini tea field.
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TeaSource warehouse manager, Ryan, traveled to Taiwan last year! Read on to learn about his amazing trip!
I had the opportunity to travel to Taiwan in October of 2016 for an intensive oolong study tour that lasted 8 days. The lectures and cuppings with Thomas Shu, founder of JT & Tea, on this trip were invaluable, and his wife Josephine somehow kept this jam-packed tour on track. Partaking in the tea production process at the LinWang Tea Factory in Taitung was by far the highlight of my trip. I did feel bad for our great host, Mr. Lin, and his patient workers for the trauma we put them through handling their tea. When you attempt to take part in the process you realize the amount of skill, dedication, and hard labor that goes into making Taiwanese Oolongs.
Many lectures in-between stops from Thomas on this tour bus.
Thomas (top right corner) explaining the withering process at the Tea Research and Extension Station (TRES) - Wenshan Branch, Wenshan Taipei.
Workers plucking tea at the TRES station in Wenshan, Taipei.
The view of the tea fields from a factory in the PingLin district.
Bao Zhong (Pouchong) cupping in the PingLin district.
Our host and tea master Mr. Lin at the LinWang Tea Factory in Taitung, Taiwan.
Outodoor withering of tea leaves - LinWang Tea factory
Ruby 18 plants at TRES- Taitung branch.
Dragon Teapot fountain at TRES – Taitung branch
We had magnificent landscapes on our walks to the LinWang Tea Factory everyday. This area was hit hard by multiple typhoons before we arrived.
Comparing the leaves of different cultivars at the Asia-Institute of Creativity, Tougen, Maioli.
Serious work going on here!
Me and our awesome hosts Mr. and Mrs. Lin.
Me and the Head Scientist at TRES.
The 2016 Taiwan Oolong Study Tour group.
Ryan Nelson
TeaSource Warehouse Manager
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This tea is now sold out, but you can shop our other Sheng Puer teas.
This wonderful sheng puer was made by Ms. Zhao Yu Jie, owner of Hanming Xuan Tea, located in Puer, Yunnan, China. This is a tiny family tea company including Ms, Zhao, her sisters, and her husband (and during plucking season lots of nieces, nephews, and cousins). Ms. Zhao’s father was a tea maker in one of the old established puer companies and taught his daughter his craft.
This spring 2014 tea steeps up light in color but with a wonderfully complex flavor: sweet, fruity, crisp juniper notes. This is a wonderful tea right now, and it will age beautifully.
We like this tea rinsed with 200 degree water and steeped less than 30 seconds.
Wild puer tea trees in the Yunnan forests. These can grow to 30’ - 40’ high and can be hundreds of years old.
Ms. Zhao plucking tea leaves.
The freshly plucked teas leaves that will become Ms. Zhao’s sheng puer.
Ms. Zhao watching her husband “fluff” the raw tea leaves after plucking.
Raw puer tea leaves being sun-withered.
Cakes of sheng puer starting to age in Ms. Zhao’s facility.
The finished products bamboo packages of seven puer cakes, ready to enjoy or store and age for the future.
Ms. Zhao’s tea shop, attached to her home in Yunnan, China.
Me at Ms. Zhao’s booth in Xiamen, China. This is the most fun part of my job; meeting and tasting tea with the folks who make our teas.
Ms. Zhao making tea for me, my translater (Phoebe) and friends at a tea exposition in Xiamen, China.
Bill Waddington, owner
