Beyond the Leaf

Welcome to Beyond the Leaf, the TeaSource blog.

Tea is more than a beverage—it's a story of people, places, tradition, and craftsmanship. Here you'll find tea education, thoughtful discussion, steeping guides, recipes, tasting notes, tea travel, sourcing stories, industry insights, and updates from the TeaSource team.

Whether you're just beginning your loose leaf tea journey or have been enjoying specialty tea for years, Beyond the Leaf is a place to deepen your knowledge, discover new teas, and explore the world behind every cup. Drawing on decades of experience sourcing and tasting exceptional teas, we share practical advice, firsthand experiences, and a passion for tea that we hope inspires your next cup.

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The Little Tingrai Forest

The Chota Tingrai tea estate in Assam, India, was one of the first tea gardens (along with its sister tea estate Dinjoye) in upper Assam to be founded by native... Read More

Phoenix Mountain Oolong

Phoenix Mountain Oolong, from Phoenix Mtn in Guangdong province, is composed of dark, long, sinewy leaves. When steeped, this oolong has tremendous floral aroma and a complex flavor with sweet,... Read More

Tea from Sikkim

Most people outside of Asia have never heard of Sikkim, much less been aware that there is some great tea grown there. But when you realize Sikkim shares a border... Read More

The Business of Friendship

Shop Ms. Zhang's tea collection HERE. I stumbled across YQY Tea Co. in Changsha, China in 2006. This tea company was formed by a husband wife team, Mr. Jian Bo... Read More

Searching For A Tea

I first ran across our China Black Special black tea (one of my favorite straight black teas) in Germany about 12 years ago, and fell in love with it. I... Read More

Japanese Tea 101
Japanese Tea 101

I picked up the phone at TeaSource one afternoon when everyone else was busy and started to talk to a customer who had been on the website, but had some questions.... Read More

The People Behind Our Tea

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... Read More

Tea Blending vs. Tea Scenting

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... Read More

NEW! Golden Buddha

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... Read More

Bill Waddington in India standing in front of a yellow building. A few other people are in frame in the background.
Bill is in Sri Lanka!

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... Read More

Oolong Way From Home

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... Read More

Big Snow Mountain, Sheng Puer, 2014

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... Read More

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