INTERVIEW – In Conversation with Jeff Fuchs, The Tea Explorer (Part 2)

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Interview jeff 28.Being from the west, you’ve good access to superior tea varietals. What did you feel was missing and what drove you curious?
JF: All of my tea instruction and mentorship began in Taiwan almost twenty years ago and I learned Mandarin primarily so that I could understand more tea vocabulary, so for me everything has its base close to where the tea has been growing for centuries..  Asia was my great instructor and remains so, and the culture and efforts surrounding tea are embedded so when I began to read and hear how tea was taking off in the west there was a kind of excitement in me.

Throughout the years I met with, sat with, sipped with…and sipped some more with locals who were bound to the leaf and cultivated, harvested and created teas and one thing that came through consistently was the lack of pretension and fanfare when they communicated about tea. Though many haven’t got the data, or the scientific names for flavours’ origins, they knew the soil and could explain the history that tea has had with mortals.

For me, I found these stories vital in any talk of tea but there was very little of it really being made available. You learn a lot from the people involved in creating a tea. Every good tea has a great tale, and great people that participate in making it available and those tales and people need some reverence and some recognition and that is, I suppose, one of my main drivers…and a driver that will continue motivating me…and my palate.

9. What is your ‘way of tea’ and how it is an important element of your life?
JF: Ahh….now into the belly of it all. My life is largely on the road so having rituals is vital for me to keep time and space relatively grounded. It is a way that is simple, repetitive and it is a time that I guard voraciously. I cannot do a lot of talk and ’stuff’ until I’ve quietly gone about my tea making and taking.

I’m never without either a flared cup or a clay tea pot, and of course the accompanying leaves. More often than not I’ve got two teas with me. One is inevitably a cake of ancient tree Puerh. This is my morning ritual and it is usually spent alone with a thought to where the tea is from and the hands and personalities behind it.

The preparation of the tea (and my prep is inevitably very simple) is a kind of meditation of sorts. I wake, stretch and then there is my first morning tea and then a second and then I’m ready (or convinced that I’m ready) for whatever the day brings. If I’m at home I tuck into my tea storage and decide which tea will merge me into the day and I prepare it on an old bamboo tea table that is stained with years’ of offerings.

10. What do you think is the biggest issue/challenge in the current global tea industry?
JF: a) There needs to be ways in which the little family run tea zones have an ability to get and continue to get their teas out to a wider public and profit. It is most often the teas produced by such little gardens that I consider to be ‘rippers’ – absolute stunning teas, who are not under the threat of minimum yields or over-harvesting schedules.
b) If hand-picked teas that are carefully made are to have a future, then the workers who pluck and produce the leaves need to have fair compensation and treatment, particularly by tea companies.
c) Changes in the climate are causing many huge alterations in the way food is grown and where it is grown. I’m a huge advocate of the principles of permaculture and bio-dynamics and allowing nature some time to adapt rather than us humans dictating through sprays, GMO’s and adulterations. Tea too can benefit from this kind of foresight.

11. How are the rare teas from the remote parts of Asia that you’ve discovered different from the mainstream commercial teas?
JF: Biggest difference is that with some of these small yield, small production harvests is that they are a kind of beautiful one-off that exists once in one vintage and then is gone. You’ll have a small hand-crafted yield that is unique for Spring, and then one unique for Summer, rather than huge industrial amounts of teas.  Yes consistency is great but I’m a fan of some of those little productions that exist in a small brief offering.

Another stunning part of these off-the-grid teas is that when you sample and sip, you can – after a while – start to feel and taste a master’s hands and preferences. One is able to begin to determine flavours that are inherent to a specific region’s soil, precipitation and to a specific set of hands and preferences. This for me is something that touches the soul aspect of a tea. The same principles can be said of other foods and consumables.

Trying to negate an inconvenient flavour isn’t the right of any industry. Trying to funnel the masses into consuming or enjoying the same family of flavours isn’t something I see as good, though perhaps it might seem more convenient for some mass producers. It is in the slight differences and nuances that the magic happens and that the palate can develop.

12. Tell us about some of your favorite high mountain teas that you’ve discovered.
JF: I’m a big fan of a few teas, with raw Puerhs being my favourites so I’ll start there. Naka produces some wonderful ancient tree tea offerings from southern Yunnan. Fresh vegetal bite that ages beautifully.

He Kai is another favourite of mine from the Bulang Mountains of southern Yunnan Province and it is one of my go-to teas to take on expeditions into the mountains. It never fails to keep me zinging and it grips the teeth with its force before gently letting go. Though I’m astounded at the prices being charged, a good Lao Banzhang always seems to impress, though it depends on who is producing it. There is a Mr. Gao who taught me much who makes teas that spoil the palate.

My formal tea education began in Taiwan, and I’ve always loved the teas from Dayuling in the mountains of central Taiwan – true high altitude Oolong that is not always simple to find. Gorgeous tea. As for Darjeeling, though there are many stunning teas, I’m partial to Jungpana for its utterly warmth and butter.

13. Which are some of your favorite teas and your personal morning favorite?
JF: The above teas I mention are all favourites but right now I’m really enjoying a He Kai old tree raw (Sheng) Puerh offering that was produced in 2008. Seven years has developed it into something absolutely wonderful and I can drink this tea all day, every single day…anytime.

Another current masterpiece is a 2010 Bang Pun raw Puerh from ancient trees that again, has hit some wonderful notes. Jing Mai Mountain also seems to offer up sumptuous Puerhs season after season.

The latest favourite though is a new Spring 2017 He Kai from Man Mai Village – it is a potent fresh and almost explosively green Puerh that lights up the blood and system. It is a beam of light every single morning for me. I wake, do some breathing and then prepare a Man Mai every single morning and for the last months it has been this raw He Kai.

14. The tea culture globally is way progressive and advanced than the tea culture in India. What tea experiences do you feel people are missing on?
JF: What has always shocked me about Indian tea culture is how so very few Indians I’ve met are able, or have access to, their own wonderful teas. Darjeeling was built up to export but we’re so far past those days that I think that India could well develop a real domestic love of its very own Darjeeling brews. Assam teas dominate the spectrum of what is available but there are so many aspects that could be built into a new Indian chapter of tea enjoyment of its very finest. The leaves are present, the skill sets are available and the terroir exists so why not develop some white teas, more Oolongs, and some greens or heavily roasted offerings even. The industry in India I think could do with some re-evaluating of values and perhaps some young blood to take a few risks. Tea can be taken in new directions directed by and influenced by Indians with some risks.

Having just said the above, the first thing I do when arriving to India is track down a potent offering of Masala Chai….I’m entirely hooked when in India and I do understand the love of a traditional cup local chai. But, I’d love to see India enjoy some of its very own superior teas and have it available to a wider range of people.

15. Being in the industry for so long and having explored the unexplored, what would you like to share with the urban generation of tea lovers?
JF: Ultimately a deep wish is that more people realize that great teas are and can be very ‘simple teas’. Simply made, with a minimum of manipulation where the leaves taste not of something concocted or synthetic but of the soil and the minerals themselves.

One thing that has always encouraged and delighted me with tea is that the great teas are never far from the hands, nor should they be. Great teas need human hands and touch at every stage. They need the intimacy of the masters and dedicates who don’t simply shove the leaves in one end of an industrial machine and collect it at the other. Teas should be the domain of the small curators and the large and there should be enough audience and sippers for all models. We shouldn’t expect that every single year a tea will be consistent – we should expect and encourage characteristics that are unique to seasonal variations. Though I like consistency, for me the magic in tea always lie in variations and experiments.

16. Travelling gives us liberty and making new friends on the way makes it enriching and worthwhile. How have your experiences changed you as a person?
JF: Experiences can and should, I believe, refine and develop the mind and heart and in my own time I’ve edited down the ‘basics’ in my life and learning to enjoy with less. To enjoy a moment deeply, the mind needs to be ready and willing to open and receive, so in preparation, I suppose I try to be as mindful and present as I can.

My life has been particularly affected and moved by many of the elders of the Himalayas, and those who still live in communion with the land and who haven’t forgotten how to live with and within the elements.

I’ve learned too, that there are very few moments that do not improve with a good cup of tea and the mountains nearby.

Don’t miss the Part-1 of the interview

INTERVIEW – In Conversation with Jeff Fuchs, The Tea Explorer (Part 1)

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Interview jeffJeff Fuchs is an award winning Himalayan tea explorer, entrepreneur, author, mountaineer, ambassador of The Ancient Tea Horse Road, ambassador of The North Face, Asia traveller, documentarian and ‘the pursuer’ of rare teas grown in the ancient, remotest routes on the planet. In an exclusive conversation with LoveforTea Jeff talks about his intimate relationship between mountains, indigenous cultures and tea and the experiences that have fuelled his purpose to search beyond. Recently named one of the top ten “tea influencers” in the world, Jeff’s most awaited work with award-winning filmmaker Andrew Gregg,“The Tea Explorer”, that experts are calling the “documentary of the year” airs on CBC documentary channel, on 23rd of July, at 9:00 pm EST.

1. Jeff, tell us about your journey from an entrepreneur to an award-winning explorer of far-away lands. Where, when and how did it all start?
JF: Not sure I can point to a beginning point so much as a pathway that has continually led me from one mountain world to another, from one character to another, from one tale to another…and of course from one sip to another. Mountains and tea have long held me and I cannot imagine being without or away from them for any amount of time. My father once said to me when in my mid-teens that he didn’t expect me to do anything I didn’t care about, and these words coming from an ex-professor to my ears at a very impactful time in my life lit up the fires even more and allowed me to wonder about a life of wandering and following paths.

The idea of exploring the trade routes and trying to find the last travellers and traders of these routes was important to give some context and lifeblood to their vital influence on culture, economics and the world of faith. It was like a kind of karmic circle where each thing led me back to the other. These journeys that traders and pilgrims took, required weeks and months and the characters along the routes have in many cases maintained their oral narratives and tales of the life. From my perspective documenting these tales and characters (which remain one of the least told aspects of the Himalayas) is vital to understand the mountains themselves.

2. You’ve explored the rare routes in China, Tibet, Nepal and India. How did you decide the destinations, routes and manage to travel to some of the most undocumented routes?

JF: There is a wonderful saying on the Tibetan Plateau about travel and life, “There are no straight lines through the mountains”. This sums up my motivation: to participate in this movement and record how life is/was lived in such landscapes and spaces. Mountains are nature’s editors and through them, one must pass – and survive – in order to thrive. My wish has always been to track as many of these great routes as I can to access the stories, the precious people and the landscapes and spirit of the heights. What struck me was how little was written or taken down about the old trade routes of salt and pashmina and tea, and so interviewing people and finding them became the journey itself. I realized when interviewing these wonderful characters that they too needed documenting. Once there was a vision to seek out these routes, it was a question of engaging with the “ancients”, the remaining traders and muleteers and travellers who remember still when the only way to move was by foot.

With deciding on the routes, came through discussions with the elders. Once recalling their journeys, they would point out another route that they had travelled hauling yet another item. I remember one old grizzled trader in Tibet explaining that he did seasonal work and often shifted what it was that he traded and sold. “One year I only traded salt and the next salt and tea. Then I traded pashmina and tea because of the value. But always tea was the most valued of all commodities”.

3. What specific routes have you explored so far? Please share some tea experiences that you’ve had which are memorable.
JF: One of the beautiful aspects of the trade routes is that there was seldom a set finish point. Lifetimes would be needed to find the ultimate destinations of every wandering trade…and it seems fitting that way. These routes were in large part only found out about through repeated visits I made to interview elders or old traders.

The Tea Horse Road (known to the Tibetans as Gya’lam, or ‘wide road’), has long occupied me with its various strands. Some of these strands completely leave the main trunk and act as access routes for valleys, regions and even different cultural hubs. A decade was spent travelling as many of the passages of it as I could track down. Another of the great journeys I was part of was a 40 days trek following a long forgotten salt route in southern Qinghai (Amdo) Province that was used by nomads. It was simply called ‘Tsa’lam’ or Salt Road, and though there were many such routes, this one was particular because of two vital elements. It circumnavigated the sacred Amye Maqin mountain range and thus was a also an important pilgrimage route, and secondly, it cut through the lands of the fearsome Golok nomads, who, even for the hearty and strong were a risky threat to risk encountering.

Most recently there was a trade route I followed that hauled tea through the magnificent kingdom of Mustang along the Nepal-Tibet border. These trade routes were lifelines and news-pipelines rolled into one. Post, migrants, villains, armies, pilgrims and commodities all followed these paths, while culture and traditions, as well as DNA, all found their way from leagues away. Nothing though would have any colour or vibrance without the elders and their oral narratives and memories of such journeys.

4. Tell us about your most awaited documentary ‘The Tea Explorer’. What do you plan to share through your film?
JF: The film is peek into the journey tea took from the tea bastions of southern Yunnan province onto the Tibetan Plateau – a journey that must rank as one of the great underrated adventures of the world with its passage through the Himalayas and beyond.

It also delves a little into some of the magnificent characters of the Tea Horse Road. The film too seeks to shed some deserved light upon the odysseys that tea was part of on the overland trade routes. The tea that travelled by schooner from India and China to western Europe is relatively known, but the great routes through the skies and the endeavour necessary to make those journeys are the stuff of legends. I suppose the film is immersed in tea’s origins, part re-tredding along the routes themselves and part mountain lore of one of the great unknown routes of history with a delicious little bit of time with an old trader.

5. Tell us about your book ‘The Ancient Tea Horse Road’. What experiences inspired you to write about the oldest trade route in the world?
JF: The book is a kind of combination of journaling and a leap back into history of this great trade route. One huge driver for the book was to introduce the Tea Horse Road to a wider audience, and the vital role it played in building not only the Himalayas but to Asia broadly.

The book is largely based on my own 7.5 month journey along the route and the characters who filled my ears and heart with their tales. Woven into this narrative is some of the experiences with the origins of all tea, Yunnan. Ancient tea tree forests, wonderful tea-stained and tea-fueler characters that served and preserve so much of the tea culture….all of them fill the book.

Lastly, the journey and book focus on the last generation of traders that we could track down and speak with. Their memories are the lifeblood of the route and without their words, and thoughts there would be very little flavour to the stories. A book of mountains, memories, and a green leaf.

6. Tell us about your recent exploration in Nepal and what teas have you brought back home this time.
JF: Journey was along an old trade route along Mustang’s eastern flank. Extraordinary isolation and a space very much consistent with so many of the landscapes along the trade routes, with nature ruling with her moods.

One of the pleasures of the journey was based on a promise I had made to an old tea trader two years previous. I had me this man, Konga, when we were filming the documentary and I loved his spirit and passion for the days of trade. We ended up filming him speaking of his past days of trading and of the risks of travel along these routes through the sky. He became like a kind of uncle to me. When our trek finished in northern Mustang I tracked him down and we had time for tea, to reminisce and of course to present him with a brick of tea I had brought from China. It was a very warm reunion for me because he personified so much of what made the traders and muleteers special.

I brought back some Jun Chiyabari tea, which is wonderful….though I’m a happy slave to my raw green Puerhs still.

7. How do you prepare yourself to travel at such high altitude?
JF: These routes are all about the land and the precious souls who live upon them and within them every single day. Preparations are wonderful segments of time. Training is usually an enjoyable thing with weighted packs and ascents with the odd bit of up hill sprints. Ascending anytime is something delicious as it forces the tendons and lungs into a kind of enjoyable stress.

Living well is a training of sorts and I don’t really change too much before a trip other than to make sure the tendons and joints are stretched well and mobile with isometric exercises and long easy stretch sessions in quiet places. There are some visualization exercises that I’ve started that I’m enjoying as well as much for to prepare the mind for long slogs.

Most of my journeys are around a month or more so what one needs is an ability to “enjoy the experience” as a whole. Living 24/7, where one is sleeping, eating, day-in-day-out requires some passion and love of elements rather than just being outside for temporary bursts.

A lot of Tibetans refer to the idea that they see the mountains not necessarily as barriers and walls and challenges but as guardians and corridors. They don’t force themselves on or through the mountains and I try to be very mindful of that philosophy both when in the mountains and when in preparations for them.

Interview continued in Part-2

INTERVIEW – In Conversation with Carne Griffiths

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Carne Griffiths InterviewInfusing the beautiful colours of various teas in his artwork, Carne Griffiths, a UK based Artist, swaps paint for a cuppa to create intriguing portraits, working primarily with tea, vodka, whisky, brandy and calligraphy ink.

Carne’s approach to painting, which often includes drawings of faces that break down at the edges into floral motifs and exuberant painterly marks and stains, has captivated viewers globally, with his work being exhibited from Milan to Hong Kong, as well as at The Royal Academy in London. Griffiths’ celebrity subjects include Heidi Klum and Kate Beckinsale, and his illustrations of Donald Sutherland and Jesse Eisenberg can be found in recent editions of The New York Observer.

In an exclusive conversation with LoveforTea, Carne takes out some time during his recent solo exhibition at Westbank Gallery in London, and shares his inspiration and vision behind his emotionally-driven work and why he adores painting with tea.

1. Carne, you paint with tea, ink, alcohol, gold leaf powder and diamond dust. How did such unique elements land in your work and how did it all begin? 
CG: Alcohol was the first unusual material to appear in my work, and it appeared merely by having a drink of brandy nearby – sometimes when I am working I do so in a very chaotic way so if there is something nearby that can be used to create I will use it. The water I was using was dirty so I used the brandy instead – not quite an accident but utilising something as a replacement.  The brandy had a very subtle but interesting effect on the work – so I decided to pursue it further but using a non-alcoholic alternative – and tea seemed to be the ideal way to reproduce the colour.

This led to the exploration of using different teas, different hues and colours and also different strengths.  It had the effect of providing an earthy palette to my work and I was able to build confidence using colour – I liked its chaotic nature and the way it could be steered around the page gradually becoming darker in tone as it dried. Tea became a key component in my work and certainly helped in raising awareness of my work as it created an unusual story.

2. What types of tea do you use in your work and which are your personal favorite?
CG: Early work focussed on using chai and jasmine teas – I worked mainly with Twinings but every time I travelled I would collect unusual teas – basil tea from India – different chais, wrapped teas and loose leaf teas, herbal teas such as sage and rose hip teas both from turkey – it was interesting to see the subtle differences in each and also – various teas would change dramatically in colour as they dried.

3. Which are your favourite teas and the time of the day you enjoy drinking them?
CG: I mainly drink the teas as I am using them but as I leave the teas to steep indefinitely they become bitter, as a side I normally have a cup of builders tea to hand! My favourite summer tea is Jasmine and it’s also a fine tea for painting – it has a honey like colour on the page and can give very subtle effects.  It also combines really well with turquoise inks to form a palette of blues and greens.

4. Your portraits are an amalgamation of different elements and art forms. How do you approach the blank canvas?
CG: I approach each piece of work with a very open mind – quite often the particular theme or collection of elements evolves slowly through the process of creating – I begin with a sketch which will form the basis for the composition but then the process involves layering marks and then building up and destroying areas using the hot teas or sometimes just plain boiling liquids.

5. Tell us about your ongoing solo exhibition at Westbank Gallery.
CG: My solo opened on the 8th of June and will run until the 14th – it is a collection of works on paper using teas and inks but also a small collection of newer works on canvas.  I want to try and develop my style of painting to using a more versatile media – teas and inks work very well on paper, I use them almost exclusively on bockingford watercolour paper from St Cuthbert’s mill which I always stretch before working – this helps to keep the surface flat and prevents pooling of liquids in areas you wouldn’t want.

6. How has your work matured over the years as an artist?
CG: My work evolves very slowly and subtly – as an artist I have found that interesting projects will steer the direction of the work and force you to think how you can combine your main message with the subject of say a group exhibition.  I also work as an illustrator and with some brands through my agency Beautiful Crime, these projects bring new elements into the work and often result in changes to the overall style.  I have a passion for detailed observational drawing but I also have a passion for the abstract and the act of automatic drawing or drawing from the subconscious – I try to fuse these two areas in my work as it keeps me interested and excited about the subject.

7. Which are your favourite works from your journey so far?
CG:I always find it difficult to select favourites but there are pieces of my work which have been key to progressing a style, the early piece Rose, was the one that defined my work as a combination of nature and portraiture, then there was the piece Strength which broke boundaries with colour and gave me a real platform to showing my work.  Following this was a piece from a triptych series called Eleven, that series had a lot of meaning for me – it was based around numerology and was created at a real junction in my life.

8. Is there an artist you admire. Tell us who and why?
CG: I spent my college years working alongside artist Dan Baldwin, when we went our different ways after college I worked the 9-5 but he painted constantly and now is established as one of the most exciting contemporary artists of today.  I always admired his drive and energy – there was barely a time when he was not an artist and I think this sort of drive and creativity are what result in a truly authentic creative.

9. How is your ideal day when you are not painting?
CG: I enjoy spending time in nature, cycling or even just in the garden – it’s small observations about the natural world that influence the work and it’s the main message in my work – returning the importance to the natural world.

Carne’s entire gallery can be seen on his website and Behance.

INTERVIEW – In Conversation with Chef Michael Swamy

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Interview NuevaChef Michael Swamy, the rising star of the culinary world, talks about his new role as the Chef Patron at NUEVA – India’s first Latin American restaurant in New Delhi. In an exclusive interview with Rangsaa, Chef Michael gets personal and shares his journey and inspiration behind his dream project Nueva…and his insane love for tea!

1. How did your love for Latin American food and tea, both commingle and inspire you to start Nueva, your dream project?
MS: I was brought up on magazines like NatGeo, BBC Wildlife, SPAN and others, which gave me glimpses of global culture and inspired me. One of the magazines had a feature on Spain and I remember getting intrigued back then too. Spanish cuisine is a vibrant cuisine. It’s based on home cooking styles and local ingredients and travel! The Spaniards travelled the world and took ingredients with them. It’s a cuisine that’s close to my heart.

Latin America was another region that intrigued me because of its colorful culture and the brilliant images I saw of the Amazon jungles. When I studied the food aspect that also fascinated me. And tea… I have a deep personal relationship with tea. My Nana (Mother’s mother) lived with us and had been a matron in hospitals during the British Era. So she followed many British customs and teatime was a serious affair in our house. Her friends knew this and those who travelled always brought back different teas as gifts. So I have grown up tasting different kinds of tea and have always loved it. So, when I got the opportunity to do a restaurant I decided I want to do something new and something, which will definitely have some element of tea in it. I also cook with tea!

2. Tell us about your target audience and why Nueva is a must visit place for all our readers?
MS: It’s for the adventurer, the expat, the person who wants to try out new things and most importantly for the person who loves, respects and understands food – not just because some cuisine is trending. It’s for those who understand the timeless quality of food. It’s a must visit place for someone who wants authenticity, flavor and taste, the connect of art on a plate and the ability to enjoy food at leisure. It’s for those who come to a place with an open mind.

3. Share your inspiration behind your unique menu at Nueva.
MS: The menu takes on all the aspects of nature. From nature we receive and to nature, one must give back. It’s about sustainable foods, local ingredients. The exotic is kept to a minimal. The inspiration is nature and the seasons, and so we have divided our menu as per garden, sea, mountains…

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4. From interiors to your menu, everything is so artistic and well selected in your restaurant. Are you a chef, who is also a poet and an artist?
MS: I am all of the above. One has been given talents and it would be criminal not to use them all. The designers and architects put together our vision of nature and design and the concept of minimalistic to good use and gave us a restaurant one can walk in and be comfortable. I do dabble in poetry and yes, the artist in me came to the fore as a food stylist and photographer. Having said that, I believe that every chef is a poet and artist… after all the food is the chef’s poetry and art translating onto a plate.

5. Is there a chef you admire the most? Tell us who & why?
MS: Chef Claire Clarke who instilled in me the art of bakery and perfection. She was a chef to the House of Lords and has worked in several Michelin restaurants. Seeing a woman achieve so much in a man’s world as inspiring enough, not to mention her penchant for perfection that she instilled in everyone around her.

6. Which is your favorite tea? And your favorite time of the day you enjoy drinking it?
MS: I drink tea at any time of the day – even in the middle of the night! My favorites are white tea, Lapsang Souchong and silver tips. I also enjoy orange pekoe.

7. Tell us your favorite dish on the menu and what makes it so special?
MS: Since all of them are my creations, I cannot choose any one. All are my favorites also because they have evolved due to my chefs’ inputs and suggestions. The Lamb Osso Bucco Stew, Slow-cooked Pork Belly with Vindaloo Glaze and Duck Moile are my favourites. Also, the Vegetable Lasagna and Mixed Mushrooms with Creamy Polenta would be the ones I would suggest people try out for sure.

8. Define “a perfect cup of Tea” and your favorite tea pairing of all times.
MS: For me, a perfect cup of tea goes well beyond how hot the water should be and how long the tea infuses… my perfect cup of tea is also all about the moment, the atmosphere, the place, the comfort of the silence or hustle around you. Because whether it’s during the day or night, I like to sit back, relax and sip my tea. It’s not just the brewing that makes it perfect. It’s the setting and the emotions running through you.

9. Working in the industry for so many years, what one advise would you like to share with our urban-generation of tea lovers?
MS: Try every kind of tea there is, whether hot, warm or iced, with or without milk, plain or flavored. It’s soothing, it’s comforting and it’s the story of India in a cup so take the story of it to the world.

Tea Inspired Jewellery by Ann Mierisch

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Ann in conversation

We are mad tea lovers here and we were curious to learn about Ann’s inspiration behind using tea in her jewellery.

In an exclusive chat with Love for tea, Ann tells us how she has always had a love affair with tea and has an entire pantry full of teas. “I think of tea as a travel vessel for the mind and soul”, she adds. “As I sip a cup of tea, I like to think about where the tea comes from, what the climate was like there, the people who harvest the tea, the journey the tea made to shops where I buy it from”.  Her favorite section in any guide book is the local tea shop or the tea house.

Ann Mierisch is a German born photographer and an artisan jeweller based in Los Angeles. Her unique line of artisan jewellery is inspired by tea, nature, travel, Paris, animals and beautiful things found all around the world. Her wish to tell a story and inspire a conversation, is nurtured beautifully in her handcrafted, one-of-a-kind pieces.

“So it was inevitable that I would attempt to create jewellery out of tea. I was at my local tea shop when the purveyor spilled some tea on the counter and landed in this interesting pattern. Something sparked in me and I ran home to try to recreate what I saw on the counter at the tea shop. Through much trial and error Tea-Lace Jewellery was born.”

Ann uses finest premium loose leaf teas to create her pieces. Each piece is handcrafted with fine attention to detail. We adore her sincerity towards her form of expression, her selection of teas, her craftsmanship and imagination – which together create magic in every single piece.

Ann hopes to open a store in the coming year, but for now has an online shop, which we highly recommend you to check. We thank her for the kind gesture and considering our readers with a special discount. Use code LOVETEA on your first purchase to avail the offer.

Website – deutschefotodesigns.etsy.com
Twitter – @Deutschedame1

Part 2 – In Conversation with Robert Wemischner

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Q1 – Which is your favorite tea? What is your favorite tea pairing? How do you define the Perfect Cup of Tea? And what is your favorite time to have tea?
RBW – Favorite tea: I love Indian teas..malty Assams as much as delicate single garden Darjeelings…Perfect cup of tea is the last one you brewed…Favorite time is about 10 pm….., recalling the fond memories of bed tea….that I have enjoyed in India…but I start my work day, at work, with tea that I brew at 6 a.m., capturing a few moments of calm before the rush of things to come during the day.

Q2 – What are you planning to present at the upcoming World Tea Expo? Tell us about your research and expectations?
RBW – I will be preparing 5 desserts especially to pair with 5 teas and talk about these desserts/sweets marry well with the flavors of the teas being paired with them. This will be a wonderful primer for tea shop owners/hotelier food and beverage managers,  who offer afternoon or high teas in their shops. I find that each tea expresses a certain flavor profile and it is that flavor profile that “speaks to me” and reveals how it will pair with specific foods, whether sweet or savory

Q3 – Tell us about your book “The Dessert Architect” and your upcoming projects ?
RBW – The Dessert Architect was released in 2010; so it has been released for five years and is used in culinary and baking programs for professionals in training all over the US and Europe……well known among pastry chefs and baking educators worldwide. I am currently working on a fifth book which will be a simple baking book for home bakers and enthusiasts using just five ingredients in each dessert/sweet, simplifying the process without sacrificing the pleasure.

Catch Robert Wemischner at the World Tea Expo, tomorrow, 8th May in Long Beach, California.

 

INTERVIEW – In Conversation With Robert Wemischner

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Tea Interview Base RobertPastry chef and Culinary Educator, Robert Wemischner began his career to great media acclaim in the food business in the early 70’s as the owner of a pioneering gourmet-to-go shop in Beverly Hills. He then went on to open a similar operation in Baltimore, and in the early 90’s, returned to LA and began teaching pastry and culinary arts in earnest.

In Robert’s world of bold flavors, you will find a contemporary approach to desserts, drinking and cooking with premium whole leaf tea. His journey is an exploration of exciting ingredients and tools.

Q1 – Working for many years in the industry, you’ve decades of experience. What would you like to share with our urban- generation of tea lovers?
 RBW – Tea is timeless and infinite in variety; there’s something for everyone; for people who love subtle flavors and for those who wish something bold…

Q2 – What inspired you to use tea in your recipes?
 RBW – I am a lover of flavors, appreciate the bold as well as the subtle….I think of tea as a seasoning, as a spice, and in that way, decoding its flavors, I figure out what dishes tea can benefit from…what preparations could include tea…

Q3 – How do you incorporate the flavors and goodness of tea in your recipes? And what is your personal favorite combination that you like to prepare?
 RBW – I associate green and oolong teas with white wine (and therefore use them as flavorings in delicate dishes involving fish and seafood and even light poultry; and black teas as perfect partners to red meats and bolder flavored fish….

To be continued…

My Interview About TEA

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tea

“I believe in practicing happiness, with reflection and tea.”- LoveforTeas

Check out my interview about tea, with UK based tea community, DrinkMilitia, that also featured some of my favourite tea recipes http://www.drinkmilitia.com/summer-2014-interview-ruhani-sandhu/