“How can I be more mindful?” a customer and friend was asking. For me, it comes from practicing Japanese Tea Ceremony. I was instructed even when I prepare tea utensils, I need to be focused on what I do. I think it is very simple task but for some find it is difficult.

At times, when we are drinking tea with a friend, we are not aware of the tea or even of our friend sitting there. Practicing tea meditation is to be truly present with our tea and our friends. We recognize that we can dwell happily in the present moment despite all of our sorrows and worries. We sit there relaxed without having to say anything. If we like, we may also share a song, a story or a dance.

Tea and Meditation are two practices that go hand-in-hand. They are both contemplative, slow-paced activities that help a person wind down.

Practicing Japanese Tea Ceremony is something many people do not want to do. Many think it was like a drag to pick up new “procedures” when they weren’t necessary. Some people even thought of doing tea ceremony seemed so cumbersome and old-fashioned.
You do not need to learn Japanese Tea Ceremony to be more mindful, really.  Watching the tea ceremony being performed can help you be more mindful. For those of you who may be new to meditation, it is not a practice reserved for only certain religions. In its most basic form, meditation is the process of sitting still for a period of time and focusing your mind through deep breathing or a single word so that the inner chatter in your head ceases.  
​
That is why I said you can be mindful to whatever you are currently doing. The combination of drinking tea and meditating has long been practiced by Chinese and Japanese Buddhist monks, who discovered that the calming properties of theanine in tea helped them to meditate blissfully for long periods of time. Perhaps, you can try combining them together to see if you get calmer or more focus before starting a task.

Tea of the Month  - Chamomile Green Tea

​Drinking tea right from the tea farm! ​

Taiwan is well known about their Oolong and that is what most people know. Do you know they also produce black tea? It is amazing to learn that they have been growing Assem (Indian tea) as well. On this trip, we visited Maokong which is located near Taipei. It is said that tea farmers from southern China came here to open teahouses. Later, the teahouses declined and customers no long came. The domesticated cats ran away and thus the place was called "Maokong" (meaning Cat Sky). However, Maokong has developed its unique sightseeing and tea tasting industry.
The tea farms here are famous for Bouzhong tea and Taiguanyin (Iron Goddess Oonlong). There are many teahouses with diversified styles. They are good places to visit no matter during day or night. In the daytime, there are tea trees and hills forming green scenery. Many citizens visit the place by taking the mountain tracks. After dusk, Maokong is like an enchanting, mysterious lady. Colorful light bulbs are lit in front of every building. Visitors taste tea, chat with each other and admire the nightfall.
The tea farms (open for sightseeing) are scattered around (you will need to walk around and find them). Most tea farms provide tea tasting or meals. Visitors coming here may also want to try the delicious dishes.

Tea of the month – Milk Oolong, Seasonal tea: Peach Oolong

We work directly with several tea farms. Your Journey Begins with Our Tea. ​

 From the beautiful Fall colors to the bountiful harvests, we have a lot of good things going on around us. For us, we are always thankful to our customers who support and follow us on Facebook, Twister or simply stop by and say hi to us. We can’t be “us” today without you. THANK YOU. Talking about tea and thankful month; the same goes for tea. The tea farmers have, done their final harvests for this growing season. We recommend these teas for the season:
1 Full of Character: Milk Oolong, Angkhang Oolong, Sencha Okumidori (Green Tea), Roasted Green Tea
2 A Great Tea Gets More Variety: Almond Coconut (Green Tea), Heavenly Hawaii (Herbal)
3 True, Clean Taste: Midnight Roses (Green Tea), Chamomile Dream (Herbal)
4 Refreshing: Sweet Mint (Herbal) or Moroccan Mint (green tea)
5 Hearty and Satisfying: Ceylon Earl gray (Black Tea), Russian Caravan (Black Tea)

​Japanese Black Tea has arrived. It has been awhile since we are out of this product. It has 2 contribute factors: we sold out and the tea farm was in a transiting period to fully Organic farm. This tea plant is seedling selection from the local varieties based in Nara Perfecture, an old capital of Japan in 7th century.
The tea farm is located and nested in the mountain. I love their location and scenery very much. From here, you can see the river and mountain. 

Tea of the month –ri Misho (Japanese Black Tea).

​We work directly with several tea farms. Your Journey Begins with Our Tea. 

For those who are interested to experience a real Japanese Tea House, it is time to register. The spots fill up so quickly. Send us a message if you decide to come.
A little back ground of the event. Built in the style of a traditional Japanese tea house, the Como Ordway Memorial Tea House is made primarily of materials indigenous to Minnesota, and expresses pure Japanese taste. Its aesthetic intent addresses not a spirit of deficiency but of poverty freedom from external concern and awareness of essential inward values. Equally important is the spirit of tranquility. Together they reveal beauty in imperfection and insufficiency.

For the Japanese people, a tea house and garden represent a mountain sanctuary within the city. The tea house and gardens are our mountain sanctuary. Through participation, guests set themselves apart from the cares of the world.

One approaches the tea house and its gardens by way of a gate, leaving the outside world behind. Only participants of the tea ceremony enter the inner secluded garden. This is not a large landscape scene. Dramatic views or unusually fragrant plants are not included. Simple, natural arrangements of trees and green leafy plants are desirable, as is foliage that makes a sound in the breeze.

All the hosts of the tea ceremony volunteer their special skills. At least one certified tea instructor is present with a staff of other volunteers, who have studied tea for many years. The tea ceremony they perform has been taught in Japan from generation to generation by the Urasenke branch of the Sen family. We are most fortunate to have the support of these devoted individuals. (As of now, I am a Vice President of Urasenke branch in Minnesota).

The tea ceremony at the Como Ordway Japanese Garden lasts 45 minutes, and includes an explanation of the ceremony itself. As many guests are not able to seat on the floor, we make a modification and now guests are seated on the chair.

Tea of the month – Sweet Mint Tea, Jin Chain Oolong

Chado, also known as Chanoyy and commonly referred to as the Japanese Tea Ceremony in English, is a spiritual and aesthetic discipline for refinement of the self - known in Japanese as a "do", a "way". The word "Chado" means "the way of tea". It is centered on the activity of host and guest spending a mutually heartwarming time together over a bowl of matcha tea. The purpose is to serve the guest an unforgettably satisfying bowl of tea and  the guest responds with thankfulness, both of them realizing that the time shared can never be repeated and that is a "once in a lifetime" occasion. Some may see Chado as moving meditation which is not wrong. It gives a sense of mindfulness and help refocusing the current moment. (I confirm it helps distress!!). ​

In America, we generally say something like "I like a cup of chai tea". Chai means Tea. Masala Chai (simply referred to as “Chai”) has been a tradition throughout India for centuries. This spicy hot beverage is a brew of Indian black tea with a unique blend of spices, typically including cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, cardamom and pepper, although the recipe varies region to region. Chai is consumed morning and afternoon by many Indian families, and is customarily the first thing offered to houseguests. So prevalent is the service of Chai throughout India that baristas, known as Chaiwallahs, can be found at just about every cornerm in India. ​

Afternoon tea was introduced in England by Anna, the seventh Duchess of Bedford. She would become hungry around 4 o'clock. The evening meal in her household was served around 8 o'clock thus leaving a long period between lunch and dinner. She began to ask that a tray of tea, bread and butter and cake be brought to her room. Then she began to invite her friends. After that, it became a fashion for high class society in England. Afternoon tea was born. ​

With an influence from Asian Culture during the trade on Great Tea Road , Russian tea is a combination of two or three types of flavors. These different teas are brewed dark and in separate pots. When mixed together in the cup, additional hot water is added to dilute the mixture. The tea pots are designed to sit one atop of the other with the bottom pot holding the hot water. The next pot, typically, will be a very dark tea followed by a pot of herbal or mint flavored tea. Stacking the pots, not only saves space, but enables each to stay hot longer. The samovar has served as Russia's teapot since the mid-1700s. By 1800, the samovar had become a cherished focal point of the Russian household and was the centerpiece of any social gathering. ​

Lastly, street vendors who sell Thai ice tea can be found anywhere. Thailand is hot; Thai ice tea is an excellent choice beverage. You can simply mix condensed milk to black tea and serve over ice. Or another version is sugar with black tea and serve over ice (aka. Cha dum yen). ​

Planning stage...
Before heading off to Japan, I sent one of a requests directly to visit a tea farm in Nara-shi area. If you do not know about Nara, it was an old capital city of Japan back in the year 710 - 1185.  By the time I arrived in Japan, I still hadn't heard anything back from this farm. I asked a Japanese landlady who I stayed with to call and to convince them to take me in. Initially,  I didn't know much about them. I chose to visit this farm because of its location. This farm was nested in mountains area. Most tea in Japan grow in low elevated land due to high cost of labor and their conveniences. Not the case for this farm. Finally, they were okay to take me in and would pick me up at the train station as well. Their last comment before hanging up the phone was "we don’t speak English ". Alright, I thought to myself; I'll survive. I took 3 trains down from Kyoto  (current capital city). There, an older lady was waving and waiting for me. I guess there are not a lot of people coming this way. It was only me got off the train (it was about 6-7 people total passengers). We drove about 20 minutes to the farm while I exchanged my broken Japanese and the lady was trying hard to speak English with me. Somehow,  we were able to understand each other. We even laughed all the way to the farm. 


Going out to the tea field
What I gathered when I arrived at the tea farm was that my request was unusal for them. They decided to drive me up and down to many tea fields from one mountain to another. As we talked, I learned they have been growing tea for 17th generation or roughly 400 years! (And the way they said it was no big deal). Initially,  the tea they were growing was for their own consumption while growing shitaki mushroom commercially.  About 100 years ago, they started selling tea commercially.  In winter time, they are still growing shitaki mushroom. They would use the wood that shitaki mushrooms grew on and turn them into tea tree furtilizer. Doing this also prevent weeds because they do not use any pesticides.  It is real organic tea farm. 

Tea Testing...

The farm produces many types of tea which is unusual for Japanese farms. Most farms process only green tea and its varieties  of green tea.  This farm produces Green, Oolong  (in a testing period), and Black tea. Japanese Green tea is popular but it is rare to find Oolong and black tea jn Japan. I had a chance to only try their 4 different green tea. Their roasted green tea is superb. The aroma is very nice like roasted fresh cut grass with a hint of nutty aroma and the taste is very smooth. It is also very forgiving if you brew it too long or use too hot water (yes, I tried to make mistake that most people would do). I was able to get to my 6th brew for a 10 - grams of tea. Their Okumidori green tea (sencha) is different than other sencha I have tasted. Most farms would make with astringent taste which you need to get used to it. Not the case of this tea. It was very smooth and less astringent taste. By the way, Okumidori means dark green color. As you can see from the picture above, the leaves color is darker green.

We are very pround of this new vendor and their teas. I hope you will try them and fall in love with their tea like we do.

Our swipe-stake winner to win a gift set tea box was Katja Becker. 
Please contact us to receive your tea. 

I had a chance to visit our vendor outside of Kyoto area. It took me 2 train rides and a bus, plus a little walk but with rain, I felt it was quite a way. It was interesting to be in the country side.  As you see, the farm was really green from the rain. Very beautiful. We did many tea tastings and looked at the tea trees. I really wish you could go with me to Japan. You will love the hospitality of people and truly fall in love with the country side. While I was waiting for a bus in the country side, there was an old woman start talking to me. Finally, she shared her snack with me. I wouldn't forget this kind of experience. Not a lot of people would share a snack with a stranger. Later, she showed me where my bus stop to the tea farm. Truly amazing time. From the picture, I learned that this tea farm is applying for a UNESCO site. This is because the first tea tree, 800 years ago, was planted in Japan in this area.  Would you agree to its beauty?  

I am so sorry for not writing. It has been really busy with me - working and taking care of kids.  It has been fun for me to meet customers (or anyone who wants to chat). There were many crazy weather days (rain, cold and thunderstorm). But I am still determined to be there. Thanks to my mom who took the video. I have posted our first day at the Minneapolis Farmers Market on YouTube. Please use this link: https://youtu.be/th5eIf209Ek. 

Stop by to chat or for a tea tasting at our store - Pavillion 1, store S29 (every even weeks). 

New teas:
I would like to introduce tea that can be brewed both hot and cold. New product this year is Peach Oolong & Kiwi-Mango-Passion Fruit Black tea. They are both good both hot or cold. 

Many customers asked me how to brew cold and made it so delicious. I never put any sweetener in my tea so you can actually taste the tea. 

What I do with the tea is put your tea in the infuser. Drop in the pitcher and pour water over it. Put in the freeze over night. You get a delicious cold tea next day. Easy and simple. The measurement is 1 teaspoon per 7-8 oz of water. Depending on how big of your pitcher, you will need to measure it accordingly. 

Another new tea is Cafe Et The (Coffee and Tea).
In Old Siam (or a.k.a. Thailand), there was a custom to mix coffee with tea. The aroma is quite unique similar to caramel but with a linger of coffee. I heard from many customers who wanted to quit coffee (or drink less of them). I hope I can help easing the transitioning process. 

Houjicha is a type of green tea. It is roasted thus changing its property from fresh grassy aroma to earthy tone. It generally is served in Japanese restaurants because it is more neutral to go along with all dishes. Unfortunately, after being roasted, antioxidant level has been reduced but it is not disappeared. Our Houjicha is directly from a family tea farm whose has been producing tea for 7 generation (approximately, 600 years of production!). It is also USDA certified organic. 


Valentines Special

Our Chocolate tea has always been popular because it gives such a good aroma. Recently, a customer said it smells just like"Godiva" Chocolatier. Yum! Treat yourself with a good Chocolate Tea or buy for someone you care. High in caffeine with black tea to help you energize. 

It is 10% discount until the end of month. Do you know our shipping fee is always $5 for MN residents? Spend more than $60 is free shipping within the US.

Click on this link: 
http://www.greattearoad.com/special.html

Hello from Great Tea Road. I am happy of having the first newsletter published. It starts a new year again. This year is a Sheep year in Asian Zodiac. In Japan, we would say Akemashite Omedeto gozaimasu. A Happy New year!

My daughter and I have been practicing many Japanese dances. We will be a part of Japanese-American Society to perform in the Festival of Nations at St. Paul River Center on April 30 - May 3. Please stop by to see our performance if you have a chance. It should be fun to watch the show from many countries as well as to try new food. 

This month special:

Recently, a friend of mine was telling me how to get maple syrup from our own tree. It may sound silly but I feel an attachment and do not want to damage our tree since I planted it myself.
After thinking about it for awhile, I thought we could do a special on our USDA Certified Organic Black Maple. It has been cold in Minnesota with many sub-zero days. A good hot cup of tea would be nice. 
It is 10% off a regular price of $11.95 until 1/31/15.
Here is our link:
http://www.greattearoad.com/special.html

A Japanese stamp with sheep knitting a scarf started 12 years ago. If you look at them closely - one is knitting a scarf (left) and one is wearing a finished scarf (right). The price of the stamp is also increased by 2 yens! I just thought it is an interesting stamp to collect. Wouldn't you agree? 

Lastly, many of my family members and friends are sick from this cold weather. Please take a good care of yourself. Best wishes for this year with a lot of happiness and prosperous year a head of you. Come by to say hi or just send a short note is always appreciated. 

www.greattearoad.com

With a fellow tea associate, we provided a tea demonstration to Knight of Columbus group. It was 56 ladies. To be appropriate with season, we did Tsuki Chabako, Autumn picnic tea. We were unable to provide 56 tea bowls in the room. Only way they could get their participation was to provide tea sweet and let them eat with me (as a guest in dark blue Kimono, in picture). It all turned out well. After we did the tea ceremony, the question and answers went on for a good fifteen minutes or so. One of the participants was wondering about tea and its calming property. Tea started its journey off as medicine but later on it has become a beverage. Here's what some studies have found about the potential health benefits of tea (credited to WebMD):

Green tea: Made with steamed tea leaves, it has a high concentration 
of EGCG and has been widely studied. Green tea’s antioxidants may interfere with the growth of bladder, breast, lung, stomach, pancreatic, and colorectal cancers; prevent clogging of the arteries, burn fat, counteract oxidative stress on the brain, reduce risk of neurological disorders like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, reduce risk of stroke, and improve cholesterol levels.
Black tea: Made with fermented tea leaves, black tea has the highest 
caffeine content and forms the basis for flavored teas like chai, along with some instant teas. Studies have shown that black tea may protect lungs from damage caused by exposure to cigarette smoke. It also may reduce the risk of stroke.
White tea: Uncured and unfermented. One study showed that white tea 
has the most potent anti-cancer properties compared to more processed teas.
Oolong tea: In an animal study, those given antioxidants from oolong 
tea were found to have lower bad cholesterol levels. 
Pu-erh tea: Made from fermented and aged leaves. Considered a black 
tea, its leaves are pressed into cakes. One animal study showed that animals given pu-erh had less weight gain and reduced LDL cholesterol.

Contact us if you want to have a wonderful experience with Japanese Tea Ceremony. 

This is my last volunteering event of the year at the Como park. I was pretty busy taking care of our guests such as showing the way, how to wash hands, changing their shoes, going into the tea house, making tea, etc. 

I totally forgot to take photos of the atmosphere within the tea house itself. Unlike British tea party, the event is quiet and calm. You would emerge yourself with the surrounding and feel truly somewhere else, not St. Paul, Minnesota.  Unfortunately, with the 100th year anniversary of the carousel, we could hear the music playing all day long. Totally wrong theme of music for the day! Despite all the noises and music, please enjoy the nice pictures of the tea house itself.
All content and images are the property of Great Tea Road (R). No  copies allowed without our permission. All right reserved.

From Bangkok, we flew up north to Chaingmai and drove up the mountain to Angkhang. It is a border small village between Thailand and Myanmar (Burma) with an elevation of 1928 m. (6325 ft.) above the sea level. The area is called "Little Switzerland of Thailand" due to cool climate and mountain scenery. It was not easy to go up there with lots of 120 degrees turns. 

We visited a tea plantation and tasted our tea to make sure they are high quality. After I tasted their Oolong, I felt in love with it. It was very smooth, no bitterness, and its aroma is like a flower. Moreover, I trusted the tea from this area because it is under the the Royal King Foundation. This Oolong tea is Thailand's certified organic as you can notice some dark spots on tea leaves at the tea farm (picture above). 

A little history about the Royal King Foundation was that King Bhumibol Adulyadej was visiting the area in 1969 and noticed a lot of Opium growing by hill tribes back then. He purchased the land and set it up as the first research for agriculture. He turned the Opium village then to a beautiful fruit, vegetable and tea farms as we see today. 

There is no more Opium growing in the area- if that what you are curious about. 

All content and images are the property of Great Tea Road (R). No copies allowed without our permission. All right reserved.