LEARNING HOW TO BECOME A TEA PRO

My tea journey officially began last year, when I lived in Chinatown in Vancouver for a little while. I had loved tea for pretty much my whole life (being British, after all), but it all came together when I would spend each morning in the local Chinese garden attending talks on tea, sipping jasmine in the sun, attending tea festivals and going on on tea tours. Needless to say, I completely fell in love with the art of tea. And so, here I am one full year later, dedicating almost my entire time of quarantine to tasting gorgeous teas and learning more about them.

 

Over at TeaPro, they are actively striving to be an all organic, plastic-free company that strictly offers only loose leaf tea. They encourage drinkers to get away from tea bags which often contain micro-plastics, so that they can instead enjoy pure high quality loose leaf teas. They are using their platform to do their bit for the environment, and by supporting them, you can too.

The sticker book idea is yet another thing that I had never come across before in a tea subscription box, and think that it’s a great way to really track your progress and have fun doing so. They have so many fun months ahead, such as their March matcha month and their August yerba mate month, and I love the idea that you can also receive traditional tea-drinking instruments with your boxes (such as the matcha whisk and porcelain bowl, and the yerba mate calabash gourd and bombilla!).

Despite the months being themed, you can also swap out any teas you dislike ahead of delivery, and can pause or cancel your subscription at any time. This flexibility is something which is definitely overlooked with a lot of subscription boxes.

Another thing that I LOVE about TeaPro is their breathtaking social media tea photographs. Since I have only been posting about tea for a couple months, I’m still new to trying to take beautiful photos of tea that will really draw people in – and their Instagram is a great source of inspiration! Every single post is perfect, and it’s quickly become one of my favourite Instagram accounts to browse.

When I received my first box, I was super excited! I received the May tea magic box, which came with three stunning packets of teas, three flowering tea balls, and a glass strainer so that you can properly see the teas. It also came with a really interesting booklet on the teas which I was about to taste, along with brewing recommendations and the histories behind each one. Not to mention the sticker booklet and the sticker that came with it! I feel as though I cannot recommend it anymore than I already have – and thus, I bring you my take on the four teas I tried.

GENMAICHA

Origin: Japan

Ingredients: Sencha, roasted rice

Preparation method: 1tsp of leaves per cup, water brewed at 85°C, steeped for 2 minutes.

Appearance: Dark and light green leaves with golden rice, when hot water is added it becomes a golden liquid

Smell: Like sugar puffs, nutty and rich

Taste: Nutty, roasted, deep, very distinctive

Aftertaste: A little like rice cakes, very pleasant

Mouthfeel: Very full-bodied, definitely a tea with substance. Zero astringency.

Overall impression: This has quickly become one of my favourite teas ever. I had never actually tried it before receiving this box, but found it absolutely delicious. The history of the tea only serves to make it more intriguing – in the 1900s in Kyoto, a tea farmer decided to mix roasted brown rice with his green tea blends.

Apparently, he did this so that even poor people could afford tea, thus giving it the name “peoples’ tea.” What came out of it was a popular nutritious blend which was almost as filling as some foods and was often used for religious fasting by monks or by soldiers with scant rations. It is also known as “popcorn tea,” and with the sweet, roasted flavour, it’s not hard to figure out why!

BUTTERFLY PEA FLOWER TEA

Origin: Southeast Asia

Official plant name: Clitoria Ternatea, in Thailand it is called “Nam dok Anchan”

Preparation method: 1tsp of leaves per cup, water brewed at 100°C, steeped for 3 minutes.

Appearance: Beautiful blue flowers become a deep blue liquid when hot water is added

Smell: Woody, earthy

Taste: Vegetal, wet wood, grassy

Aftertaste: Very pleasant, no astringency

Mouthfeel: Quite thick but smooth

Overall impression: This is such a fun and exciting tea! To change the colour of the tea from blue to purple, add a few drops of lemon. It feels almost magic to be drinking a bright blue tea, and I for one have never had anything like it. I added honey to sweeten it, and the added lemon really is the cherry on top.

A plus side of this tea is that not only is it pretty, but it also has many health benefits, such as being a memory enhancer, good for tired eyes, relief for pain and stress, and it also helps to promote hair growth. What else could you need?

FLOWERING TEA

Origin: Fujian Province, China

Preparation method: 1 ball of tea, water brewed at 85°C, steeped for 3 minutes.

Appearance: A little different each time! A gorgeous flower selection which blooms in the hot water, becoming a gorgeous bouquet of reds, whites, and greens (the colour of my national flag!)

Smell: Floral, woody

Taste: Earthy, floral, slightly vegetal

Aftertaste: Doesn’t linger for long but it very neutral

Mouthfeel: Very soft, pleasant

Overall impression: Another one of those teas which are a lot of fun to drink! When I first brewed this tea, every single one of my flatmates sat around the table and watched it bloom, taking timelapses and photographs. It’s definitely a tea which I would love to serve guests in my future house, watching their amazement as it turns from a tight little ball to a really beautiful flower.

TIE GUAN YIN OOLONG

Origin: Anxi, Fujian Province, China

Preparation method: 1tsp of leaves per cup, water brewed at 90°C, steeped for 2 minutes.

Appearance: Rolled dark and lighter green leaves, becomes a pale neon green liquid

Smell: Quite fragrant, almost jasmine-y

Taste: No astringency at all, floral, honey

Aftertaste: Not a very strong aftertaste, but very pleasant, light, and soft

Mouthfeel: Very very smooth and delicate

Overall impression: They don’t call it the Iron Goddess for no reason! Oolong has always been one of my favourite teas, and this is definitely the crème de la crème of them all. This oolong is 20-25% oxidised and as such, the flavour profile is closer to green than to black tea.

Legend has it that in the 1800s in Anxi, a legend tells of a poor tea farmer called Wei who happened upon a neglected iron (Tie) shrine to Guanyin (the Goddess of Mercy). After painstaking restoration over many months, the goddess Guanyin appeared to Wei in his sleep, leading him to a small green shoot near the Iron shrine. Taking the shoot and planting it in his tea field, a leaf emerged with such incredible flavour that it made the farmer very successful. To show his gratitude, the farmer called this variety TieGuanYin.

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Tea Pro is such an exciting subscription box, and I truly think that it’s one of the best out there. The subscription really is a great way to, as their website states, ‘discover ancient potions, Chinese legends, mystical landscapes, colour changing magic, human history and more on your journey to become a teapro.’ I couldn’t have put it any better myself.

To get 15% off your first box, use the code Amy15teapro at check-out. You can thank me later 😉

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