Favorite Things (Holiday Tea Gifts)

 

If you're looking for gifts for the tea lovers in your life, here are a few that I recommend. These support small businesses, people whom I know personally and respect deeply.

TEA

Young Mountain Tea - Try the tea bundles! 15% off sale through Dec 12. Support sustainable futures for Himalayan tea farmers and families.

Jasmine Pearl Tea Company - Among many great choices, they have just released a Sampler Set, blended in partnership with Young Mountain Tea. Jasmine Pearl has a wide range of herbal options for those in your life who prefer caffeine-free deliciousness. 

Floating Leaves Tea - Carrying some of the best Taiwanese oolong teas available in the US! I recommend Oriental Beauty (sweet), Dong Ding Traditional A (roasty), and 2021 Winter Smooth Water Baozhong (light, excellent broth).  Sale Fri 11/26 - Mon 11/29.

OTHER 

Papaya Bento - Art prints inspired by Camellia Sinensis, along with notecards of the same prints (I LOVE these!).  Artist Mitra Nite

Vintage Christmas Cookbook - Cookbook by tea lover and author Angela McRae.

Padded Tote for Gaiwan/Small Teapot - If you sew, you need this pattern! Snuggle in that precious tea ware.

Note: I received no products or compensation for this post.

Breakfast Picnics

 

During the pandemic, daily walks have been a means for me to find sanity, comfort and even joy. Sometimes all three in a day, sometimes just holding tightly to sanity. 

I occasionally add a breakfast picnic to the outing, and it's definitely a boost to my well-being. It typically works like this:  I pack up my backpack with a very simple breakfast (muffin, scone, etc.), a cup and saucer (maybe two), a thermos of tea and maybe a tablecloth.  Then off I go for my walk, ending where I can sit and have a quiet moment. 

Even if it's on your patio or front steps, consider giving this a try!  Now that many of us are moving into cool weather, don't give up.  A hot cup of tea warms my heart and soul. 

I prefer fireworks in subtle, quiet ways, like a cup of tea and a moment of tranquility.

Happy Holidays!

Peace and joy to you!

Eclipse Viewing and Tea

I was lucky, here in Portland, to be in 99.2% coverage during yesterday's solar eclipse.  I enjoyed the viewing from a park near my home.  I went old-school with a pinbox projector.  I also brewed tea grown near Sun-Moon lake in Taiwan.  ;-)

Old Growth Tea, Black, from Sun-Moon Lake in Taiwan

Sun and Moon cups

As the eclipse was beginning
Due to the optics of the pinhole projector, the image is inverted

Crescent shadows through the trees

The twilight was beautiful, and I was lucky to see the shadow bands dancing on the sidewalk.

Did you enjoy tea with the eclipse?  Tell us about it!

Iced Tea

 Here's another version of "iced tea!"  :-)  The Pacific Northwest has had quite the number of winter weather events this year, very unusual for us. This was taken last weekend after freezing rain.

My tea plant, Cami (short for Camellia), lives happily on the back balcony.  At least she did until last night when we had a snow storm!  I'm happy to report that the limb is bent, but not broken.

Mother Nature commands my attention, my respect, and my hard work to protect her.

Winter Solstice 2015

Here comes the sun!  It's alright....

Belated Happy Hanukkah,  Happy Solstice, Merry Christmas, Kwanzaa Greetings

Wishing you a peaceful year's end and joyful celebration of light

Change of Seasons and Upcoming Events

Changing of Seasons
Have you noticed the changing light as we tilt toward Fall?  The afternoon sun comes in at a slant for us, and it's beautiful. I love noticing the light and where it shows itself in our house throughout the year.  Right now, it's lighting up the hanging scroll in my 2-mat tatami room.  This is a new space and I'm so happy with it!  I can practice my tea skills and keep my knees and ankles fit for sitting on the floor.  The scroll above shows the characters for Wa, Kei: Harmony and Respect. It's the first half of Wa-Kei-Sei-Jaku, the four principles of tea (Chanoyu, Japanese Tea Ceremony).

Upcoming Events
I am very happy to share that I'll be participating in the following two events!

Bowl-Style Brewing Class at Jasmine Pearl Tea Merchants
This Sunday, Sept 20th at noon, Portland, OR.  Registration. We'll practice one of the oldest, simplest and most profound styles of brewing. Nothing but tea leaf, a bowl and hot water.  And of course, you.


Northwest Tea Festival
Saturday and Sunday, October 3rd and 4th, Seattle, WA.  Information. Along with my Sensei, Marjorie Yap, I'm teaching a class on How to Be a Guest at a Japanese Tea Ceremony.  Also  happy to be participating in the Wu-Wo Tea Brewing. This is a GREAT event, full of classes, tea tastings, tea things for sale and wonderful people.  It's one of the highlights of my year.


Happy Autumn!

Sunrise Solstice Tea in the Garden

Today is the summer solstice, the "longest day of the year," thanks to the Western Hemisphere's deepest tilt toward the sun. The sun rises and sets at its northernmost point along the horizon. It's funny, really, as the solstice is considered the start of summer and yet it's also the tipping point towards winter. From here, we lose a bit of light each day even as the temperatures continue to rise. That's because the land and oceans are still warming.

Humans are deeply connected to the shifting seasons and the moon phases, even though most of us don't acknowledge these subtle patterns in our life. It's something I aspire to observe.  I rose extra early to enjoy a solstice sunrise tea. I confess - it wasn't easy dragging myself out of bed - but I'm so glad I did! I took my chabako kit (a box with all the necessary implements for making matcha in the traditional style) to one of our garden plots. It was cool and quiet. The robins were beginning to hop around and the bees were still asleep inside of the hollyhocks.

I tried to follow the forms and practices of this tea procedure as best I could. I was both host and guest, which is unusual in a Japanese Tea Ceremony and required some adjustments. When I said, "otemae chodai itashimasu," thank you for making this bowl of tea, I was thanking all the people involved and the earth's generosity in bringing me this bowl of tea. It's an interesting contemplative experience if you dive into the thought of being both host and guest. 

I enjoyed being alone and spent some time journaling. Both tea and writing nourish me.

About an hour into the morning, the sun broke through the clouds, and everything began to sparkle.  

By the time I departed, about two hours after I began, the bees were humming and the sounds of human activity were floating in my direction. It was a time to go. A wonderful morning.

Berries, Old and New

Gooseberries

I went berry picking last weekend, something I love to do.  I thought of my grandmothers as I moved through the bushes and vines. I remembered my mom and paternal grandmother picking wild blackberries; the chiggers were awful but grandma was determined! Fortunately, no chiggers here. I recalled summer mornings with my maternal grandmother, making jam in her farmhouse kitchen before the heat of the day crept in.

Gooseberries are an old-fashioned fruit, the plump globes are tart until they ripen a little, but green is when they're best for jam. They're naturally high in pectin so they gel up without any additives. Here's the recipe I used. Gooseberry pie also happens to be one of my step dad's favorite treats. I just wish I were closer to make him one!

The bushes were easy pickin', so heavy with fruit that I brought home far more than I'll need.  Thankfully, they freeze well.

At the same farm, I was introduced to tayberries, a cross between a raspberry and a blackberry. They're a relatively "new" fruit, developed in 1979 in Scotland and named after the River Tay. This berry manages to have properties of both fruits, yet be its own thing.  I've been eating them out of hand all week and also made a batch of jam. They're delicious!

The gooseberry jam turns this pretty soft pink color, and the tayberry jam a deep purple-red. I'm grateful to live near berry farms, Oregon being one of the country's biggest producers, and I love traditions like this that keep family alive in my heart.

Hanazuki: Month of Blossoms

Crocus

I love that the Japanese have such precise seasonal words, phrases and poetry. March, for example, is called Hanazuki which can be interpreted to mean month of blossoms. (Translated word for word, it means flower moon.)  Where I live, March is definitely the month of blossoms.  Here are some pictures from our gardens. Sending thoughts of Spring to those on the Eastern side of this country.  

I love the subtle purple veins inside this crocus

More bright crocus

I love wild daffodils!  What stories they could tell!
Where did they come from? How did they get here?

Camellia with a Happy Bee
(We've just begun to see active bees)

Marsh marigold

Plum blossom

Chinese New Year: Year of the Goat

Stylized character of goat (also a bell)

Gong Xi Fa Cai!  Wishing you much prosperity in the new year!  Chinese New Year festivities will begin at Midnight tonight and continue for ~15 days, with some estimates telling that up to one-sixth of the world will be in celebration.  

Chinese New Year (also called Spring Festival) is based on a lunar calendar and falls on the second new moon after winter solstice, somewhere typically between January 21 and February 19th (this year's date).  

Traditions include fireworks and wearing red clothing (to scare away a mythical monster Nian), family reunions and  handing out red envelopes with money for children.  Here's a nice summary if you'd like to learn more.

Decorations at the Mandarin Oriental in Las Vegas

Have you been to a Chinese New Year celebration? Tell us about it!  My Wu-Wo group will be gathering this weekend to enjoy cups and cups of tea and a feast.  Can't wait!

Breathless

Camellia, white plum, grape hyacinth, snowdrop

Oh, Spring - your beauty takes my breath away.  So do the allergies that you shepherd. Maybe someday my body will learn that these foreign particles floating in the air are harmless.  Nonetheless, I am a faithful lover and will continue to adore you with fervor.  I will go for long walks in the pollen-heavy breeze just to be in your presence.

Photo by the DH, dear hubby.  If I were getting married today, this is the bouquet I would chose. Picked with my sweetheart on an early spring walk.

Happy Hot Tea Month!

Happy 2015 and Happy Hot Tea Month!  

I'm celebrating tea in all its many forms.  Here are just a few:  Afternoon tea (above, a recent tea party with my family, table styling by my 7-year old niece), Japanese green tea (below)...

Bowl-style oolong tea

Chinese-style gong fu tea

Japanese tea ceremony (That's me at  Hatsugama, "first kettle," today.)

Mug tea and much more!  No matter how you take your tea, may it be with a joyful heart.  Best wishes for the new year!  

Stephanie

Toasting Spices for Cider

Cinnamon, cardamom, peppercorns, cloves and star anise

It's apple cider season and I love this annual treat!  My favorite way to drink it is spiced, and I use my recipe for chai spices, shown above, along with coriander and fresh ginger if I happen to have them. I go heavy on the black pepper.  And here's the secret:  Toast the spices in a dry skillet and then crush them (in big pieces) in a mortar and pestle.  Place them into a cheese cloth and simmer in the cider for at least 20 minutes.  Aaahhh.