Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/556538
20 STiR tea & coffee industry international / Issue 4, 2015 (August/September) Malawi Satemwa Smallholder OP1 Satemwa Tea Estate has devised an effective collaboration with small holders on the estate. "We partnered with them to diversify their crops by planting herbs and flowers," said Wouter Verelst, marketing & business develop- ment manager. "We then blend these small holder grown herbs and flowers with our specialty tea," he said. To improve plucking standard for some of its high quality green leaf, smallholders receive a premium and "we also let them share in the profit when we sell the made tea as 'Smallholder Black OP1.' Satemwa, founded in 1923, produces 2,500 metric tons annually including white, green and oolong with about 90% CTC. The export teas are certified by UTZ, Rainforest Alliance and Fair Trade. Learn more: www.satemwa.com UK Amanzi adds London Store Amanzi, the very successful tea bar and retail company with a flagship in London's Marylebone, has opened its second shop in the heart of Soho, one of London' trendiest areas. The slightly smaller store at 52 Brewer St., designed with the same black wood, marble, mosaic tiles as the original shop but with a unique Soho twist, is just a stone's throw from Piccadilly Circus, Regent Street, Carnaby Street, and Golden Square. It features over 100 teas, all displayed in glass canisters behind the bar, showcasing all the bright colors of the leaves and other ingredients. The brewing process highlights the use of state-of-the-art Marco boilers, and customers can watch the leaves dance as they brew in Amanzi tea makers at the brightly lit brewing station. In addition to the extended list of loose leaf teas, Amanzi has created a new matcha menu with unique new blends that include ginger matcha lemonade, iced espresso matcha latte, and a sparkling matcha with cucumber, as well as the store's classic pure matcha shot, iced matcha, and matcha latte. There is also an interactive tasting and smelling area where customers can discover and enjoy the aromas and appearance of the various teas, and loose blends are weighed out to order for retail purchases. Learn more: amanzitea.com T London Launch T London is a new company owned and managed by Mark Warshaw, whose family established Molton Brown, and Jayne Kethro, who worked at Molton Brown with Warshaw. Inspired by tea's multi-layered fragrances and infinite variety, the company has created a range of perfumed products that embody the harmonious moments the finest teas bring. After a family trip to Sri Lanka's tea plantations, and a chance conversa- tion with business partner Kethro, who had recently returned from the spice trails in Kerala, Warshaw saw the potential to create a brand that built on the exquisite complexity of pure tea and the welcoming aromas of spice. The brand became T London, which now offers a range of products that include reed diffusers, bath and shower gels, shampoo, body lotions, gift sets, and travel packs. The Darjeeling blend uses a black tea base note to elevate and sustain other aromas and add a touch of mystery, and to it are added lemongrass oil, orange peel oil from oranges grown at the foot of the Darjeeling hills, lemon peel oil, and nutmeg kernel oil. The resulting refreshing, lightly citrus aroma is reminiscent of the vibrant perfume of freshly picked tea leaves in a Darjeeling tea factory in the spring. Learn more: www.t-london.com US Oolong Sommelier Classes JT & Tea Inc., owned and managed by Thomas Shu and Josephine Pan, offer a range of oolong workshops in tea and oolong pairing, oolong tea baking, and tea ceremony presentations. Classes for beverage directors and restaurant owners who would like guidance in pairing food with Taiwanese oolongs teach details of different types of oolong – Pouchong, jade oolong, classic tung ting, amber oolong, oriental beauty, and Formosa bonita. After tasting, trainees discuss the aroma, the flavor, the color, and the finish of each, and also learn how to brew correctly and how to pair each type with different foods. The tea baking workshop, aimed at tea business owners, tea growers, and r&d managers, teaches the art and value of tea baking, a process with reduces the caffeine content and gives the tea a more complex character. Tutor Dr. Jerry Liu teaches the basics of the leaf and explains how to change the tea's aroma and enhance the flavor during baking. JT & Tea also teach how the traditional oolong gong-fu ceremony can be adapted to modern tea rooms, restau- rants and events. The company is preparing materials for a Ceremonial Oolong Service Skill Building Workshop at World Tea Expo in 2016. Learn more: www.jtteainc.com SWITZERLAND Monte Verità Tea Harvest During the first week of May, the small Japanese-style tea garden on Monte Verità, Ascona, in the Swiss Alps, held its annual harvest. The 1,400 Japanese varietal plants are plucked each year by specialists from Japan. The fresh leaf was processed to make 2 kg of Shincha, the first green tea of the season with two additional kilos made at the end of June. The tea has the characteristic steamed green aroma and flavor of Japanese teas. The garden does not grow tea commercially but is run as a study center where tea aficionados may learn more about cultivation of tea. This year's harvest was part of two days of tea events that included the actual process- ing of the tea, a tea market, and a Japanese Green Tea Ceremony in the garden's Ceremony in the garden's Teahouse Loreley. Learn more: www.monteverita.org Japanese help Swiss process tea Tea cosmetics from T London