2011 The Northwest Tea Festival

Seeing that the 2011 Northwest Tea Festival occurred October 1^st and 2^nd, I know this review is a bit late, but I still feel it’s important.

I have always admired this Festival, not only for its support of Seattle and Oregon teashops, but also for their small classes, 10 people max.  However this year was a bit of a disappointment even though the schedule looked very exciting.

This year it was located in a larger venue (Fisher Pavilion) in Seattle Center; perhaps twice the floor size.  I was looking forward to seeing more local teashops represented only to find out that less had joined and there were more non-Northwestern, large teashops and wholesalers.  Even though the space was larger, the designated lecture “halls” were not isolated and speakers a bit hard to hear or too loud echoing throughout the venue and even into the small tastings.  There were more fee-based lessons, which I’m not particularly against, but according to trusted friends, some were not worth the money.

Not to say all was a disappointment, there were some very interesting additions, like hands-on workshops, such as tea and chocolate pairing (not my thing) and a re-roasting class (well worth the $10 per person).

Sadly the small 10 person tasting classes were still organized the same, 25 minutes each, very hurried by the staff who also occasionally added people to the group making it more than 10 people thus too crowded and more people than the teacher could handle.  Rethinking this method would be very comforting to both the teachers AND the students.  There are many ways to ease things, all of which either seem to be out of the staff’s comprehension or simply can’t be accommodated.

Having high hopes for this year, I must admit I was disappointed.  I hope next year will be much better thought out with more local shops.  After all, it is the “North West” Tea Festival.

Green tea: China vs. Korea vs. Japan

So why would you choose a certain country’s tea over another’s?  It’s true that even though China has a rich variety of green teas, Japan’s and Korea’s greens are different, but why?

Korea’s and Japan’s tea plants are of the same subspecies as China’s, seeing that it spread from China to both of those countries.  They are all Camellia Sinensis Sinensis but certainly their varietals, like in grapes, are different.  However the buck doesn’t stop there!

Let’s not forget that weather, altitude, in this case, propagation, and, of course, the most important… processing of the leaves, all play factors in how the final product turns out.

The latitude of China is most certainly the lowest of both Japan and of course Korea (the most northern place that grows tea)¹. Korea is so north and it’s weather so cold that only the southern tip of South Korea is able to grow tea.  Comparing the latitude of Korea’s northern most growing area to that of the US, it lines up with just about good ‘ole St. Louis!

Both China and Japan have abandoned the use of tea plants grown from seeds in order to “control” the taste of the tea through propagation.  Korea however has kept with the tradition and for the most elite teas they forage from tea plants that grow in the wild!  A more popular and certainly more productive method of picking leaves in Korea is by uprooting wild tea plants and replanting them in a farm.  Of course propagation is also used to make the lesser quality teas in Korea.

Now to the major part, the processing of the leaves:

China still uses traditional methods of heating and pressing/rolling leaves on a huge wok.  However China has needed to up its production due to demand and has moved on to more modern techniques, for example using ovens to dry the leaves.

Japan’s preferred way to process leaves is by steaming the leaves as quickly as possible to keep the fresh taste.  This leads to a much different taste than any other green teas.  Although steaming is also used in China, Japanese teas are most known for the process.

Korea, having just revamped their tea production after the Korean War, has tried hard to keep to traditional methods, and have been very successful at it.  This, however, limits the amount of tea they can produce and makes their tea generally more expensive.  Pan firing is the most dominant technique much like traditional Chinese methods.  Perhaps what gives Korean teas their distinctive tastes and aroma has more to do about the weather.

Plainly speaking, the processing has the most the most influence on how teas taste, but many factors go into the final taste of the cup you drink, including how you brew it.

¹: Since mid-2010 a small tea plantation in Burlington Washington State has begun to sell tea, which would make it the most northern plantation.

Are You Buying a Tetsubin or a Teapot?

With the mass commercialization of Asian teaware here in the US, once ancient, beautiful and frankly expensive forms of teaware have been sized down to meet consumers’ wants and needs.  Japanese teaware is among the most hurt by this simplification, most of all is the tetsubin.

A tetsubin is a water kettle, mainly used for tea, which is made of cast iron.  What we see in many US stores are not tetsubins but iron teapots.

These kettles are literally works of art, with many shapes and elaborate designs on the sides.  Hand cast from sand or clay molds, they can be made only once or a few times making each piece unique.

Hojo Tea

So what makes a tetsubin special?  Not only is it exposed iron on the outside, it is also exposed on the inside.  When boiling, the water reacts with this special iron and becomes “sweeter.”  Activated iron particles are released into the water which often enhances the taste of tea.

Teavana

When we look at the iron teapots we commonly see, their interior is coated with ceramic and, just like any other ceramic teapot, the flavor is not enhanced.  The only real difference between an iron teapot and a regular ceramic teapot is its heavy iron and ability to keep tea warm for a longer period of time.

While the tetsubin is meant for heating water, it is not used for brewing tea, instead clay is used. And there are many forms of clay in Japan suited to enhance tea. Even though tetsubins were once considered a household necessity, it is very hard to find a real one today because they were replaced by stove top kettles and now the common electric kettle.

A tetsubin takes incredible skill to make and it is no toy either.  It needs care every time you use it so as not to get rusty inside and out.  When cared for, tetsubins can last several lifetimes of use.  It’s very possible to buy an old tetsubin and use it yourself.

You can find a real tetsubin a few places on the web; a great place is Hojo Tea.  If you want an iron teapot, you can visit many stores around the country and find them.

Iron teapots are too popular today and that is probably why they have assumed the wrongful name of tetsubin. So next time you are thinking about buying a testubin, think again and ask yourself, “Am I buying a tetsubin or a teapot?”