In the space of one week, I enjoyed two tea extremes. They got my attention so I started sorting through the details for meaning and hoped for a sign from The Spirit of Tea.

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On January 18th, I was one of the first attendees through the door into the Fancy Food Show at the Moscone Convention Center in San Francisco. Among the thousand-plus vendors were about a hundred booths featuring tea or tea infused foods. I tasted enthusiastically for two days, discovering new products and re-visiting old favorites.

Added to the food show was the luxury of tea at Samovar just above Moscone Center in Yerba Buena Gardens. I can’t think of many things finer than sharing an 12-year aged oolong with good friends while sitting outside on a sunny day in The City.

But wait . . .

There was also afternoon tea at the new Crown & Crumpet in Ghiradelli Square with the newly forming Western Tea Business Association. Along with the business, we shared more wonderful tea and tea talk as we watched the sun set behind the Golden Gate Bridge. Owners, Christopher and Amy Dean, filled us with elegant trays of treats and offerings from an extensive tea menu.

And if that wasn’t enough. . .

The Specialty Tea Institute coordinated a tea networking reception and their Level 3 Oolong class with the weekend. This was the class I had been anticipating after taking some of the other Level 3’s. And it was better than I could have imagined. Fifteen wonderful teas in one amazing day. So you might assume that all this would be enough of the brew.

But no . . .

How could we leave without a stop in Chinatown and 4 tearooms in as many blocks. All unique and filled with canisters of lovely teas. Red Blossom stayed open a bit late for some of the STI Level 3′ers who staggered out of an 8 hour class, not ready for it to end.

This was a memorable 3-day tea experience. Not like traveling to the international estates but very satisfying to enjoy the abundance, quality and variety which becomes available when a community of tea lovers gather.

The opposite extreme came the next weekend.

January 24, 2009

On Saturday I flew into Oklahoma City. The few tearooms were closed both Sunday and Monday but we found a Chinese restaurant that offered several lovely teas served perfectly. We discussed the frustration of living in a part of the country where the choices were more limited than San Francisco. But as I looked around the crowded restaurant, I spotted the little cast iron teapots on most of the tables. Patrons were cradling the little cups to warm their hands, breathing in the aroma like connoisseurs. It was in the 20’s outside. Very cold. Getting colder. I heard the warnings about an approaching ice storm. But as a mountain girl, I wasn’t overly concerned.

On Monday I made my way to the airport. Mine was the last flight that boarded but couldn’t take off. The ice ceiling was too high and the runway too slick.

This is where the opposite extreme becomes amusing (sort of).

We were shuttled to a hotel for stranded passengers. A warm room, bed, food and we could wait out the storm in safety and comfort. We even had Internet service. But no tea. Not just no gourmet tea. There wasn’t a teabag in the entire hotel. The very nice lady at the front desk searched through the drawers of the office. Nothing. Two days of withdrawal. There was iced sweet-tea but as the temps dipped down into the single digits, that lacked appeal.

So, what’s the message? Is the spirit of tea less strong in Oklahoma?

That’s not the conclusion I came to. In fact, there seemed to be a thirst for tea information. I remembered the other patrons holding their teacups in the Chinese restaurant. And the word quickly spread throughout the hotel that there I couldn’t have tea. We stranded passengers got to know each other during the two days of waiting out the storm. They asked about tea. Cattle breeders preparing for their own convention had questions about tea. A group of new recruits for the National Guard were also sharing our situation during the storm. Conversations began with, “You’re the tea lady? So, can I ask you. . .” or “Is all that talk about tea being healthy really true?” and “Someone told me that green tea tastes like spinach.” “Have you seen the commercial where the guy picks the tea leaf?”

I felt the Spirit of Tea living in these first tentative questions from people who were far from the plantations and from the pockets of tea enthusiasts which have coalesced in cities like San Francisco. While it is thrilling to gather in the company of renowned tea educators, it is also exciting to be part of a new appreciation for our brew. An infancy. An opportunity.

I’ve come to believe that the Spirit of Tea lives patiently in that first question - “What’s so special about tea?” It is a question filled with opportunity inspiring those of us who love the leaf to engage. Experiences like the San Francisco gathering of tea-infused-souls have a feeling of family. And it might seem as if the questions are different. Or is that original question still fresh, cup by cup?

We warm our hands around a white china tea bowl or mug and let the vapors fill our heads. We feel better.

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