Tea Tasting

At the end of February I was invited to lead a tasting session for some actors, most of whom had been nominated for a César award. Throughout the day, they arrived at a suite in a Paris hotel. Among them was also Kevin Rolland, Olympic Gold medallist at Sotchi (see photo), as well as television presenters and journalists. I enjoyed introducing them to some Grand Cru teas such as Dong Ding, Tawaramine, Dan Cong and Jukro. And I surprised them with Pu Erh. Many of them really appreciated this astonishing tea. They stuck their nose into the infused leaves, which reminded some of a walk through the forest, others of a stay on a farm. An olfactory journey.

There are many ways to make tea and to drink it. Some ceremonies must be learnt, like the Japanese Cha No Yu. Other rituals have rules that are no less specific, like the British, Chinese, Moroccan, Tibetan and Russian customs, and many others. But we should never forget that for a quarter of the inhabitants of our planet, tea is the most simple drink there is. It is consumed without fanfare, anywhere, at any time of day or night; it is the most obvious thing in the world, both delicious and comforting; it is served in the street; it is tea, plain and simple.

Some teas suffer from being infused in water that is too hot. On this subject, I’d like to tell you that you cannot make a good cup of tea if the water has been boiled, even if it is then left to cool down. In fact, when water boils, the oxygen evaporates, and the tea leaves need this oxygen during infusion to release all their flavours and aromas.