Blog – Page 23 – Discovering Tea

Choose loose-leaf!

31 January 2020

If you’re someone who thinks about the health of our planet and you want to reduce your use of packaging, you might consider what benefit there is in using a tea bag instead of loose-leaf tea next time you’re brewing a cuppa. It’s true that when we’re on a flight or staying in a hotel it’s nice to have our favourite tea to hand, and it wouldn’t be convenient to carry around a canister.

But at home or at work, it’s so easy to use a teapot or a mug with an infuser. Tea bags are practical, of course. But it’s not difficult to measure out tea leaves: a pinch between three fingers is about right for a 10cl cup. Then pour over the hot water. So simple. And it does away with one, two or even three layers of packaging.

Discovering Tea is ten

24 January 2020

For years, I didn’t take any photos, misguidedly believing it wasn’t possible to look around me and photograph at the same time. Later, I changed my mind. Those landscapes and portraits taken around the world inspired me to share them, and so the blog was born.

Like the Tea School and the books I’ve written with Mathias Minet (The Tea Drinker’s Handbook, Tea Sommelier), the role of this blog is to impart both knowledge and passion.

This month, my blog celebrates its 691^st article, or rather, its ten-year anniversary, so I’m inviting you to help me blow out the candles. I’d like to thank Mathias, Laurent, Philippe, Emilie, Marta, Bénédicte, Kevin and Hélène, who were there at the start or who’ve been part of the journey. And I’d like to thank you, my readers, for following me. Your support is precious, and it touches me.

A hand

17 January 2020

There are artisan teas, and there are industrial teas. The same is true for many of the products we consume. If we had to pick something that symbolises the work of the artisan, we could talk about their craftsmanship, or we could talk quite simply of their hands. Artisanal work involves the hands. To produce a fine tea, to pick the best leaves or to take cuttings, hands play an essential role.

What about consuming better quality but less? It would mean that every time we bought an object or item of food, we would ask ourselves if hands played a part in making it.

The work of a tea researcher

10 January 2020

In less than three months, the spring cycle will begin, and with it will come a deluge of new pluckings. As in every year, in addition to our regular selection, I will set off with my assistant tea researcher in search of rare teas. The work of a tea researcher involves constantly reviewing the teas we choose and tasting new teas from farmers we work with already (there’s no guarantee that someone who produced an exceptional tea the previous year will produce anything as good the year after). The work also consists of seeking out new farmers, both in well-established production regions as well as new areas where pioneers are starting to gain the necessary expertise. This photo was taken in Malawi, a country that just a few years ago, nobody would have suspected of being capable of producing good tea.

A moment of pure happiness

3 January 2020

I wish all of you an excellent year. I hope you find time to be good to yourself, to be good to others, to meditate, be happy, enjoy nature, walk through beautiful landscapes, reflect, smile, rest, shut your eyes, breathe deeply, consume less and better, think of generations to come, of the planet, and to make every moment, every mouthful of tea, a moment of pure happiness.

Happy Holidays!

27 December 2019

The photo I’m sharing with you today may come as a surprise. After all, you’re used to seeing the faces of tea pluckers, planters, farmers, people from diverse ethnic backgrounds in colorful traditional garb, and passers-by encountered at the summits of various mountains.

But back in Paris, there are also teams working to bring the superb teas we discover safely to their destination—that is, to you! It wouldn’t be fair to talk only about faraway people without also showing you who’s hard at work in Paris. A few days ago, the team decided that we should wear costumes for Christmas. Surrounding me, from left to right and top to bottom, let me present Clément, Charlotte, Lucille, Laura, Anaïs, Chloé, Eléa, Céline, Juliette, Laurie, and Sonia. I wish each and every one of you a very happy holiday!

The dark tea season

20 December 2019

The winter in general and especially the festive season is an ideal opportunity to explore dark teas, which have been fermented. The best known come from Yunnan and are called Pu Erh. They are sold in loose-leaf form or compressed into cakes (see photo). Dark teas undergo a slow ageing process (sheng) or an accelerated one (shu). They are prepared in a teapot or a gaiwan (gong fu method). Pu Erhs give off powerful aromatic notes of wood, undergrowth, spices, damp earth and animal aromas. And if I add that these dark teas are popular in China to help ease the effects of overeating, you’ll understand why this is a good time of year to discover them!

Clearing the way

13 December 2019

Until recently, I searched for rare teas on my own, but for just over a year now I have been assisted by Léo. Sometimes we travel together, sometimes Léo visits a country on his own to find remarkable teas or farmers capable of remarkable work. This photo taken by Léo in Georgia is an accurate depiction of what we do. We clear the way. As we set off on our adventures to discover rare teas, here in Georgia the brambles have invaded the tea plants and it is time to clear them away.

What makes our work so special

6 December 2019

To give someone who doesn’t know about tea the desire to explore it, to lead customers on a journey of discovery through single-origin teas, growing regions, rare and premium teas… that is what makes our work so special. The essence of Palais des Thés is captured in the way we support our customers. Our raison d’être is our warm and friendly welcome that we extend to everyone. Our raison d’être is the incredible choice of teas and attention to quality that we offer. Our raison d’être is our ability to convey our impressions to you, our emotions and expertise – in a word, our passion.

About premium teas

29 November 2019

One question often crops up when I meet customers – it’s about how we source our premium teas. With the growing number of Palais des Thés stores, people want to know if I can always find enough fine teas without compromising on quality. The answer is simple. Right now, I have to taste about 100 teas on average to identify one or two premium teas. But it’s not a problem to try more and choose more. However, I can’t alter the size of the batches. If a farmer has produced 100 kg of an exceptional tea, I can’t ask him to send me 200 kg without affecting the quality. But I have no problem finding other farmers who produce exceptional teas. So to sum up, it’s not difficult to find different premium teas, but the size of the batches is limited, so you won’t find the same choices of premium teas in different Palais des Thés stores on any given day.