Enjoyment

Happy New Year, Tea Drinkers!

As another year comes to a close and a new one approaches, I am always amazed to how quickly the days pass. It just seems like yesterday I was introduced to the world of Adagio Teas and gourmet teas. I have had a great year here, and hope for another successful one! We have much in store for you all- more teachef.com video-casts, a new website called teacritic.com, and new products. Keep an eye out for these exciting new developments as they each come to fruition. I'm looking very forward to it!

Some monkfish at Pike Place Market
Some monkfish at Pike Place Market

Many people around this time also like to make resolutions. I too used to compose a long, impossible list of resolutions, everything from the practical ("Save Money") to the bizarre ("Master the art of cooking a whole suckling pig"- this never happened; suckling pigs are somewhat hard to come by in my neck of the woods). But, in making these lists I would become far too caught up in completing the lists and lose sight to why I was making them in the first place. I still make a mental list in my head of things that I should work on or things I'd like to do, but I've also decided to make a Tea-Resolution list for 2008- there is always so much more to discover and master when it comes to fine teas.

  • Learn to drink successfully from my new gaiwan that Santa left for me (last time ended in a shattered mess on the floor and a broken heart).
  • Read more on the history of the tea trade in China, and modern-day business practices in the country (this was sparked after watching the documentary "All in This Tea" - by Les Blank and Gina Leibrecht that follows tea expert David Lee Hoffman in China).
  • Drink more Indian black teas, and master the nuances between the different flushes of Darjeeling tea.
  • Try out Pu-erh for real (I have flaked out several times due to my initial taste of the aged tea).
  • Create my own herbal tisane blend (everyone needs a signature blend!).
  • Drink more oolong (because it is the best. Not much else to say than that!).

    • Any tea resolutions for you this year? Please send them to me, I would love to hear them!

    In this issue of teamuse.com, we've decided to center our feature story and our Traveling Teacup section on a city better known for their coffee-consumption more so than their tea drinking: Seattle, Washington. If you're from the area, please let us know what you think about the tearooms our writers have visited. We hope to feature different cities in the future, so if you have a suggestion, send it along!

    I wish everyone a happy and plentiful new year! I raise a tea cup toast to all the tea drinkers that have made Adagio Tea their choice of tea. A big thanks!

    Yours in tea,
    Christine