The drive from Fuding to Wenzhou is really lovely, quaint countryside. When we arrive in Wenzhou it is obvious that this is a wealthy area, very well maintained roads and parks and lots of fancy cars, one that we avoid because it is driving very…
Photos from Fuding Mountain and the Organic Gardens
Narrow pass on the drive up
New garden at the base of the "tea" mountain
The pride of a job well done Amy and the gang on our way up
The six organic gardens
Organic teas in spring …
After a wonderful day with Mr. Li we load all of our belongings into a car and head to our next destination, Fuding white tea country. After the 1 1/2 hour trip through the mountains we arrive to a very busy downtown area. We check into our hotel…
After a delicious lunch we make the trip up into the mountains for a rare opportunity to visit the Tea Research Institute Fujian Academy of Agriculture Sciences! Not open to the public Mr.Li's partner knows someone at the institute so we get an…
Mr. Li picks us up first thing in the morning and we are off to the factory where we are able to meet the rest of the staff, see their current facility expansion and see how these exceptional works of art are produced.
The process for making these…
We arrive in Fuzhou and are met by our driver, sent by Mr Li whose company sells us the beautiful flowering teas. The flight to Fuzhou was uneventful and I am looking forward to the 2 hour drive to Fuan. Driving like this is always a great…
All settled in at the fabulous Hyatt Hangzhou after a very hectic day traveling by train we are really excited about the day ahead at West Lake.
Hangzhou's West Lake area is consider to be one of the most beautiful places to visit in China and…
I was looking forward to cupping teas in Hangzhou because I can always depend on Paul to source some good early spring Dragon Well's and he came thru as always. We spent the morning sampling several different grades including one from ancient trees.…
After visiting East Mountain we were invited to join our hosts along with the Chairman of the Shanghai Tea Council, Mr. Chen (yes another Mr. Chen) for lunch at the renowned, historic Suzhou restaurant, De Yue Lou. Dating back to the Qing Dynasty…
What an amazing day. We were invited to join Pauline, Mr. Yu, Mr. Chen and the Agriculture Director of East Mountain, where the original Bi Lo Chun is grown, Mr. Wu for a visit to the factory where the finest early spring Bi Lo Chun is…
O.K. my friends would tell you this could only happen to me. I am packing to leave the hotel in Shanghai I pick up one of my bags and it begins to make noise, sort of like a frog. So I kind of kick it and it stops. I pick it up and it starts agian,…
We cupped so much tea that I forgot to eat!
We began our day traveling across town to a tea market where various brokers have set up small shops selling a wide range of teas. As I entered the market I was overcome with the intense aroma of Pu'erh…
Well I have landed in Shanghai and am looking forward to spending a couple of days here in the city. Like every city I have ever visited it is full of people and traffic. Interestingly my hotel is across the street from an IKEA! I am staying at a…
I am getting ready to leave for China and while this was an unexpected trip I kind of like the last minute nature of it, not a lot of time to think! It also helps me really get organized, necessitating numerous decisions bringing projects to…
I have always been an avid reader of magazines, one of my favorites is body + soul. This pub has practical info on alternative and healthy lifestyles and eatting as well as "green" living tips and products.
O.K. I subscribe to at least 8 monthly…
The Chinese New Year is a celebration of the lunar calendar and 2008 is The Year of the Rat, the first in the 12 year lunar cycle. As the first year the rat represents new beginnings and fresh starts, an exciting proposition for me!
Teas Etc has…
I can't believe it's October! Where does the time go? It seems like it was just a few weeks ago that we were celebrating "Teas" 10th anniversary.
Much has happened since August. We have hired 2 new great staff members, Suzanne Bailey and Matthew…