When I was on holiday a few weeks back, I brought along some yummy teabags from Smith Tea. I had only recently heard about Smith Tea after a recent trip to Montreal where my friend had chosen one of their Chamomile Tea’s after a lovely dinner at Garde-Manger, Chuck Hughes chic restaurant.
Smith Tea maker is a wonderfully small tea works that produces the finest, freshest full leaf teas, tonics and elixirs handcrafted in very small batches by master tea maker Steve Smith and his talented, hand-picked team.
Steve Smith started his career as a manager of the first natural foods store in Portland, Oregon, and he and two partners founded the Stash Tea Company, which gradually grew to become one of America’s favourite consumer brands.
Stash was acquired in 1993 by Yamamotoyama, the oldest tea company in Japan, and Smith left to pursue a new vision. Working in his home kitchen, he created a new super-premium brand based on the artful blending of the highest-quality teas and botanicals.
The resulting “Reincarnation of Tea” came to be known as Tazo, and Steve its head tea shaman.
In 1999, Tazo was acquired by Starbucks, and Smith and his team continued to lead the company until 2006. During this time, he concocted over 60 of Tazo’s most popular drinks.
The three tea’s I sampled from the Smith Tea brand whilst on holiday were: No. 20 Bai Hao Oolong, No. 21 Keemun Hao Ya B (Full Leaf Black Tea) and No. 16 Honeybush. They were great summer teas that I could have with milk or just as alone. They were warm, aromatic and a decadent accent to my day.
No. 20 Bai Hao Oolong
A Chinese oolong, hand harvested in mid-summer. Bai Hao has large, tightly-twisted leaves with an abundance of silver tips. More fermented than many oolongs, it brings lovely peachy notes with a light liquor and aroma.
Ingredients
Full leaf China oolong tea from Fujian Province.
No. 20 Bai Hao Oolong
No. 21 Keemun Hao Ya B (Full Leaf Black Tea)
Hao Ya B is one of the finest grades of Keemun tea from the mountainous Anhui Province in China. It has a thin, wiry, tightly twisted leaf with a slightly smoky flavour and aroma. Excellent straight or with milk and sugar.
Ingredients
Full leaf China Keemun black tea from Anhui Province.
No. 21 Keemun Hao Ya B (Full Leaf Black Tea)
No. 16 Honeybush
Honeybush grows in the western Cape of South Africa and has a distinctly honey-like aroma. Hand harvested in September and October, it is naturally caffeine free with a sweet, peachy flavour and a pinkish golden hue in the cup.
Ingredients
South African honeybush from the Western Cape region.
No. 16 Honeybush
If you would like to sample some Smith Tea in Toronto – check out The Mascot. “Say Tea II” sells Smith Tea products in their Toronto shop as well for your convenience.
Smith Tea’s have just added USPS First Class International Shipping, which will range from $5.00 + up to ship to Canada. Check out their website for the latest pricing on their posh tea’s and shipping costs to your town.
Cheers!
http://www.smithtea.com/
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