ALL DATES ARE OLD; I AM LEAVING THIS POSTED FOR THE NAMES & PHONE NUMBERS THAT ARE PROVIDED.
Looking for an interesting way to include tea in your travels? The following events in San Francisco, England, Georgia and Washington, D.C. are wonderful answers to this question.
San Francisco Tastings
If connoisseur-level teas are your passion, two great events are forthcoming in San Francisco you don't want to miss. First is the Second Annual New Tea Tasting at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel on Thursday, July 17 from 3 to 7 p.m. hosted by David Hoffman of Silk Road Teas and Darrell F. Corti of Corti Brothers. This promises to be even more exciting than last year's premier event, and everything about last year's event was memorable.
The New Tea Tasting will include forty teas from white to green to oolong and black, all from this newly-finished 1997 spring harvest. All teas are from single-day harvest and are competition teas from various tea producing regions of Mainland China and from selected small growers. In addition, various Pu-er teas will be offered to show how age improves them.
Following the tea tasting will be a stellar dinner which begins at 7:30 p.m. created by the Ritz-Carlton chefs with appropriate wines and teas for your dining pleasure.
Cost is $100 and reservations can be made with Mr. Corti at (916) 736-3800 or fax him at (916) 736-3807 or write him directly at POB 191358, 5810 Folsom Blvd., Sacramento CA 95819.
Next is the American Tea Master's Association's annual selection of world-class teas during a three-day event, Friday through Sunday, August 8 - 10. The expanded event, held at the Sheraton Palace Hotel in San Francisco, will include speakers and tea demonstrations, and all topics will be directed to the individual connoisseur of tea. The event will close with the tasting and awards ceremony.
ATMA is dedicated to the promotion of excellence in the art of tea, and offers information, education, collective purchase opportunities of teas, and recognition of achievement by individuals who share a dedicated interest in the way of tea. The organization offers a variety of levels for individual and corporate membership.
For more information write Don Wallis of ATMA, 41 Sutter Street, Box 1191, San Francisco CA 94104 or call (415) 775-4227.
English Tea Tour
Looking for a way to evoke England in your tea travels? Michele Abrate of Moraga Travel in California has developed a "vastly entertaining tea etiquette and history tour of England," called A Grand Tea Tour of England. It is scheduled for September 17 - 27, 1997.
First on the tour will be five nights in manor homes in the countryside, a tour of the Royal Worcester Porcelain Company, manufacturers of fine teapots, teacups and tea caddies, and a tour of the medieval Warwick Castle.
Next is London, with a stay at a Victorian-era hotel. You will visit the tea clipper, the Cutty Sark, and the Bramah Tea & Coffee Museum; and enjoy fine shopping, theatre performances, and a hotel afternoon tea. Classic tea sites as Harrod's, Fortnum & Mason and Twining's tea shop are also included.
Some of the towns visited will be Axbridge, Bath, The Cotswolds, Gloucester, Wye Valley, Worcester, Coventry, Oxford, and London. Cost is $2,559 including air fare from Los Angeles or San Francisco on Virgin Atlantic Airways, accommodations with breakfast, all admission fees, all teas and theatre tickets and some dinners and lunches. For information please call or write Ms. Abrate at (510) 376-2700, POB 318, Moraga, CA 94556. Arrangements for airfare from other cities can be arranged.
The Tea Business
For those of you interested in pursuing tea as a business, check out these possibilities:
The semi-annual Southeastern Tea Conference will be held Friday through Sunday, September 5 - 7 in Americus, Georgia. Sponsors are the Magnolia & Ivy antique gifts and tea parlours of Richmond, Parrott, Culberth and Plains operated by Terri Jackson and Kay Snipes. The conference includes speakers and entertainment for those seeking information and direction into the tea industry. Reservations may be made by calling (912) 887-2914.
Training programs for tea etiquette experts are planned for Saturday and Sunday, August 16 - 17 and November 8 - 9 by The Protocol School of Washington� in Washington, D.C., the nation's leading etiquette and protocol firm. Their course, Train To Be A Tea Etiquette Consultant, offers accredited certification. The company has trained protocol officers in embassies throughout the world, corporate executives and individuals for several decades. For information and an enrollment package call (703) 821-5613.
Yours truly, Diana Rosen, will be teaching two separate classes on How to Be an Entrepreneur in the Tea Industry for the San Francisco Learning Annex on Thursdays, August 7 and September 11, 1997. Each class is 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. and registration can be made by calling (415) 788-5500. A demonstration of several ways to brew tea and a tea tasting will be included plus nuts-and-bolts information about the many careers in tea, how to open a tea room and how to promote the business once you've established it. It's fun for me to teach, and students enjoy it, too.
Diana Rosen is a freelance writer for eZines, web site copy, and print magazine articles on food, beverage, and other lifestyle topics. The veteran journalist is also the author of 10 nonfiction books and the co-author of three others. For more information, visit www.dianarosen.com
