Japanese Tea Ceremony Class With Marjorie Yap of Issoan Tea School

After my Oolong tea tasting with my tea friends in Portland, I had the rare opportunity to attend a Japanese tea ceremony class taught by Marjorie Yap Sensei of Issoan Tea and assisted by Barbara Sensei.

Believe it or not, that was my first experience attending a formal Japanese tea ceremony/class.
I joke with my customers quite often that I can't do Japanese tea ceremonies because I would be kicked out of Japanese tea ceremony schools for not sitting still and for talking too much. But in reality, I had thought that Japanese tea ceremonies focus too much on the rituals and too little on enjoying the tea.

I am grateful that I was permitted to be a guest in Margie Sensei's Japanese tea ceremony class. In a way, I felt it was better than sitting in a formal ceremony for my first experience. I got to watch how students practice performing the ceremony, which I especially liked because some of the rituals were explained, and I got to see the beautiful relationship between teacher and students.

I didn't have any expectations before I entered the class and I left with a lot of satisfaction. I was happy that I enjoyed the process so much. It felt like we shared a space where beauty could be achieved through diligent practice. I now see how the Japanese tea ceremony is a life-long practice. It makes me think of meditation, which is also a life-long practice.

I walked away with the discovery that my perspective of Japanese tea ceremony has changed and I was filled with gratitude from the generosity of the teachers and students. So will I be learning Japanese tea ceremony? I think a more appropriate question is if I want this to become one of my life-long pursuits!

Sudden Loss Of Tea Bouquet And Tea Flavor

Two weeks ago, I was in Portland tasting some Taiwanese Oolongs with my tea friends. Before I arrived, our host Jan called to inform me that the air was quite smokey due to many wildfires in Oregon state. I didn't think too much about that since I lived in Taipei for many years in the past, and the air pollution was quite bad back then.

I arrived a day before the tea tasting event and I was fine with all the smoke in the air. The first half of the tea tasting went very well. We enjoyed two Baozhongs, Oriental Beauty, Alishan Black tea and a Chuan Tong Oolong (a heavy roasted Oolong). We took a small break and had some snacks. I didn't serve any of the High Mountain Oolongs until the second half, because there were five of them and I wanted participants to be able to compare the teas.

I opened the vacuum bag of Alishan Oolong. It surprised me that there was almost no smell from the bag. I thought the bouquet would definitely show up after the bag of Alishan had a chance to breathe. I proceeded to brew the tea and there was close to no bouquet from the tea broth, either. I was very disappointed. I very much wanted to share with them how beautiful this season's Alishan could be! Next, I brewed the ShanLinXi, which did not reveal most of its flavor either (ShanLinXi has the heaviest body and its flavor is very easy to detect this season). I thought something was wrong.

Jan graciously offered to change the pot for heating hot water, and wanted to know if it could make a difference. Not much more bouquet nor flavor showed up after changing to a different pot. Some people said it might be the water. I didn't think the water would be the cause as we had 5 different teas earlier and they tasted fine and delicious. I thought it might be caused by a sudden change in air pressure, but I had no proof.

I would say the High Mountain Oolongs only showed an average of 30% of their bouquet and flavor. However, their textures showed up without any problem. They were all very soft and round.

One hour afterwards, while I was bagging tea for my tea friends, I smelled the bag of Alishan and some bouquet showed up.

I didn't drink any High Mountain Oolong for two days. After I came back to Seattle, I was eager to try the Alishan. It smelled beautifully and tasted as what I have remembered. Thank goodness! Maybe my senses were muted by the smoke in the air?

I wonder if you have had similar experiences? If so, please share your thoughts with me, I would love to hear more about your experiences.

*photo provided by Marilyn Miller