Tea is the ultimate universal beverage. Whether in a Mongolian yurt, in a Berber encampment in the middle of the Sahara, in a house in Azerbaijan, admiring a verdant Irish landscape or in the heart of the mountains of New Zealand, it is tea that warms us when we are cold and cools us when we are hot. It welcomes the arriving guest and is a promise from the departing guest to return. From China, where it originated, tea has crossed all the borders of the world. It is known and respected for its virtues and appreciated for its taste.

Celebrated by poets and adored by emperors, tea is the most widely consumed beverage in the world today and forms an integral part of the diet of millions at all levels of society. With its history that spans several millennia, a wealth of cultures that have influenced it and traditions that have raised it to its noble stature, the world of tea is so vast that it can never be completely known.

Whether it comes from the precious first harvests of spring, the sacred mountains of China or the highest gardens of Darjeeling, every cup of tea tells a story, reveals knowledge and conjures up a landscape. If we add in the expertise of master craftspeople who have passed on these traditions over several centuries, we have a vast diversity of unique and exotic products.

For many years now, our approach as tasters and importers has led us to discover the terroirs of tea, the way in which it is grown and processed, the role each variety plays in its culture and in the economy of the country where it is produced, the evolution of the rituals that accompany its serving, and the reasons it came to be considered such a noble beverage. These discoveries have enriched our enjoyment of tea as well as our knowledge of it. This book reflects a progression that we hope will accompany you on your future taste travels.

What we offer you here is naturally a Western approach to tea, but we attribute as much importance to the plant and the places where it grows as to the master producers who devote their lives to its cultivation. For we must not forget that, just like wine, tea represents one of humanity’s most fabulous achievements and uses precious knowledge inherited over generations and taking advantage of the most distinct properties of its specific growing environment.