This weekend, my live video tea classes on FB will be about gaiwan, gaibei and zhong! It's the Absolute Beginner's tea vessel! As we are approaching my blog's 17th anniversary next week, I thought it would be fitting to mark the occasion by learning more about this fantastic tea vessel. It's the brewing vessel for beginners and experts alike. It's a reminder that despite the years of learning, we remain Absolute Beginners in front of tea. And that's how we can keep this passion fresh and alive, and keep on tea blogging!
If you miss the class, don't worry, I'll post it on my YouTube channel.
Honestly, I had no idea that tea blogging would turn into such a long undertaking and a new career for me. It has allowed me to be a 'stay at home dad' and take care of my kids (with my wife) every day for the last 17 years. I'll be forever grateful for interacting with so many kind, knowledgeable and passionate tea friends over the years.
During all this time, I have never purchased a single ad on Google, Facebook, Instagram... All my promotional activity is dedicated to teaching tea and spreading the beauty of tea through my social media accounts. And instead of paying advertisers, I have always preferred to give gift samples, tea books... to my customers! Satisfying you is the best way to achieve a sustained reputation. So, to celebrate this anniversary, I have just reduced my prices on over 40 products for a limited time only to say THANK YOU!
And here is one of my favorite songs (and movie) from (with) David Bowie:
Love the gaiwan. Many times I've lost my way in tea, as with a lot of hobbies I find it hard to separate passion for the hobby and hardware addiction.
ReplyDeleteAs I go down the rabbit hole I get fixated on the hardware more then the hobby, as that element takes over the obsession.
Resetting and coming back to the start with simple hardware gets me back to what I love about a hobby. In the case of tea the gaiwan being versatile, minimal and pure tea clarity. Bring out the gaiwan and a single cup my focus is brought back to what I love.... Tea.
I'm not saying everyone should strip down to a minimal set up, just it can be a good reminder of the start, of why you fell in in the first place. Atleast it always is with me