I live in Seattle, in a condo with a wonderful view of the water. I have lived here on and off most of my life, and I love the variety of cultures that are present in the Northwest region.
I have been drinking tea off and on since childhood, but I was introduced to the powerful medicinal qualities of tea about 8 or 9 years ago. I remember meeting a woman who had a serious ailment, which should have made her very, very sick, but because she drank a tea from Jiaogulan every day, her body was able to obtain a peaceful balance with the disease. I was amazed. Having experienced my own health issues, I began to explore the world of herbs and teas avidly in an amateurish manner... Fast forward to now. Recently, I have begun to study the more spiritual zen or buddhist connections with tea (green, oolong, etc), as well as some of the many different types of cultural associations with tea. But mainly, my fetish for pottery is what has led me back to to tea ultimately.
And of course, discovering yixing and japanese pottery has been the most amazing experience of all! My first tea was likely a poor quality chammomile immitation from stash or some other such company. However, my first real tea was a true chammomile from england. For those of you who are curious, I do not typically drink caffeinated teas because I tend to be a nervous sort... But I have begun to explore green teas and white teas, due to the low caffeine nature of them.
My favorite tea currently is Jiaogulan tea from aumtea.com.
My next purchase is on the way from Japan... From AN - I am in love with Banko Yaki... Unfortunately, it does not love my wallet.
I love to brew tea in the office and at home.
Thanks,
Tyler.
