social tea

[Sydney]

I've been introducing people I know to the tea addiction lately, to the tune of sharing tea samples with co-workers, preparing tea and sharing sessions with people, and even in a few cases giving inexpensive teaware to people I know who are getting hooked but aren't equipped.

The main purpose behind this is just because it's inherently cool and fun. But I can conceive of practical consequences, as well.

For instance, a few friends and I might decide to co-op on a larger quantity of some tea we all like and save a few bucks.

Or we might obtain entirely different teas and share them, increasing the likelihood that we'll find more things we like.

Does tea have a social aspect for you? Or do you lean heavily toward the solitary aspect?

What sort of social enhancements have you tried? How did they work out?

[Space Samurai]

That's an interesting question...

On one side tea is a solitary experience; I only ever make tea for myself and drink it by myself. The few people I know around me who like tea are of the tea bags and microwaved water variety.

But on the other hand, I am very involved with tea at work, selling it, doing demos and tastings and the occasional class. Then there's the blog. I get interaction with other bloggers, readers who email me with comments or questions, companies that send samples. In this regard, tea is a very, if not social, interactive experience.

I guess I'd have to say, "both."

[Salsero]

I think most of us are forced to be solitary tea drinkers in our daily lives, but we are social drinkers at heart. That's why we come here. Padre, you seem to be doing a great job of spreading the word about tea at your work, but you seem to be a little more assertive than some of us.

[Wesli]

^^^What he said^^^

[Cinnamon Kitty]

I would classify tea as a combination of social and solitary aspects.

The social part is that my family members also enjoy tea. When I was growing up, we always had a pot of tea after dinner. Most of the time it was a very strongly brewed Earl Grey, but my earliest tea memories were drinking cups of tea with my parents. My father used to enjoy loose teas through his time at college, so we had a nice tea cupboard at home. It was mostly tea bags, but that should change soon now that I introduced Dad to Adagio. My cousins are also tea drinkers so we enjoy tea together at family gatherings.

On the flip side, I am the only one out of my group of friends at college who is an avid fan of tea. I enjoy my tea when I am at school while mostly alone, though occasionally my boyfriend likes to try some. I've given tea to other friends when they are sick and they learned very quickly that I was the one to go when tea was needed, but there is no one here to enjoy the tea as much as I do. I recently gave a friend a mug of the citron green with a touch of honey to help her cold. Having never tried tea too much before, she was thrilled. I love sharing the awesomeness of tea with people, but it is very difficult to find people who enjoy it.

[Scarlet Glow]

I bring my tea with me to class in a clear travel mug. I get looks and questions as to what the "weird green substance" is in my container. When I tell them it is green tea they get excited and pull our their Arizona or Lipton green tea bottles out of their bag, claiming to drink green tea as well.

I proceed to give them a lecture about how what they are drinking is high fructose corn syrup with a nice mix of food coloring and, surprisingly, they listen. The more I tell them about "real" tea the more they push their manufactured tea away from them. Most of the time I end up giving them a couple of websites to go to, Adagio being one of them, in which they can research more about tea.

The thing I noticed is if I didn't put my tea in a clear travel mug, I'm not sure if I would have ever talked to these people. The contents of the container seems to be a true conversation starter.

[Ladytiger]

It's both social and solitary. At my last family gathering I showed off my tea 'cupboard' to my grandfather and uncle, who enjoy tea as well. It's weird to say that I did grow up drinking tea which were mostly bagged herbals until my grandfather and uncle introduced me to the loose variety. I can remember a few years ago sitting down with my mom's godchild at a friends house and having tea time, it was one of the best experiances with tea.
It's solitary most of the time because few people that I know love tea, including the bagged variety. I used to bring freshly brewed green iced tea to school with me and get looks, but it wasn't those curious looks about what kind of tea I drinking, they thought I was drinking urine (this is in high school). After a few times this happened I stopped trying to explain to them what it was and so it became a solitary thing in public.

[tseirPsaduJ]

I think most of us are forced to be solitary tea drinkers in our daily lives, but we are social drinkers at heart. That's why we come here. Padre, you seem to be doing a great job of spreading the word about tea at your work, but you seem to be a little more assertive than some of us.

I am the opposite. I am a solitary drinker often forced into social tea settings. I do not mind once in a while with very close friends, but as I said I tend to enjoy it more alone. BUT at work, and friends' homes my gadgets and loose leaves get puzzled looks from the adverage bottled or bagged tea drinker. I feel very led to educate needless to say. I also drink a wide range of herbs and some I have grown and blended myself, cancer and other problems related to the body's need to detox seem to be everywhere and I try to get the afflicted interested. Tea makes me social wether I like it or not. In a good way, but a hermit will be a hermit regardless.

I am not sure wether any of that made sense. I am quite tired from the long journey I have just returned from.

[osadczuk]

I tend to be quite non-social in general, but tea drinking for me is both. With my familty it is very social. We si around and play cards and drink tea. It's just our "thing." And friends know I'm quite the caffeine freak, so they know where to go for a fix. So, I tend to be more social with tea then I am in the rest of my life.

[fencerdenoctum]

Tea for me is a mixed bag (I didn't even notice the pun, and I'm not sorry). I try Teavangelism as much as I can, fighting the evils of "southern style sweet tea" (which we know is slightly less viscous than pitch).


The Tea Sipping Swordsman,
Fencerdenoctum

[skywarrior]

Let's see. I'm a writer and I live in the wilds of Montana.

Solitary. Yup.