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 Tea in the
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Tea in the Fast Lane
The Latest Advances in Tea On the Go
by Sarah Allen
If coffee and tea were siblings, tea would roll her eyes at coffee and think,
This is so unfair.
Why does coffee get all the fancy machines? Why does coffee go
so much faster? And why is everyone taking coffee out on the town? No one, tea
might complain, ever seems to go anywhere with me.
Poor tea. It's not that she's unpopular-quite the contrary. People
love spending time with her, and they cherish the experience so much that sometimes
they save her for special occasions, not wanting to compromise her integrity.
But tea's on the move-literally. Once considered a sit-down-and-savor
drink, tea is primed and ready to become the next trendy on-the-go beverage, thanks
to new innovations that are making a high-quality cup of tea quick and easy to
come by.
"There is certainly room for innovation and speed in the tea industry,"
says Joe Simrany, president of the Tea Association of the U.S.A. and the Specialty
Tea Institute. As a traditionalist, Simrany still enjoys the experience of brewing
tea the old-fashioned-and slow-way. But that doesn't mean he's not intrigued by
and hopeful about these tea-trade developments. "There's no doubt that [the introduction
of fast tea-brewing products and methods] will expand the market," he says.
And the folks designing the machines that brew tea in 30 seconds
or less, and the teabags that can be filled with your customers' favorite blends,
and the ingenious teacup to-go lids-these folks are not being cocky when they
say tea to-go is poised to become the next giant of the specialty beverage sect.
They're being realistic.
"We want tea to be as big as espresso," says Anthony Priley, president
of Seattle-based Affinitea Brewing Technologies. Priley garnered accolades with
the recent debut of the Affinitea Infusion Process, a stand-alone machine that
brews whole-leaf tea in around 30 seconds.
By inventing the Affinitea Infusion Process, Priley wasn't trying
to replace the traditional method of brewing tea or convert any hard-and-fast
coffee enthusiasts. He simply felt that if there existed a faster way to brew
high-quality teas, it would make for an attractive invitation to consumers who
have shied from tea in the past, thinking the process is too complicated or slow.
"Starbucks did the same thing in the early '80s for coffee," he says. "We hope
to bring that same kind of attention to tea."
It's About Time
Scoff at ready-to-use teabags all you will, but
their introduction in 1908 revolutionized the tea industry. For the first time,
there was an alternative to lingering around a teapot waiting for the perfect
brew. Granted, consumers were hardly as fast-paced and technologically savvy as
they are today. But tea drinkers could have their hot beverage-albeit a lower-quality
version-without the wait, even 94 years ago.
It was eight years ago when Priley made the decision that he wanted
to sell high-quality loose-leaf tea at his store, River Rock Coffees and Café,
in Citrus Heights, California. So off he went to buy teas, infuser balls and glass
jars in which to showcase his product. And that's when the problems-that is, the
learning-began. "I promptly figured out that there was no consistent way to make
the same cup of tea twice," says Priley. "And when I started looking at it from
an analytical standpoint, I saw that none of the variables in tea brewing are
controlled."
At first, he tried to change the tea to work with existing equipment,
similar to how coffee is changed, or standardized, in the grinding process. But
he found that there simply was no way to standardize tea because, he says, tea
leaves are meant to be brewed in their original form.
Instead, Priley realized he could standardize the brewing equipment.
At the beginning of the process, the tea tender simply punches in the grade, or
leaf size, of the tea, and the machine adjusts itself to heat the water and set
the agitation, or pressure level, to match the grade of leaf. Large-leaf tea,
for example, requires higher pressure and a longer brew time than smaller leaves.
The stainless steel machine, which brews tea both hot and iced,
is 13 inches wide, 24 inches tall and 20 inches deep. The front looks much like
an espresso machine, standing a little taller in order to accommodate a 12- or
16-ounce to-go cup, and the back is rounded. A steam wand for steaming milk to
make tea lattes is an optional feature. Further, coffee and tea retailers can
have one of the heads on their existing espresso machine retrofitted to work the
same as the stand-alone machine.
Retailers opting for the Affinitea Infusion Process should remember
to count in the fun factor. Simrany notes the excitement of this type of machine
can generate, from the noise to the fanfare. Tea brewed in the traditional fashion
"doesn't have nearly the pizzazz," he says. "[The Affinitea Infusion Process]
attracts customer attention. You could have dual brewing and steeping competitions."
For Many, It'll Always Be in the Bag
So you love the convenience of teabags, but don't want to subject your customers
to the stale flavor of most prepackaged teas? Hey, if it's possible to fill coffee
filters with your java of choice, there's no reason teabags shouldn't be more
user-friendly.
At least, that's what occurred to Pacific Tea Company's Bud Maffei
when he happened upon the tea sacks widely used in Germany. Conventional teabags
never caught on in Germany, says Maffei, and teahouses worked to attract customers
with infusers and tea pods. But the mess that comes with infusers, the tired flavor
of crushed leaves in a tea pod, and the time each requires to prepare made tea
sacks an instant hit when they were introduced in German teahouses. As soon as
he saw them, Maffei decided to bring tea sacks back to the United States. "They're
disposable and quick," says Maffei, who distributes the product under the name
T-Pouch. Known for its slim top and flat, gusseted bottom, the products are manufactured
in Germany by Tea Imports C Goetze. Maffei continues, "You don't need to wait
[for the tea to finish steeping] before you leave."
Made of chlorine-free, unbleached paper, the T-Pouch filter is
designed to be a better way to brew loose-leaf tea and herbal infusions in any
container, from travel mug to teapot. "It's about making it easy for people to
brew tea," says Maffei. "Tea today is like coffee was 10 years ago. There's a
difference between the old way we used to prepare tea and how we can brew it today."
The funky, beloved Caffe Calabria in San Diego has enjoyed increased
sales and foot traffic since introducing customers to the T-Pouch, according to
owner Arne Holt. Though Caffe Calabria prides itself on being an arty, sit-down
hangout, plenty of Holt's customers stop in on their way to or from work, or on
their lunch break, seeking a tasty, well-prepared cup of tea. "The T-Pouch is
great because we can add quality, whole-leaf tea to the bag, drop it in the water
and customers are on their way," Holt says.
Less Mess
Though you won't find it in a dictionary, any tea enthusiast knows what "tea fingers"
means. The tannins that make tea taste good can stain, but that's tough to avoid
when you're fishing around for your teabag, or pulling a stray leaf from your
cup.
Already running a successful tea retailing operation in San Francisco,
Gary Shinner and Jill Portman founded Mighty Leaf Tea in 1996 in an effort to
share their passion for whole-leaf tea by producing products that would take the
guess work out of tea brewing, and thus make the experience more convenient and
simple. By 2000, the husband and wife team's tea and to-go merchandise had grown
so popular that the husband and wife team closed their teahouse to devote themselves
to manufacturing and marketing their products.
"We knew that we had to deliver a quality full-leaf product ideal
for sharing a pot of tea with friends, but also meant to work on the go," says
Shinner. "The coffee industry had already established that mentality."
Portman and Shinner wanted to create a system that was convenient,
clean and perfect for on-the-go service. So they invented the Tea Top. Don't assume
it's a cappuccino lid even though it looks like one. A disposable plastic lid,
the Tea Top has a lofted area in its center with a small slit carved in. Mighty
Leaf's hand-sewn silk pouches fit through the opening, giving tea drinkers an
easy-to-use, tidy way to hoist their tea pouch from the water and pull it all
the way up to the lid, which both separates the tea from the water and squeezes
the pouch against the lid to release the oils of the full-leaf tea. "The Tea Top
not only unleashes the tea experience, it keeps tea simple, which is what tea
was always meant to be anyways," says Shinner.
Not Better; Just Different
Whether they're marketing shiny machines built specifically for brewing tea, disposable
teabags ready to be filled with your customers' individual favorites, or specially
designed lids perfect for a cup of tea on the go, the folks in the business of
fast-brewing tea all agree on one thing: There's nothing that can take the place
of the painstaking tea-brewing process their grandmothers taught them.
"This was never intended to displace traditional tea-brewing methods,"
says Priley. But offering customers an alternative, he says, opens the door for
the people who would never take the time to learn about tea. "It inspires them
to want to learn more about tea, and hopefully encourages them to brew tea using
traditional methods." In other words, bringing new products and practices to the
tea table will only expand tea culture, not deviate from tradition.
Already, industry insiders such as Simrany are curious as to where
these new avenues for tea will take them. And industry pioneers such as Maffei,
Priley and Shinner hope that, with the introduction of tea products designed specifically
for the on-the-go set, everything about the tea business will grow and change
and, ultimately, demystify the tea experience for newcomers, satisfy those in
the know, and, says Priley, make tea a key player with the morning rush-hour crowd,
and a quality option to-go.
Resources
Affinitea, 800/891-6785
Mighty Leaf Tea, 415/331-3409
Pacific Tea Company, 888/303-0832
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