Makaibari second flush Darjeeling was Tomislav’s favorite tea, from his friend Anupa Mueller’s family estate. Before they knew each other, Tomislav loved this tea, and he shared this fact with Mueller when they met. Mueller’s importing company, Eco-Prima, supplied teas to SerendipiTea, and Mueller would include a small personal package of Makaibari with Tomislav’s regular orders. It was the tea he drank every day.

He began working in tea a decade ago, in a way only the young, impassioned and idealistic can fathom. Riding through the streets of New York City on a vintage BMW motorcycle, he shared his knowledge and enthusiasm for tea with anyone who would listen. Loose-leaf samples were stowed in the side trunk, fueling the task before him as he went from restaurant to café to storefront, United States. But his sense of the larger picture formed the influence he would have on tea culture as we know it.

As he started his journey into the world of tea in 1993, with so much tenacity and energy, it was unforeseeable that Tomislav Podreka’s time would be cut short. Though he lived a textbook lifestyle in terms of diet and activity, genetic predisposition ended his life much too early. “He was incredibly gifted with so much to share, which he did generously,” says Cecilia Villegas, Tomislav’s widow. “He didn’t just want to run a tea business. He wanted to change the way people think about tea.”

Tomislav was a wild card in an old boys’ business. His timing was good, sure, with the rise of spa culture, heightened consumer interest in fine food and drink, and an independent, youthful injection in urban restaurant scenes in the ’90s. But these simultaneous events might not have mattered. Young, charismatic and ruggedly handsome, Tomislav attracted people, whether he was talking about tea or his most recent adventure in choosing the perfect banana from a market in Sri Lanka. And as the only audacious, pony-tailed Australian in the tea industry, he could not lack for attention. He was very often the center of it all, and he embraced it. But it was Tomislav’s expertise that quickly made him a respected magnate who promoted a product and a lifestyle, demonstrating not only that tea can be among the finest of culinary pleasures, but a way of life. And more than that, he was a visionary, a pioneer who was willing to share his ideas everywhere he went.

Tomislav (right) at a motorcycle race in Australia—one of his hobbies, in addition to horsing around with friends

“He would speak anywhere about tea. He wasn’t selective,” says Linda Villano, Tomislav’s first wife and cofounder of tea importing company SerendipiTea. He gave lectures at trade conferences, Barnes & Noble, The National Press Club (D.C.), Columbia University, the Yale Epicurean Society, and countless teahouses and restaurants.

There is more or less one phrase that his friends and colleagues use to describe him: “Tomislav accepted and embraced all lifestyles and saw the good in everyone.” It’s an attitude that was reflected in his writings and lectures and that made him a natural communicator, one who easily could relate to others.

He was as comfortable in Ivy League lecture halls as the aisles of an industry trade show. His ability to ponder without being pedantic, bringing diverse aspects of life into his lectures—philosophy, mythology, literature, humor—and applying them to tea, set him apart. “I met him when he was teaching at the [Culinary Institute of America], where I was taking classes,” says Queenie Fok. “He was just captivating. You knew that whatever he was saying was heartfelt and important.” At the time, Fok was working on her coursework in the pastry arts, but Tomislav’s tea lecture made her consider a career in tea, and she eventually went to work at SerendipiTea. “He could communicate what his palate was telling him very well. He was an excellent taster,” she says.

Tomislav’s writings were as influential as his lectures. He wrote for various publications, including Fresh Cup. His book, “Serendipitea: A Guide to the Varieties, Origins and Rituals of Tea,” was published in 1998 and received rave reviews for its depth and clarity. Karen Foley, publisher of Imbibe Magazine and former editor of Fresh Cup, remembers Tomislav as a gifted storyteller. “He had a very natural style,” she says. “He didn’t just have technical expertise. He had a voice you wanted to listen to and to read.”

Just a few weeks ago, Villano received an e-mail from a magazine editor in Sri Lanka, soliciting Tomislav to write an article, having seen some of his work. “Little things like that keep happening,” says Villano. “His spirit was so big.”

Tomislav was known for his exceptional palate and a unique gift for communicating what he was tasting. He helped burgeoning tea aficionados develop their own skills.

Pearl Dexter, editor and publisher of Tea A Magazine, met Podreka 10 years ago. It started out like so many relationships in the industry: crossing paths at tea events, where they both might be speaking or giving classes. When Dexter started compiling pieces for a book titled “Tea Poetry” a few years ago, their friendship changed. Three of Tomislav’s poems appear in the book. “Tomislav’s writing reflected my love of tea as well,” says Dexter. “So much so, that when I first read them, I cried.” For years, Dexter and Podreka had a common professional platform, but as Dexter puts it, “Poetry gets to the core of who you are without having to go through any of the introduction or the fluff or any other foyers. The whole business of tea and publishing doesn’t mean anything if we don’t get to know each other as friends, even our competitors.”

Linda Newmann, co-owner of Teaism in Washington, D.C., remembers Tomislav’s early years in tea, when he gave talks at her store. “And in this little space we had, whenever Tomislav walked in, you just knew. His presence was immediately known.” Newmann says she can’t think of anyone who loved to talk about tea more than Podreka, but that was, in effect, ancillary to his visits. “At times, when the air conditioning is broken, the disposal is broken, a staff person hasn’t shown up … it was easy to get caught up in those things. Tomislav would show up and was this real breath of fresh air. ... He helped us remember why we’re in this business.”

A keen interest in philosophy and poetry were perhaps side effects of Tomislav’s capacity to share his life with people. More than an ambassador for tea, Tomislav got to the heart of people. Petr Malapanis was a close friend of his for more than 20 years. She recalls a time when she was 16 and Tomislav held her in front of a mirror and told her to take a good look at herself. “He told me that some people will like me and some people just wouldn’t, and that at the end of the day I was the only one who had to live with what I saw in the mirror so I should strive to be true to me, to what I believed in ... so I had better hurry up and work out what that was!” As an impressionable 16 year old, this had a profound effect on how Malapanis saw herself. “As an adult, I think back … he was a pretty wise 19 year old.”

Growing up in Melbourne, Australia, Tomislav’s unusual energy was evidenced early by a habit of devouring books at home in addition to his schoolwork. He became known as someone who became a near expert at anything he put his mind to; tea was among Tomislav’s diverse set of endeavors and enterprises. Here was a man who, in a 10-year span, created a successful tea importing business, served as president of the American Premium Tea Institute, and was adjunct lecturer at the Culinary Institute of America and guest lecturer at the French Culinary Institute. Long before this, he was a professional ballroom dancer, held black belts in various martial arts and was a writer, a poet, and an avid outdoorsman and fly fisherman. He could build a home, train dogs and work in a kitchen alongside chefs. He was as handy with a sewing machine as he was pulling apart a motorcycle.

On his trip to Sri Lanka, “there was nothing he wouldn’t try,” says Richard Guzauskas. Always 100-percent involved, he engaged children and passersby everywhere he went.

Tomislav’s friends don’t find the diversity of his skills and interests surprising. “He was one of those rare people who fully utilized both sides of his brain,” says Villano. “He was both technical and highly creative.”

It’s rare to see anyone accomplish so much before turning 40, particularly in an age in which distractions and dead ends leap out at us or provide easy excuses. Some have said Tomislav was an old soul with an innate understanding of how to get the most out of life. Others wonder if his internal clock made him somehow aware that he would not live a long life. Either way, it was clear that he fully experienced every moment.

Tomislav left Australia for New York City in 1991. Before he and Villano started SerendipiTea, he worked at Felissimo New York, managing the art gallery on the fourth floor, which also housed a tearoom. It quickly became known that he was an expert in tea and had some serious opinions to share. “He of course couldn’t help himself from going over to the tearoom and inquiring about the tea service and offering his opinions on different teas. It wasn’t long before he was the go-to person,” says Villano.

Tomislav wasn’t shy about speaking his mind. And if it’s true that every human trait carries both costs and benefits, that the people closest to us can drive us crazy, then it goes without saying that Tomislav could get under people’s skin—for better or worse. “One would have a big impression of him immediately one way or another, and it could change from moment to moment,” says Richard Guzauskas, tea consultant at China Mist Tea. “He was so out there and had such a strong presence that you were either enamored by him or you wanted to push him off the bus.”

As is to be expected from an inquisitive, driven, opinionated person, Tomislav was a perfectionist with some amusing quirks. Villano says he had the most extensive collection of teapots and teacups she’d ever seen, and he had distinct rules for how each was to be used and which teas were appropriate for each one. “I got in real trouble once for using a pot for the wrong type of tea,” she says. He was also an unabashed stickler for punctuality and as a result was frequently impatient when projects ran over schedule. “But he could always laugh at himself, even as we were chastising him for being so obsessive,” she says. “He admitted it when he was wrong and was quick to do so.”

As a fellow writer and advisor on his writings, Malapanis observed a near fanatical need by Tomislav to include or allude to everything he knew about a subject in a piece. “Our arguments over what was relevant or necessary often took days to work through,” she says.

In Sri Lanka making friends with animals.

Anupa Mueller of Eco-Prima met Tomislav 10 years ago. They learned the tea trade together and became fast friends, with Eco-Prima supplying SerendipiTea with a variety of its teas. She remembers telling Tomislav, “‘You can’t be so in-your-face toward people. Sometimes people just want you to be mellow.’ And he said, ‘Not me.’ He would drive me crazy and we’d go at it about that. But think about it: If he had not lived that statement, we wouldn’t remember him. He drove us crazy, but that’s okay. Nobody I know accomplished as much as he did in such a short time.”

Pierre Reboul, a renowned New York pastry chef, did chocolate and tea pairing lectures with Tomislav before they became friends. Reboul recalls barbecues at Tomislav’s home in Connecticut, where “he wanted to control the whole process and it stressed him out. But he did everything, you know, from running a business to being a wonderful friend. That’s not common in New York. … Tomislav always had time for the people in his life, and he accomplished so much professionally. He could always take a call, get a bite to eat, go out of his way to be with you.”

Tomislav’s friends saw him for the hard pressing, passionate person he was. “But he never lost his idealism,” says Mueller. “That’s odd for someone who’s been in business for a decade. He told me that he wanted every meeting that he ever had with someone to be memorable.”

“He would know a person when he saw them. He’d get an immediate sense for them. He was almost like a child in many ways because of his curious spirit,” says Villegas. Villegas met Tomislav when she was working at a restaurant in New York four years ago, where he was doing a tea-service training. Their bond was natural and nearly immediate, and she would become his wife two years later. “One of the gifts he gave me was to slow down, take time for myself, be happier and more grateful for everything around me. I’m Venezuelan, and we tend to be a little fiery,” she says.

No one who knew Tomislav is in short supply of memories. “It was always an adventure to be with him,” says Guzauskas. The two traveled to Sri Lanka together in 2002. While shopping, Tomislav would serve as a model and have storekeepers wrap saris around him. He would dash into the nearest lake to help wash elephants and provided running commentary on the driving habits of Sri Lankans. “On top of having a great palate, it was so fun to be with him as a professional, and there was a wonderful personal side,” says Guzauskas.

Though he was outward and energetic, Tomislav was more introspective than one might expect. He would contemplate what was going on around him and how he could contribute. “He wasn’t always as spontaneous as one would think,” says Guzauskas. “He would go home and think about things and call the next day and reflect on a conversation, or give ideas for an upcoming meeting. He didn’t just let things happen without thought. He was an expert at making things look easy; there was a lot of spontaneity there, but he worked at it.”

In Sri Lanka taking part in tea harvesting.

It seems Tomislav consciously contributed to every situation in which he found himself, which informed his innovative thinking, his ideas that would leave a mark on the tea industry. In SerendipiTea’s early years, innovativeness was a necessity for survival. In addition to taking to the streets of New York by motorcycle, one restaurant at a time, flour, rice and other goods from around the world were piggybacked on tea orders coming in from overseas. “Starting out, we didn’t have enough money, clients, business or volume. We did a lot of trading in the early years because we had connections,” says Villano.

Mueller adds, “He designed the box, I’d source the tea. It was exciting because we didn’t know what we didn’t know. No cost efficiencies, no economies of scale. We would share bags, send each other cases of supplies.”

Scott Lowe of David Rio Coffee and Tea met Tomislav at the 1997 SCAA conference. “We were both little guys starting out in the relatively big world of tea.” Lowe immediately recognized Tomislav’s confidence as a businessperson. “He was a great sounding board, and he gave me the best business advice I’d ever heard. He said, ‘Have your foodservice program ready.’” Lowe already was prepared to build a business around retailing his teas, “so that was the most important thing we could have heard. Getting ready for retail is fine, but foodservice would end up driving our business. He couldn’t have been more on the mark with that.”

And where Tomislav’s skills might have been lacking, he quickly caught up to the pack if he chose to. “He couldn’t turn on a computer when I first met him,” says Villano, “which I couldn’t believe. But by the time we had SerendipiTea up and running, he was beyond me technically.”

Tomislav moved to New York in 1991, where he would first make his mark on the tea industry.

Mueller notes: “He was online long before any one of us knew anything about online marketing. He was way ahead of his time. He was good at predicting trends, or knew the direction in which the market could be taken.”

Lowe looks back to the day he met Tomislav, when he was giving a talk on whole-leaf organic premium teas: “Now, eight years later, this is the biggest trend. We’re now appreciating premium teas, and you have big players doing things with white tea and the loose teas. He was absolutely cutting edge in that sense and always stuck to his guns.”

From the tea estate to a finished, packaged product, Tomislav immersed himself in the whole picture. And it wasn’t just about the tea leaf or the sale, but how he treated everyone around him, from vendors to students, and how he saw his place in the world.

“He knew that quality was important, but that didn’t just mean sourcing the greatest teas in the world,” says Lowe. “Anyone can do that if they have the resources. You can’t source great relationships and a true belief in running your business for the right reasons and in the right way.” These are qualities Tomislav embodied. “You can see that he lived what he said by the clientele he had,” says Lowe. “Walk into any of the best restaurants in New York and chances are they’re selling SerendipiTea.”

Villegas remembers him returning from Sri Lanka, ardently determined to change the lives of the children there. “He told me, ‘They need books, computers and suitable places to learn. … We need to help provide them with a better life.’” He began making plans to start a foundation to aid tea workers and their families, a goal that would not come to fruition in his lifetime. Just a decade after beginning his life in tea, Tomislav succumbed to stomach cancer in June 2004 at the age of 38.

If there is peace for his friends and family, it’s that Tomislav lived a full life. “100 percent out there, all the time. That was what was really fun about being with him: no inhibitions,” says Guzauskas.

He was “the sort of person you can call at 3 a.m. and know that (after he finished yelling at you) he would be there for you,” says Malapanis. “He never let me get away with the self delusions that I am wont to hide behind in order to rationalize or excuse behavior or choices. His support of my ambitions and abilities was inexhaustible.”

To hear people speak of Tomislav today, he is often referred to in the present tense. He breathed a rare vitality into the tea industry and the world, so it only makes sense that he should still be among us. Through tears, Villegas says, “He’s still with me and my family … and if I had the chance to do it again, knowing I’d only have three years with him, I’d do it. Everything he did, he did with dignity, passion and confidence, even up to the end.”

Just as he supported his friendships with irreplaceable generosity of time and candor, Tomislav Podreka’s place in the tea industry was his alone. The World Tea Expo has named its tasting room after him, a tribute to a fiercely loyal, brutally honest man who placed as much importance on the journey as he did the outcome. “There’s a hole in the industry,” says Guzauskas. “There’s an energy that’s missing. No one will replace him; everyone fills a niche, but his was one that brought everyone a lot of joy.”

Julie Beals is editor of Fresh Cup. Comments on this article may be sent to comments@freshcup.com.