Tea makes a great party favor, whether the occasion is a birthday, bridal, wedding or baby showers.

Art of Tea’s tea bags were included in the party favor for a soiree for a Los Angeles based Moms group. The Moms loved the tea bags on their night out on town (sans kidlets!). The bags were in a cute little pouch (made by one of the moms) that had the event name on it, providing the host with an easy yet sophisticated way to hand out the little gifts. The women ooh-ed and aah-ed over the aromas that were released when some of them opened their favors, unable to hold off their curiosity.

As the after-event emails trickled in, and the Facebook statuses got updated, the Moms all remarked on how wonderful the tea bags were, how angelic and blissful those few moments of sipping hot tea can be. One Mom said that the Earl Grey Crème was her new favorite, that it was a quick indulgence for her in the morning before the daily routine kicked off.

Art of Tea now offers a Sachet Tea Ceremony Sampler, a beautiful elegant box that holds 2 individually packaged tea sachets.  It makes a wonderful thank-you gift to your guests.

I hope I don’t offend anyone here with this post. According to my resources deep in the Wuyi Mountains there are plenty of wild tea trees but  no Monkeys that pick tea or for that matter have ever picked tea here.

Oddly enough however there appear to be several species of non human primates in this region which are known to open/pop the top off a bottle of beer. Granted there are pictures and old paintings of the tea partnership between Monks and Monkeys trading food for wild tea leaves that could not be reached by humans, however these primates have no interest in the leaf. They prefer another brew.

So why have the name  Monkey in a tea such as our white monkey picked or golden monkey? Monkey Picked Tea refers to a top tier tea. Typically wild thicker leaves are used for this or rarer more precious leaves and buds.

This checkpoint is to prevent tourists, foreigners and uninvited guests away from the protective reserve. The habitat hosts a variety of  rare herbs and botanicals, rock teas, about 1000 residents and a host of wildlife. Tourists are only allowed in the Summer time and this visit was early harvest season so no tourists are allowed in order to protect the reserve’s natural habitat. Since I was traveling with the estate manager the guard let us through without question. Once through the gate the forest opened up to be a pure magical place. With China having many contrasts of population and other environmental concerns this place was surrounded by mountains peaks far away from city culture. These mountain peaks would shoot up at a 90 degree angle at the sky with waterfalls flowing down the side  wild monkeys, tea shrubs, pine and bamboo forests. This is where our famous organic white tea and some of our organic hand crafted oolongs are produced… You can smell and taste the freshness of this area in the tea.

Special thanks to Mr. Zhan. He has been my driver for first 5 days of the journey through Fujian and has successfully honked at every bicycle, tricycle carrier, pedestrian, car, ox, dog, water buffalo, tuk tuk, corner, bridge, village entrance, alleyway, motorcycle, motorcycle truckish hybrid (not thinking eco here just no other frame of reference) car, stone, rolling ball, bus, truck, mountain bend, river bed and fallen bamboo…keeping us safe from harm and ensuring we get to our destinations safe and on time.

Because the crop yield is so low this year many of the farmers that would harvest their commercially grown fields are now looking elsewhere. In other words they are diving deeper into wild beyond the regularly planted crops and going back to find tea plants that were once harvested regularly but the tea plants were left once they stopped producing good leaves. This time allowed the tea plants to rest and develop the natural soil again which created a new focus for farmers this year. Many farmers in Southern Mountains in China are picking just what nature has provided are seeing tremendous results with the taste and monetary value.

This reminds me of the true the sense that we may do our best to plan, to organize and to overstock but nature has a wonderful and sometimes mystical way of showing that the what we need is really out there. In some cases more than we know we just have to look for it. Unfortunately the time for lucking is sparked in our lives by running out of options and making the most of what we got. If this lesson of what is provided in nature is true then let the taste and experience of the wild tea plant such as Wild Honey Sprout and White Monkey Picked be the reminder of our own natural potential.

So the 4 hour trip to the Private Reserve in Wuyishan Mountain Fujian China turned to an 8 hour car ride. Side Note: Its amazing how many dialects their are along the way. About 6 hours into the trip Mr. Zhan, our driver for the majority of the trip, drops us off at a random point and we meet with another driver that looks like he is about 28. I find out later that he is one of the tea managers of the organic estate we work with and will be visiting. A very humble man and a real salt of the earth person which we will discuss in another post. We began making our way through Wuyi Mountain range and was blown away by the landscape. Later we switched cars again to a 4×4 to handle the terrain and  to reach a checkpoint.

They say if you want to get something done give it to someone who is busy. Why? Because it will get done. If they are in motion and are busy then the chances are their wheels are in motion to get it done. I often hear people complain about their work. Regardless of the job they complain.  I see this woman who is an organic fair trade tea farmer within a coop. She has with her wood tools working in the rain and I wonder if her tea “lot” which is about the size of a typical small office is back breaking work or is it back building. The sense of minding your field/work  is inspiring to watch. So here she is in the rain getting it done. Checking her crop, observing the soil and using the tools shes got. This is her responsibility and what she picks she gets paid for in a fair way. Its a healthy exchange. It’s a balance of nature and of course depending on what she yields, but her time and energy are important factors here.

Does she work for herself? I often hear about people wanting to work for themselves. I am not sure there is such a thing. We work for our customers, family, status, coworkers, etc. and what Dr. Csikszentmihal calls that wonderful state of  “flow“. I also observe back in the States how often people wait to put their real efforts and time in when they can have the payoff down the line. We don’t always know when that time comes but it starts with harnessing the moment and proving to yourself what you are capable of achieving. Don’t wait to prove it later. The most successful business people and athletes I know are not competing with others rather they are competing with improving and bettering themselves.  Essentially take what you got, your “lot” so to speak and make it better. If you are given a job find the beauty in the task at hand.

The future great crops that we reap start as early as seeds and need focus, balance effort and attention every step of the way. I look at this woman and am reminded that in this world with these creations of life, it’s not just about the reward but the act of really being present and aware.

Mr. Bei is the tea master of this fair trade estate in Southern China. The way it works at this estate is that there is no central garden rather various lots dotted across campus so to speak. Each location is close to a small production facility or satellite where the teas are quickly dried to prevent oxidization. It is a cooperative effort with many of the villagers putting their strength to work so tea master Mr. Bei can craft our fine teas. According to tea master Mr. Bei there are only 14 days of harvest each year at this location for high quality white teas and green teas. Depending on weather conditions the remaining crops can be made into black teas. The rains came late this year followed by cold weather which have caused the production to drop by 60% compared to previous years. This also means a price increase and a waiting game of bidding.  This is where the relationship comes in and cooperation on many levels to ensure fair prices and fair wages for great quality products.

Plenty of cheers and toasts at lunch today back at the Fair Trade tea estate after visiting the school, most of which were short blasts of warm words in local dialect which I couldn’t understand but I smiled broadly and clicked glasses. Granted, I am a light weight when it comes to alcohol and after a few toasts of beer in a little shot glass I got a little giddy.

So, I thought I’d share my own toast with a L’Chaim. L’Chaim in Hebrew means “To life” or in other words to remain healthy with a bit of luck thrown in there. Saying l’chaim with a slight guttural roll in the back of the throat for the “ch” part caused a momentary ripple in the room, but after saying a few times everyone was rocking out the l’chaims, laughing and adding their own words of wellness. Joining us at the table was the Chief of the farming community. A powerful woman in her own right with 600 farmers voting her in as their leader and voice for great teas in this region.

While lunch was rolling on the estate manager turned to me and in a low humble voice he asked me, “Are we friends?”

Then it hit me.

We eat. We share. We feel good and we do business in China as friends. 90% of success in business transactions done anywhere is based on trust. You want to make sure that you can stand by your product or service time and again. Friends will watch your back and make sure you are getting a reliable product.

Are we friends? I responded. Yeah, of course we are friends.

If you are ever having a bad day just look at this picture. These kids are all smiles. Except for the one with the corn in her mouth caught during a storm of kids bombarding the camera at lunch time. Otherwise I thought I felt like a rock star just being there and they certainly shined at the photo opp. Their school built in part by Art of Tea participating in buying tea from this Fair Trade project feels good knowing that they get a good education and learn in well lite, spacious and clean environment.  It really started with a good intention and a team of people that believed in a better opportunity. It’s simple really or rather really simple. We will explore the process later and meet with potential Fair Trade opportunities in future posts.

Being a pretty tall foreigner the kids were a little standoffish but slowly warmed up as I just put my hand out for a high five. They all took dares at being the first on to give me a high five and as the crowd started to gather of course the kid with snot running down his nose gave me the first high five. That opened the gates so to speak of a rush of high fives. Later, I did a little improv English lesson with them and was impressed with the fact that these kids know way more English than I know Mandarin.  I will post the video later on this experience as I have no access as in this part of China to YouTube, Twitter or Facebook.

Peace.