Tea Fest PDX 2025

Tea Fest PDX was held on June 28th at the World Forestry Center in Portland, Oregon.  

The festival was held a month earlier than in prior years.  The weather was beautiful and the temperature was much more comfortable.  The outdoor vendor area was fully covered this year and there was a generous amount of space between each row so attendees could move more easily from booth to booth.  

This year I prepared in advance by checking out the vendors and presenters on the official website so I could hit the ground running, visit the booths I was most looking forward to, and take time to experience everything the festival had to offer.

Oregon-grown tea plants for sale

A presentation at the British Tea Tent

Tea eggs from Red Robe Tea House

Gateway to classes and workshops

There were musical performances throughout the day and I was able enjoy a beautiful koto performance by Masumi Timson.

Heritage Teas of Việt Nam with Anna Ye (Anne Ye Teas)

Anna Ye is based in New York and has been sourcing teas from Việt Nam since 2021.  While she couldn't attend the festival in-person this year, she was able to join us by video.  Anna presented a tasting of two teas harvested in April from old growth heritage tea trees, with the assistance of festival volunteers, and sharing information about the growing regions and tea farmers. 

Wild Silver Tips (Suối Giàng, Yên Bái Province)

Misty Highland Green (Tà Xùa, Sơn La Province)

Teaware in Residence, Shigaraki Japan with Jonathan Steele (Jonathan Steele Studio)

Jonathan is a Pacific NW-based artist who has been making pottery with a focus on gongfu teaware since 2009.  For this presentation, he shared his recent experiences as an Artist-in-residence in Shigaraki, Japan.  

Much of his time during the residency was spent in Shigaraki Ceramic Cultural Park, also known as Tougei no Mori (陶芸の森/Ceramic Forest), and working with the Anagama kiln there.

We learned about pyrometric cones, a measure of kiln heat that deforms at certain temperatures relating to the number of the cone, and the variance between the cooler 9-12 cones preferred by Shigaraki Ware artisans and the hotter 12-13 cones preferred by many Pacific Northwest artisans.  Jonathan tends to prefer firing with higher cones which produce a glassier finish.

We also saw examples of Jonathan's work from his residency and examples of Shigaraki Ware like Kohiki, a textural technique where a water-heavy white glaze overlaps a contrasting clay. 

First Teas from India's First Farmer-Owned Specialty Factory with Raj Vable (Young Mountain Tea)

Raj Vable introduced us to Kumaon tea, its people, history, and the tea factory.

Kumaon is located in the Northern Indian Himalayas. Tea was planted there by the British in the 1840s and cultivation ended in the 1940s because the nearest ports were too far away to make the venture profitable. The surviving tea plants were allowed to grow wild until the 1990s when a government program revived tea cultivation in the region. From then, it took about 30 years to prune the tea trees back down to cultivation-friendly bushes.

While Kumaon farmers own the land and the tea plants, the harvested leaf has, until recently, always been sent elsewhere for production. Many people from the region, especially the younger generation and predominantly men, left to find work in the cities.

Raj founded Young Mountain Tea in 2013 with a focus on partnering with growers from Kumaon to process the tea where it's grown, working toward a model that supports the entire chain of production. The tea factory was built with funding from a USAID grant and was completed before the program was shut down, with tea production beginning in 2021. The local farmers, approximately 90% of whom are women, have partial ownership of the factory and will eventually have 100% ownership.

During the presentation we watched videos (also available on the Young Mountain Tea website) about Kumaon Tea including a look inside the tea factory. We also enjoyed tasting two infusions each of first flush white, green, and lightly oxidized black teas harvested in April from 160-year-old tea plants and processed by the Kumaon tea factory. Tea Fest PDX was the first public tasting of these first flush teas.

Thanks so much to the volunteers, presenters, and vendors for making this a great experience!

Tea Fest PDX 2019

Tea Fest PDX was held on July 20th at the World Forestry Center in Portland, Oregon.

This year, the line moved swiftly once the festival started and attendees received a glass tasting cup.

The indoor and outdoor areas were filled to capacity with vendors from around the world offering a treasure trove of teas, teaware, and gifts.  It was something of a challenge to see everything in between classes during this one day festival.

While ticketed tea tastings have fallen by the wayside, the outdoor vendor area offered ample opportunities to sit and enjoy impromptu tea tastings complemented by live music performances throughout the day.

Elephant Origins Tea pouring elephant friendly certified Assam

2017 Red Peony White Tea Cake made with Ruby 18 prepared by Shiuwen (Floating Leaves Tea)

Green Tea prepared by Forest (Zuo Wang Tea)

Friends of Fire tea table

Minto Island Tea Company tea processing exhibit

Prana Chai Masala Blend preserved in honey

Tao of Tea offered tastings of 500 Mile Chai in disposable-by-design kasora (also known as kulhar, kulhad, bhaar, puruas, and shikora) clay chai cups that make a satisfying "pop" when smashed.

Teapot floral arrangements with tea leaves were on display and available for purchase

Wagashi, The Art of Japanese Tea Sweets with Marjorie Yap (Issoan Tea School)

Marjorie Soya Yap has studied Urasenke tea ceremony for over thirty years and has taught for over twenty years.

Wagashi originated in Japan as fried dough prepared as an offering to the gods.  During the late Edo period, wagashi gained popularity in its current form with every region having their own specialty or preference.  For example, Kamakura specializes in wagashi with roasted soybean, Tokyo tends to prefer sweeter wagashi, and Kyoto specializes in milder, more refined wagashi.  Wagashi prepares the mouth for matcha (powdered green tea) and does not have flavoring that lingers like mint. 

Wagashi are often made from bean paste and the type used varies depending on the desired color and effect.  Shiro-an (white bean paste) is commonly used and can be made from white kidney beans, butter beans, or other white beans.  Coloring may be added during the wagashi making process or produced by using pastes made from more colorful beans like edamame.  Anko (sweet adzuki bean paste) is often used as a filling.  Pre-packaged adzuki bean paste is relatively affordable and easy to find, though it does tend to be much sweeter than what you would find in Kyoto wagashi. 

While making bean paste isn't terribly labor intensive, it is a lengthy process which is why it's a good idea to make a big batch, portion it out, and freeze it for up to 3 months.   The materials for this 15-person workshop took 3 days to prepare.  Marjorie makes 9-10 pounds of bean paste weekly for tea ceremony classes with 1 pound of beans producing approximately 2.5 pounds of bean paste.

Wagashi are made using a variety of tools including hands, cloth, sieves, and forms (wooden or plastic).  Dryer bean paste can be used when working with a mold while wetter bean paste should be used when working with hands or a sieve.  Wooden forms can be soaked in water so the bean paste comes out easily, though the wood will warp over time.  If you are in the market for a wagashi mold, keep in mind that bean paste tends to cling to plastic molds.

Workshop attendees received a recipe for homemade bean paste.  We also received a kit containing a moistened cloth, shaping tool, freshly prepared colored shiro-an, and anko.  Following step-by-step instructions, we learned how to use the provided materials to create our own wagashi which included Momo (Peach), Mukuge (Rose of Sharon), and Tessen (Clematis).  My first attempt at wagashi-making (excluding sakura mochi) was a little clumsy, but they were so much fun to make.

Marjorie also shared some great reference materials for learning about wagashi which included An Almanac of Urasenke Seasonal Tea Sweets by Tomiko Sen and The Art of Wagashi by Kimiko Gunji (English, available through University of Illinois).

Making a Teapot with Jonathan Steele (Friends of Fire)

Jonathan Steele is a ceramicist, contemporary artist, and co-founder of Friends of Fire.

The class began as we passed around a teapot, beautiful and compelling in shape, color, and texture. Then we learned how much precision goes into teapot making. The spout of the teapot we had just admired tips up just enough that when it pours, the water cascades downward all over the body of the teapot instead of outward in a nice stream.

Jonathan shared tips that creators as well as buyers should know about the form and function of gongfu-style teapots. The lid and body should fit so well together that they are nearly airtight. Ideally, you could put your finger on the vent hole in the lid and water won't pour out of the spout. The best place for the spout is at the widest part of the pot which, when tilted to pour, becomes the lowest point where all the water collects. The end of the spout should be at the height of the rim of the teapot and when tipped, water should pour in a smooth stream.

We watched as Jonathan worked with an example of bisqueware that had been thrown on a wheel and trimmed into two pieces (pot and lid) before the class. He used a Japanese tool that was actually made from the tine of an umbrella to make the holes in the body for the spout. Then, he demonstrated how to make and attach the spout and handle using a mix of slip (a powdered clay material suspension in water with the consistency of frosting or heavy cream).

Cream Tea, Scones and Music hosted by Marilyn Miller (Delights of the Heart)

The British Tea Tent returned for a second year at Tea Fest PDX and I attended the afternoon Cream Tea which was accompanied by guitarist Mike Doolin.

Guests were served English Breakfast (my selection), Earl Grey, and a Ginger Lemon tisane paired with tasty chocolate chip scones from Newberg Bakery.

Japanese Green Teas 201 - Special Japanese Green Teas with Miriam Colman (Sugimoto Tea)

Miriam Colman is a Marketing Specialist for Sugimoto Tea, the US branch of Sugimoto Seicha in Shizuoka, Japan.

During this class, we had the opportunity to taste several delicious variations on Japanese green tea that most people encounter less frequently than sencha, hojicha, and genmaicha.  We also learned some useful terminology.

Seicha: tea makers/processors

Asamushi: lightly steamed

Chumushi or Futsumushi: mid-steamed

Fukamushi: deep-steamed

Sencha Fukamushi

This particular deep-steamed sencha has also been deep-roasted at the finish, a Sugimoto specialty.

Gyokuro

Because the shading process required to produce gyokuro during the last few weeks of the growing period is hard on the tea plants, fertilizer is added to boost the plant health which is why organic gyokuro (our sample was not organic) is rare and challenging to produce.

Currently, most organic Japanese teas are produced in Kagoshima. In the past, Kagoshima teas were considered low quality, so many Kagoshima tea producers have made the move to organic to give them an edge in the new market.

Matcha

Miriam recommends a water temperature of 185°F which is slightly higher than what you might generally use for most Japanese green teas because whisking adds air which cools the water.

Ceremonial grade matcha is produced from the first harvest (first flush) because only the 1st and 2nd harvests are shaded. Matcha produced from later harvests is considered culinary grade.

To make matcha, tencha is dried flat, then the leaf is broken up and the veins are removed before grinding. Sencha is not good material for matcha because the leaves have been rolled, breaking the cell walls and speeding up the oxidation process which results in an unpleasant powdered tea.

Temomi Shincha

As the name suggests, temomicha (hand-rolled tea) or temomi shincha (hand-rolled first harvest tea) is made from whole tea leaves, plucked and rolled by hand. The average age of tea farmers in Japan is over 70 and most of the very few temomicha masters are reaching an age where it's no longer enjoyable to make this tea. Sugimoto is one of the few tea makers in Japan that produces temomicha and there may not be a 2020 batch, so there was a definite sense of ichigo ichie (one chance, one meeting) in experiencing this tea that many of us may never encounter again.

Miriam steeped 4 grams of tea in 100°F water for 2 minutes which produced an invigoratingly bold liquor. As one of the other attendees said after the first sip, "Woo, Tea!".

Thanks to the volunteers, presenters, and vendors for all your work in making this tea festival such a great experience!

Tea Fest PDX 2018

The 2nd annual Tea Fest PDX took place on July 21st at the World Forestry Center in Portland, Oregon.

The weather was beautiful and everyone was in good spirits.  Before the festival opened, people in the will call line received their commemorative bags with tasting cups and wrist bands and were allowed to queue at the festival entrance which helped shorten the check-in lines. 

The outdoor vendor layout was a huge improvement over last year with good flow and no bottlenecks.  There were also many more vendors both indoor and outdoor with an impressive range of tea and teaware.  The workshop and tea tasting spaces had expanded, most notably with the addition of a British Tea Tent.  The meal options also expanded slightly with a food truck near the festival entrance and I learned that the Cascade Grill at the Oregon Zoo was a reasonably short walk away (and doesn't require zoo admission).

Since I would be attending workshops and tastings the latter half of the day, I spent much of the morning visiting vendors, tasting tea, and enjoying the live music performances.  This year's festival was a veritable Who's Who of the West Coast tea scene, so I also got to catch up with quite a few tea friends.

Phoenix Tea serving Jani Dhahabu, a Kenyan oolong

Fly Awake's The Lunatic, a night-plucked tea from Yunnan

Zuo Wang Tea preparing a 2017 Ripe Puerh

Floating Leaves teaware

 

Stages of tea processing at the Minto Island Tea Growers booth

Dressed in style for the Dressing the Regency Lady for Tea workshop presented by Nora Azevedo (A Baronets Daughter Designs)

Musical performances throughout the day included taiko, nyckelharpa, acoustic guitar, and erhu.

Morning Cream Tea Time hosted by Marilyn Miller (Delights of the Heart)

One of the welcome new additions to Tea Fest PDX was the British Tea Tent.  There were two Cream Teas during the festival and I attended the morning tea time which was accompanied beautifully with music by Celtic harpist Jini O'Flynn.

Our tea was served by Michele who created the stunning reproduction of an 1885 Victorian gown that she wore for the event.

Guests at the Cream Tea had the options of Chai Rooibos and Earl Grey tea (my choice) served with delicious scones from Newberg Bakery.  

Dong Ding Documentary Clip Premiere + Tasting with Shiuwen Tai (Floating Leaves)

This event was held as part of an ongoing fundraiser for the filming of a documentary about Taiwanese tea, specifically the tea growers and producers of Dong Ding Mountain.  There is more filming to be done, thus the fundraising, but the 8 minute clip we viewed was very engaging.  I'm definitely looking forward to seeing the full documentary!

Following the viewing, attendees had the opportunity to taste multiple infusions of two teas produced by the people in the clip, Mr. Su's Dong Ding Traditional and Charcoal Master Zhan's Dong Ding 3 Roast (which are both fantastic).  During the tasting, Shiuwen explained how to notice throat sensation, the spread of warmth in the throat and downward, to add to our appreciation of the tea.

Visit the Tea Documentary Project page for more information and opportunities to provide support.

Esoteric Teas with Charles & Laurie Dawson (Whatcom Tea Enthusiasts Association)

The Dawson's have a formidable (in the best way) collection of tea and tea knowledge and are generous with both.  If you have the opportunity to sit in on one of their tasting sessions, do it.  

2010 Ten Tael Heicha from Hunan Province

Also known as Huajuan cha or "flower rolling tea", this type of heicha is compressed into 10, 100, or 1000 tael logs.  This 10 tael log weighs approximately 500 grams.

Xinhui citrus-aged Gongting Pu'erh from Yunnan (tea) and Guangdong (citrus)

Gongting or ripe pu'erh is packed into citrus and aged.  The resulting steeped tea has prominent citrus notes.

Cha Gao Pu'erh from Yunnan Province

Liquid is extracted from tea leaves and then solidified in a highly concentrated tea gel, ready to be dissolve into water (~500ml water for a tiny piece like this).  We learned that tea gel resembles a certain illicit substance, so it would be wise to avoid putting it in your carry-on luggage.

Chanoyu - Japanese Tea Ceremony Demonstration with Marjorie Yap (Issoan Tea School)

Marjorie Soya Yap has been studying chado for over thirty years and has been teaching for over twenty years.  

Japanese tea ceremony originated during the time of samurai when warriors studied warrior arts as well as cultural arts to balance yin and yang.

There are hundreds of tea ceremony forms which can vary with guests, time of day, season, and occasion (graduation, first snowfall, flowers in bloom, etc).  A full tea gathering can take four and a half hours and include a nine-course meal, three servings of sake, and two servings of matcha (koicha/thick tea and usucha/thin tea) with a ten minute break, all while sitting on tatami.  There are five forbidden topics within the tea room:  politics, gossip, religion, money, and sons-in law (no bragging, no complaining).  

All elements of the tea room are intended to put you in the mood to receive the tea.  The Shokyaku (first guest) generally has the most experience and will do most of the talking with the other guests passing their questions for the host through the Shokyaku to keep the flow of the tea ceremony uninterrupted.  The quiet of the tea room is filled with the sounds of rainfall, footsteps on tatami, water splashing into the bowl, and the tea being whisked.  The weave of the tatami is 1 centimeter apart and this measure is used for mindful placement of tea implements.  The fukusa (silk tea cloth) used for purification by the host can be folded in about thirty five different ways, exposing different surfaces.  Within traditional tea ceremony schools, women will use a fukusa in a yang color (orange/red) and men will use a fukusa in a yin color (purple).

Tea ceremony consists of three "acts".

Act 1:  Purify tea utensils

Act 2:  Making and drinking tea

Act 3:  Closing

For this demonstration, the scroll reads "Seifu" or "pure breeze" which can also mean the teachings of Buddha among other things.  The bamboo kekkai in front of the furo (brazier) is used to create a separation between the real world (the audience) and the tea room.  

The host (Teishu) for this demonstration was Gabi Blau and the guest (Kyaku) was a member of the audience.  

Thanks and congratulations to everyone who worked so hard to make Tea Fest PDX a success in its second year!  I'm looking forward to 2019!