Thursday, January 31, 2013

Le Palais des Thés Opening Party

After my visit to the Upper West Side location of Le Palais des Thés's first US store, I knew I was hooked on their high quality teas and wonderful customer service. When I was invited to attend the opening party for their SoHo location, I knew I had to go.

François-Xavier Delmas
With a great friend and budding tea lover in tow, we walked the chilly, rain-shined cobblestone streets of SoHo to find windows warmly lit and inviting. The party was in full swing when we arrived, and it was wonderful to see all the tea revelers!

We immediately spotted François-Xavier Delmas, the company's founder and tea traveler extraordinaire. If you haven't read his blog, definitely check it out. It documents his tea travels and is very absorbing.  I managed to chat with him for a few minutes, but didn't want to ask too many questions since he was bombarded from every direction. I did find out that the store will offer introduction to tea classes, one which is actually this weekend. You can find it on 1000passions.com. François-Xavier also explained the intense tasting process for selecting teas and blends. I was honored to hear his stories!

What's a tea party without some tea? We were given samples of their signature Du Hammam and Des Moines and it was fun to sip in in the store surrounded by so many amazing teas. The SoHo space is larger than the UWS store, and perfect for a party. Even though it was crowded, I managed to talk with one of the staff about his breakfast tea choices. After smelling some lovely Darjeelings and Assams, he helped me select Assam Maijian to take home. It has a large amount of golden tips, and has a gorgeous aroma. I can't wait to try it, review coming soon! As I mentioned in my previous post, the staff here is friendly and very knowledgeable. You could talk tea with them for hours.

It was great to meet tea friends Nicole from Tea For Me Please and Mario from On the Go With Mario. I chat with many folks through twitter and it's always fun to put a face with a name. I think we need to organize a few NY tea meet-ups.

As we left we were given 'swag' bags with a book giving in-depth information about the teas, and a box of their famous Du Hammam. Woohoo! On our walk back to the subway my friend said she had an amazing time learning about tea. She's always been a black tea drinker but hadn't sought out anything other than a basic bag. But she said the visit, "Brought out the tea-ness in me", and she can't wait to try more. 

subway shot of swag bag
Congratulations to Le Palais des Thés on the two NY stores!

Friday, January 11, 2013

Steep Thoughts: No Resolutions

It's the second week of the new year. As I sit sipping my Brussels Breakfast tea, I'm thinking about 'resolutions'. Everyone is talking about them. I'm not one to make resolutions because they add unnecessary stress. They always feel like empty promises. What I like to do is think positively about this new year, and all the good things that will come. I'm a pessimist to my inner core, so this is not an easy task. But it helps push negativity away (even if it's temporary), and let the good thoughts in. Doing this over a cup of tea gives it a meditative feel.

Instead of a resolution, I attempt to do small things every day that will create momentum. For example, every night before bed my daughter and I discuss three things that happened that day- one happy, one sad, and one funny thing. It's a great way to get her to reflect each night, and also tell me something she may have forgotten, or chose to omit. We are setting up a ritual that will help her reflect on her daily events as she grows older. She looks forward to this nightly chat, so it hardly ever gets forgotten.

Creating personal rituals can elevate daily tasks. Do you have any rituals you'd like to start, or continue this year?