Tea Tales from the Trenches

When people think of "drinking tea", many different thoughts and visual representations may come to mind, as tea means many different things to many different people... Some may think of iconic images from traditional tea-cultivating cultures, whereas others may envision proper ladies drinking tea at the Plaza in New York City; others may envision a Chinese family enjoying the finest green offerings from the regions tea estate, or perhaps a young woman carrying her homemade brew out her front door on her may to work. Whatever role tea plays in your life, and however you visualize it, tea is a constant part in all walks of life.

I often marvel at how universal and global a tiny, brewed leaf can be. It transcends culture, ethnicity, and social classes. From "the haves" to "the have not's," drinking a simple cup of tea is an enjoyable event for all.

Over the past week, I had the pleasure of chatting with several customers on the phone. I usually don't get too many back-stories on their purchases, but for some reason, this week was an exception, and I would like to share some of their stories with you

I had one customer who usually has his orders shipped to a military postal address in Alaska, who called and asked if he could stop by to pick up his order as he found himself in Massachusetts, right around the corner from us. When he stopped in, he told us that our Dragonwell green tea keeps him refreshed and soothes his nerves while he pilots cargo planes during relief efforts for civilians in Afghanistan. He was stopping by to replenish his supply as his plane was shot down on his last mission and he lost his entire inventory! It was great to talk to him and to learn about how our teas give him a boost while he’s giving back to people in need.

My second unique story comes from a play-writer whose play, Etty, is currently in production in New York City. She informed me that she could not have written her play without Grace Tea Company teas as she drinks our signature Owner's Blend Premium Congou every morning while preparing for that day's performance. She was also glad to have Grace's Russian Caravan along for the trip when she traveled to Holland to research the play about Etty Hillesum, a young, Jewish woman trying to escape tyranny in Holland during World War II. This strong, robust tea was the staple she needed to get this play off the ground!

The last story happened to me this morning. I got a call from the owner of a T-Shirt company who was looking for some tea to stain his next run of shirts. He had been using some junky old tea bags and decided that some high quality loose-leaf teas would get the job done better. So, he will now be creating the perfect "tea shirt" with the help of some of our black teas!

I am sure some of our readers may have some similar stories about how Mark T. Wendell and Grace Teas are incorporated into their daily lives. Please feel free to share your stories on how our tea has touched your life! With our involvement in the specialty tea industry for decades, it may seem like we have heard it all… but you never know, sipping green tea over a war zone was indeed a new one for me!