by tea alberti
1. How did you start your story with tea?– I came to tea after having written a book about wine, which gave me the perfect parallel training in how to taste and how to understand. Both wine and tea are agricultural products which, at their best, can be works of art. – Comencé con el té después de haber escrito un libro sobre el vino, que me dio el entrenamiento perfecto en la forma de cómo probar y cómo entender. Tanto el vino como el té son productos agrícolas que, en el mejor de los casos, pueden ser obras de arte.
2. What’s your favorite tea blend?– I like various blends but generally prefer teas from a single crop from a single estate–again, like wine. What could you add to your best Malbec from Mendoza which would improve it or make it more interesting? – Me gustan varios blends pero por lo general prefiero los tés de un solo cultivo, single estate -de nuevo, como el vino: ¿Qué se podría añadir a su mejor Malbec de Mendoza para mejorarlo o hacerlo más interesante?
3. What’s the best marriage you tried or imagined? – With black teas I suppose I like best the sort of fare associated with English afternoon tea, though it’s usually morning when I have pastries and black tea. With green teas, I’ve learned to love Asian things. Green teas disagree with anything containing butter, I’ve found unlike some, I seldom marry Tea and Chocolate–they seem to fight and the chocolate always wins. – Con té negro supongo que me gustan más todas las cosas que están asociadas a un afternoon tea de tipo inglès, aunque por lo general es por la mañana cuando como pastelería y té negro. Con té verde, he aprendido a amar las cosas de Asia. El té verde no se lleva bien con nada que contenga mantequilla. He encontrado a diferencia de otros, que rara vez se maridan Té y Chocolate – parece lucharan y el chocolate siempre gana.
4. How do you usually takes your tea? – I take tea only two ways–with others or by myself. – Tomo té sólo dos maneras: con otros o en soledad.
5. What is your ritual of tea? – Some I make the Asian way, using a gaiwan or covered cup to make China green, white or oolong or using a Japanese teapot for Japan sencha
My morning black teas I always make in a teapot with removable infusion basket, the simplest way to separate leaf from liquor after the ideal steeping time (which varies, as you know)
– Para algunos tés uso la forma asiática, usando un gaiwan o una taza con tapa para hacer té verde, blanco y oolong chinos o uso una tetera Japonesa para hacer Sencha japonés.
Mis tés negros de la mañana los hago en una tetera con la cesta de la infusión removible, es la forma más sencilla de separar la hoja del licor después del tiempo de infusionado ideal (que varía, como usted ya sabe)
Tips for beginners Tea has always been something we learn from others, just as the Argentines have taught the world the pleasures of yerba mate
It’s good to have a tea friend with whom to share the pleasure and the exploration and better yet if your friend knows more than you do
Tea can be a comfort when it’s a habit–like my morning black teas–but it becomes an adventure when we explore the world of tea beyond the familiar
I try not always to be so damned predictable, and reading helps with this.
El té ha sido siempre algo que se aprende de otros, al igual que los argentinos han enseñado al mundo los placeres de la yerba mate.
Es bueno tener un “amigo del té” con quien compartir el placer y la exploración y mejor aún si tu amigo sabe más que vos.
El Té puede ser un consuelo cuando se trata de un hábito como mis tés negros de la mañana, pero se convierte en una aventura cuando se explora el mundo del té más allá de lo familiar.
Trato de no ser siempre tan condenadamente predecible, y la lectura ayuda con esto.
James Norwood Pratt bio
Born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina
He published his first book on tea in 1982.
He is the acknowledged instigator and prophet of America’s present Tea Renaissance and is quite possibly the world’s most widely-read authority on tea and tea lore, thanks to books translated into multiple languages and numerous columns, articles and print and TV interviews in US and overseas media. His landmark James Norwood Pratt’s Tea Dictionary was named Best New Publication by the World Tea Expo in 2010. He appears in several films and theatrical productions and lives with his wife Valerie Turner in San Francisco.
Literary works
In California he wrote his first book The Wine Bibber’s Bible (1971). He is best known for his books on tea, including The Tea Lover’s Treasury (1982).
In 2000 he brought out James Norwood Pratt’s NEW Tea Lover’s Treasury saying “It’s the new tea lover who has forced America’s sleepy old tea trade to wake up.” A complete re-casting of his earlier work in the light of increased information, this book has been translated into German with the title Tee fur Geniesse and is widely used as a training manual in the US tea trade.
In 2010 appeared James Norwood Pratt’s Tea Dictionary, by any measure the most comprehensive work on tea since W.H. Ukers published All About Tea in 1935.
Tea trade milestones
JNP was named Honorary Director of Imperial Tea Court, America’s first traditional Chinese teahouse which opened in 1993 in San Francisco. He has played a major role in disseminating China tea information and tea ways in America and the West. He first anglicized the name for the Chinese covered cup, for example, as “gaiwan” and on second thought changed the spelling to “guywan.” Both spellings are now found in English, French and German.
A popular speaker and teacher, Mr. Pratt has addressed audiences from Zurich, Switzerland (Le Club des Buveurs de The Suisse) and London’s Kew Gardens to Hangzhou (China Tea Research Institute). He served as International Juror at India’s first-ever tea competition, The Golden Leaf India Awards 2005, in Coonoor, India, and acted as consultant, teacher, taster or spokesman for various tea companies.
Profiling him as “The Renaissance man of the tea industry” in Fresh Cup magazine’s “1999 Tea Almanac”, Michelle Williams wrote: “Parts historian, connoisseur, and world-traveller, he has carved out a reputation as the consummate spokesman for US tea consumers. His wit and dedication to the beverage have helped spread the gospel of tea to tens of thousands of people.”
In 2007 he helped stage a Festival of Tea for Santa Fe Opera’s premier production of “Tea: A Mirror of Soul” by Chinese composer Tan Dun.
http://jamesnorwoodpratt.com/
Thank you James!!!!!