One of the major themes of the film involves Hoffman trying to convince Chinese tea manufacturers that production methods matter and that higher yield through use of modern fertilizers and insecticides have draw backs.  The movie was filmed in 1997, so I am hopeful that getting truly wonderful organically produced teas exported from China is easier today than it was during the making of the film.

There is also great footage of tea being picked, and then transformed through oxidization, firing, and/or fermentation.  The level of expertise to create truly great tea was made very clear.  This would definitely be worth an entire documentary unto itself.

There were a few other elements of the film I also quite enjoyed.  The film showed off Hoffman’s huge collection of Pu-Er teas, which come in amazing varieties.  He has a huge aging cave dedicated to these bricks of tea.

On a completely different note, I found it fascinating to listen to the flamboyant James Norwood Pratt, having only read his books.  He waxed eloquent about the joys of fine tea at a filmed tea class, and I could definitely see his ties to wine tastings I have endured.

Finally, one other highlight of the film is the discussion of Robert Fortune’s exploits in China.  He smuggled tea plants and growing technology out of China  in 1843 to feed the growing British demand for tea through upstart Indian plantations.  The documentary includes footage of the areas Fortune explored, and also some intriguing photos of Fortune traveling in traditional Chinese clothing and in a sedan chair.

While not a transcendental film, All In This Tea is definitely worth viewing by anyone who enjoys tea.  Besides a documentary about the process of creating tea, I’m also ready to watch an entire documentary about Winnie Yu of Teance, who contributed some of the most enjoyable explanations of the appeal of tea.

IMDb entry http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1015968/

I am a little concerned that I did not properly prepare it.  The directions that came included called for a very short steep of only one minute in boiling water in the cup. I followed the directions and got a very thin liquor which was sweet, but wonder if the tea cake should have been broken up more so the leaves could expand fully or given it a longer steeping time.  If anyone is familiar with dark tea preparation please post a comment.  As I have time to research dark teas further, I will elaborate on what I find.

I was a little concerned that the infuser would not contain the liquid remaining in the infuser very well, but even when I inverted the infuser it did not leak.  The only other trick is getting your tea in and out of the infuser basket, which is very narrow, but this is a common issue I see with most infusers.

Cat also notes that the packaging is excessive for such a small product.  Otherwise, a very interesting and well thought out design.

The sample that Cat and I have been drinking this week is wonderful with bright flavors.  I love watching the leaves slowly unfurl in the infuser imparting the liquor with a deep amber color.  The aroma is quite something too like toasted bread with an almost honeyed sweetness.  Our tea seller tells us that Keemun was one of the original bases for some of the original English breakfast blends.  Blending is fine, but this sample stands up all on its own.

The chapter on tea relates the mythical origins of tea cultivation in China.  Even more interesting to me is the highly unlikely adoption of tea by Europeans, particularly the British who make it a central part of their culture in little over a century after its introduction.

I am also intrigued by the British attempts to secure another source of tea by introducing tea to India.  They experience many failures and then discover the plant growing wild.  Hopefully our experiment of growing tea this summer will go better, since I don’t think there are any native tea plants hiding in our hedge.

Recently, I have been on a kick of drinking unflavored black teas, sometimes blends, but tonight a cup of Singtom Estate’s 2nd Flush is keeping me company.  This Darjeeling is just a little astringent and substantially more robust than a typical Darjeeling; delicious.  Mostly, it seems I have been returning to the flavors and blends that are most familiar.  I image this is not uncommon on cold winter nights to seek out enduring comforts.

Anyhow, put the pot back on the boil.  I am looking forward to actively exploring more of tea and tea culture with you.

I put teaspoon or so of the fine powdered tea into the cup and wisked it up with a spoon (I did not have a regulation bamboo whisk with me). I am still playing around with the concentration of matcha to water. If you never have had tried this drink it is surprisingly thick and frothy because the tea powder is suspended in the cup.

In the interest of full disclosure, Darjeeling is not my favorite, but this one seemed weaker than most. I’ll try it again but it probably needs to be steeped upwards of five minutes to get the full flavor as the seller’s site suggests. Better luck next time I guess.