Perfect Christmas Presents 2/5: Tea, Pottery and Wagashi by OGATA
As part of my Christmas presents-parade (here was #1) I take you to Paris today, where I have been living on and off since early summer. But don’t worry, no need to plan a quick trip to Paris, OGATA’s amazing teas (plus beautiful pottery and delicious sweets) can all be ordered online at the OGATA Store.
I always had a passion for good tea. I enjoy not only the vast variety of flavors, but the whole process of preparation and consumption, which has been cultivated into an art, especially in Asia. (Side note: it is a mystery to me, why many supposedly good hotels or restaurants, often serve terrible tea).
The OGATA store is part of a multistory complex, including a restaurant, art studio and teahouse, which opened recently in Paris’ Marais quarter. The building as well as most of the crafts, are designed by Tokyo-based architect, designer, restaurateur and chef Shinichiro Ogata. It is one of the most beautiful places you can imagine. Today, when I went into the store, I smelled and tasted many different teas. Here are some of my favorites:
№4–10 Hoshucha — a very aromatic, flowery tea
№1–11 Futsumushi Sencha — amazing green Sencha tea
№3–30 Sannen bancha — black tea with little theine, matured for 3 years after harvest
№5–01 Genmaicha — roasted tea, served by OGATA restaurant like an espresso after the meal
With their beautiful copper packages, all of them make great gifts for friends and colleagues. The online store also offers many extravagant tea utensils as well as incense holders etc.
If you are interested to find out more about the contemplative aspects of tea, check out my interview with Morton Menge, a Berlin-based tea aficionado, on my Podcast Being Underwater.
And you might also want to add the classic Book of Tea, by Kakuzo Okakura, first published in 1906, to your gift collection. You can buy a printed version or check it out on Google Books.
