We were excited to sit down with Beverly Wainwright of the Scottish Tea Factory who joined us once again at the tea farm to make a very special new tea, Roasty Toasty Green tea.
For those of you that are new to Beverly who we call the "tea Goddess". Beverly has an extensive background in tea making. It includes her spending time in Sri Lanka managing Amba Tea Estate. In just four years she shared her experience and guided the team that would turn around the fortunes of this estate by setting up the first micro scale tea factory in Sri Lanka and developing a line of exclusive hand made teas that were sold to the likes of Harney and Sons in the US and Fortnum and Mason in the UK. To learn more about her, visit our 2022 blog post on her here.
For today, we are sitting down with Beverly to catch up on her life recently, look back on the Award Winning 13 Moons Oolong tea and learn more about the exciting new Roasty Toasty Green tea.
Beverly, it has been a year since we last saw you. What has gone on in the last year for you?
I have been doing a lot of online teaching. I am a big fan of knowledge sharing and not keeping all this knowledge to myself so I have really enjoyed teaching others. It has been really quite special to share that knowledge over a great distance from Poland to Africa and beyond.
Also, in the last three years, three teas that I have collaborated with others on have won awards. 13 Moons Oolong tea was one of them of course. A tea we worked on with Magok Tea Company, Myanmar and Fleur De Lis Tea Company, Louisiana also won awards in the last year. Awards are not something that I am after though, in the end the mission is all about a cup of tea that brings people a moment of joy.
I also create art and have had some paintings in an art gallery recently. I used to exhibit regularly but I have gotten into it a bit more recently and I am in a little gallery called Goldfinch Gallery. I also set up the tea studio to be opened up to be a gallery. The tea factory was a mini art gallery for an art festival. It went really well and some of my artwork found new homes, which is always exciting.
When you were last here you were developing the 13 Moons Oolong tea. Did you know at the time you had an award winning tea in the making?
No, genuinely. The first Oolong tea I have ever made was with Jason for the Totus awards. At that time it was set in my brain that I wanted to make a good Oolong tea. I have spent years taking notes. Like many years. It had actually become an obsession. I have been collecting a list of notes on how to make that Oolong. Then with collaboration with Jason, who already had great knowledge in Oolong, it was fine tuned. But it was a dream in the making. I didn't have Oolong equipment in Scotland. So it really was a dream come true to develop that tea.
It is rare to make an Oolong in the US. We are not making Oolong in Oolong territory. It took a lot of hard work. But in the end for me, the award was not the goal, it was the fulfillment of the ambition and dream.
What made 13 Moons so special?
We really paid attention to the details and collaborated on ideas. Jason and Timmy had a lot of ideas and experience with Oolong. We did a lot of experiments with that tea and had to change things a few times. It was made with extreme attention to detail.
(Jason right, Beverly middle and Timmy left. This was one of many tests of the 13 Moons Oolong tea in the making).
A year later and you are back at it and developing another tea at the farm with us. Tell us about this one?
This one was a little lighter in the making. Timmy, Jason and myself had all made steamed green teas before. This wasn't shockingly new. We were trying to make something that sings at the end. A Green tea with a little extra. We added roasting. This roasting created a tea that has the perfect ring, the right pitch per se, definitely not boring. To reach a tea that made me smile we had to make multiple attempts. But we got there. A really great cup of Green tea.
Why Green tea this time?
It is a good time of year to make Green tea and we wanted to make a tea with a bit of a difference. Green tea is suited for early spring picking and we had to work with nature.
What makes Green tea challenging?
Green tea can turn on a second. Black tea is slow, long and gentle. Green tea you can burn it in a second. It is much more precise.
What steps go into developing a tea of high quality?
Attention to detail at the end testing, testing, testing. Tea development is a bit different. You must know your variables. That is your starting point. If you don't know the variables you cannot make great tea. One example of a variable in Green tea making is length of steaming for example.
Also, you have to push the different variables until you are satisfied with the results. This means lots of test batches. Within your growing environment you need to determine the best practice with your leaf and the right process.
How do you know when you have the tea recipe just right?
Taste, aroma. The tea should make you smile. If it doesn't make you smile it won't make anyone else smile. Tea is meant to be a thing of joy.
Tell us about the flavor notes of this tea?
It was quite nutty. Sort of sweet and vegetal. It's a comfort tea. The type of tea that gives you a hug. Like buttered toast. A chilling out tea with a long flavor. Kind of a hug in a mug.
I know you are humble, but do you think this Green tea could be another award winner?
I never think any of my teas will win an award. I genuinely do this as I want people to sit back and sip a cup of tea to enjoy. I am not out for the awards. If people have a good moment with one of my teas you can check that box as done. That is my goal. Customer reviews mean more to me than an award.
What is next for you?
I have two new tea contracts coming up. She has just developed a Dragonwell style tea in Louisiana as well. It might be the first in the US.
Thank you Beverly Wainwright of the Scottish Tea Factory!
We are sure that we will see Beverly again and as always it is nothing but a pleasure to work with her here in the USA. Her attention to detail, her knowledge and professionalism are outstanding and we know any tea made in collaboration with her will be a great cup of tea that is sure to make you smile.
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