The Thousands

Connoisseurship can be a dangerous thing. A little knowledge about anything that can be prefixed with the word ‘artisanal’ can feel like another large chapter in the book titled Why You Will Never Know Everything About Anything Ever or: Fuck, Really? Another Kind of Cheese?. But this is no reason not to be stout of heart and persist with the enterprise of developing refined tastes. Because what’s sexier than a man who says ‘oolong’ or ‘first flush’ a lot and can’t make a simple cuppa without reaching for a goddamn thermometer? I tease only because I am ignorant about the ethereal pleasures of tea and favour the more prosaic ones offered by a cup of strong black coffee. Which is precisely why I should consider attending this “trip through the world of tea, visiting Hawaii, Korea, Taiwan and Kenya” hosted by Sarah Cowell, ‘tea sommelier’ at Vue de Monde.