Prologue

"We brew tea for the stories and the journeys. And when we run out of stories or journeys, we pour some more tea."

A few years ago I started an unusual quest. It was unusual because it took some time before I realized I had embarked on something remarkable. In fact, if I recall correctly, it was one of my friends who formally named the quest. Goes to show that something wonderful may be right under our noses. We just need to pour some hot water to discover it.

Someone once asked me: why tea? And I thought it was a very strange question. We all choose a different poison whether it be work, coffee, physical activity, booze, or in my case tea. I'll try to refrain from judgment of the other choices and focus on tea.

Tea comes in many forms and from all over the world. It is grown as a plant, harvested, sun-kissed dry and shipped to all different kinds of people. From there it can be brewed, chilled, mixed with tapioca bubbles, mixed with seltzer, and so on.

We often trace the origins of tea to the Eastern world, and I suppose this is as good of a place as any to start our story. So grab a chair and a tea cup. The water will boil soon and we've got quite a few tin cans in our collection. Sit back and relax. This is just the beginning.