JusTea Purple Leaf Tea
Country of Origin: Kenya Leaf Appearance: dark, twisted Steep time: 3 minutes Water Temperature: 175 degrees Preparation Method: stainless steel infuser basket Liquor: pale plum It’s been several years since the last time I shared something from JusTea here on the blog. For those of you that aren’t familiar, they are a Vancouver-based company that has sought to bring about much-needed change to the tea industry in Kenya. Farmers make very little per day, largely because the leaves are sold to corporate processing plants. JusTea works to build cooperative processing centers, allowing smallholders to process specialty teas themselves. Purple tea seems to be getting more and more press these days. Although it is often…
JusTea Tea Star
Country of Origin: Kenya Leaf Appearance: dark, pressed flat Ingredients: oolong tea Steep time: 3 minutes Water Temperature: 200 degrees Preparation Method: porcelain teacup Liquor: amber When I saw this tea star at World Tea Expo I was really fascinated by it. At first glance you might think that is a typical flowering tea. However, it is actually hand tied Kenyan oolong. Doubly exciting! The guys at +Jus Tea told me a funny story about the naming of this tea. Originally their workers called it buibui, the Swahili word for spider, because that’s what they thought it resembled. After a bit of refinement their star was born. Although it doesn’t blossom in the traditional…
JusTea Kenyan Black Tea
Country of Origin: Kenyan Leaf Appearance: small, dark Ingredients: black tea Steep time: 3 minutes Water Temperature: 195 degrees Preparation Method: porcelain teacup and mesh infuser Liquor: bright reddish brown At long last I was able to try the tea from +Jus Tea that I was looking forward to the most. The taste was brisk and malty with an interesting aftertaste that almost reminded me of pumpernickel. Notes of chocolate and a slight fruitiness rounded out the flavor profile. This would make an excellent breakfast tea. It had a good bit of astringency but wasn’t unpleasant in any way. You don’t even need to add milk or sugar. Some days nothing beats a…
JusTea African Chai
Country of Origin: Kenya Leaf Appearance: small, dark with lots of visible spices and petals Ingredients: black tea, fennel, clove, licorice, coriander, rose and safflower petals Steep time: 5 minutes Water Temperature: 212 degrees Preparation Method: ceramic teacup and mesh infuser Liquor: deep reddish brown I was really excited to finally get to try something +Jus Tea. You might remember that I recently interviewed the Bane family and that I interviewed Britta from JustTea on Episode 2 of my podcast. This tea is different from a traditional chai in that it has a Kenyan tea base and the addition of rose petals. The taste was earthy and robust with a healthy dose of spice and…
Interview with JusTea and Fundrazr Campaign
Earlier this year I interviewed Britta from +Jus Tea on Episode 2 of my podcast. They are now entering the second phase of their fundraising campaign. Grayson and Paul Bane took some time to answer my questions about their mission, the Kenyan tea industry and more. Please give it a read and consider contributing to their campaign on Fundrazr. It is companies like JusTea that are transforming the industry and making the word a better place for tea farmers. The beautiful pictures scattered throughout this post are from the Bane family’s trip to Kenya in February. Make sure you watch their update video at the bottom of this post. I’ll be reviewing some of their…
Podcast Episode 2: Interview with JusTea
I know it’s been a while but I finally got around to filming another podcast episode. This time I interviewed Britta from JusTea, an exciting project that is currently fundraising on Indiegogo. I was really impressed with their story and their passion. Here is a bit about who they are follow by the video of our interview. After watching, please consider supporting them and help spread the word. JusTea is a social justice movement wrapped in a social business. JusTea is partnering with small scale Kenyan tea farmers to empower them to learn how to hand process their own tea from the wet green leaf to whole leaf black tea and then buy…
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