Tea Across Time (Online)
Taught by Patty Hamrick
Patty Hamrick has an M.A. in Archaeological Anthropology from New York University. She has worked on excavations across Europe, Asia, and North America, including India, Cyprus, and Syria. She loves bringing her passion for the past to new people. You can follow her on twitter, @pluperfectpatty.
*This class will meet online via Zoom - link will be sent the day before the talk.*
Tea is the most popular drink in the world, surpassing coffee, beer, milk, and soda. It’s also one of humanity’s oldest drinks; since its discovery in China five thousand years ago, it has spread to every continent … including Antarctica!
Over the millennia tea drinkers have developed endless varieties of their favorite beverage, including black, green, chai, yerba mate, herbal, pu-erh, oolong, matcha, red, white, and even yellow. But the nature of tea is determined not just by the leaves that brew it, but by how it is prepared and consumed. From British high tea services to Japanese tea ceremonies and from Russia samovars to Malaysian pulled tea, tea is both tradition and taste.
The story of tea includes wars, corporate espionage, Buddhist monks, Dutch smugglers, and camel caravans. In this class we’ll talk about how tea is grown and processed, the history of its global spread, and where it comes from today.
Share a cup of tea with me as you learn about the drink's history! If you'd like to drink in sync with the talk, the main teas we'll be focusing on are pu'erh, matcha, lapsang souchong, darjeeling, and milk oolong. But feel free to brew up a batch of your own favorites as well!
This is the perfect class for both long-time tea lovers and new tea learners!
