Core Conference Descriptions

Core Conference Sessions Descriptions

Friday, June 7, 8:00 - 9:30 a.m.

Current Research on Tea & Health

Tea has long been considered and used as a healthy beverage, but over the past few decades, powerful research has verified the science behind tea’s link to improved health. The tea industry has raised consumer awareness from virtually zero 20 years ago, to nearly 100% today. Accomplishing this has not been easy and results from very careful adherence to a well thought out strategy. By attending this class, you will learn how to utilize elements of this strategy to build your own business while avoiding the pitfalls that could get you and the industry into trouble. Speaker: Peter Goggi, Executive Vice President, Tea Association of the U.S.A and Louise M. Pollock, President, Pollock Communications.

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Review the current research results on tea and health.
2. Learn where the evidence of benefits is strongest.
3. Review the strategy and tactics used by the Tea Council of the USA.
4. Discover the do’s and don’ts of communicating the health benefits of tea.
5. Apply the techniques used on a national basis to build your own business.

Raising the Bar: Taking Tea to New Heights in the Coffee Shop

This presentation makes the case for tea as a cornerstone ingredient in the coffee & tea bar, exploring a multitude of recipe options, demonstrating how to effectively train baristas in tea knowledge & presentation, streamline operations, and experiment knowledgably & creatively to produce unique beverage lists centered around tea. Speaker: Bo Olson, Sales Director, The Tea Spot.

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Create skilled tea educators and architects from baristas with limited or no tea knowledge.
2. Experiment efficiently & effectively with loose leaf tea behind the bar.
3. Inspire staff involvement in beverage making, exploration of teas and ingredients, recipe creation, and teach them how to pass that passion on to the customer.
4. Streamline operations & avoid pitfalls: learn how to tie seemingly time-consuming tea recipes into the flow of a busy coffee shop and keep your walkthrough traffic happy.
5. Create a unique tea & tea-inspired beverage list to set your business apart and inspire your customers.

Focused Tasting: Le Nez du Thé (The Nose of Tea)

Using aroma vials, learn about the nuances and aromas that come through in cupping a tea. Identify scents that correspond to flavors so that you can pick out the subtleties in your tea. Speaker: Shabnam Weber, President & CEO, The Tea Emporium, Inc.

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Understand the correlation between our senses and how we actually taste flavor.
2. Identify aromas without seeing what you smell.
3. Match aromas to teas and pick up the subtleties.
4. Develop a vocabulary to describe the scents and flavors in your tea.
5. Identify teas in a blind cupping.

Friday, June 7, 8:00 - 11:00 a.m.

Skill Building Workshop: Cupping 101

Anyone can buy and sell tea. However, the most successful tea professionals rely on depth of knowledge, experience and credibility that can only be developed from daily comparative tasting. The cupping method is internationally regarded as the industry standard for evaluating tea quality, from the garden to the consumer, and all points between. During this session, learn basic techniques for evaluating tea using the professional cupping method, and apply those techniques in creative and practical ways to build a solid foundation of sustainable business growth. Speakers: Mo Sardella, The G.S. Haly Company

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Identify aspects of your business that will benefit from regular tea cupping activity.
2. Recognize comparative tea cupping as an essential component of sustainable business growth.
3. Effectively set up, brew and evaluate all tea types using the cupping method.
4. Utilize disciplined cupping exercises to increase your tea tasting vocabulary and quality control systems.
5. Improve your skills, and gain confidence and credibility as a tea professional.

Skill Building Workshop: Tea and Food Pairings: Science and Art

In this tasting workshop, you will develop a fresh new understanding of how our taste system works; experience the practical application of this system for enjoying the tastes of both hot and iced teas; and renew your appreciation for the versatility of tea as a partner with and in foods. Speakers: Virginia Utermohlen-Lovelace, Principal / Associate Professor, Taste Science LLC / Cornell University, and Renee Senne, Chef de Cuisine, Culinary School Director

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Understand the basic fundamental principles underlying the biology of our human taste system.
2. Apply these fundamental principles to enhance your consumer’s experience of tea.
3. Use these principles to create novel food pairings and uses for tea.
4. Understand how individual differences in taste function influence consumer tea perception and preferences.
5. Use these principles to target your tea messages to new audiences as well as to enhance the experiences of regular tea drinkers.

Friday, June 7, 9:45 - 10:45 a.m.

Tea 101: The Basics of Tea Business

Tea 101: This core class will teach the basics of specialty tea. Understand how the different types of tea – black, oolong, green and white – are all manufactured from the same plant, Camellia sinensis. Get a global perspective on where tea is grown and the journey it takes to your cup. Learn the importance of brewing times and temperatures in steeping the perfect cup. This catch-all class will get you up to speed on one of the most profitable and fastest-growing beverage categories in North America. Speaker: Bruce Richardson, Owner, Elmwood Inn Fine Teas/Benjamin Press.

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Identify the basic tea families.
2. Speak confidently about basic tea manufacturing processes.
3. Identify the leading tea growing regions of the world.
4. Identify basic tea grades.
5. Speak confidently about how tea is grown and harvested.

RealiTEA: The Real Life Evolution of a Tea Store

We recently opened our 3rd store. Come share the entire journey - scouting locations, working with landlords, lawyers, architects, contractors, inspectors, staffing, training, missteps, marketing, Grand Opening, and beyond. We’ll share all financial data; where we saved money, where we lost money (or time), and what we would have done different. You’ve heard of reality TV, this is reality tea store. Speaker: Bill Waddington, Founder & President, TeaSource.

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Exactly what is entailed in a realistic project plan for opening a tea business.
2. The work process/flow/scheduling required in opening a brick and mortar tea business.
3. The financial requirements and realities of opening a tea store.
4. The mistakes, miscalculations, and some of the unexpected events that can happen on such a construction project.
5. Options and alternatives when managing the construction/remodeling of a tea business.

Friday, June 7, 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.

Legal Requirements for Labeling Tea in the USA

The colors are chosen and the logo looks great, but what can one say on the label without getting sued or fined by the government? This course will help you understand the laws in the United States governing when an informational label or nutritional label is required, what that label must look like, and what statements can be included on the label. This course is for you if you are selling tea in the United States and are curious about putting health claims on your labels or using the USDA Certified Organic seal. Speaker: Kristen Schneider, Small Business Consultant, Schneider Consulting.

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Identify the FDA required panels for labeling tea.
2. Explain when a label is required on tea products and when it is not.
3. Understand the appropriate use of the USDA Certified Organic logo and Fair Trade logos.
4. Recognize health claims, nutrient claims, and structure/function claims on labels and on advertising efforts.
5. Know which claims about the health benefits of tea are allowable on labeling and which are not.

Building a Great Team - Keys to Being a Successful Employer

Being moderately successful in business requires hiring exceptional people. Being wildly successful requires finding, hiring, training, and keeping a team of great people. Then you must lead them, infuse them with passion, empower them to do the job, nurture them in personal growth, and then step out of their way. Speaker: Jack Groot, Principal, Midwest Barista School.

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Attract great employees.
2. Keep great employees.
3. Build a team that works together.
4. Grow employees in job responsibilities.
5. Work on their business, rather than in their business.

Friday, June 7, 11:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

Focused Tasting: Pairing Green Tea and Japanese Tea Confections

Experience the ancient old tradition of Japanese teas with Wagashi, Japanese confections that evolved into an art form in the ancient Imperial capital of Kyoto. Learn the history and essence of green tea varietals paired with the cherished seasonal confections that continue to be a vital force in Japanese life. From the ceremonial green tea- matcha to a roasted green tea-hoji, enjoy the delicate notes of green tea while savoring the exquisite beauty and flavors of the prized Wagashi. Speaker: Rona Tison, Senior V.P., Corporate Relations ITO EN

Focused Tasting: How to Put Together a Comparative Tea and Wine Tasting

Wine and tea professionals share many similar techniques when tasting their beverage of choice. By examining the similarities between these two beverages, a team of Master Sommeliers and Certified Tea Specialists has designed a wine and tea tasting that uses commonly available products. Several pairings will illustrate the concepts presented. Speakers: Kyle Stewart, Co-Owner & Certified Tea Specialist, The Cultured Cup, and James Tidwell, Master Sommelier and Beverage Manager, Four Seasons Resort and Club

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Understand the similarities between tasting wine and tea.
2. Understand the differences between tasting wine and tea.
3. Identify a common procedure and vocabulary that can be used to describe wine and tea.
4. Explain how the similarities and differences between tasting wine and tea can be structured into a tea and wine tasting.
5. Identify commonly available wines and teas that could be used for a wine and tea tasting.

Friday, June 7, 1:00 - 4:00 p.m.

Skill Building Workshop: Tea Blending

Join us for a hands-on presentation exploring the world of blending teas and herbal infusions with Director of Tea, master tea blender David DeCandia, of International Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf. Our 3 hour session will help you understand the art of blending teas and herbal infusions. Speaker: David DeCandia, Director of Tea & Master Tea Blender, Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf.

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Understand what creating blends means and how tea ingredients interact.
2. Explore various origins and understand the do’s and the do not’s of what to blend.
3. Experiment with the blending of herbs, spices and fruit with teas and recognize when you have cancelled out a blend.
4. Learn the technique of blending and what tools are needed.
5. When to and when not to incorporate flavoring to your blend.

Saturday, June 8, 8:00 - 9:30 a.m.

From Earl Grey to Da Hong Pao: Improving Your Customer’s Palate

As culinary knowledge and sophistication rise, how do we take our customers from mainstream teas to better quality teas? How do we map a path to those very teas that have been the subject of focused tastings at the World Tea Expo all these years? Speaker: Lydia Kung, Buyer, Eastrise Trading Co.

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Formulate a plan to bridge the gap between standard teas and interesting, praise-worthy teas.
2. Consider some of the obstacles and how to counter consumer misconceptions.
3. Learn defining features of tea categories, not just of rare teas, and taste a small selection at the end of the session.
4. Map a strategy to develop a more inclusive and elevated tea menu.
5. Engage in a dialogue about how tea education progresses, and how to develop a price friendly tea connoisseur culture.

China's Importance to the Future of the International Tea Industry

A detailed look at the agricultural structure of the Chinese tea industry, logistic issues, legal issues related to exporting, organics and food safety, fair trade issues, biodiversity issues, cultural business issues, political issues, and the rewards for mastering the complexity of doing business in China. Speaker: Austin Hodge, Founder & President, Seven Cups.

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Understand the complexities of the Chinese tea industry.
2. Make informed decisions as buyers of Chinese tea, organics, and fair trade.
3. Understand where Chinese tea fits into current market trends.
4. Explain what the difference between the Chinese tea economy, and the International commodity model.
5. Recognize the advantages and disadvantages of having Chinese tea in their catalogs.

Focused Tasting: Innovations of Matcha

In this class, you will learn how to whisk the perfect bowl of traditional Matcha. You’ll also learn how to enjoy Matcha in non-traditional ways, gain knowledge of the different grades of Matcha available in the North American market, and how to distinguish high quality Matcha from imitation Matcha. Speaker: Daniel Coniglio, Sales Representative, Aiya America.

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Make a perfect bowl of Matcha.
2. Whisk Matcha properly.
3. Discover other ways to use & enjoy Matcha.
4. Identify different grades of Matcha.
5. Check Matcha quality.

Focused Tasting: Sensory Evaluation of Tea

The sensory evaluation of tea or sensory appreciation consists of a technique that permits us to express in words what is perceived through our senses. Using a cupping protocol, you will perform a detailed analysis with sight, hearing, smell, touch and flavor. To make this sensory evaluation as objective as possible, we use a standard language to describe the feelings and memories evoked by the tea. This standard language is expressed in the dictionary of aromatic descriptors. The aim of cupping is to distinguish and describe our sensory appreciation of the tea: its color, shape, aroma, flavors, referring to items we know, from an objective perspective. The technique can also determine quality attributes such as aroma, briskness, flavor, body, brightness and color and identify defects on tea. Speakers: Victoria Bisogno, Owner, El Club del Te, and Jane Pettigrew, International Tea Consultant & Writer.

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Identify aroma, taste and flavor descriptors (which will help you to translate your feelings to words).
2. Develop your capability of perceiving aroma notes to build the sensory profile of any tea.
3. Describe the sensory profile of a tea (express in words what is perceived through the senses).
4. Evaluate the quality of tea through the sensory evaluation protocol and identify defects on tea.
5. Describe how professional tea cupping is performed.

Saturday, June 8, 8:00 - 11:00 a.m.

Skill Building Workshop: Setting the Standard – Establishing Benchmarks for Determining Cup Quality

Learn how to establish a standard and evaluate quality against it. Through cupping and teamwork, experience the process of discerning different quality levels, quantifying them, and determining benchmarks that are useful tools for you in your process or business. Recommended prerequisites: a beginner's cupping class. Speaker: Eliot Jordan, Director of Tea, Peet’s Coffee & Tea.

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Develop an understanding of the subjectivity of taste and quality.
2. Use the senses to experience leaf style, aroma, and flavor.
3. Identify a useful standard benchmark.
4. Apply standards in your process or business.
5. Learn both the helpfulness and the limitations of standards.

Skill Building Workshop: Tea Processing – An Experiential Lab (Day 1)

Roll up your sleeves! In this two-day class your basic understanding of how tea is made will be taken to an entirely new level through hands-on experience. Participate in the process of transforming several pounds of raw tea leaf material into white, green, yellow, oolong, and black teas. From withering to rolling and shaping through oxidation and the final firing, every stage of processing expresses the art and science of tea production. Each of these stages will be discussed and then experienced through the feel, fragrance, and flavor of the tea leaves. The class concludes with an analytical cupping of the five teas produced. Attendees are expected to have basic knowledge of tea and cupping experience. Recommended prerequisites: Tea 101 equivalent and a beginner's cupping class. Speaker: Bill Waddington, Founder & President, TeaSource and Donna Fellman, Online Education Manager, World Tea Media.

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Know how five types of orthodox tea are manufactured from the leaf of one plant.
2. Understand each stage of processing as it applies to each of the five types of tea.
3. Experience how the science correlates to the sensory experience of tea processing.
4. Touch, smell, taste, and see fresh tea leaf material during processing.
5. Conduct sensory analysis of the teas that have just been manufactured.

Saturday, June 8, 9:45 - 10:45 a.m.

Impactful Visual Merchandising to Create Higher Retail Sales

Ever wondered how some stores like Pottery Barn, Crate & Barrel, or Williams-Sonoma create an instant buying reaction for their customers? Here you’ll learn how to create attractive, impactful displays for your store and you’re on line presence that will help set you apart you’re your competition and generate higher sales for your stores. Speaker: Ellen Leaf-Moore, Owner, Fezziwig's Marketplace

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Learn how to create a “story” that makes your customers want to buy!
2. Receive written Visual Standards and Guidelines and learn how to TEACH them to others in your company.
3. See examples of “poor” vs. “good” vs. “excellent” visual merchandising looks like.
4. Experience a LIVE presentation on how to “build” a great feature.
5. Create a game plan of how implement great visual standards within your store or organization.

Everybody’s Talking about Terroir!

20 years ‘in the field’, Kevin takes us to the sources of our favorite teas, revealing the fascinating essentials of how these diverse growing environments make the leaves taste the way they do......Speaker: Kevin Gascoyne, Owner, Camellia Sinensis

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Comfortably pronounce the word 'Terroir' increasingly used in the tea industry.
2. Explain to clients the concept of Terroir or growing environment.
3. Explain to clients the many natural variables of tea cultivation, essential to the specialty tea industry.
4. Identify and explain elements of flavor profile in relationship to growing environment.
5. Speak about and market their single origin teas with more confidence and understanding.

Saturday, June 8, 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.

Growing a Customer Base on a Shoestring Budget: Marketing Strategies with High ROI

Learn low cost and free marketing strategies to grow your community and profits, with tactics for online and brick-and-mortar businesses. From e-newsletters and social media, to online reviews and in-person events, take away actionable items to grow your business profitably and increase your customer base while keeping marketing costs low. Speaker: Jessica Kochik, CMO, The Tea Spot

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Identify your target niche and your customers’ needs in order to grow your community.
2. Implement low cost marketing tactics for an array of business types.
3. Create high-value low-cost connections online and in-person.
4. Build an online community using call & response strategies, then listen.
5. Track and measure ROI on marketing investments.

Selling Specialty Teas to the American Consumer

While tea sales in the United States presently lag milk, beer, coffee, and soda in per capita consumption, specialty tea has come into a new golden age with companies like Teavana (now part of Starbucks) and others educating consumers, developing their palates, and boosting overall tea consumption. This presentation is aimed at helping you capitalize and participate in that trend through an educational and experiential sales approach. Speaker: Peter Martino, CEO, Capital Teas, LLC

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Understand the history of tea in America, from colonial times to present day, with reasons for tea's positioning in our culture.
2. Understand modern trends in the American tea palate, and what factors are influencing those trends.
3. Understand how tea brewing methods affect the tea palate and consumer preferences.
4. Use knowledge of the American tea palate to boost your overall sales of specialty tea.
5. Learn how to evolve and elevate your specialty tea sales as the American tea palate improves.

Saturday, June 8, 11:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

Focused Tasting: Korean Teas

Korean teas offer a very appealing range of delicious mouth-filling, warm, sweet flavours and aromas and this session will feature three green, one semi-oxidised, and one black Korean teas. We will focus on the different types of green tea harvested during the main plucking season from mid-April to early June, and will explain the manufacturing processes used. We will also enjoy an oolong type tea and a black tea. As we taste, we will also discuss the current tea culture in South Korea. Speaker: Jane Pettigrew, International Tea Consultant & Writer.

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Understand where Korean teas are grown and how they are made.
2. Understand the differences between the green teas from different seasons.
3. Understand how Korean semi-oxidised teas are made and how they taste.
4. Understand why and how some Korean tea producers manufacture black tea.
5. Understand how to brew different Korean teas.

Focused Tasting: Steeped and Brewed: A Comparative Tasting of Tea and Beer

Tea and beer professionals share many similar techniques when tasting their beverage of choice. By examining the similarities between these two beverages, a Certified Tea Specialist and a former employee of a beer company with a beer brewing license have designed a tea and beer tasting that uses commonly available products. Several pairings will illustrate the concepts presented. Speakers: Kyle Stewart, Co-Owner & Certified Tea Specialist, The Cultured Cup, Chris Beard, The Cultured Cup, and James Tidwell, Master Sommelier and Beverage Manager, Four Seasons Resort and Club

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Understand the similarities between tasting tea and beer.
2. Understand the differences between tasting tea and beer.
3. Identify a common procedure and vocabulary that can be used to describe tea and beer.
4. Explain how similarities & differences between tasting tea & beer can be structured into a tea & wine tasting.
5. Identify commonly available teas and beers that could be used for a tea and beer tasting.

Saturday, June 8, 1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.

Skill Building Workshop: What is Brisk?

Better yet, what is Astringency? During this active hands-on session you will cup teas and accurately match sensations with professional tasting terms. You will build vocabulary and deepen your understanding of professional terminology. Moreover, you will develop your ability to objectively assess and describe the taste profile of a cup of tea, without superimposing personal biases. Recommended prerequisites: a beginner's cupping class. Speakers: Aaron Vick & Mo Sardella, The G.S. Haly Company

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Translate professional tasting terms into customer-focused descriptions.
2. Advance your cupping skills to create accurate descriptions for your customers.
3. Identify and redirect incorrect and misleading vocabulary.
4. Bridge the gap between traditional tea descriptions and contemporary tea terminology.
5. Understand how tea type and origin affect cup-character, and how to communicate that quality to customers

Skill Building Workshop: Tea Blending

Develop the skills to devise and create signature blends. Learn about how tea bases affect the final product and how to choose ingredients that will work for your theme. Will discuss flavor relationships for a harmonious blend, ingredient ratios and their effect on cost. Speaker: Cynthia Fazekas, Wholesale Sales Manager, Adagio Teas

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Choose base teas.
2. Understand flavor relationships.
3. Create visual appeal.
4. Identify inclusions.
5. Create ratios.

Sunday, June 9, 8:00 - 9:30 a.m.

How to Use Blogging in Your Business

Join us for the unique opportunity to interact with some of the top bloggers in the industry. This Roundtable will give you the chance to hear discussions on the "how to" and why blogging/connecting regularly with your customer is important to your business marketing strategies. This panel, hosted by industry leading moderators, will provide you with valuable tools; methods and processes that will help you communicate your passion. Our panelists of bloggers range from brick and mortar business owners, to online entrepreneurs with a wealth of experience on the "how to" of blogging for your business. Better yet, if we miss something in the presentation, you will get the opportunity to pose your own questions at the end of the program. Moderator: Michael Coffey, Blogger, The Tea Geek

Panelists:

Linda Gaylard , Blogger, The Tea Stylist
Robert Godden, Blogger, The Devotea
Darlene Meyers-Perry, Blogger, The Tea Enthusiast's Scrapbook
Naomi Rosen, Founder, Joy's Teaspoon
Jason Walker, Co-Founder/Co-Director, The Association of Tea Bloggers
Virginia Wright, Co-Founder/Co-Director, The Association of Tea Bloggers

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Know the benefits of adding a blog to your business.
2. Understand creative online marketing on a bootstrap budget.
3. Learn to tap into your customers’ interests and convert to sales.
4. Easily access a broad cross-section of knowledge and experience.
5. Have the opportunity to engage with entrepreneurs, partner with businesses with similar client demographics.

Adding E-Commerce to Your Existing Business

In this session, we will discuss adding an e-commerce component to your existing bricks and mortar business model. Today's technology makes it possible for any business, small or large, to have an online presence. We’ll also study various examples of how tea and related products are sold on the internet. Speaker: Nick Nguyen, CEO, Steepery Tea Bar

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Decide if selling online is right for your business.
2. Different e-commerce options and what is a good fit for you.
3. Effectively promote your online business.
4. Develop ways to improve your existing e-commerce site.
5. Use tips for incorporating e-commerce into your daily workflow.

Focused Tasting: How to Compare Characteristics of Black Tea

Black teas from all the major tea growing regions in the world - India - Darjeeling, Assam, Nilgiri; Sri Lanka - Nuwara Eliya, Dimbulla, Uva, Ratnapura, Kandy; China - Anhuai (Keemun), Yunnan - (Dianhong)& (Puerh); East Africa - Kenya Speaker: Lalith Guy Paranavitana, President & Founder, Empire Tea Services, LLC

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Compare taste & aroma.
2. Compare color.
3. Compare infusion.
4. Compare dry leaf.
5. Compare their Geography.

Focused Tasting: The Tea of Uganda, Great Tea with a Cause

At 5800 feet above sea level, in the Bushenyi District of southwest Uganda, 60,000 small holder growers grow and produce unique and exceptional teas. Experience these fine Ugandan teas, learn about how privatization of their factory has helped the growers lift themselves up, and how the relationship with "Call To Care Uganda" is changing the lives of women, children, and families of this region. Speaker: Phil Parda, President, WorldSource International.

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Use your new working knowledge of the teas of Uganda.
2. Understand the uniqueness of the micro-climate the Ugandan teas are produced in.
3. Understand the nature of cooperative privatized tea production.
4. Experience the connection between individual growers and the impact of global exposure.
5. Know how "Call To Care Uganda" is helping the Igara Growers improve their lives through tea.

Sunday, June 9, 8:00 - 11:00 a.m.

Skill Building Workshop: How to Make Money with Events

Learn how to organize market and present a profitable, informative and fun event. This interactive session provides all the information you’ll need from selecting the right teas and tasting topics to how best to set up and merchandise for maximum sales. Leave this session with the essential tools and resources you need to begin hosting and making money with events now. Gain the confidence to become your community tea expert, while learning how to maximize your exposure and multiply your sales. Get tips and simple to execute ideas from someone who has successfully conducted hundreds of events in numerous settings. Speaker: Beth Johnston, Founder & CEO, Teas Etc.

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Understand how to sell throughout the event, making it easy for attendees to buy.
2. Determine what tea information is important and how connecting it to specific teas simplifies and improves the educational experience.
3. Learn the top 10 elements that will take your event from good to great.
4. Discover hidden opportunities to share your tea knowledge within your community beyond the retail environment to broaden your customer base.
5. Learn how to engage and inspire attendees.

Skill Building Workshop: Tea Processing – An Experiential Lab (Day 2)

Roll up your sleeves! In this two-day class your basic understanding of how tea is made will be taken to an entirely new level through hands-on experience. Participate in the process of transforming several pounds of raw tea leaf material into white, green, yellow, oolong, and black teas. From withering to rolling and shaping through oxidation and the final firing, every stage of processing expresses the art and science of tea production. Each of these stages will be discussed and then experienced through the feel, fragrance, and flavor of the tea leaves. The class concludes with an analytical cupping of the five teas produced. Attendees are expected to have basic knowledge of tea and cupping experience. Recommended prerequisites: Tea 101 equivalent and a beginner's cupping class.Speaker: Bill Waddington, Founder & President, TeaSource and Donna Fellman, Online Education Manager, World Tea Media

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

Sunday, June 9, 9:45 - 10:45 a.m.

Digital Marketing Trends

With search engines constantly increasing focus on content quality, producing great content has become the foundation for a solid digital marketing strategy. In this course, you’ll learn how to position yourself as an expert and utilize current trends in digital marketing to grow your brand and ultimately sell more tea. If you are serious about investing time and money in a digital marketing strategy to take your brand to the next level, this course is for you. Speaker: Tony Gebely, Owner, World of Tea

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Create a content strategy around shareable content.
2. Create awareness and build their brands by disseminating content.
3. Measure the results of their digital marketing efforts.
4. Best utilize the social channels being used most in 2013.
5. Implement authorship and publisher tags.

Teaching about Tea – Why is it Time for Tea in the Classroom?

This presentation describes our involvement with teachers who wanted to use tea in the classroom to foster creativity, promote cross-cultural understanding, and encourage self-acceptance. We provided training to the teachers on tea education and tasting exercises. Teachers had inspirational results and we’ll share their stories. It’s time for tea in the classroom! Speakers: Kyle Stewart, Co-Owner & Certified Tea Specialist, The Cultured Cup, and Elizabeth Fawcett, PhD., MPH, Texas Woman’s University

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Describe research that links increased work performance and reduced tiredness with tea consumption.
2. Describe sensory evaluation tea tasting and Wabi-Sabi as exercises for fostering creativity, promoting cross-cultural understanding and encouraging self-acceptance in the classroom.
3. Describe tea’s versatility for teaching important topics in school curriculum.
4. Describe the method of partnering and training educators.
5. Identify pathways for encouraging tea education across the country.

Sunday, June 9, 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.

Steep Social Media without Getting Bitter

Like tea, social networking (e.g. Twitter, Facebook, etc.) receives a lot of buzz and we hear it benefits its users. For those unfamiliar, however, the multiple options can be overwhelming. Attend this seminar and receive practical guidelines for removing Internet-induced intimidation. Speaker: Verna Hamilton, President, Tea Philosophy, LLC

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Name at least three (3) social media platforms currently available.
2. Identify at least one social media platform best suited for business.
3. Convert a traditional resume into an online profile.
4. Name at least two (2) ways to manage multiple social networking sites.
5. Avoid common netiquette mistakes.

The Future of Independent Tea Shops

The big guys are on to us - recognizing what a fantastic thing tea is, huge chain shops are entering the market....so where does that leave the independent establishments? Is it a good thing or will we be left in the dust (and fannings)? What are tea shops doing to prepare? Join us for a panel discussion on what the future holds for independently owned tea shops. Moderator: Annelise Pitt, Owner, Thistledown Cozies

Panelists:

Chris Ryan, Editor, Fresh Cup Magazine
George Grossman, Owner, Happy Lucky's Teahouse
Sheila Duda, Owner, TeaLula
Mary Greengo, Owner, Queen Mary Tea
Jesse Jacobs, Founder, Samovar Tea Lounge

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Hear what tea business experts think the future will look like.
2. Hear what these independent shop owners are doing to successfully compete in this new world.
3. Determine what you can do to set your independent shop apart from the competition.
4. Develop a list of strategies for this future, and assess which of them you can apply to your business.
5. Get answers to your specific questions to the panelists.

Sunday, June 9, 11:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

Focused Tasting: Oolong, the Under-Discovered Tea

Oolong teas range in flavor from bright and floral to dark and mysterious, and everything in between. During this session we will touch on the processing of oolong, famous areas of production and styles. We will also infuse and sample some teas to compare and contrast. During the session we will discuss why Oolongs can be an important part of your menu, contributing to your sales and profits. Speaker: Tim Smith, Chief Leaf, The Tea Smith

By the end of this workshop you will be able to:

1. Describe Oolong tea, and the basic steps of production.
2. Understand how processing affects the final tea.
3. Differentiate between different styles.
4. Understand how preparation affects the taste in the cup.
5. Explore ideas for featuring Oolongs in your store.

Focused Tasting: The Unknown Teas of Taiwan

Most are familiar with Taiwan's Pouchong, Oriental Beauty, Jade Oolongs, and Amber Oolongs but there are other alluring treasures of Taiwan just waiting to be discovered. In this Focused Tasting session, Thomas Shu will introduce some of the indigenous wild tea plants, unknown to many in the West, but becoming very popular in Taiwan. He will also demonstrate how to effectively present a tea tasting workshop to introduce new teas to your customers. Speaker: Thomas Shu, Owner, ABC Tea House