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The Quiet Pour No. 01: On the pandemic, sourcing trips, and Indian tea.
In 2019, my family and I took a trip to Assam, India. We have always loved travel and wildlife, and this trip included time in Manas Wildlife Sanctuary, where we saw the one horned rhino and wandered through expansive tea gardens. What we did not anticipate was how meaningful tea would become during that journey. Our trip to Assam and meeting the growers opened our eyes to what high quality Indian loose leaf tea could be. We brought tea home with us and continued to sip it during the rhythm of everyday life, often during busy mornings and long days.
Soon after, in 2020, COVID-19 hit the world. My husband Abe and I are both physicians, and while most people were home during the lockdown, we were still going into the hospital as front liners. The stress was constant, from the uncertainty at work, to the daily logistics of finding childcare and leaving our kids at home (the Zoom school days).
Until we were vaccinated nearly a year later, we did not feel particularly safe going to places. Instead, we found comfort in our urban home garden. As a family, we would sit outside surrounded by fruit trees and vegetables, drinking tea together. It was grounding. Tea became a way to pause, to connect, and to create a sense of calm in the middle of chaos.
Eventually, when it felt safe, we began inviting close friends to join us. Those simple garden tea times became a way to build community during a very isolating period.
Venturing out in a safe way, we started participating in outdoor farmers markets. We were excited to share our passion for tea and wellness with others. We started out with chai; that’s what we knew very well. We sold our now community favorite blends: Masala Chai, Rose Cardamom Chai, and Vanilla Lavender Chai (people immediately fell in love with the Vanilla Lavender Chai, because it was so different!).
In November 2021, I traveled to India alone for the first time on a sourcing trip. I visited my mother, and then traveled to Darjeeling to finally meet a small tea farmer I had been corresponding with for months. Standing on the land, watching how tea was crafted, and learning how seasonality and terroir shape the final cup was transformative. The way the same plant could express itself so differently through mouthfeel, aroma, and flavor completely shifted my understanding of tea. And then, interestingly, how you steep the tea can also completely change your experience!
That trip solidified my desire not just to source tea, but to truly understand it.
I wanted to visit every tea region, to taste teas made in different seasons, and to learn directly from the people who grow and craft them.
Back home, at the farmers markets, we began introducing whole leaf Assam and Darjeeling teas from the farmers we met. One conversation with a farmer led me down an unexpected path. He spoke about migration and how his community traced its roots back to China centuries ago. That curiosity led me to learn about khalap, an indigenous tea traditionally made by the Naga and Singpho tribes long before British colonization. As I dug deeper, it became clear how interconnected Northeast India, Myanmar, and China once were.
Tea traditions flowed across borders long before modern boundaries existed.
Colonization disrupted much of this history, and India lost visibility into its own centuries old tea culture. Discovering these stories has been both humbling and energizing.
Every sourcing trip now feels like an adventure. Meeting small farmers, their families, listening to their stories, and learning from their land has become a central part of our lives and of Herbs & Kettles. I want to share more about these journeys with you and the perspectives (and tea blends!) I’m developing through Herbs & Kettles.
As an introvert, it feels like a great place to find community. At the same time, I’ve learned so much about the tea we drink that I want to share with you.
The Quiet Pour is a slow and reflective space to share my stories about and around tea: sourcing adventures, reflections on life and health as a physician, and the indigenous and innovative teas of India.
Indian teas are often misunderstood. Outside of chai, they are frequently seen as commercial, harsh or broken. In reality, India, especially the small innovative farmers we collaborate with, produce an extraordinary range of whole leaf teas with depth, elegance, and regional character. There is art here. There is terroir. There are seasonal differences that rival any wine growing region.
When you visit small farms, touch the plants, and speak directly with farmers, you begin to see how alive tea really is.
Tea is almost like a human, it has different temperaments that change with season, the place of origin, and the care it is given. How the tea is nurtured contributes to the aromas and qualities that unfurl into your cup.
Week by week, I hope to bring you both the wonder and the slowness of tea, and to share why Indian loose leaf teas deserve to be experienced with curiosity and respect.
Thank you for being here and for pouring a cup with me. 🫖
