Looking for ways to promote spring green teas? Consider Client At-Home Tea Tastings. It’s a fun way to (literally!) bring teas to your clients and their friends and engage them in a personal exploration of the finest teas of the season. Best of all, this customized experience offers the clients a low-effort/low-cost way to entertain while sharing their love for tea. For the guests, it’s a unique experience, not just another, over-familiar potluck or BBQ. And, for both host and guests, a tailored tea tasting is an intimate way to be totally engaged in a professionally-managed tea tasting of the freshest teas with the “bragging rights” of learning about them before anyone else.

PLANNING

We’ve come up with a plan and checklist that should make the presentation easy and satisfying. And, it’s a great way to boost your shop’s teas and accessories!

Determine the charge by estimating time to prepare and execute the tea tasting, including travel time and set-up and clean-up. The fee should cover your costs and a little extra for unexpected costs. Depending on your expenses, $25-50 per guest should cover your expenses, including labor, goody bags, and a nice thank-you tea basket for the hostess. Sales of your teas and accessories should bump up the profits of the evening

Next, create an Exclusive Invitation to your best customers. Mail with pretty stamps on fine envelopes with addresses hand written or use one of the calligraphy fonts on your computer word processing software.

Promote, promote, promote. Think of this tea event as akin to a trunk show for fashion, an opportunity for your preferred customers to try teas before anyone else can, in the privacy of their own home, with their friends. Choose 3-5 possible dates or ask hosts for their choice. Set a minimum number of guests and aim for more!

Select the teas. Taste them more than once to determine the order in which to feature them in the tasting. Write short one-paragraph descriptions for each and choose the appropriate accoutrements to brew them.

How to Choose Green Teas for Spring Tastings: Choose 4 to 6 teas, from mildest to strongest. Consider adding pouchongs, white teas like White Peony or Silver Needle or a yellow tea like Hunan Gold to introduce contrast and complexity to the tea tasting experience. Compare and contrast greens from different countries or, savor the variety of greens from one country. Flavored greens could be a challenge even to the most experienced palate. To showcase them, consider doing a pairing with appropriate sweets or savory foods.

DAY OF THE EVENT:

What to bring. Purchase any items you don’t usually carry like tasting cups or containers to show off the teas in their dried state. Bring several of everything you intend to sell. If you sell out, take orders and deliver them the next day or package them for pickup.

- Shopping bags for purchases

- Phones or gadgets for accepting Venmo, PayPal, Zelle or credit cards

- Handouts to tell the story of the teas being tasted and to remind them of the teas long after the event is over. Use a placard with QR Codes to access info on your website for avid phone users.

- Pre-packaged goody bags for each guest including 1-2 tea samples and small items like a tea scoop, in appreciation. Always include printed items with your website or street address or a decal on the gift bag.

- notecards and pens for note-taking or worksheets with list of teas, information on source, type, and tips on how to brew.

- tea preparation equipment and teas (add more items as needed), and use this as a vital checklist before you leave for your destination.

- bottled waters

- temperature-controlled kettles

- teas (4 to 6 samples)

- filter paper or filters or strainers

- teapots (one per sample)

- teas in canisters plus small plates to display teas in dry state

- scoops or measuring spoons

- measuring cups for water

- timer

- serving teapots, one for each tea

- strainers or filters

- tasting cups, one for each guest plus others in case of breakage (consider decals on them to further remind customers of where to buy)

- napkins, more than you think you’ll need

- wastebaskets pre-lined with trash bags

Bring Products to Sell:

- equipment and accessories for the tasting which you sell in the shop

- teas being taste, plus several just for fun

- canisters or other small accessories to promote

Bring help. Staff for serving, answering questions, selling products, and set-up and breakdown

(Optional):

- aprons or T-Shirts with your shop name for staff and to sell

- pitchers of water and glasses for those who like to clear their palate between tastings or

- snacks for palate cleansing like unsalted nuts, plain cookies or shortbread, plain or butter crackers, (also suitable for cleansing the palate between tastings.

NOTE: As an alternative, you can always do invitation-only tea tastings in-store during off hours, like evenings or when you usually closed, or a Sunday. Present this to your preferred customers first, by personal invitation, and then after you’ve done a few, open it up by promoting it on your website and in the shop for regularly scheduled dates.