I am a tea specialist in the business of sourcing and selling premium tea for over 38 years. As co-owner/co-founder of Tea Trekker and www.teatrekker.com, I am also proud to be an adventurous tea trekker on the ground in China, Japan, Korea and Taiwan sourcing tea from tea farmers and small village tea producers. Our business focuses on not just tea but the diverse cultural aspects of tea and tea drinking in each tea producing country. Along with Bob Heiss I am the co-author of two books on tea and tea culture, one book titled HOT DRINKS, and the solo author of Green Tea.As co-author and principal photographer for our book The Story of Tea:A Cultural History and Drinking Guide, I am extremely proud that our book was nominated for both an IACP and James Beard Cookbook Award in 2008 and received a Gourmand Award for Best Tea Book in the USA in 2008.Our second tea book - The Tea Enthusiast's Handbook, A Guide to Enjoying the World's Best Teas - is a handy companion volume with practical advise for navigating the delicious maze of tea categories and styles available in tea shops today.The New York Times dubbed us 'the Professors of Tea' and we are thrilled with that title. Because we know that not all tea is the same and quality varies wildly, we travel to East Asia as often as we can to select our rare and premium teas and to re-affirm our commitment to our suppliers. We look for the highest grades, the choicest leaf and small, hand-made batches.Tea and tea culture consumes our waking hours and we feel lucky to be able introduce a world of artisan tea to Western tea drinkers. Knowing that centuries-old tea making traditions are continuing today because tea drinkers are more educated and are demanding better tea makes us smile.Understanding tea is a complex study of how's and why's. Tea knowledge is comprised of minutia, lots of it, as well as recognizing the importance of both the large and small differences in each class of tea.Studying tea is a lifelong quest; one cannot learn all there is to know about the styles of tea in a few broad strokes. When we visit tea-producing countries we become students to the tea masters that teach us and share their wisdom about tea with us.We return home each time with additional knowledge, new insights, and a deeper appreciation for the craft of tea-making, and in turn share this information with our tea customers and readers.Together and individually, we present professional and vocational seminars and classes on tea culture and history, and lead group tea tasting workshops. In our store we periodically conduct a series of Master Classes in Tea.Please sign up on www.teatrekker.com for our e-newsletter for announcements of tea events and classes. And subscribe to Tea Trekker's blog, an informative and educational addendum to our website and tea books, which will be delivered directly into your in-box with each new post.