Tea Workshops

The workshops may have limited capacity. Participation is based on first come first serve. Additional attendees may be admitted as space opens up.

12:00 - 12:45 pm - The Road to Senchadō (煎茶道)

After many years immersed in both Chinese and Japanese tea, co-founding the Teakan Tea Company, and studying sadō, Jan's tea journey eventually led her to Senchadō or the Way of Sencha. In 2025, she received the title of Junshihan (準師範, Associate Professor) from the Oubakubaisa-Ryu Senchadō School, and is the school's first senchadō teacher in Canada. In this workshop, we will explore what Senchadō is, how it is practiced in the Oubakubaisa-Ryu tradition, and what inspired Jan to pursue this path.

1:00 - 2:45 pm Chinese Tea since the Tang Dynasty

Pedro Villalón owner of O5 tea and renown tea expert will bring participants on a thousand year tour of Chinese Teas. Pedro will brew and speak about Tang, Song, and Ming dynasty style teas. Participants will learn about how tea has changed throughout the centuries, and perhaps, how they may change still.

3:00 - 3:45 - A New Age of Indonesian Tea

Dyllan Goldstein, local tea educator and associate of the Wikitea cooperative will share with participants a range of rare teas from start of the new wave of Indonesian tea production led by a small group of passionate agronomists, farmers, and processors. This workshop will highlight the region of Ciwidey, the production of Mekarwangi, and highlight rare Javanese tea cultivars.

4:00 - 5:00 pm - Water, Kettles, and Tea

Herb the third, fourth winner of the Victoria Tea Festival World Tea Championship, will give participants an in depth look at one of the most important, yet underappreciated aspects of tea: water and how we heat it. This one hour workshop demonstrates to  participants how different types of water and kettle materials can transform the flavour of teas.