By Phyllis
Louise Harris
July 2015
It all started in a spare bedroom 20 years ago.
Bill Waddington was a tea fan. So much so, that when he travelled across the
country in his job for a supermarket chain he would seek out tea vendors, tea
rooms, tea importers – anyone who could broaden his understanding and enjoyment
of the world’s most popular beverage (next to water). But, that wasn’t enough
for Bill.
Soon he was writing to owners of tea plantations
around the world – Ceylon, China, Japan, Bhutan, Nepal, India – asking about their particular tea. Not only
did he get responses, but he also started receiving samples. So many that he
emptied a bedroom in his home and began assembling his collection of tea. Since
there are 3,000 kinds of tea in the world he needed lots of space.
With his background in the grocery business the
next step was a natural. Bill created a catalog and began selling tea by mail.
Now he was taking trips abroad to meet plantation owners and to see tea
processing first hand. That still was not enough so he quit his fulltime job
and in 1997 opened the first TeaSource in St. Paul’s Highland neighborhood. As
the business grew so did the varieties of tea he handled until today he has
three TeaSource stores in the Twin Cities, a separate tea warehouse, a complete
catalog and an informative website all promoting the 250 varieties of tea he
now offers. And, he still travels around the world seeking out new sources and
interesting flavors.
In May, TeaSource was named “Best Tea Business”
at the World Tea Expo in Long Beach, California, the world’s largest
international specialty tea show. More than 5,000 thousand attendees along with
the show’s exhibitors determined the winner. Not bad for a company that started
in a spare bedroom!
If you haven’t been to TeaSource you are missing
a whole world of flavors and aromas. I am currently limited to black tea and
only drink caffeine-free so of course Bill has something for me as well. It is
an English breakfast tea and is delicious yet still soothing as tea should
be…just as it was for the first tea drinker in China five thousand years ago.
To learn more about the amazing world of tea
visit any TeaSource or the website www.teasource.com and do plan to attend
one of Bill’s many classes in the art of tea. Also pick up his free pamphlets
filled with all of the tea information you will ever need. (After being
immersed in the proper ways of tea you will never look at it the same way
again. No more tea bags for me!) You will find TeaSource stores in St. Paul,
St. Anthony and Eden Prairie where Bill promises to offer special events this
fall celebrating his “Best Tea Business” award.
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Read more about Asian food in Minnesota and try more than 160 recipes in Asian Flavors: Changing the Tastes of Minnesota since 1875, now in bookstores and on amazon.com.
Buy online: Asian Flavors: Changing the Tastes of Minnesota since 1875
Watch the EMMY® award winning “Asian Flavors” television show based on the book on tpt MN. Check local TV listings for broadcast times or view the show streaming online at: http://www.mnvideovault.org/mvvPlayer/customPlaylist2.php?id=24552&select_index=0&popup=yes#0
