Instead of posting a list of my top teas for the year–especially since I published something like this not too long ago in my Surprise Teas of 2024 post-I thought I’d share my top tea experiences of 2024.
Before I share the list, I would like to clarify what I didn’t include on it.
I had tea sessions with friends in person and via Zoom that were really fun and, often, deeply meaningful in ways that are hard to share on a list like this. I didn’t include those. They felt too personal.
I also ruled out all the tea events (in person and online) that I ran, even though I found them deeply meaningful.
Top Tea Experiences of 2024
I’m sharing these favorites of the year in alphabetical order by how I’ve named the experiences. It was too hard to rank them!
Being Tea with Plush
Being Tea’s Sooz Hammond runs some wonderful online events.
This year was my second time attending their Being Tea with Plush event. Being Tea invited attendees to bring a plush friend (or even a special blanket or other cozy item) to the online tea session. We steeped and sipped tea, pondered topics related to softness and vulnerability, and chatted in small groups. We were able to share the story of our plush friend and hear others’ stories, too. It was like a big hug in communiTEA. So fun and uplifting! You can learn more about Being Tea‘s offerings here. [Photo of plushies having tea is courtesy of Sooz Hammond.]
Iced Matcha Libation at Kettl with My Daughter
Another top tea experience of 2024 was at Kettl, seated outside their tiny Manhattan location. I wanted to label this subheading: “Iced Matcha Libation with My Daughter on a Brutally Hot Day.” The title was too long. But the “brutally hot day” was definitely part of the reason this experience was so memorable!
It was a really hot and humid August day in New York City. My daughter and I were in the very hot subway stations, then the freezing trains, then back out onto the broiling streets. You know how city streets radiate heat in August? Yeah. UGH.
Arriving to our destination, we sat outside the tiny Kettl location in the Bowery. It was one of the last days they were offering their Peach Matcha and Shiso Soda.
It was SO delicious, and cold, and such a pleasure to sit and sip this iced tea together on a very hot summer’s day. Sadly, we didn’t get of a photo of us together. But, we bonded over delicious iced tea! (Credit for this photo of me goes to my daughter, C. Levy.)
Té Company Seasonal Tasting Workshop
Té Company runs some wonderful tasting events. In 2024, I had a number of memorable tea experiences at this NYC teahouse. I’ll highlight one here. I attended a small seasonal tasting workshop. They served us delicious iced tea when we arrived. Then, we had several rounds of hot teas. The workshop was led by one of the Té employees. It was beautifully done tea-tableside, with short video clips, photos, and interesting information.
We were invited to taste and contemplate the teas before learning what they were. Té even included several poems and invited us to match each tea with a poem. Our group had fun conversations doing these pairings.
Té makes delicious snacks and desserts. They served us some of their lovely food during this event. I was focused on the experience and didn’t get photos of the actual tasting, so I’ve included a photo from another visit to Té.
Tea at the Musée D’Orsay
I had to think about how I could justify including this tea experience. The taste of the actual tea I had at the Restaurant Musée D’Orsay was not memorable; however, the food was very good. More importantly, the pleasure of having tea at this extraordinarily beautiful location was deeply memorable. Photos can’t do this place justice. The companionship of tea while I soaked in the art and beauty of this “restaurant behind the clock” at the museum in Paris made this one of my top tea experiences of 2024.
Tea with a Buddhist Sister
At a weekend mindfulness retreat led by monks from the Blue Cliff Monastery, I enjoyed an absolutely magical experience over tea. I worked up the nerve to approach one of the Buddhist monastics, Sister Spiritual Discernment. We started talking about her personal tea practice–which begins at 5 am–and the formal, ceremonial teas that are rarer.
I was surprised and delighted when she spontaneously asked me if I would like to have tea with her.
We walked to the edge of the designated eating space. She filled her thermos with hot water from the nearby dispenser. And, we sat together on the floor. She pulled out her teapot and a teacup, and I pulled out my teacup. We share some beautiful steeps of a Vietnamese green tea she brought.
I share more about this experience in this blog post.
Toronto Tea Festival
Here’s the last top tea experience of 2024 that I will share. I was lucky enough to attend the Toronto Tea Festival for the first time. Seeing friends, making new friends, attending workshops, tasting tea: it was all wonderful! I bought lots of delicious tea and some beautiful new teaware. The energy and tea vibes were superb! [In this photo: Helen of Secret Tea Time, at the 2024 Toronto Tea Festival, in front of her beautiful handmade teaware.]
I’m planning to attend the Toronto Tea Festival again in 2025! Please say “hello” if you recognize me there.
Your 2024 Memories and a 2025 Suggestion
Tea festivals are great fun! I highly recommend attending one if you can. I’ve even made it easier for tea lovers like us by compiling an ever-growing list of 2025 tea festivals in the USA, Canada, Europe, and Japan. (Also, I’m looking to add to these areas of the world.) I share charts of the festivals organized by date and location.
While looking forward, can we take a pause to look back? What were your favorite tea experiences in 2024? I’d love you to share in the comments!