San Francisco International Tea Festival 2018

We went to see the tea festival in San Francisco earlier this month. This year, we bought early access tickets in anticipation of the crowds and were able to taste more teas an hour before general admission.  

For those who haven’t been before, they give you a small goodie bag with teas and a little cup for tastings. We discovered several new teas here, including some old favorites.  

We were intrigued by the soba tea, which made us think of soba noodles:

We ended up buying a tin of honey oolong from Esteemed Teas and are still slowly savoring it today. They conveniently come in individually packed sachets, which are perfect for the office. 

I’d never heard of Chaga before, but tried it for the first time here. Chaga is a mushroom, extremely high in antioxidants. They sell it in powder form and you can pretty much add it to any drink you’re making.

My all-time favorite and happiest discovery at the festival was Waterfall Teas’ Instant Cardamom Chai. It’s the first instant chai I actually love! I liked their cardamom flavor more than their popular masala blend and would highly recommend ordering a few online.

And of course, one of my favorites - Harney & Sons was there as well. Sometimes, I guiltily wonder if I just love their tins. They’re so pretty, wish I could collect them all. 

We’re planning on going again next year and look forward to discovering some new teas to try. Until then, I’m happily sipping my instant cardamom chai and bundled up in blankets.