Richard Wolak talked with Brian Takeda of Infuze Tea in Vancouver, BC.
What is your favorite type of tea? and why?
I have two favorite teas: Matcha and Green Oolong teas. I love my matcha tea because without it, I am completely dysfunctional in the mornings. One cup just before I head to my office gives me all the energy and kick I need to get me through the day. I also enjoy my Green Oolong teas because it helps to keep the pounds off my waistline. We have a very premium variety of Green Oolong tea from the A Li Shan mountains in Taiwan that tastes naturally sweet, has a very fragrant aroma, and helps to burn up those calories packed away during the holiday season!
What makes Infuze Teas unique?
INFUZE teas are unique for two reasons:
Firstly, all of our hand picked, premium tealeaves are inspected for herbicides, pesticides, and all other agricultural chemical residues to guarantee that our teas are the purest in the world. That means that we send all our teas to government and 3rd party laboratories to be inspected in either Germany or Japan to guarantee that our purity standards ascribe to the highest in the world. Sadly, North American standards for tea purity are in some instances literally 100 times lower than what we follow. Although our company is not legally required to meet such high European and Japanese standards, we choose to do so because we want to guarantee that our products are the best in the world.
Secondly, and most importantly, we are vertically integrated with Japan's #1 producer of the most premium Japanese green teas. This means that we have access to the highest quality Japanese green teas in the world at the most competitive prices. There is literally no competitor that can match our quality. If this is any evidence, we supply 45% of Japan's entire consumption demand of premium green tea and matcha products.
How did you get into the tea business?
My relatives on my father's side are all tea masters of the Edo Senke School, the 3rd largest tea school in Japan. Being born and raised in such an environment, it just seemed natural to be involved in some capacity or another.
The ultra-chic INFUZE Tea House concept, which had some roots to my heritage, was actually brought into fruition as a university project. This business concept was our 4th year thesis for our undergraduate studies at the Queen's School of Business.
What is your favourite dessert to complement your teas?
My favorite dessert/snack to complement our teas is the Siberian Ginseng Energy Bar. Made by the executive pastry chef at the Elixir restaurant of the Opus Hotel, this bar packs quite the punch. For me, because I am running around a lot, it is nice to have a nutritious and healthy snack that gives me that extra kick to keep me going throughout the day. This, and the matcha, keeps me well fueled.
What's better, hot tea or cold tea?
Nutritionally speaking, hot tea generally contains more of the antioxidants and vitamins. This is not really attributed to temperature but more so the process in preparing cold teas. Cold teas, like the popular "Sun Iced Teas" of the US South, typically are made well in advance, left to sit for a day and then subsequently chilled. This means that from the time of infusion and the time of consumption may be well over a day. Unfortunately, the most active nutrients and antioxidants in tea do not live that long. At INFUZE, we prepare all of our iced teas fresh and right in front of the customer. Even for our featured Iced Burmese Lime Teas and Iced Raspberry Lemongrass Teas, we have them prepared freshly in the morning and instantly chilled to ensure that the nutrients remain with the beverage. So, because our iced teas are made and served on the spot, the nutrients will be no different.
What are the challenges that you face you in running your tea business?
The greatest challenge I believe is to counter the poor image teabags have done for our industry. Teabags are much like freeze-dried instant coffee. It satisfies a need for convenience; however, it comes at a cost of quality. Unlike the coffee industry where there exists both premium, exclusively roasted gems of coffee beans as well as easy-t-use generic instant powders, the tea industry is predominantly mass market teabags. It is no wonder that most coffee drinkers have difficulty kicking their habits by switching to tea because they are going from premium, exquisite coffees to instant, substandard teas!
With our two showroom teahouses, we like to think that we are countering this trend by introducing to the sophisticated palettes of Vancouver what real teas are about. We do not use teabags or instant formulas in any manner. Rather, we adjust the water temperatures for each tea, time each infusion to the exact second, and control all other variables to make sure each tea is prepared to perfection. Now, we understand that our concept is not for everyone. Teabags serve their function too. I just hope that over time real teas, like those that we serve, will get the attention they deserve.
How many different types of teas do you use from around the world?
We carry over 250 varieties of teas from all around the world. The only continent we do not procure from is Antarctica. At each teahouse, we keep a rotating selection of approximately 40 varieties, from the pool of 250. The reason why we do this is to ensure freshness. One misunderstanding of teas is its shelf life. Teas do not have unlimited shelf lives. Some teas may last only 3 months, while others can go up to a year. Now, if a retailer had 200 or more varieties under one roof, I would hazard to guess that 10 or 20 of them may sell well and turn over quickly. However, this cannot be said to be true for the remaining 180 or 190, which may simply sit on the shelf and go stale. For this reason, we limit our selection at each store to guarantee that all our products are fresh. Any products that we deem to be sitting on the shelf too long are disposed.
Is there anything you would like to share with our readers about the future of Infuze? Are there any immediate plans that might affect your teas or wholesale expansion?
INFUZE has been very fortunate to be supported by the many tea lovers of Vancouver. To further share our concept with others, we are looking to expand our presence to other markets in both Canada and the United States. We currently are looking for partners with local market knowledge to help us find the best place to set up shop. We do not intend to sell franchises; however, look to offer partnerships and joint venture projects with experienced partners to open flagship stores to further the awareness of premium teas. As for wholesaling, through our vertical integration with the #1 producer of premium green teas in Japan, we will now be putting greater emphasis in promoting our signature product, Matcha green tea. Matcha green tea is the hottest beverage in the tea market today, as the health benefits and flavours surpass anything that has ever hit this market to date.
POSTED: Wednesday, January 05, 2005