Tea Masters Cup: A Competition Between Tea Enthusiasts

Back in October 2017, Kevin had the chance to attend the World Finals of an event called the Tea Masters Cup whilst in China for a conference. This very exciting competition between young tea enthusiasts of all styles is very similar to the barista competitions of the coffee world and is now becoming an international phenomenon.

If we divide modern tea culture into three principal categories: production, trade and consumers, the Tea Masters Cup is a project entirely focused on the cultivation of the consumer market. It is seen as a think tank for the evolution of tea culture, new preparation methods and service concepts.

This March, Kevin travelled to Moscow, to act as a guest judge in the Russian competition, to learn more about the organization and to further the process of bringing the competition to Canada for the first time in September. A project he is working on with the Canadian Tea and Herbal Association. Not to be missed!

More about the competition:

• The Tea Masters Cup started in Russia and is now held in 23 countries, from France to Australia, Vietnam, China, Korea, Latvia ... More and more countries join the competition each year;
• Participants can register in one or more of the four categories: Preparation, Pairing, Tasting and Mixology;
• The movement is entirely run by volunteers
• The competition is fuelled by enthusiasm for tea, beyond the rivalries between companies;
• Participants are often young adults, passionate about tea and keen to take an active part in the tea evolution of tea culture.
• The prize for the winners of each country’s national competition is to be sent to the world championships to compete against winners from all the other countries.