Tea Ceremonies 2024
Graduating from South China Agricultural University with a major in tea science and ceremony, Sabrina Chen has engaged with the tea industry for more than 7 years. In 2008, she received the gold prize in tea ceremony competition. Since then, she has given tea trainings and performances in China, Macau and Canada, in order to share Chinese tea culture and bring this culture to new generations.
During 2011-2012, Sabrina worked at the Galaxy Macau as the tea sommelier and trained the “tea team”, setting up services for the resort.
Further she participated in scientific tea research and wrote “The microwave dry effects on oolong tea, 2011”.
Sabrina came to Canada in 2012 and finished her International Business Management Graduate Certificate at Seneca College and MBA in Schulich school of business. Now she is managing her company Tearoma(tearoma.com) which offers tea tasting class, tea ceremony class and premium Chinese tea in Toronto.
Momo Yoshida is a serious tea lover and owner of Momo Tea (www.momotea.co).
She is a certified TAC TEA SOMMELIER TM/SM professional since 2010.
Born and raised in Japan with traditional culture around her, she practices Japanese tea ceremony with passion.
Reina is a fourth generation member of a tea house family in Japan. In addition to importing a collection of tea to distribute to retail and individual clients in Canada, she also offers Japanese tea ceremonies as a second degree Urasenke tea instructor (as her tea name: Sorei). Her mission is not only to introduce tea culture but Japanese culture to people in North America. Creating an occasion and celebrating the beauty of a moment is what Cha No Yu (Japanese tea ceremony) offers and this is what she wants people to discover through a tea ceremony.
Flora Grimaldi is a French comic book author and a tea lover. She started a webcomic about matcha on her Instagram page in 2019. One year later she started to learn Japanese Tea ceremony in the Ueda Sōko style with the Sōmu branch. There she met Geoffrey Evans, who was also studying in the same school while in Toronto. They’re both interested in tea, in ceramics and in art in general. They believe that tea can help people find inner peace and connect with people worldwide.
Presentation : Japanese Warrior Tea Ceremony
Flora Grimaldi from France and Geoffrey Evans from Toronto, both students of the Ueda Sōko way of « chanoyu » will explain a little about Japanese warrior tea ceremony through a demonstration of the most casual form : the “bondemae” or tea ceremony with basic utensils contained on a tray. Afterwards, you can ask any questions that tickle your fancy.
Speech Topic: Introduction to Kintsugi
Kintsugi is a Japanese traditional method of mending broken ceramics. One of kintsugi’s philosophies, “resilience” attracted attention especially during the pandemic period because it sublimates scars into beautiful art instead of denying or hiding them.
In this lecture, you will be immersed in the origin of kintsugi which can be traced back 9,000 years. With deep philosophies beyond concepts of resiliency, participants will learn about the various materials used, the unseen structure and process of Kintsugi, its crisis, and its future.
About Shuichi
Shuichi was born in Japan and was heavily involved in various arts throughout his life. He earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology which allowed him to delve deeper into understanding human cognition, perception, and expression.
The kintsugi technique of giving new artistic life to previously fragmented pieces is appealing to Shuichi because this process represents healing oneself.
Shuichi has been practicing kintsugi in Japan since 2005. He continued this practice upon moving to Toronto in 2019 and hopes to bring greater awareness and appreciation to this unique Japanese art. His other passions include Bizen ware pottery, as well as the philosophies of Zen and Vipassana meditation.
Culinary chef, naturopath and owner of the Salon de thé Les Demoiselles, Viviane Meguerditchian is constantly looking for the beauty and good that life brings. Epicurean and passionate, teatime represents an unparalleled moment of grace for Viviane. Join her in her joyful and creative world, where afternoon tea is the most beautiful feast for all senses. A unique opportunity to learn more about the origins of the tradition, the benefits it provides and leave with the desire to create your own whimsical afternoon tea.