Guest Blogger: Dan, husband of Wife of a Tea Drinker

It’s been one long steep- as we approach Drink the Leaf’s 2nd Anniversary tomorrow, Monday, Feb 23rd. It’s hard to believe that another year has gone by... As I think back on the year, I have really enjoyed listening to feedback from my customers. There is a definitely a buzz about tea, loose leaf in particular.

A question that I am frequently asked by tea enthusiasts, friends, and family is “What is your favorite tea?” There is no definitive answer. As a tea drinker, I have a progression that I look forward to throughout the day. I usually begin each morning with black tea, such as a Keemun or House Ceylon, mostly because my wife bellows, “TEA”, as soon as her eyes pop open! However, by mid afternoon, I am craving an Oolong or Green tea. And, if I need a little pick me up, Peppermint seems to do the job. I am fortunate that caffeinated tea has never interrupted my sleeping habits, so a nice Pu-erh is a great way to cap off the evening, especially after a satisfying meal. For me, there are no set rules when enjoying a cup of tea, except for requiring that it’s loose leaf and fresh.

There is certainly nothing wrong with drinking one variety of tea, but for me, I enjoy the adventure. Same true with wine. I like a variety. But, that’s another post. I look forward to continuing to bring you high quality, loose leaf teas, and if you ever have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out for me at danritz@drinktheleaf.com.

- Dan, Tea Drinker, Founder of Drink the Leaf teas

Parents Of A Tea Drinker

Mops & Pops, that’s Sandy & Jim, to the rest of the world. My in-laws are visiting for the holiday weekend. After flying across the country and finally making it to our home in Napa Valley, they graciously turned around and headed back out with the Tea Drinker to rescue me at SFO airport. I had been on the road for the last nine days, with endless delays. I was eager to get home. My husband and his parents welcomed me with a nice hot, fully loaded latte. Yes, my husband broke down and brought me a coffee. I have a photo to prove it.

Mops & Pops love projects, and start each day inquiring about what needs to be done. Dan & I made a list of things for them to tackle. Heck, if something breaks in the house or a light bulb goes out, we actually wait until their next visit to fix it. No kidding.


We accomplished the following this weekend:

• Tackled a deep cleaning of the stove. Remember the Chinese New Year party?!
• Yard work
• Grocery shopping, laundry, and house cleaning
• More yard work
• Harvesting our Meyer lemon tree
• And even more yard work
• Preparing a tasty Valentine’s Day meal together- one of my favorites :Lemony Moroccan Chicken . Inspired by our bounty from the lemon tree. Note: I used store bought Far East couscous, and added tangy feta cheese.
• Sitting through endless tastings of drinking loose leaf teas and wine
• And a visit would not be complete without the customary trip to Home Depot
  

Of course, I supervised all of these projects, and was impressed with their stamina. Little do they know, I am pondering about adding cleaning the litter box to the list? Yes, I know, this maybe pushing it. In all sincerity, my in-laws are wonderful, very supportive, and raised an amazing person, my husband, Dan.

And before you inquire...yes, we would consider renting out Mops & Pops. They are that good! Check out http://www.drinkthleaf.com/ for more details.

How to Promote Your Business On a Daily Basis

Well, it’s official. The “car slick” will be installed this week. What’s that prey tell? (See photo) They are located on the back of car windows and side doors. You stare at them on the road everyday, and they are silently urging you to learn more about its owner's business. They run the gamut from promoting plumbing services to dog walking. I'm sure there is a connection there somewhere… In any case, have you ever seen a loose leaf tea company logo? I haven’t. Not a single one, and I have had my eyes peeled for over a year now.

From now on, every time the Tea Drinker heads out in his trusty Nissan Pathfinder, he is a moving advertisement. All in a nice subtle way, urging and luring our community to buy Drink the Leaf loose leaf teas.

If you own a business, and are not advertising on your vehicle, do so. All you need is a logo, the cost is minimal, and the payoff is year-round advertising. Oh, and owning a vehicle is essential.

I read somewhere that in order to commit a company's name to memory, one needs to see it, at least eight times.

Drink the Leaf
Drink the Leaf
Drink the Leaf
Drink the Leaf
Drink the Leaf
Drink the Leaf
Drink the Leaf
Drink the Leaf
AND, one for extra measure: Drink the Leaf.

Cruising your neighborhood soon…..

Drink the Leaf Loose Leaf Tea in Your Favorite Restaurant

Let’s take DrinktheLeaf.com to the wholesale level, and sell to restaurants and retailers. This has been my latest big push with the Tea Drinker. He agrees, but has a plan. If I wasn't already busy with a full time job & a half, that I love, I would help the Tea Drinker bang on more doors, and get the word out. DrinktheLeaf.com is approaching its 2nd year anniversary this month, and phase 1 of the business was to sell on-line, phase 2 is to take DTL teas to restaurants/speciality stores, and phase 3- maybe a spa line! We are on target. Goals are important. But sometimes, events happen organically. Its always been my nature to talk to people about the things that I am passionate about, whether its food, wine, or tea. I once read that “people buy from their friends”. That works for me!

Our goal is to sell Drink the Leaf loose leaf teas to wholesale customers by March 12th, my husband’s birthday. Ambitious? Not really. I jumped the gun while we are out to dinner on Friday. We finished enjoying a nice meal at one of our favorite restaurants in Napa, and were handed the dessert menu. At the bottom of the menu was the list of teas. I wondered out loud, who the producer was, since it was not listed. Our bartender filled us in on the name of the tea producer, and a conversation ensued about loose leaf tea. Loose leaf is our niche, and our goal is to break down myths swirling around loose leaf tea, and it being time consuming. Its not. Our conversation led to inquiring about who made the tea buying decisions at the restaurant, and ended with the Tea Drinker meeting the buyer, exchanging cards, and committing to dropping of samples and a price list next week.

Oops! Like, I said, when I am passionate about things, I start conversations. Sometimes its best not to wait until all your ducks are in a row. Start a conversation, make a connection, follow up, and Viola! you could be in the wholesale business way before your goal date. Now the Tea Drinker has to spend Super Bowl Sunday preparing for a wholesale presentation. Oops, again.


Email where you would like to see Drinktheleaf.com offered. Ask your favorite restaurant to carry Drink the Leaf . We will try to make it happen, and if we do.. you will be the first to know!