Coffee & Tea Festival Returns to Brooklyn:
Another Sold-Out Show Expected

The 14th Annual Coffee & Tea Festival New York will be returning to the Brooklyn Expo Center on March 23rd and 24th. The festival is open to the public and trade. It will include over 75 exhibitors and an impressive line-up of special programs covering everything from how to use tea in craft projects and current tea trends to home brewing coffee and exploring Ethiopian coffee culture. Over 6,000 people attended the 2018 show and the 2019 show is proving to be NYC’s hottest ticket (well, except for Broadway’s Hamilton). Previously featured on the Food Network’s hit show Unwrapped, the Coffee & Tea Festival is excited to bring together some of the most well-respected men and women in the industry for an educational and entertaining weekend. Come sip, sample and save. Attendees can take advantage of money-saving show discounts on their all-time favorites or brand-new discoveries.

Ticketholders will enjoy this year’s all-star line-up of free seminars, including:

Ethiopian Coffee: Culture & Community
Presented By: Sarina Prabasi & Elias Gurmu, Co-Founders of Buunni Coffee

Explore coffee culture as it's experienced in the birthplace of coffee -- Ethiopia. Coffee permeates the daily life of Ethiopians like nowhere else. It’s not just a product, a commodity, or even a favorite beverage. It has a deep history. It’s a gift, a welcoming, a blessing. Through visuals, music and a coffee ceremony demonstration, learn more about Ethiopian coffee, culture and community. FREE.

Online Tea Matchmaking: Finding Your Perfect Blend with Science
Presented By: Alan Lai, Founder of teapasar

In this seminar, discover how machine-learning and sensor technology can revolutionize the way we buy tea - by allowing tea lovers to accurately understand the taste of tea online even before tasting or smelling it. This technology then provides personalized recommendations according to the exact taste preferences of the tea lover - opening up a whole new world of teas, and allowing consumers to explore blends and flavours to discover their next perfect blend. Taking it one step further, he will also share more on how this science can be used to discover new and surprising pairings of tea and food. FREE.

Iced Coffee & Tea the Italian Way
Presented By: Francine Segan

Famed for their cool desserts--gelato, sorbetto and granita—Italians put their own special spin on iced tea and coffee. While Italians love to linger over a meal, that same laid-back attitude doesn't apply to making their iced tea and caffé. Italians don't let hot coffee or tea hang around to cool off and, dio mio, they wouldn't think of making cold brew. Their choice? A shakerato (shock-eh-RAH-toe): hot caffé shaken with ice to chill it quickly. Francine Segan, Italian food expert and author of Dolci: Italy's Sweets, will share all the many ways Italians enjoy iced tea and iced espresso drinks and cocktails like Tuscany's coffee-spiked Negroni. Enjoy a tasting of several flavors of Galvanina iced teas, Italy’s only USDA Certified Organic iced tea. FREE.

In or Out? Trending Tea Topics
Presented By: Gail Gastelu, Owner/Publisher of The Tea House Times
Sponsored By: SerendipiTea & Rapid Fire Coffee

Are we ready to say move over to matcha? Hold up, not quite yet! What about this purple stuff you keep hearing about? What is it? We’ll explain. And healthy fat; is there such a thing? Ketogenic coffee or tea rituals are trending too, is it for you? Join us for this free session to hear what’s trending, compare notes with friends, and you might just walk away with a few samples too. FREE.

Tastes Like Coffee? A Sensory Experience
Presented By: Ezra Baker, Director of Retail and Q Grader, & D’Onna Stubblefield, Director of Education, of Oren’s Coffee

When we taste coffee do we really know what we're tasting? This seminar will lead consumers in basic sensory skills that coffee professionals use to evaluate and grade the coffee you find in your favorite cafes. This interactive and hands on lab will involve tasting and smelling coffees and will be led by a Coffee Quality Institute (CQI) Licensed Q Grader. FREE.

The Tea & Coffee Connection
Presented By: Lisa Baughman, Global Tea Connection

After traveling to many tea estates in countries of origin focusing on the study of tea, Lisa Baughman was introduced to coffee in South West India when traveling to a coffee plantation. There she was thrust into a whole other world - the world of coffee. Globally tea and coffee cultures each have a uniqueness, although they journey down a similar road. In this seminar, learn about the similarities between coffee and tea - their customs, cultures, brewing methods and techniques, and more! FREE.

The festival will also offer special seminars to festival goers. These seminars are more hands-on, more intimate, more specialized in their subject matter and structure. These seminars must be booked in advance and have a nominal participation fee. Attendees can book when they purchase their festival admission tickets. Class size is limited and many sell-out in advance of the event, check the event website for dates and times. Topics include:

Introduction to Professional Cupping
Presented By: Suzette Hammond, Founder of Being Tea
Participation Fee: $25 per person

What’s it like to be a tea taster? In this hands-on class, get up close and personal with a challenging variety of teas and origins, while learning professional standards for brewing, tasting and describing tea. You’ll gain a deeper understanding behind the complexity of tea sourcing, and what a tea taster looks for at the cupping table in terms of quality. Attendees will each receive a 3-piece professional quality cupping set to take home to continue their new practice.

How to Brew: Chemex Edition
Presented By: Shaak Shatursun, Director of Operations at Cafe Grumpy
Participation Fee: $37 per person

Join Café Grumpy for a Chemex brewing class to hone your at-home coffee making skills, specifically on the Chemex. The class will cover the history of the Chemex, step-by-step procedure with each piece of equipment, proper brewing techniques and tips to achieve proper extraction in every cup. By the end of this hands-on seminar, you’ll be able to expertly prepare your coffee for friends and family alike from professional barista instruction. All attendees will receive a Chemex coffeemaker to use during the class and take home, along with a complimentary bag of coffee.

Baozhong: In-Depth Tea Exploration & Cupping
Presented By: Sammy Levine, Owner of Everlasting Teas
Participation Fee: $10 per person

Baozhong Oolong is one of Taiwan's most popular teas and has become a staff favorite at Everlasting Teas. In this seminar, attendees, through a cupping session, will go beyond the basics and have the opportunity to explore and learn the nuances of one tea. Attendees will taste 10 different Baozhong harvest dates - five from this past 2018 growing season and five aged over the past 40 years. Together, everyone will thoroughly analyze each harvest date, rank their favorites, discuss what makes a high quality Baozhong, and gain understanding on how to taste one type of tea. For experienced tea enthusiasts with a high-level knowledge of tea.

Crafting with Tea
Presented By: AnnaRose Rotondi-Kauser, Founder of Oh You, TEAse
Participation Fee: $5 per person

Tea was used, historically, for more than just drinking. Attendees of this seminar will learn about tea’s use in self-care and home-making like arts and crafts. The hands-on workshop will include making (and bringing home) a tea-stained lace dream catcher and a tea-filled eye mask. Perfect for a handmade gift - or for a special treat for yourself!

Back by Popular Demand:

Tea Course Fast Track
Presented By: Gail Gastelu, Producer of TeaCourse.com
Duration: 4 Hours

Profit from TEA – Learn about tea this year! In four hours, your business will learn how to incorporate tea into its food and beverage offerings. This seminar provides all of the knowledge you need to get started right away.

Tea Course Fast Track includes:

Tea 101- Learn about Camellia sinensis (tea!) What is it? Where is it grown? How is it harvested? How do you get it (loose or bagged)?

Tea Experience - Taste and compare white, green, oolong, and black teas to understand differences. Learn proper brewing techniques and how to serve.

Tea Uses & Health Benefits - Learn how to incorporate tea into your business. Tea Success- Learn how to successfully market tea and tea events to draw new customers.

Tea Trends - Learn what is trending in the tea industry and how to stay on top. Tea Resources- Learn how to find suppliers, additional education, associations, and more.

BONUSES: All attendees receive a flash drive with additional reading, eBooks, resources, and special offers worth more than the class fee. Taste and compare teas and leave with your own tea cupping set. Tea Course Fast Track ticketholders receive access to the Coffee & Tea Festival with their ticket purchase that day. This course is ideal for members of the trade or interested individuals looking to add tea to their business; high knowledge level.

About TeaCourse.com:
Tea Course is produced by The Tea House Times (a bi-monthly publication connecting businesses and consumers since 2003). The online program is considered continuing education as running a successful business necessitates continual learning, reading, watching the news, and connecting with others in the industry. Members/students are worldwide and many have been successfully continuing their education from the comfort of their own computers since 2008. Over 200 topics, tea market reports, tea trends, tea news, 24/7 access, and weekly updates ensure continuing education.

About Gail Gastelu:
Gail Gastelu is owner/publisher of The Tea House Times, producer of Tea Course and Tea Course Fast Track, co-owner of Tea Etiquette Certified and frequent presenter at tea and/or coffee shows nationwide. Connecting businesses and consumers since 2003, her passion and drive is to help tea businesses grow by providing many services beneficial to the tea industry. The publication, news, education, hosted blogs, special features, and resources may be found by visiting TheTeaHouseTimes.com website. Gail recently created the nationwide #DrinkTea Campaign with the Tea Council of the USA. Gail currently serves on the Tea Association of the USA's Specialty Tea Institute Advisory Board and over the years has been an officer or advisory board member to several associations, trade shows, and organizations.

LOOK WHO’S COMING

More than 75 exhibitors are getting ready to meet and greet festival attendees and offer tastings of their newest, most sought-after products.

SPONSORS

Sponsorships are an important part of any event, and this festival is no exception. The 2019 sponsors include:

***SPECIAL OFFER***

Coffee and Tea Newsletter readers can save $10 on their GENERAL ADMISSION tickets by using promo code CTNEWS. There is a limited quantity available for this special offer, so don’t wait too long to buy your general admission tickets—good for Saturday or Sunday general admission.

Interested in the VIP experience? Doors open at 10am for VIPs—two hours earlier than the general admission session. Tickets include bonus time at the Coffee & Tea Festival NYC (10am-12pm) for an intimate shopping and tasting experience and access to the VIP lounge. All VIP Admission ticketholders receive an exclusive festival gift bag with samples for you to take home. VIP tickets are limited to maintain the intimate experience. Ticket Price: $35. Included in the goodie bag are samples from: