In February of 2009, on a very random day in New York City, Mike and I accidentally stumbled upon The Coffee and Tea Festival in the last 20 minutes that it was open. The friendly people at the door allowed us in for free since it was the tail end. It was such a great stumble upon! Most booths were winding down, but we got to sample a few who were still active. One of the last booths we found also wound up being my favorite: Best Friends Cocoa . I wound up not only buying bags for myself, but also giving them as (much appreciated) gifts. Of course, I made the fatal flaw of throwing out my last bag without going to the website to re-order first. For this reason, I was really hoping they would be in attendance again this year! Luckily they were, but more on that later.
Note: this post was started in March of 2010, just after attending, however, due to various circumstances, it is being posted very late. However, it’s just in time to get tickets for this year! It will be on February 19th and 20th, 2011.
When we first walked in, we were greeted with samples and a very nice display from Tavalon Tea. I usually love their teas, however, the ones that they had to sample just didn’t thrill me this time.
One exhibit was showing how to muddle. How interactive!
Serendipitea had a nice, ecological themed set up.
And Cabot, one my faves, was sampling cheese.
One vendor I definitely bought from was selling homemade jams. The brand was Deborah’s and it was all-natural with low sugar. I especially loved the fig ginger flavor. I got a few in a sample pack. Mmmm Mmmm good.
One of my favorite exhibits had incredible tea flowers in beautiful jars.
I couldn’t take enough pictures.
Just beautiful! Though they weren’t tasting… hmmm.
Then… in the back corner… I spotted them. YAAAY!
I wound up talking with the owners, and they were actually looking for some “blogger” press and agreed to do an interview with me. (That will be a post coming very soon.) I already featured these guys in the gift guide, and I look forward to sharing all the fun things I learned about the cocoa business with you soon.
I really love this festival, though I wish it were clearer what you can and can’t try (and I think it’s weird that people go to a coffee and tea festival and don’t let people sample their teas… what’s the point?) The food vendors that are there get a lot of exposure since they are in the minority. And it’s fun to find new coffees, teas, and cocoas!
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