Ajit Madan, co-founder of Camellia’s Tea House in London, has just been appointed England’s first certified master tea sommelier by the International Tea Education Institute – a surprising first in a country that drinks 165 million cups of tea a day.
Much like wine, teas produced by different estates have specific ‘vintages’ and differing levels of quality, depending on which leaves are harvested during the production process, so certification as a sommelier is quite intense.
Madan has a background in molecular biology and formed Camellia’s Tea House in 2007, along with his sister, Lubna Madan – a qualified homeopath – in an bid to create a wellness range of teas and revive the typical English tea room.
Today, the company not only operates its tea house in London, it also supplies more than 100 different hand-blended teas to leading spas and hotels around the world, including Shangri-La and Corinthia hotels.
To qualify for the master tea sommelier title, Madan completed a two-year course, and had to analyse various tea types, their origins, processing methods and how they can be perfectly paired with foods. He also gained an extensive knowledge of various types of tea service in different hospitality settings, from Chinese tea ceremonies to traditional English afternoon tea.
Madan also travelled to tea gardens around the world to gain first-hand experience of tea production and manufacturing, attending the Japanese Shincha Festival – which celebrates the first new, green tea of the year – and spending many months discussing tea with tea masters from across the world.
“I thought I knew a lot about tea, but this process has widened my knowledge further and taken me on an even deeper tea journey,” says Madan. “This will certainly help me with our company’s mission to improve tea culture.”
Madan now uses his Master Tea Sommelier experience to train spa and hotel clients, and also runs one-day classes aimed at those who work in F&B departments in spas and hotels.
Camellia’s teas include Health and Wellness infusions, Classic Teas and Exotic Infusions, which are blended with flowers, fruits, spices and essential oils.
Read more from this issue of Attractions Management magazine
View contents of Attractions Management 2016 issue 1
Interview: Kenneth Ryan
Marriott’s global head of spa talks exclusively to Katie Barnes about the new ‘game-changing’ Ritz-Carlton Spa brand and market domination
Promotional feature: Steve Kass Consulting
Steve Kass, founder and former CEO of American Leisure, has launched a new business, Steve Kass Consulting. The global leader explains his goals as an innovative concept and design creator
Research: Work it out
Ophelia Yeung gives a sneak preview of a new study on workplace wellness that debuts later this month
Fitness: Competitive edge
Could a touch of rivalry help spas to engage more people in fitness? Niamh Madigan finds out
Promotional feature: Ojmar
A growing number of spa operators across the UK are working with Ojmar to upgrade their traditional keyed locking systems to electronic solutions
An opportunity to reimagine one of the UK’s most recognisable towers has been formally
opened by Rivington Hark, as St Johns Beacon invites operators and partners to shape its
next phase. [more...]
Ajit Madan, co-founder of Camellia’s Tea House in London, has just been appointed England’s first certified master tea sommelier by the International Tea Education Institute – a surprising first in a country that drinks 165 million cups of tea a day.
Much like wine, teas produced by different estates have specific ‘vintages’ and differing levels of quality, depending on which leaves are harvested during the production process, so certification as a sommelier is quite intense.
Madan has a background in molecular biology and formed Camellia’s Tea House in 2007, along with his sister, Lubna Madan – a qualified homeopath – in an bid to create a wellness range of teas and revive the typical English tea room.
Today, the company not only operates its tea house in London, it also supplies more than 100 different hand-blended teas to leading spas and hotels around the world, including Shangri-La and Corinthia hotels.
To qualify for the master tea sommelier title, Madan completed a two-year course, and had to analyse various tea types, their origins, processing methods and how they can be perfectly paired with foods. He also gained an extensive knowledge of various types of tea service in different hospitality settings, from Chinese tea ceremonies to traditional English afternoon tea.
Madan also travelled to tea gardens around the world to gain first-hand experience of tea production and manufacturing, attending the Japanese Shincha Festival – which celebrates the first new, green tea of the year – and spending many months discussing tea with tea masters from across the world.
“I thought I knew a lot about tea, but this process has widened my knowledge further and taken me on an even deeper tea journey,” says Madan. “This will certainly help me with our company’s mission to improve tea culture.”
Madan now uses his Master Tea Sommelier experience to train spa and hotel clients, and also runs one-day classes aimed at those who work in F&B departments in spas and hotels.
Camellia’s teas include Health and Wellness infusions, Classic Teas and Exotic Infusions, which are blended with flowers, fruits, spices and essential oils.
Read more from this issue of Attractions Management magazine
View contents of Attractions Management 2016 issue 1
Interview: Kenneth Ryan
Marriott’s global head of spa talks exclusively to Katie Barnes about the new ‘game-changing’ Ritz-Carlton Spa brand and market domination
Promotional feature: Steve Kass Consulting
Steve Kass, founder and former CEO of American Leisure, has launched a new business, Steve Kass Consulting. The global leader explains his goals as an innovative concept and design creator
Research: Work it out
Ophelia Yeung gives a sneak preview of a new study on workplace wellness that debuts later this month
Fitness: Competitive edge
Could a touch of rivalry help spas to engage more people in fitness? Niamh Madigan finds out
Promotional feature: Ojmar
A growing number of spa operators across the UK are working with Ojmar to upgrade their traditional keyed locking systems to electronic solutions
A new immersive attraction designed to transport visitors into the final hours of ancient Pompeii
is preparing to open near the world-famous archaeological site in southern Italy.
Experience design company, BRC Imagination Arts, has completed a transition that sees founder
Bob Rogers pass ownership of the business to four long-serving senior executives, while
remaining actively involved with the company.
Movie Park Germany has opened a new Paramount Pictures-themed attraction as part of its 30th
anniversary celebrations, using immersive storytelling and adaptive reuse to reinforce the park’s
longstanding “Hollywood in Germany” positioning.
Therme Manchester’s 28-acre development, which will include interconnected glass pavilions
that measure 65,000sq m, will be the largest bathing and wellbeing attraction in the world once
complete, according to prof David Russell, CEO of Therme UK.
Efteling has opened Hooghmoed, a new family drop tower designed to broaden the appeal of its
recently launched Sirene Island themed area and introduce younger visitors to thrill attractions.
A proposed Puy du Fou development near Bicester and Universal Destinations and Experiences’
planned resort in Bedford are emerging as part of a wider transformation of the Oxford–
Cambridge Growth Corridor into a major centre for UK leisure and tourism inv
Shedd Aquarium has opened the Immersion Theater developed in partnership with SimEx-
Iwerks, as part of a wider strategy to enhance the guest experience and create additional
revenue opportunities.
The UK government has announced a temporary reduction in VAT on visitor attractions and
children’s meals as part of a summer cost-of-living support package designed to stimulate the
visitor economy and encourage family days out.
As designer Yinka Ilori prepares for his first solo gallery show in London, he speaks exclusively
to CLADmag about his mission to spread joy, the power of play, and his bold approach to using
colour (including the colours you won’t see in his work).
The government of Thailand is exploring plans for a THB300bn (£6.3bn, US$8.3bn)
entertainment complex in the country’s Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC), with officials
proposing a large-scale theme park and sports destination as part of a broader tourism and
economic development strategy.
An opportunity to reimagine one of the UK’s most recognisable towers has been formally
opened by Rivington Hark, as St Johns Beacon invites operators and partners to shape its
next phase. [more...]
