Gyokuro Analogy

In June 2017 I wrote a small fictional piece about gyokuro as the highlight of our tea menu at Q Haute Cuisine. Today I was browsing reddit and saw a video which very closely resembled my story. I dug through my tea notes to find the original paper, and re-wrote it here:

Traditional Yamakai Gyokuro (Jade Dew), Hoshino Town, Yame, Fukuoka, Japan
Imagine you are in a canoe, silently paddling through a tranquil bayou. Splitting through a sheet of algae with the afternoon sun filtering down through a patchy canopy of leaves from the trees above. As you are absorbing the surrounding beauty; ambush. Your canoe is struck from the side by an alligator; you have capsized. Panic fills your mind and your first gasp for air inhales the nature of this lush green environment. You reorient yourself and immediately breaststroke your way towards the muddy shore. You have escaped the water but are now at the mercy of an ancient land. Your boat lies still, it’s as if the very vessel which brought you here has become a lure for what lies beneath — it’s risky. You instead decide to traverse the mud and gnarled roots of what forms the ground beneath you. You have the resolve to escape this paradise of nature, and as you distance yourself from the water and the land becomes firmer; young life starts to emerge. Plant shoots and wild grasses cushion your steps. After what seemed like a whole afternoon of walking, landmarks at the beginning of your journey start to reappear. Salvation. This tea tastes like that.

In hindsight my writing was quite poor back then. It’s noticeable even though I’ve gotten only marginally better. I hope I can look back on today 3 years from now and think the same.