I drink so much tea each week that I could boast about being a teaholic, if that weren’t completely lame. That’s why, when an invitation to morning tea came courtesy of Sloane Tea Company, I jumped on it. (Everyone else stayed sitting.)

The Toronto-based company is now bringing its collection to retailers across the continent, including, as of April 2012, 90 Chapters-Indigo stores across the country. It’s their biggest retail venture to date. And to celebrate, founder and world-renowned tea sommelier (no, we don’t just mean “only tea sommelier;” this is apparently a thing now) Hoda Paripoush decided to show off her knowledge about hot water and leaves.

Paripoush, born in India and raised in Canada, is also a graduate of the Specialty Tea Institute of the US Tea Council, as well as being a member of the Tea Association and Tea Association of the USA. More recently, Hoda has finished training at the Studio Des Fragrance in Grasse, France where she studied the art of fragrance blending and perfumery. She’s also just turned 30. A believer in hard work, she says she personally selects each of the teas and often comes up with flavour ideas in the middle of the night. She often travels to India, France and China to see supplier tea estates and works side-by-side with tea garden managers; that’s why she has exclusive North American distribution rights for certain teas. Basically: she’s not a businesswoman, she’s a business, woman.

She’s also, according to herself, an artist. Each tea is a unique combination of the finest loose-leaf teas and flavors, plus its careful packaging. The coloured tins mimic bone china patterns, and each has a backstory related to Hoda’s travels. With names such as Oh My Darjeeling, Queen of the Hill and Persian Palace, you’d be led to believe these are beauty products, not the long-standing beverage choice of your grandparents. 

Hoda believes the pleasures of drinking her tea can be just as deep as that of drinking the world’s finest wines, and she’s even venturing into pairing teas with cheeses. Plus, you can’t actually become addicted. The only risk? That tea drinkers will become as annoying as wine afficionados.

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Christina Welton is an intern at Toronto Standard.

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