November 28, 2024

In the United States, the weeks leading up to Giving Tuesday and beyond are often big for consumer spending and advertising. This year, jumping into the joy of the winter holiday season is harder than ever.

For the past 5 years, I have tried to avoid increasing prices in an attempt to make tea accessible to as many people as possible, despite increases in costs from my distributors and in cost of living that are likely familiar to all of you as well. I have made what cuts I can in logistics and other nonessential spending while never compromising on the quality of the tea, or the love that goes into every package I ship.

However, the incoming administration's plans to increase inflation, firstly by implementing tariffs, will drastically drive up Discover Teas' cost of doing business—and the cost of goods everywhere. The ongoing attack on USPS by the current postmaster general, who was appointed in May 2020 by the now-incoming president will likely ramp up even further, raising shipping prices while continuing to affect delivery times and outcomes.

In addition to that, my (and nearly everyone's) personal costs for essential needs will continue to rise further after the inauguration, from increased medical costs due to cuts in public health, to increased grocery costs due to the effect on the supply chain of cruel, dehumanizing practices such as mass deportation, detention, and denaturalization, and more.

Therefore, in order to maintain the tea quality you deserve and my ability to continue running the business, I have made the difficult decision to raise prices, starting in February of 2025 once I have an idea of how this will affect my costs from my distributors. I hope that it will just be one increase, but I may have to make other adjustments as well as my distributors react to the unstable situation and as mounting repercussions create a domino effect.

I know that the incoming rise in costs nationwide will affect everyone, so I will try to keep most teas under $20/2oz if I can. I'm also exploring ideas for other offerings that may be more budget-friendly while preserving the quality we all expect from Discover Teas; please stay tuned here or via the Discover Teas monthly e-newsletter to be notified when these release.

For anything currently on the website though, prices will likely never be this low again after the price increase, so it's a good time to stock up. If you've recently ordered, you may want to take advantage of the current promotion on e-gift codes (through December 3rd, 2024) to help tide you over for next year. And if you no longer find yourself in a position to shop Discover Teas for budget reasons, I completely understand, and I deeply regret that it has come to this. You are still part of the tea family in spirit. ♥

I personally, and Discover Teas as a business, have never been shy of stating where we stand politically, and it should be no surprise that I wish this would have turned out differently for many more reasons than pure economics. However, please note that this decision is based purely in logistics, and I am not interested in debating this consequence of the actions that have been taken by people, or that will be taken by the incoming administration. If you no longer wish to purchase from Discover Teas due to political reasons instead, I thank you for your past support and encourage you to find another tea business to patronize rather than spend your time negatively.

The Taiwanese 無我 (Wū Wǒ) tea ceremony has always been close to the heart of Discover Teas, ever since our founder Chris Farishon first attended a Wū Wǒ ceremony at the World Tea Expo over 10 years ago. It's become an indispensable expression of the mission of Discover Teas: Tea with love. In fact, one of my core memories about becoming part of Discover Teas was attending my first Wū Wǒ ceremony, months before I ever applied or was hired onto Discover Teas staff. The experience was so moving for me that it cemented my desire to join the Discover Teas family, and it's a tradition that has meant a lot for me to continue now that I am the business owner.

There are 2 reasons Discover Teas translated the Wū Wǒ ceremony into a virtual format: accessibility and safety. In continuing this, my goal is to be able to share this bonding experience with as many people as possible, while keeping the most vulnerable among us safe. The literal meaning of 無我 is "without myself," and the ceremony serves not only to bring our tea family together, but as a reminder to infuse this spirit of giving and sharing into our daily lives.

If you've never experienced an in-person or virtual Wū Wǒ ceremony before, here are the 7 principles of Wū Wǒ, as translated by the Northwest Wu Wo Tea Association:

1. Seating is determined by random drawing. There is no distinction by rank or social status.
2. Tea is served in one direction but received from the other. No reward is expected from those you have served.
3. Keep an open mind and reserve judgment in order to accept and appreciate different teas and brewing styles.
4. Check and review constantly while keeping a positive and tolerant attitude in order to brew the best tea you can.
5. Brewing is not restricted to any particular school or regional style.
6. Everyone follows the rules and prearranged schedule so no director is needed.
7. Silence is maintained while brewing to allow the cultivation of group rhythm and harmony and a spirit of cooperation and thoughtfulness toward others.

To develop Discover Teas' virtual version of the Wū Wǒ ceremony, I tried to keep to the principles of 無我 while making certain accommodations for accessibility:

• Of course, we have not yet reached the part where virtual steepers can pour tea for everyone, so for now, we will continue with preparing individual servings unless others are present with you and would like to have tea. (I've considered an option to include sharing different teas before, but the amount of logistical demands and restrictions it would require of steepers has always felt too high for me to be comfortable.)
• I don’t consider myself a “director” in this, but in the virtual format, a facilitator is helpful to reduce confusion and increase peoples’ comfort with participating, whether as steepers or as observers.
• To add the spirit of sharing into the virtual ceremony, each steeper brings a tea that evokes that ceremony's theme, and we share these connections among us when introducing ourselves and our teas. This gives everyone different stories to savor while we sip our tea. With the in-person ceremony, the same tea can be steeped by different people and still taste different because their experiences and preferences touch the way the tea is made. In the same way, with this format everyone experiences the theme differently, and their takes on it can also change the way we interpret it ourselves.

So, what’s the theme for this year? Community!

Community (or communi-tea) has always been at the heart of Discover Teas, and at this pivotal time when the most marginalized among us continue to be at risk here and around the world, building and maintaining community is more important than ever. So this year, the theme for the Discover Teas virtual Wū Wǒ ceremony is Community. If you are interested in participating as a steeper, please prepare a tea to steep that celebrates community for you, however you define it.

Interested in steeping or observing this year's event on Saturday, March 23rd, 2024 at 2:30pm? Preregister here! Early birds who register to steep before 11:59pm Eastern on Friday, March 15th, can also receive a gift package. More details at the link!