Beyond The Leaf

The Ashford Rare Tea Journey

Four Rare Teas. Four Stories.

One Extraordinary Experience.

Join Wayne Ashford—tea expert, sommelier, owner and founder of Ashford Tea Company in Savannah, Georgia and aTeas By Ashford in Maastricht, Netherlands, and founder of Tea's Me Cafe in Indianapolis—for an intimate exploration of tea unlike any ordinary tasting.

Limited to just 2–6 guests, Beyond the Leaf takes place in the Ashford Tea Company Salon & Studio, creating an intimate setting where guests can slow down, taste deeply, ask questions, and discover what makes exceptional tea truly exceptional.

An Invitation to Live Life To The Tea

Together, we'll explore four extraordinary and often overlooked expressions of the tea world:

White • Yellow • Purple • Dark

Each tea is carefully selected from around the world and presented as its own chapter in the journey.

Wayne will guide guests through the story behind each tea—from origin and cultivation to craftsmanship, culture, and character—while demonstrating how to properly prepare and experience each one.

Guests will learn to recognize the tea's aroma, flavor, body, texture, finish, and complexity, while discovering how water, temperature, time, and technique can transform what is in the cup.

But Beyond the Leaf is also a culinary exploration.

Thoughtfully selected bites are incorporated throughout the journey to demonstrate how tea interacts with food.

The Culinary Journey

Guests will experience:

Apple Bits & Rice Chips
Simple palate cleansers used throughout the tasting to refresh the palate between teas.

Ashford Signature Tomato Treats
A handcrafted savory bite designed to explore the relationship between tea, acidity, sweetness, and texture.

Ashford Homemade Chicken Salad Canapé
A small savory pairing that introduces another dimension of tea and food.

A Featured Dessert
Concluding the journey with either a homemade scone from Savannah's Scone Company or Ashford's beloved family recipe sweet potato pie.

The food is not a meal.

It is part of the education.

Each bite has a purpose—to help guests discover how the right food can reveal something new in a tea.

Four Rare Teas

White Tea
Delicacy, freshness, and subtle complexity.

Yellow Tea
Rarity, craftsmanship, and one of tea's least understood traditions.

Purple Tea
A distinctive expression of the tea plant with its own character and story.

Dark Tea
Fermentation, transformation, time, and the remarkable world of aged tea.

The specific teas will rotate according to Wayne's Reserve selections and availability, allowing returning guests to experience a different journey.

Four Stories

With each tea, Wayne shares the story behind the leaf:

Where did it come from?
How was it made?
Why is it different?
What should you look for in the cup?
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And throughout the experience, guests are invited into the larger conversation of Live Life To The Tea**—slowing down, being present, discovering something new, and making ordinary moments extraordinary.

Your Journey Continues at Home

At the conclusion of the experience, each guest receives a sample tin of each of the four featured teas to take home.

Guests can revisit the teas, practice the techniques Wayne demonstrated, and continue discovering what they learned during their experience.

Following the tasting, guests are invited to explore the Ashford Tea Company collection with 25% off tea purchases on the day of their experience.

Come Curious. Leave Inspired.

Because tea isn't simply something you drink.

It's something you experience.

And sometimes, what you discover in the cup is only the beginning.

Live Life To The Tea.

Details

When: Mondays
Time: 2:00 PM–3:30 PM
Location: Ashford Tea Company Salon & Studio
Capacity: 2–6 guests
Format: Rare Tea & Culinary Pairing Experience
Duration: 90 minutes
Advance reservation required
Price: $130 per guest

Includes: Four rare teas, culinary pairings, guided education with Wayne Ashford, and four sample tins to take home.

Plus: 25% off tea purchases in the Ashford Tea Company shop on the day of your experience.