Camellia's Tea House News

The Caterer – Spas Get Personal

11th July 201631st March 2021

“My cup of tea

In the move “beyond purely beauty or pampering”, many spas are tapping in to the ancient power of herbal medicine, which remains the key source of medicine in 80% of the developing world, notes Ajit Madan, co-founder of London’s Camellia’s Tea House and the UK’s first certified master tea sommelier.

“Tea and herbal teas are being used much more in spa environments, either in combination with treatments or as healthy beverages, rather than the usual water and juice found in less progressive spas,” he explains.

Customers such as Ockenden Manor and the Grove Sequoia Spa are serving bespoke blends alongside a selection of Camellia’s broad menu of hand-blended artisan wellness teas that tackle everything from bones and insomnia to allergies and arthritis.

A popular choice, adds Madan, is the Beautiful Skin mix of chickweed, red clover, nettle, dandelion, marigold, chamomile and rose: “Spas have been combining their treatments with our teas so the client feels that whilst, for example, a facial is helping their outer skin appearance, the Beautiful Skin tea is helping the same area but from an internal perspective.”

You can find the whole article here: The Caterer – Spas get personal

Spa Business Magazine – Ajit Madan

1st January 201628th May 2021

“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.”

You can find the whole article here: Spa Business Magazine – Ajit Madan

Big Hospitality – Boom in global tea culture to bring teahouses to UK high streets

12th June 201531st March 2021

“Ajit Madan, owner of Camellia’s Tea House and the UK’s first accredited tea sommelier is predicting the rise of the teahouse on the UK’s high streets as renewed interest in the hot beverage grows among consumers.

While traditional tea rooms have made way for coffee shops on our high streets, Madan, who was appointed the UK’s first ITEI Certified Master Tea Sommelier by the International Tea Education Institute earlier this year, believes the tables will be turning back in tea’s favour over the next three to five years as the UK follows global trends in its consumption.

He said: “The latest Mintel reports on tea and coffee show that on a global basis tea consumption is increasingly rapidly at the expense of coffee consumption and it’s partly because people are becoming aware of the health benefits of tea.

“In the US green tea has been classified as a superfood – it’s up there with blueberries and goji berries – because of all the high levels of antioxidants it contains.

“There is a massive demand from the US consumer for things that promote health and well-being. Also, as people get older they can get less tolerant of coffee and don’t want that massive caffeine hit, so people are moving away from that and drinking different types of tea.

“There has also been a massive boom in tea culture around the world tying in with the renaissance of all things vintage. Going for tea with friends and pouring it out of beautiful tea pots is very cool again.

he US is, of course a key indicator of what could happen in the UK in three to five years’ time. Starbucks demonstrated its confidence in the market with the acquisition of tea business Teavana in 2013 and in the US now tea consumption is growing while coffee consumption is stagnating.

While quality, loose leaf tea remains at the heart of the afternoon tea offering in the UK’s luxury hotels, for those who want to drink the same without the ceremony on the high street there is currently little option, says Madan, although the arrival of Rainbow Apartments’ Tea 42 in Manchester and chef Simon Hulstone’s venture into tearooms in Torquay show that there is some movement in this area.

“There’s a void in the market for somewhere you can go and have a medium-priced afternoon tea that isn’t around the formality of a hotel,” he said.

“I’d like Camellia’s Tea House to fill that gap and become the well-known teahouse brand and become the go-to place for tea culture and tea drinking in London and then the rest of the UK.”

Camellia’s expansion

Madan, who has been operating Camellia’s Tea House from a site in Kingly Court in Covent Garden, is working with a franchise investor who is keen to expand the brand.

The company, which also runs a wholesale business supplying hotels, is currently looking for a new site in London as its current one will close on 5 May. Once that is secured, Madan plans to roll the brand out and open sites where he will serve quality loose-leaf teas sourced from across the world alongside cakes and snacks.

He said: “We have been looking at places in Notting Hill and Covent Garden for our flagship site. We’d like to open two this year if we can find the right sites, but it isn’t easy.

“If we can find the right locations then we’ll open two sites this year, see how those go and then expand out to three to five next year.”

You can find the whole article here: Big Hospitality – Boom in global tea culture to bring teahouses to UK high streets

Professional Spa & Wellness – The Inside Track

1st June 201531st March 2021

“Perfect fit

Ajit Madan, co-founder of family-run Camellia’s Tea House, which specialises in wellness teas and whose client list includes leading spas and hotels around the world, says the industry’s understanding of the physical and mental benefits of green and herbal tea has followed a similar trajectory. “When we started the business in 2007, there was very little awareness,” he said. “In the UK, the average spa manager or director had never really heard of a wellness tea company before, although they were interested in the concept.”

This is, however, something that has changed with time. “Since then, there has been a lot of coverage of the health benefits of tea in the media and we now have a lot of spas approaching us, saying that they love the concept of a more fully rounded approach to health and beauty that isn’t limited to only putting products on the skin,” Madan comments. Rising global obesity levels over the past decade have, interestingly, gone hand in hand with a greater-than-ever focus on nutrition and the food we consume, including nutrition supplements and health drinks. […]

Tailored offer

It’s not only nutrition drinks that are increasingly popular and prevalent in spas, but also drinks held to have high nutritional value. At Camellia’s Tea House, the product range includes green, herbal and black teas, but Madan says it’s chiefly the former two that the company sells to spas and wellness centres. “We tend to supply herbal or very high end green teas for the wellness sector because we know that those are very beneficial,” he says. Most of the company’s spa clients purchase a selection of teas, with the most popular including the detoxing Toxin Killer, the complexion-boosting Beautiful Skin and the Happy Tummy tea to address stomach ailments.

However, Camellia’s also creates at least one bespoke tea for the overwhelming majority of its spa clients. “I would say 95-100% of the spas have a bespoke tea that we’ve designed for them,” Madan confirms. “It’s good for branding and it’s good for retailing. It’s an affordable way for customers to take something home that reminds them of the spa, and it’s a very economic way for the spa to do branding and to make sure their name gets out there.”

While some spas are happy to simply offer the teas in the waiting or relaxation area, you can, Madan adds, also link the teas to treatments more directly. One example of this is Aromatherapy Associates, which stocks Camellia teas at its boutique day spa in London’s Knightsbridge. “They would suggest for the client to, for example, have the Happy Tummy Tea, depending on the treatment they’re having – so they’re quite prescriptive in that way,” he says.”

You find the whole article here: Professional Spa & Wellness – The Inside Track

Cosmopolitan – 8 new ways to deal with eczema

18th May 201531st March 2021

“7. Drink herbal teas

Beautiful Skin Tea has had rave reviews from eczema suffers, and has even been recommended to the National Eczema Association as a tried and tested treatment. Dandelion and chickweed are the key skin healing ingredients in the brew, which combine to offer anti-inflammatories, healing vitamins A and C, plus iron and calcium which are known to be effective skin healers. But it’s not just about the drinking. You can also drop five or so bags into a bath and soak in the solution, make a bottle of the tea and chill in the fridge to use as a itch relieving skin tonic, or save used tea bags to apply directly to affected areas as a compress.”

You can find the whole article here: Cosmopolitan – 8 new ways to deal with eczema

ITV This Morning – Which Brew For You?

13th May 201531st March 2021

“We Brits love a good brew. It’s estimated we drink 165 million cups a day, that’s over 60 billion a year – and one in three women regularly seek comfort in a cuppa.

Tea expert Ajit Madan, the UK’s only certified tea sommelier, believes there’s the perfect tea for every occasion. Whether you’re nervous ahead of a first date or preparing for a big exam – Ajit is here to show you what you should be brewing.”

You can find the whole article and video here: ITV This Morning – Which Brew For You?

Mail Online – Britain’s First Master Tea Sommelier Reveals…

11th May 201531st March 2021

“For most Brits a nice cup of tea and a sit down really does make everything better.

And a recent YouGov poll revealed that while the average Briton enjoys around 884 cups of tea, women turn to a brew for comfort more regularly than men.

Now tea expert Ajit Madan, the UK’s first and only certified master tea sommelier, has revealed that rather than just something to sip each afternoon, there is a special blend to go with every occasion.

From the worry of a first date and anxiety ahead of a nerve-racking job interview, to even avoiding a bad hair day, apparently there’s a cuppa for everything.

To find out which brews can help you with your problems, read on…

FIRST DATE

As many will testify, a first date can be a tense experience, Ajit Madan says tea ingredients can help things along.

The sweet ingredient of cinnamon can go a long way, reveals the Tea Master, as it is a great aphrodisiac.

Why? Cinnamon acts to heat up the body, a process which is believed to enhance ones libido.

Alternatively, suggests Ajit, try ordering a Lavender tea after dinner. Lavender is known for its alluring scent.

In times gone by, women have been known to decorate their clothes with sprigs of lavender, in the belief that the scent would entice men, being an aroma they could not resist.

JOB INTERVIEW

While it’s natural to feel anxious or nervous before a job interview, it’s important to appear cool and collected.

The best way to appear confident and relaxed is to reduce your stress levels and anxiety, for this, Ajit suggests lemon verbena.

Although native to Argentina and Chile, it is grown all around the world and has been used in tea for many years now.

Renowned for its antioxidant properties, lemon verbena is believed to help strengthen the nervous system, and ease stress and tension in your body.

TIME OF THE MONTH

Many women suffer with added stress, tension and cramps during menstruation, and so Ajit suggests drinking soothing chamomile tea.

Not only can the brew relieve tension and cramping, it can also help to reduce bloating due to being a digestive aid, and might even ease hot flushes.

He says it is rich in vitamins and minerals that help the body to deal with the strains of menstruation.

EXAMS

Long deemed a superfood, green tea has been linked with many health benefits over the years.

In a recent study, conducted in Switzerland and published in the March 2014 issue of Psychopharmacology, a link was also found between drinking green tea and memory.

Participants who had consumed green tea extract ahead of a series of tests which focused on their working memory scored notably better results than those who didn’t.

Researchers believe that drinking green tea helped to improve the participants’ cognitive function, which is essential ahead of exams and tests.

POST BREAK-UP

Far from just offering tea and sympathy, Ajit and his sister Lubna Madan, also a co-founder of Camellia’s Tea House, have created a specially blended Happiness Tea.

Designed to boost your immune system, energy levels and positivity, the blend contains a high dose of fennel, believed to high levels of Vitamin C, and also thought to help soothe inflammation.

‘Fennel in tea is also believed to improve metabolism and weight loss when drank regularly,so that could be another thing to be happy about!’ say Ajit and Lubna.

Rosehips are also a key ingredient in happiness-boosting tea, as they contain more vitamin C than oranges, and are also believed to have great beautifying benefits for the skin.

BAD HAIR DAY

Can a tea blend really help you to overcome a bad hair day?

Instead of reaching for chemical-packed hair products to tame your tresses, Ajit suggests adding horsetail extract to your daily cuppa.

He believes that the key to enjoying a good hair day (nearly) every day, is to nourish your body from within, by drinking natural, caffeine free, herbal teas.

Horsetail contains the highest level of silica known to exist in the plant kingdom.

Though not an instant fix, silica helps to strengthen weak, brittle and damaged hair, giving it vitality and shine.”

You can find the whole article here: Mail Online – Britain’s first tea sommelier reveals the brews to get you through anything from a bad hair day to a break-up

Hospitality & Catering News – Ajit Madan appointed the UK’s first ITEI Master Tea Sommelier

11th February 201531st March 2021

“Ajit Madan, co-founder of Camellia’s Tea House, the healthy English tea company which supplies teas to leading hotels and spas of the world, has been appointed the UK’s first ITEI Certified Master Tea Sommelier by the International Tea Education Institute. This exciting news affirms Ajit as a leading expert within the world of tea.

Ajit Madan met with the stringent standards of the International Tea Education Institute to achieve this recognition following a 2 year course. This involved Ajit demonstrating his knowledge and ability to assess different aspects of tea from around the world, food and drink pairings, as well as a deep understanding of tea service in the hospitality industry.

Demanding, extensive, international process

In order to gain this prestigious qualification, Ajit travelled to tea gardens around the world to gain first-hand experience of tea production and manufacturing, attended the Japanese Shincha Festival and spent many months discussing tea with tea masters from across the world.

To qualify, Ajit had to analyse various tea types, their origins, processing methods and how they may be perfectly paired with foods, tea infused food and drink recipes. As an ITEI Certified Master Tea Sommelier, Ajit has gained a deep knowledge of different types of tea service in different hospitality settings from Chinese Tea Ceremonies to Traditional English Afternoon Tea.

The qualification included all the basics of tea procurement and the various tea business models. The Tea Sommelier course culminated in an exam which tested his overall knowledge of tea.

Training clients

Tea culture around the world is booming particularly within specialty and premium teas found in the best restaurants and hotels. Ajit uses his experience to train many premium hotel and spa clients as well as provide wonderful tea experiences for his customers in his own tea house, Camellia’s Tea House on Carnaby Street.

Commenting on his achievement, Ajit Madan says, “I am very proud to have passed the exacting standards of the International Tea Education Institute and to be the UK’s first ITEI Certified Master Tea Sommelier. 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. This will certainly help me with our company’s mission to improve the tea culture in a nation of tea drinkers.”

From the end of March 2015, Ajit will run certified tea sommelier Master Classes at Camellia’s Tea House. These exclusive one day tea workshops will feature demonstrations and samplings throughout the day with the promise of attendees leaving with a firm knowledge of the background of teas. The master class will be on offer to those who work in hotel Food & Beverage departments and who are keen to gain a greater knowledge of tea, its culture and presentation in a hospitality environment.

About International Tea Education Institute

The founders of International Tea Education Institute, the leader in developing and shaping tomorrow’s Tea Careers, started their educational journey in 2006 and formally launched their Global foundation in 2012. The Institute offers high quality tea education and certification tailored to various segments of the tea industry. International Tea Education Institute is also the world pioneer in professional tea blending programs and qualifications for those in the trade.”

You can find the whole article here: Hospitality & Catering News – Ajit Madan appointed the UK’s first ITEI Master Tea Sommelier

UK study shows that tea is as hydrating as drinking plain water

13th January 201431st March 2021

Camellia’s Tea House is passionate about health and tea and we are on a mission to break some of the myths surrounding the health benefits or not of tea. This is a huge topic but one of the most important areas is hydration which is vital for good mental and physical health. People generally believe that tea can be as dehydrating as coffee – it clearly isn’t and we now have some new evidence to better prove this.

“Drinking tea is just as good as water when it comes to keeping the body hydrated, an important new clinical study commissioned by the Tea Advisory Service, has found. Four mugs of tea a day were found to be just as hydrating as water with no negative effects on the body or on feelings of well being.

It’s a common misconception that drinking caffeinated drinks, such as tea, coffee or cola, can dehydrate the body, depriving it of vital water necessary for good mental and physical health. It is thought that caffeine in drinks increases the frequency of urination, causing the body to lose too much water however in the latest UK study, urine volumes were similar after tea or water, confirming that we do not urinate more after drinking tea.

This study helps to show that tea is an excellent way to keep hydration levels topped up throughout the day. Not only is a mug of tea refreshing and delicious, it can be an important part of maintaining proper hydration. Water clearly has its place, but at least we now know that you do not have to only drink water to keep yourself properly hydrated. In addition to keeping you hydrated, a growing number of scientific studies have demonstrated just how useful tea can be in keeping the body in good condition thanks to its high polyphenol content which gives tea its characteristic colour. Tea polyphenols not only have antioxidant effects but help maintain normal vascular function. This is why many studies have linked regular tea consumption with a lower risk of heart disease and stroke.