Is tea a visual experience for you?

i think visual matters, whether or not we like to think so :) there’s this pineapple tea i’ve been drinking and although i really enjoy the aroma, part of me really wishes they’d just added some pineapple chunks for effect…

Aesthetics certainly enhance the tea experience for me, particularly the aroma and color. I love smelling both the dry leaf before and the gaiwan after brewing.

Color also heightens the enjoyment of tea. I use Turkish glass tea cups or a plain white porcelain tea bowl to be able to admire the color of the tea liquor. A bright green sencha or a pink hue from hibiscus is a thing of beauty.

And of course flowering teas are a spectacle to behold for your eyes :-)

It’s not vital, for me, but I guess like with most things: if it looks nice, it can set a good first impression… I’m a sucker for blends with loads of stuff in, too, for that matter – flowers, whole fruits, whole spices… They always win me over.

I guess the corollary is true too – when the leaves look really broken or withered or dry, it does make me wary/put me off. Obviously, if I get around to trying it, it’s then all down to the drink itself. But it can put me off trying something for a while, so the quality may drop whilst I leave it etc etc :P

I saw a pic of tea on Instagram yesterday that looked so good I might have bought it but it was a Canadian company and shipping would have been difficult. I think the answer is sometimes. I am more likely to buy a puerh cake if the picture of the cake looks really good as long as I trust the seller. The pictures of Butiki teas in particular make me want to buy them.

Hi Anlina, I’d say for me, I’m very much drawn to the look of the dry leaf. I think tea blending is an art that balances great taste and beautiful appearance. I might be biased though because I love taking photos of tea. I don’t think it necessarily changes if I would buy the tea or not, but I’ll atleast give the description a read if it looks nice.

The appearance of a tea doesn’t have a big effect on whether or not I’ll buy it, but once I have it, prettier teas tend to give a more pleasant experience

The aroma of a tea has a lot more to do with whether I buy a tea or not, but I do love to look at the color of brewed tea. I’m not sure why, because it shouldn’t affect the taste at all, but I do enjoy seeing brewed tea.

Taste is of course of primary importance. Smell is important, but since I buy most of my teas online I don’t often get to smell them before I buy. The biggest role it seems to play is that some teas smell lovely, but if the taste doesn’t live up to it which is very disappointing, and even if the flavor is pleasant I’ll feel a bit cheated. A pretty tea is more likely to attract my attention, but I won’t buy it just because it’s pretty, and if the things that make it pretty raise the price without improving the flavor or add sweeteners, I’m less likely to buy. An attractive and easily navigable website has a big impact on me. Most of the companies I’ve seen have nice websites, but there are a few companies I’m familiar with from grocery stores or coffee shops that don’t have websites or require you to buy a ton of tea at once if you buy online. Since I mostly buy online these days, I’m less likely to buy from them. Also, Lupicia’s website is terrible. It’s the only reason they’re not on my list of companies to buy from in spite of the wonderful reviews I’ve seen of their teas. I got a bit off topic there. To summarize: yes appearance matters, but not as much as other factors for me.