Yu Hui Tseng
Yu Hui Tseng is a Chinese tea master. She is the only female master and among the ten most recognised today.[1][2] She is also currently the only tea master active outside of China.[3] She is the founder and owner of La Maison des Trois Thés tea salon in Paris.
Biography
Born in a family descending from Zengzi,[4] Yu Hui Tseng started studying the piano aged four, and later took up the clarinet at a professional level, earning a first prize in Taiwan at 17.[citation needed] In parallel, she studied the Gongfu tea ceremony with Master Zhang Tian Fu.[5]
Career
Maître Tseng uses her knowledge and experience to try to change the image tea has for many people in France and other western countries. Maître Tseng is known for her informed exchange of ideas with top wine experts like Philippe Faure-Brac, Richard Geoffroy and Jean-Claude Berrouet.[4][6] Tseng is also consulted by many Michelin-starred chefs in Paris like Alain Senderens, Guy Savoy, Joël Robuchon, Olivier Roellinger and Pierre Gagnaire. She provides them with appropriate tea varieties for their restaurants and also helps them find the right flavours and scents to accompany their dishes.[4][7][8] She also often collaborates with pastry chefs and chocolatiers, such as Jacques Génin and Pierre Hermé,[8][9] sommeliers like Andreas Larrson and Patrick Borras,[10][11] as well as master cheese makers, spice masters, whiskey-makers and even perfumers. Her unique skills are also useful for companies like Nestlé Waters who trust her taste and "nose" for their products.[10] Likewise, in 2017 Master Tseng endorsed the world's first Tea Humidor, by Lotusier, and performed a tea-tasting session at its Spring press launch in London.[12]
La Maison des Trois Thés
In 1995, she opened La Maison des Trois Thés in Paris at 1 rue Saint-Médard, where she keeps one of the largest tea cellars in the world. The cellar contains over 1,000 selections of tea,[2][13] with some over 100 years old, and some with prices significantly more than even the most prized and grand French wines, such as Château Pétrus, Romanée-Conti, or anything from the cellars of Dom Pérignon.[1][7] In her tea salon, she stores and ages tea varieties in specially designed chambers for optimal temperature and humidity control.[1]
References
- ^ a b c Peabody, Sally (18 August 2004). "Mastering the art of tea in Paris". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 28 August 2017.
- ^ a b Mallan, Caroline (18 April 2009). "Taking tea in Paree". The Star. Retrieved 28 August 2017.
- ^ "Theemeester Yu Hui Tseng bezoekt Librije - Misset Horeca". Misset Horeca (in Dutch). Retrieved 2017-08-29.
- ^ a b c Maître Tseng, la voie du thé, Les Échos
- ^ Jarry, Frederic (22 September 2015). "A la recherche des grands thés perdus". Le Soir Plus (in French). Retrieved 2017-08-29.
- ^ Youtube: Dialogue du the et du vin
- ^ a b Teatime in Paris by Los Angeles Times
- ^ a b Yu Hui Tseng and Her Shangri-La of Tea by Taste of Life
- ^ Thé et gastronomie : accords, bémols et harmonie by Atabula.com
- ^ a b How to taste water ? by Nestlé Waters
- ^ Ses thés affolent les initiés by Paris Match
- ^ Master Tseng & the Tea Humidor by Lotusier
- ^ La Maison des Trois Thés by Time Out
- (in French) Maître Tseng : le goût, un plaisir en mouvement
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- CS1 French-language sources (fr)
- Use British English from April 2019
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- Chinese expatriates in France
- Chinese tea masters
- Living people
- Year of birth missing (living people)