Limited in size, specialized in scope, the Tea Tastings take place in The Rosemary House outbuilding. They are scheduled both Friday and Saturday and feature specialty instructors concentrating on a unique topic. We were pleased to welcome Dr. Sally Wei, a certified Tea Sommelier from California. She covered a wide range of Taiwanese Oolongs and offered a unique introduction to this spectrum of teas.
Another specialty class featured an introduction to Cooking With Tea presented by Debbie Hartman where participants learned how to incorporate tea into their recipes, offering hints and tips along the way.
The Tea and Sushi pairing class featured local business entrepreneur Nate Baer of Retro Sushi. Nate demonstrated sushi making and Mike Raab of Tea for All prepared a range of green teas that would complement the final product. 
Teresa Weddelman journeyed from Ohio to instruct two distinct classes. She hosted a Tea and Chocolate Pairing seminar that offered quality chocolate paired with equally good tea.
Her second seminar was a class on clever and tasty Mocktails that included tea. She shared fun ways to garnish the lovely brews.These were just a few of the specialty events that took place during the festival. These seminars require an additional ticket to attend, and it is recommended that the tickets be purchased in advance as there is limited seating for each session. New Tea Tastings/Seminars, and perhaps a few favorites will again be scheduled for next year.
The classes sound wonderful. I have taken a chocolate and tea pairing class in the past, but hadn't thought of a sushi and tea pairing. I once also took a cheese and tea pairing with Steven Smith. So many fun topics. This coming Sunday I am teaching a class on British tea history and taking tea outdoors.
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