Puerh and Passion
Let Numi lead you on a global journey of health and healing
Numi Organic Tea co-founders Reem Rahim and her brother Ahmed Rahim take a break in their calming Tea Garden.
Photograph by Kyle Chesser
More than two thousand years ago, high in the pristine mountains of the Yunnan province of China, tea traders began their journey in horse and mule caravans. This treacherous journey, which led them down the mountainsides on narrow, winding paths and across the country on the “Tea-Horse Road,” could take several months. At the end of one of these journeys, the traders were astonished to find that the tea tasted better than it had at the beginning. During the journey, the tea had gone through a mysterious fermenting and aging process that improved its taste. Puerh tea, named after the village in which it originated, was also said to have healing powers. Today, you can drink puerh tea from these same mountains and reap all of the health benefits of this ancient leaf, thanks to Numi Organic Tea, the Oakland-based company that is the first to introduce organic puerh tea to the U.S. market on a large scale. But that’s not all. The farmers who work with Numi are able to continue this ancient tradition while receiving fair compensation, adequate housing, and good working conditions through Fair-Trade practices.
Ancient Art and the Journey of Inner Healing
Puerh tea is reddish in color and has a bold, complex, earthy taste that evokes memories of autumn. Like fine wine, puerh tea tastes better with age, so it increases in value over time. The process of making this tea is an ancient art form that is both complex and time-consuming. In order to make black puerh tea, the green leaves are picked and immediately sun dried for a couple of hours. Then the leaves are taken to secret chambers where they are placed in piles and covered with cloth. The leaves must be dampened frequently and rotated, as they reach temperatures up to 140 degrees Fahrenheit in the center of the heaps. They turn black during the fermentation process, which can take as long as two months. After the leaves have ripened and dried, they can either be used as loose tea or be processed further by compression into bricks or bowls that are wrapped and then aged in cool caves for months, years, or even decades. Puerh tea is so valuable in China that families have been known to stockpile bricks of the tea, obtaining funding by selling their houses. In fact, a single brick or cake can cost hundreds or even thousands of dollars.
In addition to its unique taste, puerh tea has long been revered for its healing properties. In China, the Last Emperor’s mother claimed she cured herself of gout by drinking this tea, thereby popularizing it to the masses. Through numerous studies, modern science has begun to discover some of the secrets of the healing properties of puerh. Studies show that it reduces cholesterol because it naturally contains statin, a drug that is used in cholesterol medication. In China, it is consumed as a digestif because it helps break down fat. Dr. Brooke Kalanick, an acupuncturist and naturopath in New York City, is perhaps one of Numi’s biggest fans. She often prescribes Numi’s tea to weight-loss patients, which make up the bulk of her practice. She particularly likes the chocolate puerh, since cocoa also helps with weight loss. Puerh tea is also said to reduce bloating, increase Qi, one’s vital life force, reduce the risk of cancer, and provide a variety of other health benefits. Numi doesn’t compromise quality, so there are no oils, “natural flavorings,” or additives in any of its teas. Since tea leaves are not washed, it is crucial that the teas are also organic, because if they are chemically treated, the chemicals go straight into your cup! Numi’s organic puerh tea is a higher quality, broad leafed variety that comes from 500 year old wild-crafted trees, rather than 30-40 year old bushes, but at an affordable price.
One of Numi’s goals is to inspire people to join them on the tea journey to good health and a more easygoing lifestyle. “We are selling an experience and lifestyle infused with being creative,” explained Reem Rahim, cofounder and Chief Marketing Officer of Numi. Reem is a studio artist. Her paintings decorate Numi’s tea boxes, many of which are based on photos taken by her brother, Ahmed Rahim, who is co-founder and CEO of Numi. In addition to being a film maker and photographer, he is also the “alchemist” behind Numi’s tea. Numi’s eco-friendly Tea Garden, located in the heart of Oakland, is a physical testament to the creativity and sense of community Numi is working to instill in its followers. The Tea Garden is decorated with some of Reem’s original paintings, and Ahmed not only decorated the furniture with mosaics from reclaimed tile but also designed the entire space. Rather than ordering at a counter and being given tea in a paper cup, you will have an experience that fits the venue. A server will come to your table, educate you about the vast array of teas offered, and ceremoniously serve your tea on a bamboo tray. Tea classes are also offered at the tea garden, and Numi’s web site offers a way for its followers to learn and share, including web-based tutorials, videos, newsletters, and blogs. In the near future, Numi plans to partner with a small, local school or a charter school for inner city kids that will focus on artistic discovery and an understanding of what it means to live in a sustainable world. “Numi has a deep, self-reflective quality and spirit of generosity that is tied in to our tea,” said Reem. “Tea is about sharing.”
The Tea Journey Today: Healing Our Global Community through Partnership
Since the United States doesn’t grow tea, it has to be imported. “Just transporting tea from these remote, high mountains is quite an incredible journey,” explained Ahmed. “I feel like I’ve almost died five times just visiting the tea gardens.” You still have to go through mountains on dirt roads, so “the journey can be quite breath taking on many levels. One slip and you are off the cliff!” Providing high quality organic products that are also fair-trade adds to the complexity and excitement of the journey. For example, when Numi decided to be the first in the U.S. to offer flowering teas, Reem and Ahmed traveled to China to learn more about the farmers who would potentially supply the tea. With a translator’s help, they learned the touching story of one of the farmers, then thirty-one years old. He grew up in a very poor, remote village in northern China, where people did not have adequate housing or access to modern appliances. Through determination, sacrifice, and hard work, he achieved his success by starting little tea nurseries. The government took notice and gave him a large piece of land for growing tea, but there weren’t any roads leading up the mountain. He brought in hundreds of poor people from his village by telling them that if they moved to the south to help him build roads, he would take care of them. Now, when you drive up these mountains, you see their newly-built houses adorned with satellite TV dishes. “He’s like the living God,” said Ahmed. “You have living heroes like that, and you decide you want to partner with them.” When you buy Numi’s tea, you are joining them in these global partnerships, and you are also doing your part to take better care of our planet. Numi not only offers organic, fair-trade teas, but their products are packaged using biodegradable, sustainable materials, such as bamboo and post-consumer waste. “If we took away organics, quality, fair-trade, and sustainable, we could put a lot of dollars in our back pocket...easy,” said Ahmed. But he and his sister started Numi to do more than just make a profit. They want to revolutionize the world of tea and serve as an example to companies that want to make a positive impact on the world around them.
The Pioneers of Today’s Tea Journey
True world citizens, Ahmed and Reem were born in Iraq, grew up in Ohio, pursued their artistic paths in Europe, and then created Numi out of Reem’s studio apartment in Oakland. Numi, or “desert lime,” is the tea of hospitality in Iraq. A decade ago, the two artists decided to go into business together to bring this and other teas and herbs to the U.S. However, rather than give up their art, they pursued a path that united art and the timeless tradition of tea drinking in a company dedicated to socially responsible business. “I would say a lot of our success also has to do with our creativity, which is something you don’t get with an MBA or even a master’s in the arts,” said Ahmed. For Reem, the journey that led her to start Numi was advice that came from her father, which was to “choose that one thing, dive in, and see where it takes you.”
Also read: Tea Time
This is a six-page article reprint from the August 2009 issue.
