Opinions.

The perfection of loose
leaf beverages, to a tea

 

By Jacey Gibb, Opinions Editor

estled in the epicentre of
the Quay’s River Market,
you'll find an open bar

with several matching stools
positioned in front of you, just
begging for you to take a seat. But
you won't find a Coach Pantusso
waiting behind, ready to mix your
favourite highball and dispense
surprisingly sage advice. Instead,
you'll be faced with an armada
of horizontally piled tea leaf
containers and enough tea trivia
to overload a super computer.
Welcome to Great Wall Tea Co.

One of the original inhabitants
of the River Market since it
underwent a radical resurgence
two years ago, Great Wall fills the
role of a niche store that picks a
speciality and then kicks ass at it.
The menu is understandably basic,
consisting only of regular teas, latte
variations, and, the most seasonally
appropriate at the moment, iced
teas. They also sell the tea leaves
on their own, for those antisocial
civilians who are just looking to
get their hands on some great tea
before rushing back to the Batcave
before nightfall.

The first encounter with
Great Wall is a daunting time for
everyone. The wall behind the bar
is made up entirely of over 400
various tea canisters—but don’t
worry champ; there’s only 160 or
so different kinds to choose from,
so that narrows it down slightly.
If you’re looking to avoid mild
vertigo, I’d suggest seeking solace
in the printed, double-sided menu
that outlines the numerous flavours
being offered

Luckily, all of the staff is
as passionate about tea as you
are about Community's themed
episodes. Each employee is a well
of tea knowledge, taking sympathy
on newbies who are clearly
overwhelmed with options and
they’re usually able to help pick out

14

a kind that caters to your cravings.

The menu is also divided up
into select varieties, making it
easier to navigate. Such categories
include black, flavoured black,
English favourites, oolong, matcha,
chai, green, flavoured green,
rooibos, herbal, and tisane (fruit).

While I’m no tea guru, I used to
think I had a pretty solid handle on
what I liked to put in my cup of hot
water, but since I started visiting
Great Wall, it’s like I was wearing
the wrong prescription of reading
glasses for years. Chocolate orange,
lychee conga, and mango rooibos
are just a few of my new favourites,
while I’m still working up the
courage (and finances) to dive into
their desserty flavours—which
I’ve heard go divinely in the latte
format.

Of course, what would a
speciality store be without some
ridiculousness thrown in? While
the majority of the teas range
between $8 and $14 for a 100-gram
bag, there are a couple varieties
that clear the $30 mark. One tea
in particular, the jasmine dragon
tears, has a production process that
makes its $40 price tag seem almost
reasonable. First, the leaves are
handpicked, as to not damage the
delicate plant, and then are placed
in a room full of jasmine flowers.
The jasmine is then changed out
on a daily basis for three weeks,
to ensure that maximum flavour
infusion occurs, after which several
leaves are hand rolled together
into tiny balls. In case you’re
wondering, yes, apparently the tea
is well worth the extensive process.

If you find yourself hankering
for an invigorating cup of tea,
but want to stretch your comfort
zone beyond the Waves/Blenz/
Starbucks Triforce, then mosey on
down to the River Market, pull up
a stool at Great Wall Tea Co., and
get ready to subject your senses to a
tidal wave of tea.

 

Not playi ing fare:

BC Ferries had this coming

By Eric Wilkins, Staff Writer

ike Corrigan, the CEO
of BC Ferries, strikes
me as a smart guy. I

don’t know him personally, but
his public statements tend to be
top notch. He’s gone on record

as saying that the lack of ferry
ridership can be blamed on

the weak global economy. Fair
enough, Mike. However, didn’t
the BC Ferries raise fares again just
last month? Maybe I’m missing
something here, but if a weak
economy is to blame, that means
people probably have less money
to spend. Increasing fares when

the years, but sometime in the
not too distant past, one of those
escalations marked the threshold
of consumer refusal.

Of course, it’s just not a party if
a few high-ranking staff members
don’t manage to weasel out some
exorbitant funds from the coffers,
so BC Ferries didn’t fail to live up
to expectations. Ex BC Ferries head
honcho, David Hahn, reeled in a
remarkable $1.13 million, while fan
favourite Mike Corrigan stepped
into Hahn’s shoes and provided
himself with a hefty raise this year,
going from a paltry $540,615 to the
slightly more respectable sum of
$915,615. Several other higher-ups

“Resident ferry goers put up with several increases over the years, but
sometime in the not too distant past, one of those escalations marked the
threshold of consumer refusal.”

bank accounts are scraping empty.
To quote the eternal wisdom of
Dodgeball, “It’s a bold strategy,
Cotton. Let’s see if it pays off for
“em.”

Iron Mike and his band of
merry boatmen managed to put
up a $16.5-million deficit for this
last year. $16.5 million. Being the
sort of person who rejoices upon
finding a loonie on the sidewalk,
such massive figures are always
mind-boggling to me. How does
one manage that? Did I miss
the construction of the second
PacifiCat fleet?

It has been pointed out that
the ferries are struggling, not from
a lack of tourists using the service,
but because of the lack of locals.

I know I’m beating a horse that’s
already been hung, drawn, and
quartered here, but why on earth
do they think they’re losing their
regular traffic? Excessively high
fares. Resident ferry goers put
up with several increases over

FERRY FARE

TIME

te aaaces ~ =

received figures in the $700,000
range. The term “stupid money”
has never fit better.

But while I’m busy slagging
this money-grabbing enterprise,
I’d just like to say that I’m happy
that they chose to stimulate the BC
economy several years ago when
getting new ferries. That work not
only provided jobs to hardworking
Canadian citizens, but it also
gave us several honest Canadian
products to be proud of.

Oh wait—they didn't.

At least I can take some
consolation from the fact that good
ol’ Mike knows the company is
in trouble. They predicted losses
of $20 million for this year, so
Corrigan had this to say about
their $16.5 million in the red, “We
did better than budget so, all
things considered, I thought it was
a good year and a good financial
performance for the company.”

Sigh.