Only the chance of a once-in-a-lifetime tea ceremony provided by one of the world’s 10 Gongfu Tea Masters (and its only female Master), Madame Tseng, and a peek at the highly anticipated Lotusier tea humidor – the first of its kind by way of calibre, functionality and craftsmanship – would unite London’s journalist and press set on a cold February morning. Against the backdrop of 5 Hertford Street’s Rifat Özbek-designed interiors (which are quite something with their fringed furnishings, wallpapered ceilings and personalised A-list notes decanted from the private club’s sister location Annabel’s), luxury brand Lotusier’s game-changing creation launched, revolutionising tea as we know it entirely.
Designed by interior designer and ex-Head of Marketing & Communications for COS Åsa Eriksson-Ahuja, the humidor is a labour of love in the truest sense. The concept originated as a stroke of genius of Åsa’s who was looking for a special gift for her then-boyfriend, now husband, Nandi (who supports his wife with his animated and informative discussions on all things tea-related). The idea was born, the piece was commissioned and four years later is thrilling tea lovers to the nth degree.
According to Madame Tseng who has given the new design her coveted stamp of approval, the resulting piece “[elevates] the preservation and presentation of tea” and “liberates [it] from pantries and kitchens – allowing it to ascend to the privileged places we reserve in our lives, the spaces where we live, work and entertain”. And ascend it does.
