Sunday, October 19, 2014

The Indie. Oct 15 to Nov 15, 2014. Vol 10, Number 3.


[1] FOOD:
<> Noi's Thai Kitchen serves it hot, healthy, delicious and to your individual liking
<> Breakfasting at Sunny Point (by Marta Osborne)

[2] COMMUNITY:
<> Hickory Nut Gap: Food, Family, Community
<> Community Soundboard (letter to editor)

[3] MUSIC/ARTS:
<> Caleb Beissert: Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man
<> Jaime Lauren Webb: Ethereal, Warm, Contemplative

[4] COLUMNS:
<> Herbal Moon, Hearts & Hearth/Chris Wagoner
Elderberry and Wild Cherry
<> Babedawgs and Koolcats
Seven Reasons Why Chloe is a Unique Babedawg
<> From the Bookshelf/Matthew Mulder
Glimmering Coming-of-age Story (“Drinking Until Morning” by Justin Grimbol)
<> Renegade Reel/Duane Lucas Pascua
Moral Exercise in Lawful Conflict (“A Separation,” a film by Ssghar Farhadi)
<> Economics, Beyond America/Donna Phoebe Pascua
Schooling in an Emerging Economy
<> Like a Rolling Stone/Pasckie Pascua
Connecting the Dots: A Traveler's Guide

[5] ADS:
<> The Blotter, ¼
<> West End Bakery, 1/8
<> Diamond Thieves Body Piercing & Tattoo, ¼
<> Mellow Mushroom, ¼
<> Rosetta's Kitchen, 1/8
<> Noi's Thai Kitchen, ¼ color
<> Athens Locally Grown, ¼ color
<> Moonflower Botanicals, business card
<> LEAF, full-page/back page color
<> AND house ads

Sunday, August 24, 2014

Life, Community, Relations—one cup of tea at a time

Dobra Tea

by Pasckie Pascua

[NOTE: A few typo errors and missing quote marks slipped our eyes in the print version of this article. We will cite those errors in an “Erratum” notice in the next/Sept issue of The Indie. Our apologies.]

THE story of Dobra Tea strikes a chord.
       Years ago, in the northern mountains of the Philippines, tribes and lowlanders, Communist rebels and government troops, were mired in both cultural and political polar extremes that it seemed dialogue was a quixotic proposition. Peace was gasping like a flower caught in a hale of monsoon rain and typhoon wind. And then, a ceasefire was declared and “tapuy” (home-crafted rice wine) was served on the negotiating table. Then peace starts to emerge like rainbow after a storm.
       I may be simplifying (or idealizing) it but a good brew at the center of any discourse keeps the compromises alive and resolutions open.


       The story of Dobrá Tea, as its website narrates, begins in Prague during the last few years of Communism, where a group of young tea lovers began meeting to sample rare Indian, Chinese and Japanese teas smuggled into Czechoslovakia.
       "Because of a shortage of foreign currency, high quality teas were then available exclusively to the Party, State and Military elite. Then came the `Velvet Revolution' and the Fall of Communism in 1989. In 1992, `The Society of Tea Devotees' was formed and the following year, Dobra Tea's first Bohemian-style tearoom, Dobrá Čajovna, opened in Prague... The Čajovna (tearoom) became a shelter, a place for safety, where like minded individuals could gather and taste the world of tea. Much success blossomed with Dobrá's idea and the company began to spread its tea concept to many small towns throughout Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland."
       In 2003 Dobrá Tea opened its first US tearoom in Burlington, VT then one followed in Portland, Maine and then in 2001, a Moroccan-motif incarnation opened in Asheville. In August last year, a Japanese style Tearoom was up in Black Mountain.
The story of Dobra Tea, and the entrepreneurial saga of Snavely and his partner/co-owner Lindsay Thomas, certainly play like a microcosm of a Merchant-Ivory epic... Yet Snavely's demeanor doesn't seem to exude such magnificent cross-continental journey in search for tea. Or the meaning of life in a teabag.
       “Tea is a very universal beverage. It is a beverage and a plant that is cultivated throughout the world, in every single continent, and it brings forth community and togetherness,” Snavely, slight and bearded, told The Indie with a feline soft-spokenness like an ascetic meandering over words of wisdom than a Brooks Brothers-garbed business dude spewing market economics with synthetic confidence. Then he declares, “I like to say that the social importance of meetings, and togetherness and relationships are formed and founded around tea.”
     
       This is a man who believes in his tea like no other that I've ever known. “I have been traveling the world for about ten years now to meet with tea farmers and then discover new varieties,” he enthuses. As a testimony of his beautiful tea madness, even Dobra Tea's menu comes out more like a textbook than a look-see breakdown of choices—85 pages of literature. Says he, “Each tea has its own story that is based on our travels.”
       Here are a few samplings from the menu cum journal.
[ ] Chinese Green Tea: Dian Lu Eshan. Remembering the Tea King. A remarkable, fresh green China tea produced in the famous tea province of Yunnan. No other tea is comparable to this sparkling, pale green infusion which offers unique and inimitable delights of taste and aroma. It is cultivated at high altitude, with long, silver, downy-tipped leaves firmly rolled lengthwise. This tea promotes health, and has a mild, euphoric effect.
[ ] Japanese Tea: Bancha Kyoto. A common type of green Japanese tea, intended for everyday drinking. A small, flat, light green leaf with yellow tints, it is smooth and easy to drink, with the characteristic freshness of Japanese greens.
[ ] Vietnamese Tea. Che Xanh. A remarkable Vietnamese green tea, whose leaves are picked with extraordinary care. A vegetal infusion with hints of both Chinese and Japanese greens due to processing. This tea is gently steamed, then pan-fried to stop oxidation. It will awaken a drifting mind, and is excellent hot or chilled.
[ ] Korean Tea. Nok Cha. A seasonal variety of green tea from the Jirishan mountain range on the southern Korean coast. This light infusion conceals an unseen taste "on the boundary" between Chinese and Japanese teas. The leaves are gently steamed and then pan-fried to complete the drying process, offering a savory, oceanic flavor.
       Costs ranges from $3.50 to $5.50, which aren't bad at all.
       Tea aside, a most fascinating facet of Snavely and Thomas' brainchild is its deep affinity with local-ness. While they bring culture to the table via their tea, they also interface their menu with what the community could offer, like a light fare of sweet snacks, all 100 percent gluten-free. Some of their collaborators are Asheville bakers Silvermoon Chocolates, Herban Baker, French Broad Chocolate Lounge, and Blue Door Bakery.
       “I like to bring the community side of this business through collaboration, which is very important in Asheville,” Snavely adds. There is no way to end this story but pause it and go check out the thick journal of tea choices—before Andrew Snavely and Lindsay Thomas add more to what's already available. “A new shipment of Japanese Green Tea just came in, and later this week...”
       At Dobra Tea, life is alive and community is continually in flowing engagement. Indeed, that's how relations and relationships are built, nurtured and nourished—one cup of tea at a time.

DOBRA TEA Asheville is located at 78 N Lexington Ave, Asheville, NC 28801 (828 575-2424). Open: Mon—Wed, 9am – 10pm; Thu—Sat, 9am – 11pm; Sunday, 11am – 7pm. DOBRA TEA Black Muntain is at 120 Broadway Street (828.357.8530). Open: Mon—Sat, 9am – 7pm; Sunday, 11am – 7pm. More info: www.dobrateanc.com

Tuesday, August 5, 2014

The Indie. August 2014. Vol 10, Number 2. 16 pages

[1] FOOD:
<> Buchi Bar: Kombucha, anyone?
<> Dobra Tea: Life, Community Relations—One Cup of Tea at a Time



[2] COMMUNITY:
<> Beauty Parade: How do we stylize Diversity?
<> Word Up: Jeff Davis takes Wordplay Radio to the FM Waves
by Caleb Beissert

[3] MUSIC:
<> Bonfires for Peace celebrates its 12th year this summer at Pritchard Park
<> Pipapelli: Kilts, pyps, and rockin' blues with a celtic-knotted twist
<> Riyen Roots: Intimate & Homebound
<> Lyric: Streetwise, Cool and Classy
and Tom Hoa Binh, Marshall Jim Duncan

[4] COLUMNS:
<> Herbal Moon, Hearts & Hearth/Chris Wagoner
Medicinal Fungi
<> From the Bookshelf/Matthew Mulder
Public Library and a City's Poets
<> Renegade Reel/Duane Lucas Pascua
Mother (South Korea): What Would a Mother Do?
<> Economics, Beyond America/Donna Phoebe Pascua
The Philippines' Changing Skyline
<> Babedawgs and Koolcats/Georgia and Cyd
<> Like a Rolling Stone/Pasckie Pascua
Community, de-complicated, gut-level

[5] ADS:
<> Diamond Thieves Body Piercing & Tattoo, 1/4
<> Equinox, 1/4
<> Moonflower Botanicals, business card
<> Athens Locally Grown, ¼ color
<> Organicfest, ¼ color
<> The Blotter, 1/4
<> Rosetta's Kitchen, business card (pending revised copy, 1/4)
<> LEAF, ½ page (back cover)
<> Poetry Cabaret, free
<> West End Bakery, 1/8
<> Mellow Mushroom, ¼

<> AND house ads

Monday, June 30, 2014

Where to find The Indie


GRAB a copy of The Indie then share the love. 
[1] Downtown Asheville: Ben's Tune Up, Buchi Bar, City Bakery, The Crow and The Quill, Dobra Tea, Downtown Market, Fine Arts Theater, Flipside, French Broad Coop, Izzy's, Hi-Wire Brewing, Malaprop's, Mamacita's, Mela Indian Restaurant, Orange Peel, Posana Cafe, Rosetta's Kitchen, Savage Moon, Sly Grog Wine and Beer Lounge (at Downtown Market), Ultimate Ice Cream Company, Urban Orchard, Woolworth Walk. 
[2] West Asheville: Asheville Sandwich Company, Beauty Parade, Farmacy Juice & Tonic Bar, Lucky Otter, Odd Cafe, Orbit Video, Universal Joint, West End Bakery, Westville Pub, West Village Market. 
[3] Merrimon Avenue: Asheville Brewing Company, Noi's Thai Kitchen, Plant. 
[4] River Arts District: Ananda West, Clingman Cafe, Grey Eagle, Old Souls Pizza, Tailgate Market, The Wedge. 
[5] Elsewhere in Asheville: CinTom's Frozen Custard (Sweeten Creek), Corner Kitchen, Highland Brewing Company, Neo Cantina, Wynn's Diner (Leicester Hwy). 
[6] Black Mountain: Black Mountain College/Cafeteria, Dobra Tea, Dripolator Coffeehouse, Hopey & Co. (formerly, Amazing Savings), My Father's Pizza and Pasta, Town Pump, Trailhead Restaurant, White Horse. 
[7] Fairview: The Local Joint. 
[8] Weaverville: Blue Mountain Pizza, Well-Bred Bakery. 
[9] Athens GA: 40 Watt Club, Bar South, Cine, Flicker, Fuzzy's Taco, Georgia Bar, Georgia Theatre Rooftop, The Globe, The Grill, The Grit, Hendershot's, Little Kings, Mellow Mushroom, Nowhere Bar, Park Plaza, Ted's Most Best, and Trappeze. 
More outlets, later. Or you may want to subscribe, so you don't need to drive to wherever—we'll mail you your Indie while it's hot as you!

Friday, June 27, 2014

The Indie. July 2014. Vol 10, Number 1. 16 pages

[1] FOOD:
<> The Local Joint:
An Intriguing Eggplant and the Best Reuben Sandwich in the Mountains
<> Posana Cafe: Conscious Artful Cuisine—from Farm to Table
<> Rocky’s Hot Chicken Shack: 
Homecooked Southern Soul Food, Served Hot

<> Bad Food, Good Food, and Ramen Noodles



[2] COMMUNITY:
<> Woolworth Walk: Keeping Tradition Alive (even as digital age wafts through the mountains)

[3] MUSIC:
<> Aaron Price's Mobile Brainchild: Collapseable Recording Studio
By Caleb Beissert

[4] COLUMNS:
<> From the Bookshelf/Matthew Mulder
Three Books, Three Fathers
<> Herbal Moon, Hearts & Hearth/Chris Wagoner
Herbs and Human Body: An Innate Synergy
<> Renegade Reel/Duane Lucas Pascua
Oldboy: New Angle at Studying South Korean Cinema
<> Like a Rolling Stone/Pasckie Pascua
Micro Madness as The Indie

[5] ADS:
<> Diamond Thieves Body Piercing & Tattoo, 1/4
<> Equinox, 1/4
<> Moonflower Botanicals, business card
<> Athens Locally Grown, ¼ color
<> Organicfest, ¼ color
<> The Blotter, 1/4
<> Rosetta's Kitchen, business card (pending revised copy, 1/4)
<> Ben's Tune Up, full-page/back page color
<> AND house ads

Friday, May 30, 2014

NOW also distributed in Athens, Georgia.


Food. Arts. Music. Community. Stuff
Facebook Page: 
https://www.facebook.com/asheville.travelingbonfires?fref=ts