The upcoming World Tea on the Road, taking place in Boston and Chicago this fall, offers insightful business and career-building lessons in tea. The conference is ideal for tea retailers and entrepreneurs, new tea professionals, tea enthusiasts, chefs, restaurateurs, and foodservice specialists, among others who want to learn everything about tea. Attendees can select either Boston, October 10-11 at the Renaissance Boston Waterfront Hotel, or Chicago, November 7-8 at the Wyndham Grand Chicago Riverfront.

The upcoming World Tea on the Road conferences are based on the in-depth education of World Tea Expo and World Tea Academy. And both the Boston and Chicago World Tea on the Road conferences present entrepreneurial and career-focused education tracks, as well as a tasting tour of six tea origin countries/regions.

Gary Lynch, vice president/group publisher at F+W, A Content + eCommerce Company, the organizer of World Tea on the Road, says, "If you can't make it to the annual World Tea Expo—or just want to supplement your tea know-how in a more intimate and interactive environment—World Tea on the Road is your opportunity. Learn the basics and much more among your peers and tea enthusiasts. And in your downtime, enjoy exploring Boston or Chicago."

Donna Fellman, program director of World Tea Academy, and one of the presenters, adds, "World Tea on the Road is an exciting and immersive tea experience taught by tea's foremost experts. This is education open to anyone who wants to learn and grow in the tea industry—even if you're new to it."

World Tea on the Road offers two distinct education tracks, Tea Business Boot Camp and World Tea Academy Live! Also, the World Origin Tasting Tour is included as part of both track offerings.

Tea Business Boot Campis designed for entrepreneurs who are starting a tea retail business. Sessions include: Tea 101; Start a Business in the Tea Industry; Capturing & Marketing Customers; How to Source & Select Teas; and Financial Management Considerations for New Tea Businesses. Participation in this track also includes the World Origin Tasting Tour.

World Tea Academy Live! is a first step to achieving industry certification and future success in the world of tea. Session highlights include: Intro to the Six Types of Tea; Cupping Green and Yellow Teas; White and Oolong Teas; Black and Dark Teas; a Tea Q&A; and World Tea Academy Test Preparation and Testing. World Tea Academy is the leading online tea education and certification program, and World Tea Academy LIVE! is in-person instruction based on the online program. Participation in this track also includes the World Origin Tasting Tour.

World Origin Tasting Touris a virtual tea tour around the globe. Attendees will make "stops" at six major countries/regions of origin, cultivating a better understanding of the culture along the way. Countries of origin include: China, Japan, Kenya, Sri Lanka, India, and Taiwan.

Highlights of the education sessions at both the Boston and Chicago conferences include Tea 101, aworkshop introduction to the fascinating world of tea, for the casually curious to the prospective taster. The course covers the essentials of tea's history and legends, the world's main producers, botany, manufacture, differentiation of the various styles, and laboratory research supporting the many beneficial qualities of tea; How to Source & Select Your Teas: Few questions are more fundamental when opening a specialty tea business than, 'Where do I find my teas?' and 'What teas should I choose?" This workshop will help students start their journey of answering these questions. This is not a workshop on tasting and evaluating teas, rather it is in introduction to the art of deciding what teas are right for your business and how do you go about finding those teas; Essentials of Camellia Sinensis, a class introduces Camellia sinensis and the three factors that make it possible for this one plant to be the source of hundreds of kinds of teas. It also explores the botany of the plant, including the history, varieties, cultivars and cellular chemistry. The class continues with the six stages of tea processing and an overview of the six types of tea that come from this single amazing plant. The session concludes with an introduction to professional cupping and the sensory evaluation of tea.