Kunming workshop · a bag born on the road
Sandry Law, Head of Procurement for Teamotea, has spent over a decade journeying through Yunnan’s tea mountains, sourcing raw leaf and building relationships with farmers. His daily kit — a gaiwan, a small pitcher, three cups — travelled wrapped in cloth inside a battered knapsack, chips and cracks part of the routine. Tired of makeshift padding, he sketched a tote that could hold his set with the precision of a tea tray. Working with a textile workshop in Kunming, he sourced natural linen woven in a village near Dali, reinforced the base with a double layer, and designed padded sleeves that hug each piece. The leather handles are stitched by hand, echoing the craft of saddle-makers along the old Tea Horse Road. Each bag is numbered and inspected by Sandry himself before it leaves the workshop — a piece of kit for the working sommelier, as essential as the water kettle.