About Me

I have been drinking tea since I was a young girl growing up in Sichuan. However, I didn’t really pay attention to my tea until I started my career.

Suddenly, I was busy every day and life was a struggle. I realized that preparing and drinking tea was my way of taking some time for myself and calming down. I always finished my tea much more centered and focused than when I started making it. These moments of calm clarity are important to cultivate.

As I started to learn more about tea, I made friends and found mentors to help guide me on my journey. I discovered the history of rock tea, the subtleties of aging Pu’er, the beauty and history of ceramic making in Jingdezhen, and much more. There is an amazing culture of tea in Asia and I’m so grateful to everyone who has been part of my journey.

In 2013, I moved to the United States. Many of my new friends had never had truly amazing pure loose-leaf tea or experienced the zen-like nature of a tea ceremony with an aged teapot, a beautiful gongdaobei, a classic set of teacups, or even small chadian (tea snacks). We’ve grown to love drinking tea together.

After hearing from my friends so many times how happy my tea makes them, I started my Instagram account to share tea culture with the world. I called it 180andup because green tea is best steeped at 180 degrees Fahrenheit and other teas are even hotter.

Thank you for visiting my website and participating in the long, healthy history of tea culture!

Yours,

Judy