Tea Farm, 8350 Richards Trail, Duncan, BC V9L 6B4

One of my favourite road trips on Vancouver Island is to the Cowichan Valley, home of the slow food movement. Cowichan Bay, an official cittaslow, is a place to visit for cheeses from a local farm, bread baked from grains milled on site, freshly caught fish and seafood. Farther north, off the Island highway, is the Tea Farm. Go for the views of the valley, the company of owners Victor Vesely and Margit Nellemann, the ceramic art of Margit and others, and the tea experience. Stay for the tea service and shop to your heart’s delight.

“We are curators of organic loose tea, designers of artful tea blends, and growers of Camellia sinensis,” they say. “Artful” is the operative word. I’ve become a fan of their matcha tea, the health-giving brew made of the fine powder made from tea leaves. Tea Farm also serves baked goods, some laced with matcha from their own plants.