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THAC Tea Sommelier Certifications

The Tea & Herbal Association of Canada (THAC) provides the only Tea Sommelier program created by the tea industry, and has educated tea lovers around the world since 2006. It’s received praise and recognition by the international tea community, and won the CSAE (Canadian Society of Association Executives) Award of Distinction for an educational program.

Take one course at a time, or sign up for a certification program – the choice is yours!

We have all kinds of people who register for our tea courses. Some are curious to learn more about their favourite beverage, want an exciting new hobby exploring different teas, looking to start their own tea business, already working within the tea industry, or want to earn a professional certification for personal or professional reasons – to stand out from the competition.

Provided by Academy of Tea

The THAC Tea Sommelier Courses, provided by Academy of Tea, is the only institution that offers these online courses (English speaking) to thousands of tea students across the globe.

100% Online Learning (in the comfort of your own home)
24/7 Access to Course Materials (Student Learning Hub)
Short Videos & Multi-Format Learning (Transcriptions provided)
Instruction from Certified THAC Tea Sommeliers
Convenient & Flexible (Self-Study at your own schedule)
Instructor support via email and monthly Office Hours (Zoom)
Lifetime access to course videos and workbooks
Pricing in Canadian Dollars (CAD)

The Academy of Tea was founded on the belief that proper tea education is fundamental in a world where the love and passion for tea continues to grow at an increasing level.

BECOME A CERTIFIED TEA SOMMELIER – START HERE!

Online Tea Sommelier Courses

Available When YOU Are

Frequently Asked Questions

You must begin with Tea 101 as a pre-requisite to all other courses.

Once you’ve successfully passed Tea 101, you can take the remaining modules in any order you want (although there is a natural order to the way the courses were designed).

We don’t recommend taking Tea 108 until closer to the end of your tea journey, to successfully complete the project at the end.

We recommend spending a minimum of 3 hours per weekly lesson to consume all of the course materials, and allow time to practice your weekly cuppings.

Tea 101 includes 3 lessons, and must be completed within 4 weeks of course registration.

Tea 102 – 108 include 5 lessons, and must be completed within 6 weeks of course registration.

YES! Tea 101 is the prerequisite to all the other tea courses, so you need to start with that one.

You can definitely take 2 courses at the same time (many students do!), but it’s really important to dedicate the appropriate time each week to the course material and weekly cuppings.

Tea 102 & 104 are the heaviest tea tasting kits (with 24 teas in each), so I wouldn’t recommend pairing those with other tea courses, but you could do an Herbs & Infusions course with them as there are no tea kits included.

No. There is no time limit to finish all the courses, and you can take all the time you need.

The only time requirement is that each course has a start date and an end date, and if you don’t complete within that timeframe (i.e. you want to postpone your final exam to a future date), there is a $50 course extension fee.

All of the courses are available throughout the year (schedule posted within each course on the website), and you can take courses based on whatever timeframe best fits your schedule.

All of the courses are available to take throughout the year.

You’ll find the detailed schedule within each individual course on the website, or the Course Calendar posted within the Student Learning Hub.

YES! All the lectures and videos are pre-recorded, and available online 24/7, for you to access whenever you want. The entire program is self-study so you can work through the content (recorded videos & workbook) at your own convenience.

For most tea courses, you’ll receive a tea tasting kit following registration. Each kit contains the necessary tea tasting samples for the course (8-24 teas per kit), and a sealed envelope containing the blind cupping teas for your final exam.

There are no tea kits for Tea 106, Tea 108, or the 3 herbs and infusions courses – HI 101, HI 102 & HI 103.

We have many International students, so the online courses and exams are set up to accommodate various time zones.

The entire course is self-study with all the materials (workbook, lecture videos, cupping videos, etc.) available for you to work through at your own convenience.

We also offer an “Office Hours” meeting on Zoom for you to attend live and ask any questions (vs. email). This is an optional session to build your tea community, so it isn’t mandatory to attend if the timing doesn’t work for you.

There are typically 3 different exam components during the final week of each course – all online. For most courses this includes a multiple choice exam, blind cupping exam, and a live presentation exam with Instructor on Zoom.

A few of the courses don’t contain tea kits, so there is a project or written assignment instead of a blind cupping exam.

Your instructor will provide you with an exam booking link with a variety of different timeslots (15 minutes) over several days, to book your presentation during a time that works for you.

When you’ve successfully completed all required courses for your chosen program, you’ll have the opportunity to do an online certification exam with the Tea & Herbal Association of Canada.

Becoming a THAC Tea Sommelier will provide you with the knowledge and credibility to run a professional tea company.

If you’re anxious to learn more about having your own tea business, I’d recommend our 3-hour workshop course designed for tea entrepreneurship – How to START an Online Tea Business.

It’s available on-demand and you can take it any time during your tea journey. It walks you through an entire roadmap, provides all the tactical and practical information, and brings clarity on priorities and next steps for launching.

This workshop does not form part of the certification program, but was designed to answer the many questions students have about starting their own tea business.