The House of Hope & Mercy in the Jungle

The House of Hope & Mercy in the Jungle Our Tea Shop

Come and visit our Tea Shop, we are a proudly independent business! Where we bring you Exeter Fine Whole Leaf Tea Merchants

Michel Pierre François is a French artist potter currently based in Falmouth, Cornwall working in porcelain and using hi...
20/08/2026

Michel Pierre François is a French artist potter currently based in Falmouth, Cornwall working in porcelain and using his own glazes crafted using feldspar, Cornish stone and ash from local trees. He has a deep appreciation for the ancient forms of China, Korea and Japan and a passion for their rich tea cultures. His work focuses on sculpting moon jars, vases, and of course tea bowls.

We have known Michel for a good few years now and we’re always drawn to the skill and elegance of form within his vessels - inspired by his considered approach, enthusiastic energy and genuine artistic spirit.

We are really pleased to present a small series of Michel’s porcelain tea bowls as part of our Summer Collection.

Michel’s work has been shown extensively in the UK and internationally, including exhibits at the Craft Council’s Collect, the Han Collection, Leach Pottery Museum, Taipei International tea bowl exhibition, Paris’ Gallery art présent, the Paris tea festival and the Korean Craft Museum in Cheong Ju alongside UNESCO awarded master Moonjar maker, professor SEO Young Gi.

15/08/2026

A memory from when we met up at Falmouth Gallery to have tea with Michel and Jacob It’s always an absolute pleasure to enjoy good pots and good tea together.

Both potters are expert tea drinkers and handcrafted teawares by those who understand both crafts is rare, creating exceptional teawares that enhance the tea in every way.

We are pleased to be able to offer a small collection of Michel François porcelain teabowls, some of the last ones available from Michels current base in Falmouth, as he closes his gallery space to move on to pastures new.

Michel François Porcelain Teabowls are available both in the shop and on our website now.

Just a tiny reminder that we will be away from today for 1 week of summer break.The shop will be closed and all online o...
23/06/2026

Just a tiny reminder that we will be away from today for 1 week of summer break.

The shop will be closed and all online orders will be prepared and posted promptly upon our return.

We’ll be back to regular service Tuesday 30th.

We wish you a merry midsummer and hope you will be enjoying many delicious teas in celebration of the summer solstice on the 21st.

See you soon, Pez & Jane
💚🍵💚

Each year we find this tea grows in popularity, extremely delicious and fresh, the 2026 harvest is here from the Chen fa...
16/06/2026

Each year we find this tea grows in popularity, extremely delicious and fresh, the 2026 harvest is here from the Chen family.

Handpicked and machine rolled, the tight little curls hide hidden depths of fragrance; smooth bright and slightly nutty.

Cloud Mist ✨☁️✨

From high mountain grown, selected fresh and tender leaves, comes a high grade tea. Bright and smooth with delicate, gently curled leaves with very aromatic fresh tones. A clean, thick quality tea soup with a good body, having a robust flavour yet mellow sweetness accompanied by fresh legume and chestnut fragrances. A very refreshing and revitalising tea that gives a great cupful from a variety of brewing styles.

Harvested early Spring from the Xiao Cai Cha Cultivar grown at around 1200m. Following traditional techniques, carefully and skilfully processed.

13/06/2026

Looking forward to our Summer Tea Gathering tomorrow, this season we’ll be tasting the new 2026 harvest green tea not long arrived from our partners in China, as well as a couple of other favourites - if you’d like to join us there’s 2 spaces available from a last minute cancellation - DM or RSVP on our website 💚🍵💚

We are proud to present our new collaboration with the Leach Pottery, these pots are part of their ‘Standard Ware’ range...
13/06/2026

We are proud to present our new collaboration with the Leach Pottery, these pots are part of their ‘Standard Ware’ range made to enrich your everyday use.

The Leach Pottery in St Ives, Cornwall was established by Bernard Leach & Shōji Hamada in 1920 and has a rich history with a highly regarded reputation as being one of the most influential in the world.

Bernard Leach is widely considered the father of British Studio Pottery and Shōji Hamada has received multiple awards for his contributions to arts and culture.

Together building the first climbing kiln in the western world - in St Ives.

Today the legacy continues providing an important resource for ceramics with a museum and functional studio of highly skilled potters headed by Roelof Uys, offering extensive resources as well as practical courses.

Potters Portraits used with kind permission from The Leach Pottery + Photography from our visit to The Leach Pottery Museum 2025

19/05/2026

A little Hanami appreciation from the early May bank holiday at Ide Community Orchard with Hachiko, Lily & Kanako.

Thanks to Mark for bringing us all together to share beautiful blossoms, fine Japanese tea & Matcha, wonderful Japanese patisserie, harmonious haiku’s, traditional shamisen music and folk songs, it was an absolute pleasure to spend the day with you all 🌸🍵🌸

Some images of the shop from the last couple of months. A quiet time of year. Seeing in the Year of the Horse, a tea gat...
12/05/2026

Some images of the shop from the last couple of months. A quiet time of year. Seeing in the Year of the Horse, a tea gathering, a special tasting selection of Matcha, calm shelves, the sun returns.

And then the season is changing again, the first new teas of the 2026 harvests have just arrived.

📦🍵🍃

Address

McCoys Arcade, Fore Street
Exeter
EX43AN

Opening Hours

Tuesday 10am - 5pm
Wednesday 10am - 5pm
Thursday 10am - 5pm
Friday 10am - 5pm
Saturday 10am - 5pm

Telephone

+447546395597

Website

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