/ck/ - Food & Cooking

Threadly reminder
Yunnan Sourcing raises prices on all their puer and other aged teas by 20% to 30% in March. Make sure to get your orders in before then!

What tea mail are you waiting on /tea/?
I put this order in with Teas We Like recently. I guess i picked a good time since most of what I ordered is now out of stock.

>>15304689
Do any sleep teas actually work or is it all placebo?

>>15304697
Daily exercise and proper sleep hygiene work better, but some sleep teas are okay. They won't knock you out like a drug but they might make you more relaxed and make it a little easier to drift off.

>>15304689
Waiting on my large TWL order
It's a rocky situation atm since I'm in the UK
shipping stopped on the 28th, but I wonder what will happen to the shipments that were out long before the 28th, like mine

>>15304766
Oh yeah the UK sounds like a shitshow right now. Is it covid and the new trade agreement or just covid causing problems?

>>15304866
at the moment, it's covid
trade agreement/brexit will be a different beast

I drink great value tea from the box of 100 bags every day with some stevia. Do I have bad taste?

>>15305035
there is no bad taste

>>15305035
Loose-leaf tea is nicer.
I think walmart sells teabags from Charleston Tea Plantation. Grab some next time and try it. Grown in South Carolina.

>>15304689
I have been preparing my first YS order for over a week now, going for babbys first oolong and pu-erh

>>15304678
Puer sucks though
As long as I can get oolong for a reasonable price

what type of green teas are the best?

>>15305049
Except for Great Value.

Starting the day with a mix of white and black teas. The former is W2T gushi baicha and the latter is W2T yan hong. They have some bamboo shou coming out in the next tea club so that's exciting.

>>15304689
Just some samples off upton

>>15305385
dragon well aka longjing

>>15304672
Is green tea good for you?

>>15305445
iS THAT POO?

>>15305445
>no screen
So what, you just eat the leaves as you drink?

>>15305763

It all settles once it's fully hydrated so that's not really an issue.

>>15305752
better than soda. take any health claims with a massive pinch of salt. tea is hydrating and has a more mellow caffeine buzz than coffee

>>15305049
Imagine someone believing that.
>>15305035
Pretty shitty taste but at least it's yours. Some jokers here will only buy the tea if it comes recommended by the "community". And if their experience with the tea doesn't match the vendors description or is against the line of the hivemind, they'll blame it on their less than optimal teaware. Hence the gearfaggotry.

>>15304672
Rooibos is my favorite type of tea.

>>15305345
Get this xiaguan tuo insted, the one you picked out is fine, smokey and pine resin, but this one is a bit more refined and easy to drink.
https://yunnansourcing.com/collections/xiaguan-tea-factory-1/products/2012-xiaguan-zi-yun-hao-premium-raw-pu-erh-tea-tuo-cha-in-box

>>15306038
Just like any other general. You should see the guitar general if you think this place is bad, theres people there who blow 4-5000 on expensive rigs they cant even play.

>>15305369
Mah nigga

>>15305345
Was drinking 2006 Te Ji few days ago, I like it, but that's me

>be me, coming to this board to ask a tea question
>there just so happens to be a tea general
>perfect
Is Coffee technically a tisane?

>>15306296
no

any frozen summit and duck shit chads in?

Anyone else ever had issues buying from moychay? They took a week to "calculate" the total price of my order and now, after letting me pay, have been stuck at "order not paid yet, is ready" for a good while. Wtf?

>>15306494
>duck shit chads
i wish, picked some up back in august but its above my meager price range for a daily drink. bloody amazing though, i get the hype around it

>>15306494
Is thr saturn peach oolong any good?

>>15304689
Some anon recommended Margaret’s Hope estates second flush Darjeeling. Got a box of that on order.
Then I’m gonna wait until pic related comes back in stock.

>>15307309
Awesome, hope you enjoy it anon!

>>15307379
I hope you’re not the Anon that shot on Vandham’s, cause I totally bought Vandham’s. First thing that came up when I searched for Margaret’s Hope.

What's a good, high-quality black tea I can turn into Sweet Tea like my granny used to make?

>>15305385
idk but the basic brand ones from the grocery store are shit, it's worth it to but the fancy brands from the health food store

>>15305752
i think so, it just tastes like it is.

>>15306063

I have not had it in so long, that I can't remember the taste. Describe it

These guys do some great teas. Big 9g bags too so you can reuse them if you're cheap.

https://www.javarepublic.com/organic-tea-range/

>>15307398
I don't have strong opinions about vandham.
I saw they were paying some instagram yoga mom social media influencers and decided to ignore them. As long as they deliver the real thing it should be no problem.

>>15307429
Loose leaf lipton for the real deal sweet tea

>>15306173
I just picked the one with a crane because i had seen a similar one a few generals back.
Thanks for the rec anon, its probably better to start out with the milder stuff.

I'm watching moychay videos with english subtitles. Nice to have another perspective on chink things aside from american ones. Drone footage is also great.
Someone mentioned recently vaporwave shu cakes from them, can I get some pics of wet leaf maybe? Or general impressions? Thanks in advance.
Seems like the russkie side of things is skewed towards the shu, so maybe they know what they're selling.

>>15307963
fuck off with guerrilla marketing

>>15306296
Yes

>>15304689
Just bought some Sencha Fuka-midori. I've never had good green tea, just supermarket bagged stuff. Hope it tastes like a fresh cut lawn.

>>15307537
It taste like weak Hibiscus tea. It's pretty good, I add a bit of cream and sugar, because that's how I had it when I was in South Africa.

>>15308155
>fuck off with guerrilla marketing
That's my line in these threads. But I appreciate the vigilance.
No, I'm just curious and I've seen it mentioned in a post that might've be made by the real shill (pic of the product was attached).

>>15306296
of course, just like pasta water.
>>15305752
>no tits in picrel
try harder

>>15308208
Godspeed anon, i was blown away the first time i tried a good japanese green

>>15308280
well it has Fuck a me right in the name, I would expect at least some precum

>>15308214
I'm pretty unconvinced by Russians making ripe puer with Georgian? Tea. They seem committed to it since they have done at least 3 batches in successive years but if you read between the lines in the descriptions they basically say "we really didn't fuck it up as badly this year we promise"
I was reading about how there are some particularly hardy tea plants that can grow in some of the more temperate parts of russia and they have at least some production every year but i don't know if much makes it on to the market. IIRC i read that they also have a tradition of making a pile fermented tea like ripe puer and i remember trying to find it a last year, no luck.
On that note i found a small Indian company making ripe and i believe raw puer that i found dubious but also intriguing.

>>15308246
Okay, fine. Is green tea good for you?

>>15308311
It's (probably) not bad for you.

>>15308311
sauce me nao

Green tea is very bad for you, because it stunts your drive to explore the tea as a holistic concept and sends you on a wild goose chase though various vendors and claims of organic gardens of that one varietal that seem to posses the key to tea nirvana, as mentioned by the Zoroastrian writers in primary sources etched on a clay tablets.
Sheng puer is the only green tea worth drinking.

>>15308349
>Green tea is very bad for you, because it stunts your drive to explore the tea as a holistic concept
I disagree. The first experience I had that got me more interested in tea was when I tried a cup at a Japanese restaurant and immediately noticed how much better it was than supermarket tea.

>>15307736
Vandham’s is the easiest source if I want a good Darjeeling autumn flush. Not sure about their summer flush though; it was too flowery a taste and it makes me wonder if they mix 1st flush leaves in it.

>>15308458
and what are you drinking nowadays?

>>15308311
jej

>>15307309
My man. Your Dutch friends will enjoy it someday.

>>15307429
I use Yunnan Noir from Adagio. I don't sweeten it. It doesn't need it, imo. Everybody comments on how good it is cold brewed.

>>15308309
>i found a small Indian company making ripe and i believe raw puer that i found dubious but also intriguing.
what company?

>>15308349
Eh I disagree
I moved away from black tea / 2 sugar / milk to green teabags, then got some loose leaf green
which lead me to loose leaf white's, then loose leaf blacks
then to my puerh

>>15308309
>"we really didn't fuck it up as badly this year we promise"
I 100% believe this is a true, if non-literal translation from the Russian, besides the promise.
Sometime I like that at least with them, you are going to get no bullshit honesty or a bold faced lie, but it will be exactly what they had wanted to happen, not what they think you find believable.

Is my tea pet cute, anons?

Got 4oz of matsu matcha a couple days ago. I use an electric frother.

>>15306494
Just picked up some more duck shit, by far my favorite but it's more of a weekend drinker than everyday

>>15309753
Kind of horrifying. Looks like the baby from that live action dinosaur sitcom.

>>15308311
Has a shit ton of fluoride so enjoy having your bones rot off. Oolong and Pu'erhs seem most safe.

>>15309753
Did you buy him off aliexpress directly or did you go retard mode and bought an overpriced resold version on amazon? Pretty cute, good design, seems a little unpractical though since he's so large on your small tray. I'd prefer a smaller teapet if I was you. I fit 5 teapets on my large tray though.

>>15310753
i question their samples, they said the small young leaves had less fluoride than the larger older leaves and stems, but green tea is the young leaves and puer is made with the larger leaves. also they were probably using green tea bags not the stuff generally drunk in these threads which is probably what they've classed as 'pure'

how the fuck do people make flavourful masala chai without cooking that shit for at least an hour?

>>15310799
I just posted my version in the last thread.

>>15259838

>>15310765
It was a gift,so I don't know where the giver got it from. But I'm glad I got it, adds a little fun to my gong fu

And I do want to replace that tray with a larger one, since it gets crowded easily.

>>15310593
Not seeing it myself,

Hi euros, I'm in Paris for the holidays. I made some stops at Mariage Frêre and got a couple teas, my mom also recommended some at Chez Tang. Any other recommendations?

Anyone ever brew tea Russian style? I keep reading how they brew a sort of tea concentrate for communal use. Then when you want a cup, you pour in some tea concentrate, then dilute it with hot water. How does this compare to normal brewing styles? Seems like more work, but I wonder if it yields better flavor.

>>15311228
Mariage Frere is the big one. I know they aren't cheap but they are probably the best. I guess if you know french you could see if you can find a Chinese tea shop in paris that sells puer cakes and the like, but i don't know of any.

>>15311584
> I wonder if it yields better flavor.
I can almost guarantee that it yields a very strong dark bitter tea. It might be fun to try some time but russian taste in tea tends towards very strong and bitter, probably won't be to others taste.

>>15311228
Go to a Comptoire Richard, and ask for a Oolong Chataîgne. Like this:
Bonjour monsieur, ce serait pour acheter votre thé Oolong Chataigne s'il vous plait.

>>15310793
I generally agree and am baffled that they could not specify. It is very likely economy blends are teabags or loose leaf blends you see in malls and lady book stores for 2 euro per 100g.

Green blends will be those cheap lower quality loose leaf blends labeled as shit like ''citron sencha'', ''christmas green tea'', ''starberry green tea'' (just green tea made to smell like strawberry), etc.

Black blends will be the same weirdly labeled low end loose leaf stuff like ''black tea mango'', ''earl grey'', ''summer fruit'', ''chinese summer'', etc.

Pure blends will be as you said. Oolong and puerh is self explanatory.

I know this because this is what normalfag women think about when they say ''tea'' at least in europe/uk where the study was done.

>tl;dr they mostly tested low end loose leaf teas that you can buy at malls, craft stores, shitty basic bitch loose leaf teashop full of boomer women, etc.

>>15311584
yeah pretty much, google how a samowar works

I haven't had it in Russia, but they drink it in a similar style in (former) turkish lands

>>15312176
like this anon said, it (predictably) yields a very bitter brew, hence the need to dilute it. the reason they do it is convenience, not to get an optimal taste.

When I was in Kosovo for instance you'd see loads of these tea shops, where old men sit around all day and chill basically. Every 10 minutes or so the shop assistant will walk around with a kettle in each hand, one with the concentrate and one with fresh boiling water, mixing those as he refills your cup. costs about 10 cents per cup, good times

>>15313147
>Kosovo
How do you end up there? Not exactly a tourist town. I have a friend who grew up in Kazakhstan, i don't think he mentioned the tea.

I have been on a ripe puer kick lately. Is expensive ripe actually worth it? Anyone have any ripes they have been enjoying lately?

>>15315155
A lot of it's not worthit
but some LCT, GNWL, the TWL Hongtaichang and the 04 Hongtaichang are all worthit

>>15306634
They are based out of Russia and using very unconventional by western standards payment method. Further- Russia is basically on holiday as New Years is like their big Christmas celebration for us in the US, if that is where you are based from. Give them like a week and things should be rolling again.

My own experience is: payment is quirky, can take a few days to process. Email them and ask if they received pmt if you really want to be sure. Shipping is WILDLY fast. Like I get my order in about 3 days here in eastern US. Product is solid as hell and you will enjoy. Let us know what happens bruv

Setting up an 18qt cambro. 65 or 69% rh?

>>15304672
Any y'all niggas fw aged pu erh? I wanna try some and finna get tea drunk

>>15309753
Ok you gongfufaggots, Chad, Childs, and chinks alike, tell me; why the special tray for catching liquids? Do you really need it? Are you so in confident in your skills of pouring tea you need to create a special tray for spillage? Or is this an ancient Chinese secret into cleanup?
>t. Looking at tea trays, wondering if I should buy one or if it’s just something to waste money on

>>15315920
So I can dump the wash and simply not care about being messy, plus it's aesthetic

Imperial muscatel Darjeeling tonight. Doesn’t have quite the aroma of the Goomtree.

>>15304672
who cares

>>15315920
to catch spills, gaiwans spill easily & to catch washes/dregs at the end of a cup. mine is cheap nasty pulp 'wood' and they're a pain to clean up vs just a gaiwan, now i have a waste jug for dregs and drink the wash. it is convenient to keep all my tea stuff on

>>15315155
>Is expensive ripe actually worth it?
My tap water being hard, I found that water quality had a bigger impact on ripes than price when I upped my water game. Also, I didn't find 10+ year old aged ripes I had very interesting.

>>15313879
I do Eastern European studies, so I like travelling through former SU and Balkans for both business and pleasure

As far as your mate goes my guess is that he didn't mention it is because tea drinking is not considered a "special thing", but just something that everyone does daily (as opposed to gong fu ceremonies and such)

>>15315785
65% has a better margin of safety

Haul

>>15316792
Is that a big bowl of sugar on the table? Awesome

>>15317072
Big fan of earl grey?

>>15310875
There is a large 27 dollar tray on aliexpress. It advertises as 6 dollars but once you're about to buy it, it says 27 bucks. There's black, red and woodsy colored options. One has fish carved into it, if you like animals. I like it due to being spacious, I have a large dinner table I drink at anyway.

>>15310593
Oh shit it does. Wouldn't call it ugly though.

>>15304678
Why are they doing that and is it permanent?

I really hate when i taste a tea and think, this tea is good but it would be better after a decade in Guangdong. I don't feel like buying teas i don't plan on drinking for a decade, it seems silly.

>>15317753
They raise prices every year on all their stock. Same time every year.
>Yunnan Sourcing raises their prices by around 15-20% per year on average, typically around March. I have virtually no sympathy for the annual yearly whine from people have been drinking for a few years over YS raising their prices, as if it’s an unexpected affront. Scott’s prices are very predictable. Plan ahead!
https://teadb.org/when-do-vendors-raise-their-puerh-prices/

>>15317770
Is it only their older ones or do the new ones that come out also have that price? I'm new

>>15317862
The old teas will have their prices increased, the new teas they list this spring are typically slightly higher priced then last year but that is based more on the market prices for teas that year.
https://teadb.org/western-vendor-puerh-prices-at-conception-have-risen/

>>15317068
Thats what I figured. I went with 69 for the time being. I'm sure my shit is horrendously dry atm so I'll transition down to 65 when these bovedas are spent.

I'm a big fan of Oolongs but I only drink the shit from the teabags from the supermarket.
What teas are easily obtainable that shit on supermarket brand bullcrap?

>>15318432
both 65% and 69% should be fine. neither is super high risk of mold if you don't let the temperature suddenly drop and hit the dew point causing condensation. some will say one or the other will be better but there is a lack of any definitive data on what is ideal and what conditions lead exactly to witch outcomes or even what outcomes are most desirable

you can use ( http://www.dpcalc.org/ ) to help estimate risk.

i bought a oolong (apparently TGY) that is seemingly stale cause of bad storage in the tea-store. In the tea store it was stored in a huge tin, not very airtight and seemingly opened quite often, and i dont think they sell all that much.
Is there anything i can do to "revive" it so to say? humidify it or something like that, or should accept it being bad tea? i did a 5g/100ml to 30s infus in a gaiwan, and ill try some grandpa style.

if only royal mail didnt delay my what-cha order so much... but i guess taking precautions is good in the long run...

>>15318622
I usually run 65% heartfelt beads in my wooden humidor, but I've started tossing in 72 packs to combat the winter. An airtight cambro should mitigate my heater fucking things up slightly, so I'll see where the 69s have me sitting. In other news, I preordered a 7lb block of lion's mane spawn, so I'll have to rig up a little humidity tent when that ships.

>>15318625
you could try experimenting with humidity but it will probably not help an oolong and is not traditionally done. most teas that are not puer stay fresh longest when stored in a sealed, cool, dry, dark, odor free, oxygen free environment. you could try reroasting it like they traditionally do to improve old ball oolongs. next time you could ask the vendor how old their stock of tea is. for most teas fresher is better but properly stored tea can still be quite good even if stored for quite some time (multiple years). good stores that chose to use tins don't actually fill the big tins up all the way and instead frequently refill it from better storage in the back or from reorders.

>>15318651
>cambro?
sound interesting what product do you use?

>7lb block of lion's mane spawn
how many logs will that inoculate. that sounds like a lot.

>>15318671
hm yeah that makes sense, thanks. I've seen another store do it like that where they fill it up from the backroom, but some of the tins the clerk showed me in the were full to the brim (and im talking what looked to be 5L tins) with other teas, while the one i bought had like 1/8th left or so.
Of course there is the possibility that its just not very good tea to begin with and i am just not experienced enough to know the difference. which i think is the

I will def try roasting a bit of it some time, since i dont really enjoy it as it is.

>>15318731
>which i think is the
most probable

>>15318685
Cambros are just commercial food safe storage for kitchens. I just snagged one of these.

https://www.amazon.com/Cambro-18SFSP148-CamSquare-Storage-Container/dp/B0001MRVTA/

and the lid.

> logs will that inoculate

I used the wrong term. Its a 7lb block of

>FULLY COLONIZED Lions Mane substrate, ready to be poked, deflated & placed into fruiting conditions to immediately get growing Lions Mane mushrooms at home.

Its basically a spray and grow kit but 7x the size. Never had lions mane before, so it should be fun. Anyone fucked with making mushroom extracts?

>>15318828
>Cambros are just commercial food safe storage for kitchens. I just snagged one of these.
when you first said it i had wondered if you had one of these
https://www.cambro.com/Products/insulated-food-transport/insulated-front-loading-food-pan-carriers/
they look like the would work great for puer albeit they are very expensive
>I used the wrong term. Its a 7lb block of
ok that makes sense
>Never had lions mane before
neither have i.
>making mushroom extracts?
Nope but i like mushroom based vegetable soup broths

***CLAP CLAP*** Tea Review
here's every tea I drank in 2020
Raw
2012 Yunnan Mengku YUE CHEN YUE XIANG QI ZI Raw Puer disliked
Spring Morning Raw Puer good
2019 Golden Pig Raw Puer meh
2012 Xiaguan Zi Yun Hao Premium Raw Puer good
2007 Yi Pin Tang Yi Wu Zhi Chun Raw Puer disliked
2000 Yi Wu Huang Pian Matured Leaves Raw Puer disliked
Ripe
2019 Xiaguan Jinbang GAN Puer Ripe great
Xue Ju Shu Pu Snow Chrysanthemum Brick Ripe Puer good
10 Years Aged Rhyme Ripe Puer good
2020 Cozy Ripe Puer great
Hei cha
3 Crane Guangxi Liu Bao 0207 great
Gao Jia Shan Wild Fu Zhuan Hunan Brick great
2013 Cha Yu Lin Wu Long Mountain Fu Brick with Golden Flowers meh
2014 Gao Jia Shan Guan Gong Fu Brick from Hunan good preferred Wild Fu Zhuan
2013 Three Cranes 0307 Liu Bao good
2012 Gao Jian Shan Qian Liang Cha Hunan good
Black
Yunnan Black Gold Bi Luo Chun Black great
Imperial Pure Gold Bi Luo Chun Black of Feng Qing same as the cheaper stuff
Drunk on Red Sun-Dried Black great
Drunk on Red with Osmanthus Flower disliked
Drunk on Red with Snow Chrysanthemum meh
Longan Lapsang meileaf smoked lapsang great
Little Tong Mu meileaf unsmoked lapsang meh
Souchong Liquor meileaf unsmoked lapsang meh
High Mountain Red Ai Lao Mountain Black great
Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong Black Cured in King Orange good
B.A.D Bizarrely Aged Dianhong mei leaf Dianhong great
Oolong
Da Hong Pao Big Red Robe Wu Yi Shan Rock Oolong disliked
osmanthus Oolong Mei leaf good
Fancy Tie Guan Yin of Anxi Iron Goddess of Fujian good
Anxi Hairy Crab Mao Xie Fujian Oolong good
King of Duck Shit Aroma Dan Cong Oolong great
Green
Dragon Well mei leaf great
Premium Grade Dragon Well From Zhejiang good but mei leaf is cheaper
Mountain Green mei leaf meh
Imperial Grade Green Pure Bud Bi Luo Chun disliked, possibly the only 1 I really hated
Jasmine Pearls good
White
2012 shou mei/Gong Mei Fuding Shoumei Ba/i Cha White meh
Jinggu Sun-Dried Silver Needles White Cake good

>>15318913
Top 3 (in no order)
Gao Jia Shan Wild Fu Zhuan Hunan Brick
2020 King of Duck Shit Aroma Dan Cong Oolong
2019 Xiaguan Jinbang GAN Puer Ripe

Bottom 3 (in no oder)
Imperial Grade Green Pure Bud Bi Luo Chun
2000 Yi Wu Huang Pian Matured Leaves Raw Puer
2012 Yunnan Mengku YUE CHEN YUE XIANG QI ZI Raw Puer

>>15318432
Yeah I'm in the same situation, threw a big 69% in my cooler. It's taking its sweet time to humidify. Meter is still reading at 49% up from 46%

>>15318913
Based, thanks for the write up

yeah I drink twinings lemon scented tea how could you tell

I guess this would count as a tisane but does anyone here have any experience with making an authentic Jamaican sorrel?

I have the hibiscus flowers but recipes online are quite varied or vague in the ingredients and processes.

What are you drinking for New Year's? What are you listening to?

I got some Purple Grace Sheng Pu'er from West China Tea and have the President on the record player:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b5NbyOcdRQE

>>15319922
Withered sencha from JP, laying on bed chillin

>>15318447
Maybe try first some local tea shop, then move to online sellers anon. Ditch teabags, it's dust not tea.

>>15310593
Fucking lol'd, cannot unsee

>>15319922
I was drinking some three cranes old tree liu bao earlier, drinking strong ale and watching mad max 2

>>15318622
I have 72% bovedas, Humidity ranges between 68 - 71, sometimes going to 72, stays between 22C - 26C, I get temps drops twice a week down to 13C for around 6-8 hours

It's be great, no issues, not worried about.anything

I think people get unnecessary anxiety about many things when it comes to tea, Temp on induction for tetsu, is it ok for my tetsu to have a bit of rust, how do I properly use and maintain my clay pots, should I dedicate one type of tea to one pot, storage anxiety

Honestly, there really isn't need for all this concern, the only reason people mention these things is because on extreme ends then yes it can fuck up some stuff, like putting boiling water into a cold clay pot, having extreme humidity and consistently low temps in a bad pumi, not emptying out tetsu water and letting it sit and not dry

9/10, anything you do is fine, the average person doesn't need to be so anxious about all these details, there's a few common sense stuff and good practices, like preheating teawear with 60-70C water before putting in boiling etc

>>15317755
Most people agree with you and only buy tea they plan to drink within the next few years
Only a small amount of people concern themselves with long term home aging, and if they do, they'll get a tong or it doesn't make sense, and this is generally only done by people who are sitting on a large abundence of tea already where it's common to buy a tea and not drink it for years because they either forgot about it or had so much other tea to occupy them

Happy new years online friends, i hope we all will try out lots of nice teas in 2021

>>15304672
Am I a heretic if I leave the tea leaves in the cup? I actually enjoy the kick I get from really strong tea.

>>15319922
I will nice the news year off with. 2008 Nan Jian TuLin Wu Liang Organic shou puer that should be good to go. I will spend the morning continuing the MF Doom discography, or at least my favorite records.

>>15320768
Pardon the typos, been drinking

>>15305035
There's a whole world of better tea out there but it's cheap and if you enjoy it then carry on

Can anyone recommend a relaxing tea for the evenings? I'm going to try a little time being sober and would like something to sip after work.

>>15321270
Spearmint. Tastes good chilled, it's also very comfy when it's warm

>>15321282
Thanks! I think I'll pick some up. Happy New Year, anon.

>>15304697
I often take valerian root before bed, it can be brewed as a tea and a lot of brands just sell it in bags

>>15321286
You're welcome. Be sure to avoid any "sleepy time" tea in stores. It has a root that's the same as taking sleep medicine. It's why it says not to give it to children

>>15320744
very normal
http://www.marshaln.com/whats-grandpa-style/

>>15321656
whats this about grandpa style being "toxic"? from his tutorial
>5) Don’t add too much leaves. It’s very easy, when used to gongfu brewing, to use too much leaves for grandpa style. It’s very toxic.

>>15321270
>>15321282
Yes! I recommend spearmint too. Drinking it straight is interesting. It's not sweet like a toothpaste or gum, and a little more earthy, but the nuances are fantastic. Real spearmint is nice.

>>15322356
>whats this about grandpa style being "toxic"? from his tutorial
I really wish he didn't put that in his post.
He is trying to say if you add too much leaf that it will make you get nausea, like drinking fresh green tea on an empty stomach. He doesn't mean that it's poisonous.
I drink grampa style daily, 3 to 5 grams depending on the size of the mug. No problems

>>15304672
Thanks for that pastebin, whoever that maintains it. Been looking for some decent tea oolong sources for a while now.

Does anybody have some recommendations on good shit for cold brew? I've always really dug iced oolongs and greens. I rink a bit of hojicha as is. But was thinking of using some of my Christmas money to try splurging just a bit.

>>15323105
Enjoy anon, pls post feedback on what you get if you can.

>>15323109
I don't have any suggestions for fancy teas but some of the lighter blends from upton tea would probably be good, the robert fortune blend and the iced tea blend they make specifically.
Some of the black teas from yunnan sourcing could be interesting, their drunk on red and purple voodoo black tea cakes come to mind.

>>15323109
>>15323136
Oh also Margaret's Hope Tea Estate second flush darjeeling if you want something light and kind of fruity. I don't really have a recommended vendor for it but plenty of sites have it.

>>15308214
Don't call me a shill, I saw the tea/vendor mentioned in these threads and got interested, so I ordered some to try instead of whining for pictures of the wet leaf.

Anyway here goes: I've tried it a couple of times now and overall I'm pretty positive about the tea. The flavour is dominantly woody and wet leafy, and nothing too harsh, definitely a good candidate for a daily drinker. It's also ridiculously cheap: my normal daily shus are around 8-10 cents a gram, while this one comes to only 3.6c

>downsides
The flavour while solid is pretty one-dimensional
It only goes for about 5-6 steeps, which is 1-2 less then I'd like
It's still pretty young so still a little wet pile taste, although nothing major

Overall I'd say this tea can easily rival many shu cakes in the $25-$30 category, so don't expect anything amazing but it's definitely a solid daily drinker worth double its price

>>15323755
Also, someone in the previous thread asked about the herbal cake.

Normally I don't drink any herbal tea besides rooibos and moroccan mint, but this one was pretty nice. I was actually really surprised by how much of a relaxing effect it had on me.

The flavour is forest-like and mellow. Some of the comments said that it's very bitter but I didn't get that at all. Brewed 1 square for about 10 minutes in 300ml boiling water.

I'd say it's a good nighttime drink, or even better, while taking a bath.

>>15304672
Thanks for that pastebin, whoever that maintains it. Been looking for some decent tea oolong sources for a while now.

>>15324277
>>15323105
did you forget or something?

>>15324460
Actually, my internet has been acting up and my first post didn't register until it was too late.

>>15323762
Thanks for the write up anon. I definitely want to try some of the herbal stuff.

Thanks for that pastebin, whoever that maintains it. Been looking for some decent tea oolong sources for a while now.

Any recommendation for lavender? Bagged or loose dont matter, in USA.

Have been trying to grow my own, but fail.

>>15325327
Mountain Rose Herbs
There are also a few small herb farms that sell on etsy, just make sure they are US based and not shipping from china or something.

>>15325327
https://www.pelindabalavender.com/Organic-Culinary-Lavender-p/327.htm
https://www.lavendervalleyacres.com/product-page/lavender-valley-acres-culinary-buds
https://redrockfarms.com/culinary-lavender/

https://meileaf.com/tea/young-gushu-2020/
Drinking this, my first raw. Now I understand why people say the taste of puerh is "complex", this is quite different than other teas i've tried. The taste is beyond just "fruity" I can actually taste strawberry and banana in it, sweet, bitter then sweet again with some astringency, creamy and smooth. The smell of the actual liquor is really similar to a white, I can't really think of a good descriptor for it though.

>>15323762
what type of herbals does it contain senpai?

>>15306063
Rooibos on ice with a dash of Mango Nectar.

Hnnnggggg

>>15327228
Blooming Sally green
Melissa
Tutsan
Raspberry
Medicinal lungwort
Badan
Rose hip
Pine buds

https://moychay.com/catalog/herbal-tea-moychaycom/travyanoy-sbor-pressovannyy-lesnaya-tish-50-g

>>15326189
welcome to the fold

>>15319922
What gaiwan is that? Looks comfy.

>>15309753
I have brought shame to the thread. after my morning session I tripped while putting away my tea things, and one of my pet's claws chipped off an apparently left reality cause I can't find it to reattach it

>>15328601
you can still redeem yourself repairing your tea pet with Urushi Kintsugi.

does thick tea exist? something with density to it.

>>15329031
There is some matcha that is made to be brewed thick. Beyond that some puer and other teas have more viscosity than average but i don't know if you would describe them as thick.

>>15329031
ripe puer, gong fu brewing generally gives thicker tea and ripe will probably give the thickest.

Ctrl+F "Yerba Mate"

Ctrl+F "Tulsi"

No matches.

/ck/ I am disappoint.

If you truly enjoy tea then do yourself a favour and order these.

>>15319922
>What are you drinking for New Year's


I got some of this stuff for Christmas and just made a batch of cold brew last night. It tastes really good, and I can definitely feel the caffeine. I also got some green and herbal tea too, which I'll have to try later.

>>15306296
>Is Coffee technically a tisane?
Yes.

>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herbal_tea
>Coffee bean tea, or simply coffee, a tisane made from the seeds of the coffee plant

I've had a tea subscription to this thing called tearunners that my gf got me about a year ago. I tried a lot of what seem to be fancy teas in the last year. Has anyone heard of this place? I haven't seen it mentioned so I'm wondering if they just repack teas from somewhere else and charge more.

Can you recommend some good teas for getting into tea?
Where should I order from if I'm in Europe (I've looked at the pastebin but I wonder if there are other European stores)

>>15329550
chiswicktea are uk based, prices seem ok compared to yunnansourcing. drinking their honey orchid dan cong right now and its pretty good. definitely get a cheap gaiwan and try gongfu brewing

>>15329533
>I've had a tea subscription to this thing called tearunners that my gf got me about a year ago. I tried a lot of what seem to be fancy teas in the last year. Has anyone heard of this place?
I haven't, but I've seen services like that that looked interesting.

>I haven't seen it mentioned so I'm wondering if they just repack teas from somewhere else and charge more.
I'm sure that's what they do in order to make money. You pay a premium in exchange for the wider variety and interesting flavors like cinnamon plum.

>>15321656
>>15322356
One thing I noticed about 'Grandpa Style' is that most leaves can't deal with a second infusion. Every time that I've tried, they taste watered down and stale.

Does anybody know where I can buy black tea with chilis in it? I found this on amazon, but they only sell it in bulk right now, and I'm not looking for $40 worth of tea.

>>15329404
>Muh Mate
It's in the pastebin, fren.

>>15318916
What's the deal with that Xiaguan Jinbang cake? Just got one in the mail yesterday on a whim. Also grabbed a King Tea Mall ripe puerh. Basically all buds. Looks good, John even recommended it to me himself. Wrapper says "Canlight" on it, whatever that means.

>>15329578
whats special about the gaiwan? looks like a fancy cup

>>15329404
I actually found a pretty cool mate seller, they are in the pastebin somewhere. They have almost ever major brand and variety of south american mate, with pretty decent descriptions of what each is like. Very fun to browse through and pick some out to try. Decent prices too.
I should probably just add mountain rose herbs to the pastebin they have a good selection of things like tulsi at least 2 or 3 varieties of it iirc.

>>15329608
Personally I tend to do my first one to two infusions at a lower temp.
Really kinda depends on the tea though, some last longer for sure.

>>15329759
>What's the deal with that Xiaguan Jinbang cake?
just a good cheap ripe
>>15329797
you brew in the gaiwan then drain the tea out to drink using the lid. large volume for leaf to hydrate and expand vs a leaf holder and easiest thing to clean. also best way to do gonfu and you can brew western style in it too

>>15329759
>What's the deal with that Xiaguan Jinbang cake?
Not him, the Jin bang stuff from xiaguan seems to be a new thing they started a few years ago, they are mostly very classic recipes like # cakes and tuos but made with a higher grade of material than the general productions. Scott from yunnan sourcing also has it listed as "sweet puer" and he also seems to have zoned in on it being very good ripe for the price.
Pls post your thoughts on the KTM ripe when you can, i was eyeing that.

if i wanna experiment with roasting some tea, would using an oven or a pan be the wisest? anyone have experience with either?

what are some good loose teas on amazon?

>>15330544
vahdam sells on amazon, a bit cheaper through their website

Why does chamomile smell like cum?

>>15330508
If you have a stainless steel or cast iron pan that would probably be a good starting point. You probably don't want to roast tea in the oven.

>>15330544
Anything from the dayi tae tea official store
https://www.amazon.com/stores/page/13C2EA08-0075-49A9-BFCD-163233DD6D39
Black tea ripe = ripe puer
Black tea or black tea raw = raw puer

>>15330778
>dayi tae tea official store
>https://www.amazon.com/stores/page/13C2EA08-0075-49A9-BFCD-163233DD6D39
they charge way too much there.

>>15331203
You aren't wrong that thr prices are high but "good tea on amazon" is pretty slim pickings.

>>15330544
The sencha green tea that Ocha & Co. carries on amazon tastes pretty darn good for the price I think.

>>15329797
The gaiwan is a brewing vessel, not something you drink out of

The best thing about a gaiwan compared to western brewing is that you gradually coax out the flavours. While western brewing would give you 2*300ml which roughly taste the same, a gaiwan will give 7*100ml where all 7 portions will taste differently

>>15331502
>not something you drink out of
I use a duplicate Gaiwan as my teacup.

>>15305565
Samples came in the mail today, I started with the Hubei Province Keemun Ji Hong (free sample). Very earthy with mouth lubricating eucalyptus notes and a slight sweetness. All in all good experience, I'm excited to try the others as I still know very little, but its too late for me to drink more tea so it will have to wait for tomorrow.

how'd I do
did I buy trash

>>15329608
I haven't really experiened that, I use either Yancha or aged sheng
maybe you drink too close to the bottom?

>>15331502
Gaiwan is often used as a grandpa brewing vessell

where you are drinking directly out of it, using the lid so leaves don't come through

>>15331444
Checked, also has anyone tried the dragon well tea from amazon? They have a lot from jinglong tea factory some shed some new and I was looking at trying some

>>15320062
Is it normal that every store sells low quality looking tea? Looks barely like the stuff online. Looks way smaller and more torn apart leaves.

>>15325327
>https://youtu.be/T7WmpxVhjfw

Shit gives you gyno.

>>15329578
>uk based
Enjoy brexit custom taxes that go as high as 30 wasted euros. It's not 2020 anymore.

>>15333925
yeah looking forward to getting fucked cause of the royal mail delay

2020 has been a peak pu er year for me. 2021 might be a oolong one.

>>15333925
>buying anything from europe
good thing my tea is grown in china and india

https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=&sl=auto&tl=en&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.puercn.com%2Fzhishi%2F14086%2F

some gongfu tips from dayi for your reading pleasure

>>15333925
It's not really a big deal

There will be customs tax from EU > UK and UK > EU

I live in UK, so UK>UK is fine, there aren't many shops I give a fuck about based in EU for Tea, I can't remember the time I last purchased some tea from an EU country

Direct from asia > UK doesn't get tax
you only get customs charge on things like yixing pots, but not tea itself

>>15334439
some of this is not bad advice
1:20 ratio though is a bit too low for my taste
Some uneccesary thing's here, goes on too much about "ceremony" bullshit
makes tea making seem way-way-way more complex than it actually is at times

but generally I suppose it's not too bad of a deep dive into tea making

Porcelain or clay pot, don't use a pot for a tea because It's X clay, but because that clay performs well from experience with that type of tea (to your taste)

Fairness Pitcher is up to you, just use a big cup if you go solo to save hassle

Water is extremely important, get good water

1:15 Ratio is the standard nowadays / in the west, 5-10 second rinses, then 10-20sec initial brew times, adding 0-10 seconds each time, then pushing to like 30 seconds - 1 minute accoridng to taste (this is all adjustable and shouldn't be directly followed, even ratio, this is just standard for first knowing a new tea)

Ignore ceremony autism, it doesn't make better tea, so ignore it

Weigh out your ratio's

Just use Boiling water for every shou and sheng, I've never experienced a bad brew because I didn't have 95C water, it just is bullshit

Don't go too autism about breaking into a cake, just don't crush and smash everything while you get leaves out, often people just break some cake off with their hands / fingers

I agree wtih tea enviroment, should be clean and fresh, but it's w/e, doesn't make better tea so ignore

pre-warm your teaware with 60-70c water, especially your clayware, don't cry when they crack because you put in boiling water into a dry and cold pot

either go dry brew or wet brew, up to you, try both, see what you prefer, wet brew is considerd to be hotter so you can extract more, but it's not "better", it's 50/50

fuck your guests, just give them tea, don't go full autism with your dumb ass elegance of hand motions or whatever the fuck

honestly I suppose their brew ratio's and times aren't so bad, I go low ratio / long steeps decently often

>>15304672
Coffee fag here.

I couldnt care less about fancy chinese tea brews, I just wanna improve my once a few days milk based English teas that I have during my big omlette breaky. I usually use the 50 pack high value cheap stuff. Are there better or more interesting tea leaves for milk based teas you can suggest?

>>15334767
PG Tips or Yorkshire gold for your tea with milk.

>Milk tea
Bewley's Dublin Morning or Irish Breakfast

>>15334767
Go all in and get CTC loose leaf assam. Only stuff that I've had that holds its own with milk. That or mix it with smoked teas from China.

>>15334764
Thanks for transcribing that.
It's one of the better sets of brewing instructions i have seen

>>15335116
no, that's his version. just read the google translated article.

>>15334767
Get a loose-leaf english or irish breakfast blend from upton tea if you live in the us. Ctc irish breakfast like anon recommend will really demand milk. They sell 100 packs of teabags you can fill yourself for maximum easy brewing.

>>15330508
I've roasted on stainless steel, don't hear it too much, stir constantly and remove from the fire ocasionally to keep the pan temperature low and you'll be fine, I usually stop when the color hasn't uniformly changed but the smell is noticeably stronger. The first time I tried some leaves burned before they all looked toasted, I guess because I used low grade tea and the leaf size varied a lot.

Isn't bone broth just savory meat tea?

>>15335608
"beef tea" was a thing. Still is but I have no idea who actually drinks it in this day and age.
Also bone "broth" is stock.

>>15335083
>>15335561
>>15334767
guy wants to up his british teabag game.
cue /tea/ "experts"
>buy loose leaf, fill your own teabag, reeee

>>15335624
Brits are bad at tea, just as they are with food in general. Bagged tea is tasteless dust.

>>15335624
the post does ask for tea leaves.

>>15335624
>guy wants to up his british teabag game
>up his british teabag game
dust is dust, doesn't matter which brand you buy.
cheap loose > overpriced 'luxury' bagged

>completely missing the point

is it discord o'clock already? god damn. I'll take my leave.

>>15335622
i know that broth is stock

>>15335636
This. All anon would need is a brew basket fir a mug or wire mess strainer to dump the brew contents over.

>>15304672
i dont like caffeine or liver damage (rooibos), what good tea would you recommend?

>>15336064
tea has less caffeine than coffee, its a lot more mellow, more like a background noise vs a slap in the face. caffeine by tea style doesn't really change. there's always herbal/fruit teas or japanese barley tea

If I heat water on the stovetop, approximately how any degrees celsius is the water when the first small bubbles start to appear?

>>15334767
>milk based tea
For me it's jin xuan, aka milky oolong
But God forbid any milk in there

>>15336105
White teas can be really high in caffeine, and amount absorbed depends on preparation

>>15336207
https://www.goldenmoontea.com/blogs/tea/106687623-the-5-different-stages-of-boiling-water-and-how-the-chinese-use-them-for-tea#:~:text=Crab%20eyes%20are%20slightly%20larger%20bubbles.%20The%20important,Chinese%20green%20teas%2C%20green%20oolongs%20and%20white%20tea.

>>15336105
i put a physical caffein addiction due to overconsumption of green tea behind me, i still love tea but i wont get close to black green and other heavily ceaffeinated ones - will have a look at barely tea ty - with fruit teas i often encounter chemical shit such as aromas etc

>>15336309
Thanks

anyone know where I can get a cake of this 2019 XiaGuan “Jin Bang Gan Pu Er”
with cheap shipping? i love KTM but they are not very good for getting single cakes.

>>15331568
Clever

https://www.dobratea.com/
This place is pretty great despite the fact you usually have to venture into some awful shitlib hive to go to one. They have pretty nice bulk tea for sale and will prepare it for you in the proper manner in a sit-down setting. I used to go to the one in Vermont a ways back when I lived there and would spend hours there with study material.

Do you all keep your multi-infusion leaves in something to keep them overnight? Could I take a gaiwan and put it in the refrigerator for a few days until I'm ready to drink more infusions from it?

>>15337234
True story i visited a Dobra a while ago and there was a sign on the cash register asking customers not to assume their clerks gender identity. I will agree that they sell some actual drinkable, puer cakes and other teas, a bit pricey compared to online but worth visiting if you are near one.

>>15337234
>Do you all keep your multi-infusion leaves in something to keep them overnight? Could I take a gaiwan and put it in the refrigerator for a few days until I'm ready to drink more infusions from it?

I think the wet tea leaves are generally best used fresh but you could safely store it in the fridge for a bit i just may not taste quite the same. my recommendation is just try and get a smaller brewing device if you want less tea. for example:
https://yunnansourcing.com/collections/gaiwans/products/classic-white-porcelain-small-gaiwan-60ml

>>15337234
can watch this, https://youtu.be/Xfog_jJ9zis?t=687
basically dry them out on a towel.
i would probably "finish" the leaves off instead of trying to store wet leaves though, either by more infusions in a gaiwan or just brewing grandpa/western.

>>15337234
>Do you all keep your multi-infusion leaves in something to keep them overnight? Could I take a gaiwan and put it in the refrigerator for a few days until I'm ready to drink more infusions from it?
Don't put em in the fridge, you can leave em in a gaiwan overnight with the lid off. I would not really save wet leaves for longer than 24hrs

im new to loose tea,
how many cuppas does 2 oz make?

>>15336667
I dunno man, got mine from KTM. Try searching Puershop, they ship from Michigan and still have a pretty big variety. May have it.

Lots of people been talking about this one lately. I haven't tried mine but some other people were telling me it's a nice drinker made with higher quality materials than the usual cakes/tuos. I also grabbed a cake of Xiaguan black tea that is fine as hell, and smaller cakes from Xiaguan and Dayi. Just little 100 bangers. Hope they are good too.

>>15337642
>I also grabbed a cake of Xiaguan black tea that is fine as hell,
I got one of those last year, really good. Complex black tea. Had some silly name like apex of cloudy fog mountain or some shit.

>>15329983
Thanks for explaining that to me anon. Saw another person post about it later on, must be popular stuff. I can't wait to dig into it, but I have other to work on first.
As for that KTM ripe, I tried it. John's description on the site is right- it's mellow and easy to drink all day. Has a decent dark chocolate sort of vibe, maybe some maple deep in there, and a pleasant floral pop to it. Very little to none of that umami tate/smell you sometimes can get with ripes. A little astringency adds some layers of complexity, and I get the faintest bit of minerality upon swallowing. On the bad side, it doesn't really linger on the palate very long. It is indeed a mild drinker, doesn't punch with flavor each sip, but it is flavorful and gentle. I agree that I could drink it all day without issue. For the price, I think $15 or something, it's more than worth it I think. Great value.

>>15337581
Roughly 2-4 grams per cup depending on how strong you want it and how big your cup is.
>>15337727
Thanks for the description, it's nice when good cheap tea is just honestly called good cheap tea.

>>15337581
I would say 15-20 sessions of multiple steeps, fewer sessions if you are going gong-fu

It was when i realised finishing a 50g bag takes quite a bit of time i started to justify buying more expensive teas