/ck/ - Food & Cooking

What is the best tasting tea you have tried?
What is your least favorite type of tea?

It was fun playing detective for some miscellaneous gift mini tuo. My notes on the 2003 Yunnan pu'er of unknown origin:
_________
5.5g/205F/12s

Dry leaf was vaguely sweet. Brewed leaf smells smoky, and like lightly sweet, toasted bread.

Medium thickness, high astringency, low bitterness. This mystery pu'er enters with smooth, light smokiness which seems very slightly 'tobacco' in nature, and dips off with some rather understated, nondescript sweetness. Retronasal aroma isn't notable. The aftertaste carries both the sweetness and smoke equally, which is rather pleasant.

Increasing the brew time to 30s provided deeper consistency and stay. Longer infusions did the same, but rounded off the already low sweetness some, and increased smoothness very well. This suggests to me that it may be a shou pu'er. It isn't amazing me, but I am surprised to find a mini tuo that is palatable for once.
>>15961077
Feel free to read the text above. I posted the dry leaf because it is an unknown tea, so I thought some anons may enjoy seeing the contents inside.
>>15961121
If you get one again, post about it. It's not a rockstar or anything, but I haven't had a mini tuo that didn't immediately repulse me before. Kind of neat in that regard. Also of note, this is the oldest tea I have consumed to date.

>>15961251
Interesting, i might still have it somewhere, i will take a look tomorrow.
Did you get any fermentation funk?

>>15961291
>Interesting, i might still have it somewhere, i will take a look tomorrow
Nice, it would be neat to see how you interpret yours too. It feels kind of dorky to write a full journal entry for something like this, but also fun too. It makes me wonder how I should write up notes for all 10 varieties of the nasty Fullchea gift bag mini tuos.
>Did you get any fermentation funk?
To clarify, what do you mean by "fermentation funk"? If you mean something like a damp basement/cardboard flavor, I personally don't think so. It doesn't seem notably acidic either. It is pretty straight-forward, and not tough to sip on for me. I will say that it's also kind of warming compared to most of my recent teas.

>inb4 the puer lesbian takes out her grief from domestic abuse on this thread
>inb4 30 posts of nonsense belligerence from the puer lesbian

has anyone ever tried brewing tea in a vacuum pot, or is it strictly only used for coffee?

>>15961491
You could do it, i don't think you would get any benefit out of it. When brewing with a vacuum pot the water is almost at a full boil during the whole time it's contacting the coffee, i think it might end up overbrewing the tea if you kept it going for the typical couple of minutes you brew tea.
Other than the fact that vacuum pots are really cool i don't really see the point.

>>15961344
By fermentation funk i mean fishy, dank flavors, things that remind you of the smell of a fishing pier

>>15961199
I need more experience to claim a "best tasting" tea, but three that come to mind are a 2013 Anhua Tian Jian (dark tea), 2016 Shou Mei (white tea), and 2017 Taetea sheng pu'er. I think two characteristics I tend to enjoy most are buzzing 'crispness' in texture and relatable flavor profiles. Aromas can be nice, but if there is nothing on the palate or retronasally, I think I'll tend towards wanting for more. As for least favorite, black teas since I've had the most stomach aches from them historically. I will not shun any tea based on type alone, though.
>>15961515
None of that, thankfully. The only tea that I've had to my memory that was anything like that was a 2014 Gong Ting shou. I think I've been pretty lucky in that regard.

yoooo, yixingpottemgottem and puer shiesty linked up! need it or keep it??!

any fullchea black tea recs? (that you have actually tried)

>>15961834
>yoooo, yixingpottemgottem and puer shiesty linked up! need it or keep it??!
why did this make me laugh god damn it

>>15961834
>any fullchea black tea recs?
Oh yeah
>(that you have actually tried)
Oh nope
Go for stuff in retail packaging and not their own bulk looseleaf stuff.

For me, it's Ahmad Tea Gunpowder Supreme.

>>15962076
Is it good? Can you compare it to Temple of Heaven gunpowder?

Shandong Laoshan Black tea really hits different

>>15961199
>What is the best tasting tea you have tried?
It's a cruel joke that the best tea I ever had is the now-unavailable early-2000s White Whale sheng from W2T. It had a strong and distinct lemony maritime taste, and would remain strong just from flash steeps for the first eight infusions or so. I was a fool not to buy more than the single 100g brick.
>What is your least favorite type of tea?
Scented teas, if they count. I like all the major categories of Chinese-style teas; I don't really care for bracing Indian blacks like Assam, but they're built for UK-style brewing with milk and sugar, not gongfu.

has anyone tried any of CNNP's butterfly brand white tea cakes? fullchea sells some of the line and i am kind of tempted to try some. also does anyone have any other recommendations for good white tea cakes? (i posted this in the last thread but i think it got missed so i am reposting.)

Gyokuro is the best tea you're not drinking.

Brewed up a cup of this 2019 Fujian Hong Mu Dan Oolong Tea from chawangshop $6 for 50g.
It's pretty damn good for a cheap oolong. It has a pretty prominent savory umami note, a moderate roast and a clean taste. It lacks the minerality of some wuyi oolongs but for the price it's pretty damn good. Would recommended to anyone who likes oolongs with some roast on them.

>>15961199
$10 / gram Wu Yi Heritage 2019 Laocong TLH from Sanyangfeng

Wild Varietal's

>>15964454
Is that pot ROC era?

tfw puer lesbian but ur gf doesn't like tea

>>15964840
qing

>>15964915
get a new girlfriend

welp puer is dead, long live oolong

>>15964915
and thats why you beat her til she learns

>>15964915
how bad are her bruises?

I have nine more of ten of the garbage Fullchea gift bag mini tuos to taste. I greatly disliked the first one I had, but am committed to doing this. I'm planning on documenting every single one, but unsure how I should organize and express my notes. I don't think it would be pleasant for most to read me killing myself with nine terrible teas in detail each time I post my results either. Any thoughts?

>>15965689
Do it like a bracket and determine the king of the shit nuggets, then you can post the highlights from each showdown.
Single elimination unless you hate yourself

>>15961251
thanks tasting notes and pictures. glad to hear it was drinkable.

>it may be a shou pu'er
it looks like shu to me from the pictures

>this is the oldest tea I have consumed to date.
i am not sure i would 100% trust the age on a cheap no-name mini tou. it could still be accurate though. mini tuo shou are usually cheap daily drinker style teas and i question why someone would age it that long instead of something nicer (warehouse space is not free and big brand stuff goes up in value more).

>>15965727
Not him
Yeah i find it pretty unlikely that mini tuos from 2003 would be individually dated, it's possible, but it would be much more believable on something post 2007.

>>15965725
That's an interesting idea anon, thanks for the suggestion. I may definitely try something in that manner with my testing. Though, I already tested one of the teas in a full journal entry, and I think trying to remember how terrible each tea is on a scale over time might be difficult, especially with this many and such a potentially low quality bar. I could shotgun them one by one like it's a battle royale (I have two same gaiwans and cups). Though, that might prove to be difficult to read through accurately, and undoubtedly unhealthy.
>>15965727
>i am not sure i would 100% trust the age on a cheap no-name mini tou.
You make a fair point. Still, I was expecting it to be so-so or foul. I do have my mini tuos from the gift bag set, but I'm curious how the two freebie mini tuos will be as well. They don't appear to be a part of the gift bag set teas, and smell rather nice through the paper, but I doubt that will mean much in the end.

Does water really matter? Is brita filtered water okay? If not what water should I get for nicer teas?

>>15965913
Yes water matters
Britta may or may not be good enough depending on the quality of your tap water
Ideall solutions would be under sink water filtration with a separate filtered tap, or even better reverse osmosis combined with a remineralization unit to keep the mineral content at a consistent repeatable level.
I personally use a pur brand filter and it's slow but it works well enough for my fairly hard water.

Anons, what are the weirdest aromas and flavor notes you've had in tea thus far? The brewed leaf of one sheng I'm trying right now smells like salty meat somehow. It is absolutely bizarre.

Do any of you puritans habe any good recipes for boba?

>>15966359
Buy tapioca pearls, cook them, brew black tea, add 1/4 cup sweetened condensed milk to about 16oz of tea, add tapioca pearls. Get fatty straws on amazon or ebay or wherever.

>>15966259
I have had some meaty savory teas before.
Weirdest was some tea that made my tongue feel numb, no idea what it was, some tea bloggers claim that it's pesticides but im not convinced, i thought they were exaggerating untill i experienced it myself.

>>15966359
I use a scented green tea, a matching syrup, and a little simple syrup made with half brown sugar. But more basic would be a black tea and sweetened condensed milk.

Thanks to the anon that mentioned hojicha. I served it to my friends after making them too much food and they loved it.

>>15966444
Yeah hojicha is great, it's just such a nice pleasant beverage.
I must be getting old, im really enjoying more mild teas lately

For asian method of brewing tea do I really need that tea tray? I have a small clay teapot and also a gaiwan (that I've never used) but I got some more delicate and interesting teas, so I'd like to do it a bit more properly since I usually have always done everything western style

Just got through journaling about 03/10 of the Fullchea gift bag mini tuos in one sitting. Took a while, but I found one that was decent; the "Dried Tangerine Ripe Pu'er". I can't pick up the tangerine flavor at all, but it smells like molasses and has a flavor that reminds me of sweet rice. I can get a quick pic if anyone wants to see. It's surprisingly fun to rapidly taste different mini tuos either way, though. I feel like I'm grinding in a tea RPG by cutting up low-level field mobs. I think I can comfortably finish the whole set and establish a tier list within a few days at this rate. I'll probably do one more today.

>>15966581
>Tea tray
I have never used a tea tray, and I've been brewing with a gaiwan for months now. I just have a dreadful pop-up wooden table, and wipe off spills when they happen. If you have something like a small Pyrex bowl, you can do what I do and just pour waste water and undesirable tea matter in there. I've even been feeding remainder tea contents to my snake plant, and it has been doing very well as a result (even grew new shoots!). I would personally recommend getting a fairness cup, though.

>>15966581
No, you don't need a tea tray, I've never used one. Put the teapot in a small bowl or plate to catch splashes when you fill it. Put the cup your are pouring into on a coaster or saucer and have a small bowl or mug or whatever nearby to pour wastewater or rinse into and you are good to go. A small towel you can use for drips helps too.

>>15966591
> I feel like I'm grinding in a tea RPG by cutting up low-level field mobs
Kek, too bad it doesn't have a strong tangerine flavor, i enjoy a nice tangerine ripe from time to time. Something to get if you ever feel the urge to order from white 2 tea

>>15966581
Fuuuuuuuuuuuck no.
Personally I keep my gaiwan and cup to pour into on one of those silicon/rubber trivets you put hot dishes on.
You are basically guaranteed to spill occasionally so I'd really recommend something easy to clean.

>>15966581
>For asian method of brewing tea do I really need that tea tray?
it is not needed accessory at all if your only goal is making good tea. get one if you like the aesthetic or you are trying to be formal. if you have any other questions about gong fu brewing or tea in general someone here can probably help.
.
>>15966591
>I think I can comfortably finish the whole set and establish a tier list within a few days at this rate.
i look forward to seeing it.

>>15966633
Thank you, l'll consider that recommendation someday after I've gotten a sufficient fix of whites and darks. All said, this tea has a fair few chunks of the tangerine that rehydrated well. If I nibble on one directly, I can pick up some of the flavor, but it isn't very pronounced. I think that is why it has its sweet characteristics, but doesn't hit 'fruity' or 'citrus'.
>>15966647
Do you have any thoughts on what I should do with my journal notes? I will not be posting them to the thread due to the sheer quantity of text and images. Not sure if anyone would want to read about that much bottom-tier tea anyway. I guess I could just post the tier list with some short notes and be done with it if you think that will still be of value.

early morning oolong

normal morning puer
This is the 2006 Myanmar from chawangshop
I will post a review once i buy a few tongs
:)

>>15966876
>Do you have any thoughts on what I should do with my journal notes?
for the grab bag minis perhaps you could try summarizing each one in a line or two and put them all in one post if you are trying to keep things short.

as a note aged orange peal is called Chenpi. a number of sites sell Chenpi with shu and you can buy the Chenpi on its own at fullchea.

>>15963161
anyone here have any compressed white tea recommendations? i was considering getting one of the CNNP cakes from fullchea but wanted some advice on what to look for.

>>15968682
fucking grose

Where do you guys get your black teas from? I get pu'erh from the Yunnan Sourcing guy and greens from Ippodo, and my go-to black is an Imperial Lapsang from Upton's, but Upton's specializes in greens so I was wondering what a good supplier for a comparable tea (soft preference on lapsang) might be.

>>15969415
Upton seems fine for blacks. Lapsang is kind of tricky because the upmarket versions are either not smoked at all or barely smoked. For example i have heard the lapsang from yunnan sourcing is barely smoked, i bought some from a Chinese domestic brand (wuyi star) and it was very lightly charcoal roasted. tea-expert.net has a bunch of lapsang including a 10 variety sampler but none of it is smoked other than a couple that are very lightly smoked.

>>15968896
anything Gong Mei is best from my experience

is yellow tea worth trying?

>>15970290
I mean it's a fun novelty, but the two kinds I've had just tasted like slightly stale green tea

>>15970459
>but the two kinds I've had just tasted like slightly stale green tea
Sounds awful

For this years black tea should i get second flush Darjeeling or some kind of dian hong?

>>15971290
We're getting the 2nd flush Darjeeling inshallah

Finished poisoning myself with seven of ten flavors from Fullchea's mini tuo gift bag set earlier. All quite different, few particularly desirable, but all insightful to some degree. Certainly, most if not all (including shous) benefit from short brew times due to delicate, very small leaf bits. Small review and reward show slated for tomorrow. Perhaps it will interest those anons who want to know more about these teas, but have the sense to not buy them.

>>15972471
I think I remember telling you to not buy them or from Fullchea
always nice to be validated

>>15972791
fullchea is fine for the most part
You certainly didn't offer anyone "advice" before they ordered

>>15973103
but i did
and no they're not

>>15973106
There is value in warehouse type stores with large inventories and little curation just like there is vale in highly curated stores with limited options. Nobody here is just pointing people in the direction of fullchea and telling them to figure it out, they are recommending specific teas that are good.
Outside of 2 or 3 cakes from twl your advice typically consists of linking to stores with 200£ cakes and telling people to figure it out.

>>15972471
I look forward to reading you.

What's a good source for sencha tea? I usually only make yorkshire gold and green tea but realized you aren't supposed to use Boling water for green tea so I got this

>>15973682
Check the pastebin. Buying from japan is preferred but they are only offering express shipping because of bat flu.
There should be at least a couple vendors for every part of the world with Japanese greens, make sure they list year of harvest and its 2021.
You want it fresh

How long till second flush Darjeeling becomes available for the year?

>>15974847
second flush is a summer picking

>>15974869
But when, june, July, August?

>>15961184
give moroccan mint tea some appreciation pls

>>15974987
It's good, i keep some gunpowder green around to make it. I really need to start some mint this year so i have it fresh, it's just not the same when i make it woth dried mint.

Lads. It has arrived.

>>15975036
Oh shit
Looks good anon, absolute gobs of texture

>>15975036
And a darker lighting. Arrived much faster than the set it is replacing. Hopefully my cat will keep the fuck away from it.

Glaze texture is wonderful. Covered in pits and pinholes, each iron blossom/spot breaks the feel of the glaze. Makes for a Really unique feeling

Gonna perform the sets first session now

>>15970290
I assumed it was a meme at first but I was pleasantly surprised when I tried it. It has the lightness of a white tea but it's very sweet with only a hint of the vegetal flavor of a green tea. Might not be for everyone but I found it very pleasant.

Recommend me some kukicha please

>>15975039
Yeah the pieces feel fantastic. Just for you, interior shot of the cup.
Notice the patch where the glaze has refused to adhere to. Beautiful

>>15975049
My phone is an ass.
But look, looks like mars doesn't it

>>15975059
Great color tones
What are you going to brew in it?

>>15975223
Just finishing the first steep of 7g of Pure bud Bi Luo Chun From YS. Going to put some Sheng into it later, probably one of my cakes from Crimson lotus, and probably their 2018 daydream to be specific.

Since there's so much iron burnt through the glaze, you can clearly see it shimmer and shine beneath the liquor, unlike my prior set. Looks lovely.

>>15975243
Nice, how are the teas from crimson lotus? I haven't tried anything from them yet.

>>15975297
Only had their Shengs. But from my experience they have Very accurate tasting notes, and very tasty tea that's easily separated from the rest of the cake. Been meaning to order one of their Shous, but haven't gotten around to it.

Also the wrapper art is cute, so I consider that a plus. Also their Seattle inventory ships faster than anything beside verdant tea in the US, its impressively quick.

>>15975059
ive heard how iron affects the taste of the tea from yixing etc. Do you think that you will notice any difference? im not sure how the glaze works in this teaware

>>15975410
I'm suffering from my spring allergies at the moment, and have been rather stuffed up, so I don't know if I will.

But the black tea I am drinking now does different from how it was brewed in my back up gaiwan. But I can't tell if that's because my sense of smell is compromised due to pollen, because this gaiwan is larger and more open, simple placebo, or the iron.

I would however, think that it would affect the tea, as I have a silver tea pot and it VERY much affects the tea you put in it. Turns one of the bitterest Sheng's I have, YS' Purple pig, sweet and entirely devoid of sour/ acrid notes. And I'd call that tea medicinal, so that'd lend some credence to the iron impacting the tea.

Still tastes good, still gets me tea drunk, so I'm not complaining. Most I can say is the Bi Luo Chun feels more...intermingled with itself, like the notes of the flavor profile more seamlessly transition to the next.

But again, that could just be any number of factors, including the tea aging. So who knows really, but I considering my experience with silver, I'd lean more towards the iron having something to do with it.

but who can say, really.

>>15975036
>>15975040
>>15975059
Wild textures. Reminds me of buttery pancakes and sunny-side eggs. I remember you posting about getting new teaware not long ago, though were these replacements for broken teaware or just an upgrade? May we see it with some tea brewed inside?

>>15975512
I can see that. Kind of looks like Shakshuka when I think of it like that.

And they're a replacement. Cat broke the old set, but I actually think I prefer this one. Its made on a different clay and has a more interesting look and texture.

And sure. Unfortunately I could not capture the shimmering effect. May try to with less tea or a lighter liquor later

Also guest starring my three tea pets.

>>15975543
Love that tea pet

>>15973106
what's your problem with fullchea? I'm not that guy but i'm going to say you're wrong. Are you one of those people that insists on drinking the finest gourmet tea that costs 5 dollars a gram?

>>15975617
because their tea is not worth even how cheap it is
you cant get more bottom barrell than what fullchea offers you

why do people get so personally insulted when you tell them you may be buying bad tea from a bad vendor
can you fuck off?

>>15975645
I'm not personally insulted but you're being an elitist and that attitude causes outsiders and beginners to have a negative experience and results in their opinion of the community turning sour. It certainly isn't pinnacle quality tea but if you're drinking large quantities just for yourself I think it's most definitely worth the price when you factor in quality and quantity vs cost. I disagree with you saying their tea isn't worth it and that you can't get anything lower quality. When you look at price per gram you are certainly getting what you pay for.

>>15975674
Not him, but I can attest that there is far deeper depths of shit. Like T2T, which is so artifically flavored a mere whiff of their leaf makes me ill. their "milky oolong" smelled like the cheapest candy apples you could buy and their assam labled as containing "just black tea" Smelled and tasted like Vics vapor rub

there is absolute dog shit out in the market, but thankfully its really easy to avoid

>>15975674
how am I being elitist? you assume I'm suggesting people go out and by $$$$$ tea
there's so many western facing vendors that offer much much much better tea for decent prices
$0.10/gram for fine stuff

>>15975702
Fullchea has a decent selection of several of the largest puer factories, are you saying dayi, xiaguan, mengku all suck?

>>15975692
Oh and they also have blends that include cheapo chocolate chips. fuckin disgusting

I mainly drink green tea (Gyokuro especially), what would be a good introduction to white and/or black tea?

>>15975720
Im saying the storage on those cakes / recipe + age on those cakes suck for the price, there's some fine, like the v93's
and Xiaguan is fucking disgusting with dry storage (what they offer) and without having more age than the ones they offer

Mengku is often quite shit, but some are fine

>>15975806
What are these vendors that have more humid storage and cakes coming in at 10¢ per gram? Don't you hate guangdong storage too?

>>15975831
GD storage isn't great, but it's up to the consumer to ask themselves how much they wanna pay more for better storage, is it worth an extra $5 to you? as an example

who said more humid storage? you think humid storage means better storage?

>>15975851
Are you going to answer the fucking question?

>>15975865
why do you require me to specfically spoonfeed you when the pastebin does it for you already
retard

>>15975870
Fuck off, you don't even drink 10¢ per gram tea, you buy $250 cakes and then tell everyone else they are drinking shit

>>15975883
if you say so
guess i didn't just get a tong of some 10 cent mid-2000's dayi
as i said, retard

>>15969710
>anything Gong Mei is best from my experience
thanks, i will keep that in mind.

>>15975674
Pointing out shitty vendors isn't "elitism", you sound like a retard. He's making people's experience better, not worse, by informing them so they can make a decision.
>>15975721
Ew who the hell could chocolate chip water is a good idea?

>>15976269
>He's making people's experience better, not worse, by informing them so they can make a decision
He isint actually naming any vendors that he thinks are better, he is just being an obnoxious faggot.

>>15976269
Fucking mall shoppers. T2T replaced an actually good store that kept quality loose leaf and filled its space with absolute shit.

Like, even before I got into gong fu, I knew their stock was fucking dog shit, compared to other flavored teas even. It all smells like plastic and tastes freaking foul.

Unfortunately while my sister was shopping for tea acessories and knick nacks, she got swindled into buying some of their dog shit product, as my family had been before by buying samplers from there as that's the only place they know to serve "quality" tea.

They just didn't realize its quality was lower than the dog shit on my boots.

>>15976468
And I mean the place that shithole replaced had tea that was similar to what you can get on one of the recommended sites. But then the company got bought out by fucking star bucks of all places and removed from the mall, probably because the plebians didn't know what to do with the tea it kept stock

And was replaced with its polar opposite that kept "tea" that is more flavoring and chemicals than leaf mulch. makes me sick thinking about how their product smells, it was sickening

NOOOO white women are going to get into gong fu now bros... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RrQVkh-gF4Y

Finished my tastings of all ten Fullchea gift bag teas. Brief description and ratings run shortly, with some prize medals for a few select teas. These are all of the contenders:
>1. Glutinous Aroma Rice Ripe Pu'er
>2. Original Taste Ripe Pu'er
>3. Dried Tangerine Ripe Pu'er
>4. Jasmine Ripe Pu'er
>5. Lotus Leaves Ripe Pu'er
>6. Rose Ripe Pu'er
>7. Chrysanthemum Ripe Pu'er
>8. Dianhong Ripe Pu'er
>9. Glutinous Aroma Rice Raw Pu'er
>10. Original Taste Raw Pu'er
Which ones do you think will be the best? What about one that might be especially dreadful? Stay tuned for more soon.
>>15975543
Thanks for posting a picture. Do you have any white tea? I wonder how it may turn out inside these new vessels.

Welcome to the Fullchea 2021 Olympics! I am your host, Anon, bringing to you a mini tuo stage debut. This is comprised of ten flavors from Fullchea's 250g gift bag set, each with their own character, flavors, and aromas. These contenders were tested and fully documented at random with the same equipment over the course of three days. Without further ado, here are the results:
>1.Glutinous Aroma Rice Ripe Pu'er
Rating: 04/10
Distinctive Qualities: Tastes somewhat like sticky rice. Smells like sticky rice submerged in dirt, and tastes somewhat like it as well when infused longer.
>2. Original Taste Ripe Pu'er
Rating: 02/10
Distinctive Qualities: Exceedingly bland and inoffensive in every way. Both aroma and flavor are so plain that they can only be described as 'nil'.
>3. Dried Tangerine Ripe Pu'er
Rating: 09/10
Distinctive Qualities: Smells like deep molasses, and tastes somewhat like sweet rice. Tangerine flavor and aroma are unfortunately not particularly detectable, but the fruit likely promotes the aforementioned sweet characteristics.
>4. Jasmine Ripe Pu'er
Rating: 07/10
Distinctive Qualities: Straight-forward jasmine character in both flavor and aroma. No notable complexity otherwise, though the brewed leaf aroma seems somewhat toasted.
>5.Lotus Leaves Ripe Pu'er
Rating: 03/10
Distinctive Qualities: Bland and inoffensive. It is the "wannabe floral" of the group, with a watered-down barely sweet, yet 'disaffected' flavor overall.

>>15977499
>6.Rose Ripe Pu'er
Rating: 05/10
Distinctive Qualities: Smells and tastes plainly of rose, though not particularly potent. Quick to overbrew, and rose character is easily obscured after few infusions.
>7. Chrysanthemum Ripe Pu'er
Rating: 02/10
Distinctive Qualities: Tastes like bland earth. Chrysanthemum qualities are almost invisible, perhaps only somewhat noticeable in the aftertaste.
>8. Dianhong Ripe Pu'er
Rating: 01/10
Distinctive Qualities: Smells like burnt rice. Easily becomes bitter and sour, suggestive of potential to easily cause stomach upset.
>9.Glutinous Aroma Rice Raw Puer
Rating: 04/10
Distinctive Qualities: Interesting savory vegetal aroma that somewhat resembles popcorn. Overwhelming bitterness that becomes more pronounced as leaves saturate.
>10. Original Taste Raw Pu'er
Rating: 05/10
Distinctive Qualities: Unusual vegetal notes that remind one of salty meat or packaged hot dogs. Bland, though not particularly offensive to the palate otherwise.

This concludes the ratings run. Please note, these are numbers comparative to other teas in the set, and not those outside of it in general. With that concluded, now comes the reward show.

Why the emphasis on Chinese teas and not Indian ones? I prefer Assam myself, but I’m a novice. What am I missing?

>>15977514
I've established four titles to reward a select few tuos with. They are as follows:
>Strongest Contender:
#03, Dried Tangerine Ripe Pu'er. Despite not projecting its described fruity note, it possessed the most enjoyable combination of flavor and aroma within the entire package.
>Most Accurate Flavored Tea:
#04, Jasmine Ripe Pu'er. While not particularly complex or interesting in texture, this was the most honest and straight-forward flavor offered in this bundle.
>Most Confusing:
#10, Original Raw Taste Pu'er. The savory meat flavor reminded me of cheap supermarket hot dogs, which was not exactly bad, but still unusual and offputting.
>Most Proficient Poison:
#08, Dianhong Ripe Pu'er. The character of this tea was simply a prolonged unpleasantry, as if it could only spout "I hope you die slowly".

It took some time to finish this testing, but it was enlightening for me. I hope this is obvious, but you should not buy this gift bag. Even for the purpose of improving your tea brewing skills, the leaves are so small and ineffective that you may pick up poor habits as you transition to brewing more whole leaves. Most of them are not great in general, with notable amounts of dust and muted or unpleasant characteristics that might dissuade novice tea consumers from delving further into this world. A variety of 100g-350g tuos will be much more enjoyable and carry greater value. Hopefully, my notes will keep curiosity at bay, and prevent someone else from making the same mistake I did in purchasing this.

>>15977411
Yes I do. One flavored with jasmine flowers, two normal. May try that tommorow

>>15977554
Hahaaha
Holy shit thanks anon

>>15977519
Chinese tea just happens to be what is popular with posters and gets suggested the most. The thread used to have a stronger contingent of Japanese green tea drinkers.
I don't think anyone is intentionally excluding Indian teas. I actually recommended darjellings pretty frequently. I also have a few go to recommendations for people who enjoy english breakfast blends.
Are you in the US? Upton tea has some nice, more premium assam teas, i also strongly recommend second flush Darjeeling, and their finest russian caravan blend, their robert fortune blend is also worth exploring along with their ctc irish breakfast if you like really powerful malty teas that demand milk.
That said i just like chinese teas more, i find malty teas rough on my stomach and i really enjoy some of the variety of Chinese teas. Lately i have been drinking a lot of wyui oolong, which has a heavy charcoal roast and tastes toasty, nutty, chocolaty and occasionally like stonefruits. I also enjoy chinese postfermented teas like ripe puer and liu bao, its filled with earthy, warm comforting notes like an old root cellar with a dirt floor, or a cave full of growing mushrooms, loam, chocolates, leathers etc, but they aren't for everyone.
If you are interested now is a great time to try some fresh green teas, i would recommend getting some longjing or dragonswell type teas from somewhere like yunnan sourcing or kingteamall.
https://kingteamall.com/collections/green-tea/products/2021-early-spring-long-jing-dragon-well-a-grade-green-tea-zhejiang-1?variant=39518147215540
While you are at it you could grab some black teas that sound good and maybe an oolong or two (dahongpao and tie guan yin are a decent place to start) if you feel like exploring Chinese teas.

>>15977499
>>15977514
>>15977554
Thank you, that was even better than expected!

>>15978215
Not him, but aren't indian teas of limited variety and taste compared to chinese? Am I missing something?

>>15978249
I haven't really explored indian teas too much but they do cover most of the major types, they make oolongs, whites, and greens although they are mostly known for their blacks. There definitely isint as many sub varieties and niches as there are in chinese tea but you could spend quite a lot of time exploring the world of indian teas if you wanted to.

>>15978320
Different anon, mind telling me more about Indian whites? How might they differ from Chinese whites? Anything of note to consider? Where should I go to find some Indian whites online without murdering my wallet?

>>15978320
>desire to know more intensifying

>>15978339
vahdam is a good source for indian teas, its how i got into tea with one of their selection packs. imo they're just trying to copy the chinese by making oolongs/greens/whites, indian teas also dont seem to gongfu well, far too harsh and losing all flavour after the 3rd infusion. by all means try some but i'd stick to what the indians are good at i.e darjeeling, assam and masala chai(spiced tea)

>>15978236
>>15977967
Pleased to know some anons found value in my writings. I have maybe four more teas left to sample in my inventory before I'm out of things to journal about. I'm tired of pu'er after blasting it for three days, so later today, I'll be tasting a Wuyi oolong sachet from Verdant Tea I forgot about. Then, I have a cheap red tea sampler and two more random mini tuos tossed in from my Fullchea order. I'll cover those over some days. I'm thinking of performing some cold brew experiments too, and I'll share my results with everyone when I do.
>>15978369
Thanks for the suggestion, I'll look at the site. Shame they don't perform well with gongfu, though. I almost exclusively brew gongfu style nowadays. How do you like to brew it?

>>15978378
>How do you like to brew it?
western style, vahdam gives instructions and they usually can usually handle 3 infusions western brewing

>>15978339
>Where should I go to find some Indian whites online without murdering my wallet?
That's one thing that is pretty tough, indian whites and oolongs tend to be pretty pricey.
For example the two indian whites that upton tea have are over $3 per gram, which is an obscene price that makes it hard to even justify sampling.
There are some Indian shops that have recently been added to the pastebin that are probably worth exploring.

>>15978412
Checked all of the sites besides Jayshree (wouldn't load). They are quite expensive, but Teabox seems to have some okay offerings compared to the others. I'm not sure if I'd prefer to buy Indian tea over Chinese teas considering the value, though. Even beyond min-max vendors like Fullchea, I think I could get more pleasant, premium teas for my dollar elsewhere; even from Taiwan or Japan. I suppose that answers the other anon's question regarding why there is so much emphasis on Chinese teas over others.

https://yunnansourcing.us/collections/black-tea-spring-2021
Tell me which one of these products to purchase, /tea/

>>15978511
had some High Mountain Red Ai Lao Mountain Black Tea last year, very nice, still had white bud fuzz on it, 1st time i've seen that on a black

>>15978533
Looks interesting. It is black, right? I'm baffled what "this black tea is lightly oxidized" means.

>>15978549
yeah its black i guess it just isn't as heavy as other black teas? its more floral than malty

>>15978559
Well I'll have something kind of unusual to try

Anyone have some good recommendations for Darjeeling? Trying to get a good one for my boss. Usually he snags my Yorshire Gold bags or loose leaf Scottish Breakfast in the afternoon but Idk if Taylor's of Harrogate is overrated or not.

>>15978549
Oh that. Think of it like how the guy who sells wall paint at Home Depot thinks of black. The more oxidization is like greater color intensity so you have lightly oxidized tea being like charcoal black compared to heavily oxidized stuff being inside of a black hole black.

>>15977411
thanks for the high quality post. we have had a bit of a lack content lately.

>>15977499
>Glutinous Aroma Rice Ripe Pu'er
as a note in case you did not know there is an herb that is sometimes added to shu to give it "sticky rice" taste.

>Tangerine flavor and aroma are unfortunately not particularly detectable
i have heard that chenpi (dried citrus peal) does not always taste citrusy in the way you would expect but i have not tried any myself yet.

>>15977514
>Dianhong Ripe Pu'er
can you post a pic of this? Dianhong normally refers to a type of black tea and you description makes it sound like one as well. they may have just mislabeled it.

>Original Taste Raw Pu'er
>Unusual vegetal notes that remind one of salty meat or packaged hot dogs
i have had a number of sheng that have savory notes that i interpret as being vaguely like processed meat. anyone else here get this impression from some sheng?

>>15977554
>the leaves are so small
that is a common problem with mini tuos.

honestly i was kind of expecting the gift bag to be worse and that you would not even be willing to try them all.

>>15977519
>Why the emphasis on Chinese teas and not Indian ones?
i drink my tea plain and find some Indian black teas i have tried to be hard on the gut. that said i intend to try more in the future. as another poster said Indian teas are welcome here we just dont have any Indian tea enthusiasts here (they seem to be quite rare in general). i think a lot of Indian tea drinkers tend to fall more in the British style afternoon tea crowd than the tea enthusiast crowd.

>>15978249
>Not him, but aren't indian teas of limited variety and taste compared to chinese?
they are definitely fewer distinct types of Indian teas which is not too surprising if you consider the history of tea there (grown for export to Britain). some of the estates have been branching out more recently and have started making other types of tea (oolongs, whites, and greens) than they have traditionally made. presumably, they are trying to keep sales and prices up.

>>15978339
>How might they differ from Chinese whites
they are going to be made from totally different tea cultivars. most chinese white tea is made from a handful of tea varieties that are primarily used to make white tea whereas most Indian white tea is going to be made from the varieties they use to make black tea. the processing is likely at least slightly different as well. unfortunately, i cant comment on taste as i have not deep dived into Indian teas yet.

>Anything of note to consider?
Indian teas with the estate name listed are likely better quality.

>>15978369
>indian teas also dont seem to gongfu well
i have had and have heard of mixed results from gongfuing Indian tea. i am sure at least some of them can gongfu ok. https://www.ketlee.in/ sells some Indian tea that they claim works well gongfu style but i have not seen anyone review them yet.

>>15978412
>That's one thing that is pretty tough, Indian whites and oolongs tend to be pretty pricey.
i have seen some far more reasonably priced examples. i think some of the estates try to sell their white teas as an premium upmarket novelty hence the high prices. plus tea from the big estates tends to be pricier than a lot of Chinese tea in the first place.

>>15978475
>Jayshree (wouldn't load)
https://www.jayshreetea.com/ works for me but is a bit slow right now.

>I'm not sure if I'd prefer to buy Indian tea over Chinese teas considering the value, though
yeah, premium Indian tea seems likely to be less bang for your buck than the other tea producers. I have heard that Darjeeling in particular has been jacking up the prices recently. however, you can get Indian tea that tastes unique from the other regions and is therefore worth trying. i have not had much Indian tea but i had a first flush Darjeeling a while back that left a positive enough impression to make me want to try more.
as a note to anyone reading https://www.teatrekker.com/ (is there any reason they are not on the extended vendor list?) has a decent selection of higher end Indian/Nepalese/Ceylon tea in the united states. unfortunately, they sell most of their tea with a 4oz minimum purchase for some reason.

>>15978700
Margaret's hope estate second flush, i think vandham has some or do a google search and look for sellers that have stock. It will be 2020 harvest. There is also new first flush available but it can taste very green and people used to other black teas may not like it.
If you are in the uk you can check what-cha and see if they have any second flush. There are also indian shops in the pastebin.

>>15979369
Burger unfortunately. I see that Margarets estate recommendation in Amazon, might give it a try. Hard part is getting the right one for him. He's Indian and very picky.

>>15978907
>thanks for the high quality post. we have had a bit of a lack content lately.
You are of course welcome. I like to share my notes with the community as a way to give back for all of the advice I've received, as well as to of course continue improving my skills. I particularly like it when anons mention problems or odd results they've had, and how they maximize flavors and aromas. I don't have too many teas I own I haven't journaled on now, but I hope the last few will continue to be of interest.
>as a note in case you did not know there is an herb that is sometimes added to shu to give it "sticky rice" taste.
Is that so? What is it called? I believe I saw what looked like rehydrated rice flakes in a few of them, so that is surprising.
>i have heard that chenpi (dried citrus peal) does not always taste citrusy
I heard from multiple people that it was rather bitter, and to not get it. I did taste a bit of the rehydrated chenpi directly when brewing that shou, and while not particularly sweet or bitter, did have some noticeable low citrus flavor that couldn't be picked up in the tea as a whole.
>can you post a pic of this?
Yes; pic related, the tea in question. I documented every single tea as I usually like to. I find it ironic that you suggest it could instead be a black tea, as I have often found specifically black teas to easily contribute to stomach upset in me as this so-called 'shou' did.
>honestly i was kind of expecting the gift bag to be worse and that you would not even be willing to try them all.
I was expecting them to be more repulsive than bland. I think it was initially very unpleasant because I used two mini tuos worth of leaf when I first tried one of these last month. I'm somewhat impressed that enough of them managed to even be vaguely tolerable to the palate. I have no idea what to do with most of these besides the nicer chenpi tuos now, though. At least I kept my promise to everyone, and can reference any of these teas in the future.

South China's having a drought, if you've got any chinese teas you like I'd stock up before the prices ramp up

>>15980118
>Is that so? What is it called?
its often just called Sticky Rice Herb in English. in Chinese its called Nuo Mi Xiang (糯米香) and its scientific name is Semnostachya menglaensis. it is occasionally added to shu and sold as sticky rice sent or something to that effect.

>you suggest it could instead be a black tea
its hard to tell from the picture but i do think it looks more like a black tea than a shu.

>>15979143
>https://www.teatrekker.com/ (is there any reason they are not on the extended vendor list?)
I actually thought they were winding down business a few years ago but looking at them this year and last they seemed to have a pretty robust selection.

>>15980153
i mostly buy older heicha so i should hopefully be safe from any slight price fluctuations.

>>15980153
How long might the drought and price fluctuations last? How much will white tea be impacted?

Anyone cook with tea? Earl grey shortbread is pretty good and matcha chocolate truffles are great but need to be made small and eaten in moderation. I'm interested in other such tea recipes of any sort.

>>15979045
Margret's hope first flush is very nice when gongfued from my experience

>>15982587
When cooking meat or vegetables in the oven instead of water under the meat using tea and tea leaves makes a nice taste, stronger flavors are usually better with fruit tisanes and more heavily smokey/roasty teas producing the best results

Holy shit I was not expecting this to work so well.
>fill pitcher with water
>add a few barley tea bags from nip market
>stick in fridge overnight
It's much more intense flavor than I was expecting.

It's nice to drink something other than pu'er after so long. I journaled about the 2020 Spring Yu Qilin Wuyi Oolong from Verdant Tea tonight. I hoped for more from this tea, but at least it wasn't terrible. I'm grateful to try it at all, really.
_________

5g/205F/20s

Dry leaf smells of a half-sweet, smoky chocolate. Brewed leaf has an aroma of tobacco and roasted seeds.

Medium thickness and astringency, low bitterness. Smooth, somewhat savory smoke is the primary flavor. This extends to the aftertaste, which possesses a very fine amount of vague sweetness. A sort of light bubbly texture is expressed throughout, and this serves this tea well.

Brewing at 195F-200F did not reveal other notes, but the low sweetness was more apparent, perhaps because the smokiness was also noticeably diminished. When brewing for longer periods at 205F, this subtle sweetness began to coincide within the smokiness without obscuring it as with lower temperature infusions. I found this particularly nice, but not exactly potent either, and increasingly weak with each infusion. This tea is not very complex or interesting, but it is at least palatable enough to sip on due to the decent texture. That said, I wouldn't reach for it unless you really like plain smoke and nothing else.
>>15983203
Nice Anon, have you ever tried it with a green tea before? I used to use sencha bags from Maeda-En a year or two ago, and that was nice. Some simple mid-grade loose greens would probably be excellent for coldbrewing.

>>15983225
Oolong would work too. Canned green tea and canned oolong tea were staples when I was officefagging before corona.

>>15983236
I don't have any other oolongs on hand, unfortunately. However, I've been thinking about giving coldbrew heicha and/or white tea a try. I might rig it up for tonight. Don't know how much to use of either in this case, since I've only done coldbrew with freshly ground coffee beans and bagged teas. Do you have any recommendations, or do you just eyeball it?

>>15983255
I usually eyeball it, roughly double the recommended amount of leaves/bags for a given volume of hot tea if I'm doing cold brew.

>>15975036
I unironically ordered a shibo+cup in that very style from my local potter after seeing your pictures in one of the last threads. Godspeed, anon.

For some reason on every fucking electric kettle I see on Amazon every time there's always reviews that say the kettle rusts. What's up with that?

>>15979604
aim for 2nd flush not first and dont worry if its a year old, blacks get better after a year vs greens which only grow stale

>>15982587
made earl grey ice cream few years back, very nice

>>15982587
green tea cupcakes with matcha frosting. was pretty good and also matcha ice cream, also good

>>15982587
Matcha is prime material to mix into yoghurts, pastries, and shakes. You'll want some stevia and salt to counteract the natural bitterness, but it can easily make for a great treat if done well. I used to mix it into my Greek yoghurt all the time, and that was absolutely delightful with some blueberries and collagen powder (for consistency). Shakes are straight-forward, though I find they need more stevia sachets than yoghurt. You can do it well with pastries, but I find it is difficult to project the flavor unless you use a lot of powder and stevia + salt. I made CBD-infused matcha oat cookies once, and they were alright, but a bit of a pain to work with and came out more bland than I'd have preferred.

>>15983545
>CBD-infused matcha oat cookies
Fuck you you fucking druggie

>>15983734
I still don't understand this hate for weed on 4chan. CBD isn't even psychoactive. Even if it was, why....?

I don't understand this weird meme at all.

>>15983753
Why you think you need to get all hopped up on dope? Fix yourself.

>>15983763
>Why you think you need to get all hopped up on dope? Fix yourself
t. I literally cannot stop drinking tea

>>15983734
CBD is a non-psychoactive anxiolytic substance. You could compare it to L-theanine in many ways...which is largely found in tea. I have never smoked marijuana or used marijuana edibles. I am not a 'druggie'.

>>15983859
CBD is absolutely a mind altering drug, it causes lethargy, sedation and now that people realized the farm bill allows CBD products to contain 0.3% THC most CBD products contain that as well.

>>15975036
>>15975040
fucking tea hipsters
you can get a cuppa for 30 cents at walmart

>>15984128
You can actually get tea from a plantation in Charleston South Carolina at wallmart if you want to try something a bit different.
They also sell a first flush version, i missed it this year but i will try and get it next year, i really want to see if it's good.

>>15984144
>hurr buy walmart tea it's the same
nigga I could pour puer up my asshole and shit it out and it'd still take delicious
fuck off with your shitty faggot hipster mugs

>>15984144
A while ago I was wondering if tea was grown in America and it's sad that this is basically it, some weird bagged tea. I would enjoy some nice American tea.

>>15984181
They sell loose leaf as well. They have a shop on their website and the sell on amazon directly.
There is other tea grown in the US, some farms in Hawaii and a few other places most of them are hobby level farms and don't sell online but a few do. There is even a farm in Canada you can buy tea from. Most of the usa grown tea is quite expensive but i guess it could be fun to get some as a novelty.
Here are a few resources and shops selling usa tea if you are interested.
https://usteagrowers.com/Buy-Tea
https://www.arborteas.com/organic-american-tea/
https://tablerocktea.com/
https://farmtotea.com/

>>15984236
Whoops
https://tablerocktea.com
Is yaupon and not tea tea

>>15984128
>>15984173
Gaiwans are cool. You're the nerd here

>>15984678
I like watching Wuxia and other chinese movies to see what they make the tea pots and gaiwans look like in terms of design.
It's a fun littler distraction for when the characters aren't beating the shit out of eachother

>>15984688
I think you would enjoy the fact that picard was supposed to drink Lapsang souchong but the writers decided to go for earl grey cause they thought the audiences wouldn't understand that Lapsang was tea.

Oh and the fact Gene wanted the ferengi to wear massive codpieces

the future of tea. Mug and bag lads, Gong fu chads, practitioners of grandpa style, and even iced tea enjoyers shall all bow before the TEA PLUG

>>15984823
https://old.reddit.com/r/tea/comments/mw0nrh/what_is_this_thing_shaped_like_a_butt_plug/

fuck off cunt

>>15985101
I figured you of all people would find it interesting, anon

>>15984144
>>15984181
>>15984236
Woah I thought all the US tea plantations went extinct. That's some history right there.

>>15961199
elderflower, i hope everyone tries it!1

Be honest. how sloppy is your pour game?

>>15985533
Very
Years of alcohol abuse make me shakey

>>15985533
it's good, but could be better

>>15985533
Fuck that shit. How high can you boys decant from? I think I've managed to near 2 feet with a gaiwan, and close to or over a yard with a tea pot.

>>15985533
I always overfill my mug and then dribble tea everywhere as i walk around with it. Basically a constant dribble of tea like an old person with poor bladder control

>>15985764
Imagine the stains

>>15985762
and I should mention that I did those pours while sitting down. I could probably breech six feet if I did it while standing, though I don't know how much tea would end up in the cup or cha hai

>>15985762
Probably about 2 feet for me

>>15984144
>>15984181
>>15984236
>>15985147

here is a seemingly thorough list of the places that grow tea in the US.
https://www.killgreen.io/main/us-grown-tea

>>15985882
Awesome thanks anon

>>15975543
i absolutely love your new set
can you post the (etsy?) shop you commissioned?

>>15986018
Thanks!

And sure, I'll give over the link to the shop run by the potter who I commissioned to make the set. She has wonderful customer service. She should tell you how long it will take to fire the piece and is very willing to answer any questions you might have.

PotterybyIngeNielsen. Just google this, since 4chan things etsy links are spam. It should be the first result. Chinse inspired pottery by igne nielsen

>>15985882
Thanks!
Man, if I lived in the south, I'd strongly consider cultivating a tea plantation and sell tea overpriced to city hipsters.

Whats your favorite tea for hot summer days?

>>15986154
in case it interests anyone present there is a small trade group for US tea growers.
here is the link:
https://usteagrowers.com/

some news articles about it:
https://www.worldteanews.com/Features/theres-great-opportunity-american-tea-producers-create-their-own-unique-regional-flavor
https://teaepicure.com/us-league-of-tea-growers/

>>15986236
Their podcast is boomertastic
https://teabizblog.wpcomstaging.com/2021/03/05/tea-biz-podcast-episode-7/

>>15986314
>Their podcast
thanks for the link but i missing the connection between what i posted and your link. why do you say its their podcast?

>>15986403
I guess they just promoted it.
They way it's linked on their site makes it look like its affiliated

>>15986437
ah that makes sense now i only looked at their main website (where its not linked) and not their Facebook page. it would not surprise me at all if they are affiliated or at least know each other.

>>15984705
>Oh and the fact Gene wanted the ferengi to wear massive codpieces
Didn't know that; very cool

Finally seeing some movement on a package coming from Hong Kong. It took almost a month for it to clear export customs, hopefully it won't take that long to get on a plane.

It's fun to try poison-laden, vague label samplers, though I wish I could find out more about them for the purpose of journaling. I suppose most people don't care about scribbling on about some random tosser tea, though. Going to brew an unknown red tea sampler from Fullchea in a moment.

>>15987238
Imagine quark with a massive curled metal schlong, woulda made his episode a bit weirder

>>15987480
Oh and gene reportedly spent like half an hour describing the positions the ferengi were able to perform in the bed room before the various directors told him "Gene, we can't put this on television what the fuck"

Just finished sipping on some random red tea sampler from Fullchea. Very unexpected results, and one of the most surprisingly decent I've had in a sampler portion thus far. No idea what it is, but it appears to be a $0.21 sachet with the number code '10-203' and "天然纯正" on the rear (which seems rather vague). I've avoided reds/blacks (same thing, right?) due to concern of digestive issues, but this may make me reconsider my disposition towards them.
_________
4.6g/205F/12s
Dry leaf is surprisingly geranimum-like in aroma. Brewed leaf smells like campfire-roasted dark wheat crackers.

Medium thickness, low astringency and bitterness. Flavor is a direct floral sweetness, so much so that it tastes almost like someone placed half a sachet of sugar in it. It also possesses a light, smooth 'milkiness' quality in both taste and texture. Longer brews settle it ever so slightly towards a modest vegetal note, but still don't increase bitterness. I'm particularly impressed that it isn't bitter or dull, considering it has such small leaves. The sweetness and consistency does moderate after some infusions, but the infusion remains pleasant and tasteful regardless. Very unexpected results.

I've never brewed a brick of white tea before. How do I do it? Do I just do it like I would any other tea? Rinse, wait 5-10 seconds, empty it, then do a 20 second steeping? I've never had one of these before, got it in the old ways tea box.

>>15987644
It's pretty much the same as most other pu'er, but with lower temp/weight goals and slightly longer infusion times. Refer to the pastebin guide in the OP. I personally like to add a bit more leaf when I brew whites (maybe 1-1.5g extra), but my whites have been easy to brew either way. I don't even rinse my whites. They're not like some temperamental sheng or gyokuro in my (limited) experience. Which tea are you cooking up anyway? I've been interested in whites for some time, and hope to acquire more in the future.

>>15987679
No idea -- it came from the old way teas tea club box. To be honest -- I'm totally new to brewing tea in an Asian style, and figured this was a good way to get started with just exploring some different teas and the owner of OWT seems to have a real passion for tea. I'll type the description here.

2014 White Tea Brick
Some white tea bricks from my cousin who lives in Jinan in Shandong province quite a ways north of Fujian. Jinan wanted to start a local tea industry and to do that created some incentives to get people from tea producing areas to move there and set up shop. Through this program she met her husband (who is from Fuding) and has stayed in Jinan where she runs a tea shop that focues on tea from Wuyishan and Fuding. We asked her to pick out some white tea for the club. She suggested these little 5g bricks. The tea was processed in 2014 and aged loose for six years before being pressed in 2020.

I'll post pics momentarily here, but I like the variety in this set. Excited to try some.

>>15987698
Would probably be better to use my clay teapot but i don't have it right now...

>>15987698
Very nice, I've only had some whites as far as maybe 2016, but they're some of my favorites. I'm sure it will be at least a decent brew for you. Looking forward to seeing those pics and first impressions, Anon.

>>15987733
So won't pretend I'm a tea expert. And my gaiwain skills are trash kek. But this is still quite lovely. Onto my second cup.

VERY smooth. Strong notes of honey. Little floral notes underneath. I've never had an aged tea before. Usually everything i drink is no older than a season other than the occasional puer tea.

>>15987795
Shit forgot my picture.

>>15987795
>>15987803
I had a feeling you'd like it. That liquor color is beautiful, too. Mid-aged whites are certainly cozy, aren't they? I haven't had the fortune of tasting a honey-like white yet, but my 2016 Shou Mei tastes like buttery crackers; such a comfort tea. I've been thinking of buying some mid-2010's FuDing cakes from Fullchea for a while. Try a slightly longer brew to see if it becomes more savory, which can also be really nice.

>>15987644
>>15987679
Not all whites are the same.
If you got something with a lot of buds I'd think about doing it at a little lower temp.
But large leaf whites are made for just off the boil and grandpa steeping.
Many can even be dropped in a sauce pan on the stove and boiled for 5-10 minutes. One of my Gong Mei bricks I steep 6-8 times with boiling water, and then boil it to get the rest of the goodness out,
You basically can't fuck up large leafy whites.

>>15987803
Judging by this pic I'd definitely go with full heat, and maybe even leave the lid of the gaiwan on the first couple steeps to help get the leaves apart.
Looks tasty.

>>15987883
When you say full heat -- not familiar with that term? Assuming boiling water right? So far my steeps have been
>20 seconds
>30 seconds
>40 seconds
>45 seconds
>50 seconds
>1:30 because I lost track of time
Hoping I can get one more out of it. Really interesting tea so far, it's lost a bit of the sweetness and become more savory as >>15987832 mentioned, although the honey still persists.

>>15987909
You assume correctly.
That honey taste and overall comfort of white teas is also what draws me to them.

>>15987924
Indeed. Think this will be my last cup. 7 good cups out of it i think. Very nice.

Wondering if it's normal for leaves to kind of stay bunched up? Took all these cups and they still barely expanded. Should i separate them out somewhere along the way? Longer steep time? The tea was still super sweet and smooth so i don't know if i missed out on too much.

>>15988055
I've seen this happen a lot with pressed leafy whites.
My technique has been to leave the lid on the gaiwan after the first couple steeps to steam the leaves. It helps them expand a bit, and then I get in there and manually separate them.
I started doing this because I had a white once that still had dry material at the middle of the chunk of leaves at the end of my session when I thought they were losing flavor and were steeped out.

Helping the leaves separate and expand is important desu.

>>15988055
You can gently nudge open a piece if it doesn't unfurl fully on its own. Don't directly snap it, but wiggle or prod with a pointed stick object until it parts from natural lines. I do that often with stubborn teas with tightly-wound leaves I want to avoid pulverizing. You may be able to get more infusions out of it, or at least one more decent one. As the other anon said, you can change a lot of parameters with large-leaf whites and get away with it. I think you did well if you captured all of those delightful notes either way.

>>15988140
>>15988148
cheers lads. I'll give those a shot next time I make it. not too bad for my first time really using a gaiwan. Although I spilled tea everywhere kek and got some broken leaves but broken leaves might be just the territory when it comes to dealing with these tea bricks. Super comfy to drink, I'm happy with how it all turned out. Although my gaiwan is a bit small for some of the other tea I got.

I go back and forth though when it comes to brewing tea because I still admit I love a good cup of flavored bullshit sometimes.

is there any reason for puer to have such a unique flavor? why is it so different than green? (I'm talking about primarily young raws)

Heres a little redpill for you: splash vinegar in your tea

>>15988573
por que

>>15988258
Fermentation.
Raw puer is dried in such a way that fermentation can still occur.
Green teas are heated and dried in a way that stops oxidation and fermentation also does not occur.

The type and different steps of processing is what makes the type of tea really.

>>15988258
i think the size of the leaf as well, greens are usually the youngest and smallest leaves while puer uses the larger older ones, also time of the year affects flavour but mostly what >>15989330 said

Tea please.

Reminder that so called magic erasers instantly and easily remove tea stains from porcelain and other glazed teaware.

>>15961184
Just got my hands on some of last months Taiwanese four seasons oolong, really vibrant and fresh great notes of linen, freshly cut grass and ginger.

>>15990316
Sounds good anon, i haven't trued that variety yet but ive been enjoying taiwan oolongs lately. Oriental beauty is a must try, especially if you can get a more traditionally processed version with a somewhat more heavy roast.

They had to stop serving puer in my local teashop after another incident with a lesbian couple over the weekend.
Apparently a woman smashed a teapot over her girlfriends head.

I like tea but I hate tea culture

>>15990978
There is no tea culture

>>15973682
dens tea is good.

>>15961184
I've got a adjustable kettle, a scale, a cast iron teapot and a nice selection (oolong, irish breakfast, gunpowder green, chai, earl grey) from amazon but i want to get a layer deeper. is there a good subscription box you'd recommend?

>>15990909
Sorry, but she put sugar in my cup. She had to be punished

>>15961199
i hate oolong tea. my favorite is gunpowder green tea loose leaf, but also my rabbits liked it too. made them pee a lot.

herbal teas are also good, when i am sick w the flu i like citrus tea, it is made w citrus zest and honey. chamomile is okay, i also like berry teas.

>>15961491
never tried but i don't like fancy brewed teas.

>>15961515
that's from drinking expired tea. or it hasn't been processed properly.

>>15962563
how do u brew it? it normal teapot or strainer?

>>15964454
those are pretty good i saw some made from metals i wanted to buy a set it came w 4 teacups.... very heavy.....

>>15965689
try to spice it up with different brewing methods. use different types of teapots or different types of teaware.

>>15965913
um i usually match my teas or coffee w the tap water and i find that most stores usually do the same. so realistically no, unless you are brewing specialty teas then probably buy bottled water.

>>15966259
bitter with a lot of astringency or whatever, and also complete lack of any notes of other aromas. i am talking about tetley orange pekoe i hate that stuff with a passion.

>>15966407
u can buy reusable straws to save the turtles......

>>15966259
The scent of gunpowder as a flavor. Weird as fuck

>>15988055
>Wondering if it's normal for leaves to kind of stay bunched up?
when i brew highly compressed tea chunks i put the tea in the gaiwan pour just a little water on it (no more than the tea will end up absorbing) put the lid on and come back in 10 minutes or so. i also often do an extra long first steep if the tea has not fully separated yet. for things like iron cake pressed sheng you sometimes just need to accept breaking some of the tea leaves when separating it. overly broken up tea leaves don't brew as nicely but neither will tea leaves that are too compressed.

>>15966359
u know you could always do this: buy flavor packets at asian grocery stores for bbt... boil tapioca... use a blender.... etc.......

>>15966421
i think it was probably laced w drugs.

>>15966581
only if ur having tea w guests and wanted to bring over freshly prepared teas w snacks. otherwise i just prepare it on a small table w snacks already there.

>>15966622
thats for neti pots and yogi practices not for tea ceremonies or tea drinking...

>>15973682
you could try grocery stores or if you have chinatown in your city in canada they have a chain of tea suppliers called david's tea and another one branching from starbucks, i think it was called teavana. they also make drinks on site so if you ever wanted to try one of their teas you can purchase it.

>>15966581
convenient but not necessary
>>15991352
what? no. spilling is common and a tray/towel helps contain it

>>15974987
mmm i love mint teas or peppermint teas..... delicious......

>>15991379
Nice gaiwans there captain

>>15991398
thanks, the black one is raindrop off yunnansourcing & the one one i think was the first result on ebay

>>15975474
you sound like a crazy person are you insane?

>>15975674
i think that's what the person was trying to tell ppl that even though it is cheap you are not getting what you paid for and beginners and novices might be fooled into thinking it is legitimate product.

>>15975721
you can order teas online. with flavors like that i like white teas or rooibos, at least you can still add chocolate flavors to rooibos and it still tastes okay.

>>15975799
there is one called baihaoyinzen but just look at the tea leaves, should be lighter green and the tea water should be yellow to light tannish in color when brewed. black teas that are popular in english speaking countries are early grey and orange pekoe.

>>15991462
I know. I've ordered tea online's for years. I got that shit as a gift before I became a full blown gong fu autist. I used to order Harvey and sons, and they actually had decent flavored teas. Nothing comparable to good tea or naturally flavored stuff, but it's was better
Than fucking
Choco chips IN the blend.

The chocolate mint black harney has is a good tea, very nice iced. But again, not comparable to proper, full leaf tea

>>15991462
Also, black tea has natural chocolate flavors at times. Especially bi luo chun black gold. Tastes like milk chocolate but high quality milk chocolate, with a bit of floral mixed in.

Fucking nice stuff

>>15991146
>subscription box
honestly i would just order a variety of tea that interests you over buying a subscription. a lot of the cost of a tea club is shipping and you can generally save money by just making a large order every now and then. also none of the good tea clubs are comprehensive most only cover a limited spectrum of tea. if you are really lost you could ask for some advice on what to get here (it helps to say what you have liked and disliked and what interests you the most). its helps to pick specific a type of tea or a region to explore because a lot of the good vendors are again limited in scope.

if you really insist a subscription here are some from major vendors (unless otherwise noted i have not personally tried any of these clubs):
https://white2tea.com/pages/tea-club
https://yunnansourcing.com/collections/tea-club-boxes
https://oldwaystea.com/tea-club
https://essenceoftea.com/pages/tea-club
https://mountainstreamteas.com/products/mountain-stream-teaducation-subscription-service
https://denstea.com/products/monthly-subscription-box

i will also cautiously recommend
https://verdanttea.com/tea-of-the-month-club
i was happy with the few mounts of their club i got but some people really hate them so you have been warned.

there is also the globalteahut magazine but it does not come with much tea each month.
https://globalteahut.org/pages/magazine

again i would strongly recommend just picking the tea yourself unless you really want a subscription.

>>15991509
Yeah I had Yunnan Golden Snail and it definitely tasted like chocolate, it reminded me of some really nice dark chocolate. I don't even like chocolate much but I love that.

>>15962563
i like laoshan black tea as well. i believe they tend to use dragonwell tea cultivars to make it so that probably explains some of the difference.

>>15991165
>that's from drinking expired tea.
shu and liu bao don't really expire unless stored really badly. they can have some off flavors though if they are freshly made or badly made. also i think some people interpret the pile fermentation notes differently and are more or less tolerant of them.

>>15991520

thanks anon. I like the oolong i have the most (pic related) and would be down to explore more (i've taught myself a decent amt about coffee + wine and cook a lot so this isn't my first "learn to taste" rodeo)

>>15991509
just cos you pretend to know wht ur tlking about after insulting me and pretending to like me and pretending to agree doesn't make me like you any more... in fact i still hate you. leave me alone.

>>15991636
Based oolong dyke

>>15984144
do you drink celestial tea? no idea where they get it from but i saw recommendation from a youtuber and it was really good..... loved the stuff.........

>>15991670
What?

>>15991636
If you want to dive into oolong a bit this vendor has a very decently priced taiwan oolong sampler. It will let you explore a pretty wide range of oolongs from taiwan.
https://www.tea-masters.com/en/samplers/1432-teamasters-sampler-for-beginners-april-2021.html
I have tried some of their tea and was very happy with the quality.

>>15991636
Qi Lan is a specific type of wuyi oolong from china. there is a whole family of wuyi oolongs from the same region. Dancong oolongs from Fenghuang are a similar family of Chinese oolongs.

if you are looking to try more like it here are some options:

https://yunnansourcing.com/collections/wu-yi-rock-oolong-tea
contrary to the name they sell a large variety of Chinese tea. if you order be sure to get one of the "free gifts" if your order is large enough.

https://yunnansourcing.us/collections/wu-yi-rock-oolong-tea
same seller this site has a smaller selection but ships from the us

https://oldwaystea.com/t/tea/oolong
https://www.wuyiorigin.com/collections/wulong
higher end vendors that mostly specialize in wuyi region tea.

also i would recommend getting a getting a cheap 100-120ml porcelain gaiwan and try gong fu brewing if you are getting into Chinese tea (see pastebin for more info tldr: lots of tea leaves, small pot, short steeps, many brews). it does not have to be expensive i use a cheap $10 gaiwan myself.

https://yunnansourcing.com/collections/gaiwans
has a lot but you can buy one elsewhere as well.

>>15990978
Tea culture is comfy friend.

>>15991187
I finished testing all ten of the teas after three days of continuous sampling and journaling. You may find my notes to be of interest. They were covered over four posts, starting here: >15977411
Unfortunately, I haven't any appropriate teaware besides my two identical basic porcelain gaiwans. I have a funky tetsubin and a glass pot for western infusion, but neither are really appropriate for any of that mini tuo leaf or most Chinese teas otherwise. I might give cold brewing one of them a try, but I'm not sure which I'd pick for such a process.

>>15992397
>I might give cold brewing one of them a try, but I'm not sure which I'd pick for such a process.
you could try cold brewing the Dianhong mini tuo's it may make it less bitter. toss one into a quart caning jar full of water and let it sit in the fridge for a day.

w2t sent me an extra month free of the tea club, so I've got some of the funky old leaves liubao. Anyone tried it yet?

>>15992443
It wasn't exactly the bitterness that threw me off from the Dianhong tuos. In fact, the "Glutinous Aroma Rice Raw Pu'er" was the most egregiously bitter tea in the lot. However, it was still more agreeable because the underlying aroma and acidity were not horrible to take in. The Dianhong, rather than bitter, was more acidic and somewhat acrid overall. There's a certain flavor and consistency I can taste in some bad teas that is almost always a tell-tale sign that it will cause stomach upset. I used to only have that with blacks and very poor pu'er before I got into gongfu brewing, and it was the first time in months that I captured that 'essence' again. I felt modest disruption to my gut, so I was sparing in my sips for that specific tuo due to concerns of my health. Also, just realized my post quote was cut up for some reason, so here's another go at it: >>15977411

>>15992497
>In fact, the "Glutinous Aroma Rice Raw Pu'er" was the most egregiously bitter tea in the lot.
besides black teas sheng (especaly the younger stuff) is the other type of tea that is often quite harsh so that is not surprising at all.

>The Dianhong, rather than bitter, was more acidic and somewhat acrid overall.
i have had some black teas that i would describe as being acrid as well. its not quite the same bitterness you get from a green tea or a sheng (some of the taste chemicals in tea get changed from the oxidation).

>so I was sparing in my sips for that specific tuo due to concerns of my health.
dont drink it if you think it is unsafe. though i would be inclined to think it is more likely the tea tastes harsh due to its nature than because of any sort of contamination. some organic black tea i have tasted exhibited the same sort of harshness. not saying you should not be concerned for the safety of the tea you drink but unfortunately i think in most cases pesticides and pollution are not perceptibly tasteable.

i have kind of a sensitive stomach myself and tend to steer away from most black teas. having your tea with food can help significantly if you are drinking a lot at once. also try shorter brew times it can really improve the taste of some of the sterner teas. it may be possible to build up some tolerance if you drink harsh tea enough but it might just be my brewing skills have improved and i stopped over brewing the tea as often. white tea is probably your best bet if you want something that is more gentle and is very forgiving to brew.

>>15992454
Is that the fleshly made liubao they did or is this an old one?

>>15992606
Laochapo roasted/unroasted.

>>15992606
*freshly made
kek

>>15992610
I found a blogpost about the tea club this month if you are interested
https://oolongowl.com/2021-march-white2tea-club-feat-liubao-laochapo-comparison/

Do you like it when you get a tea that really makes you sweat? I don't mind it in the winter but it can be a bit annoying in warmer weather.

>>15992601
>try shorter brew times it can really improve the taste of some of the sterner teas.
Yes, I did attempt this with some of the harsher teas. It may be due to the small leaf size affecting infusion rates, but even flash infusions at lower temperatures were rather rough on the palate with these two discussed teas. I don't think it was a matter of needing to build tolerance or insufficient skill, but of the condition of the leaf itself (size and processing method of the leaves). I'm not so bothered, as I jumped into that grab bag purely out of curiosity rather than expecting anything to be good.
>white tea is probably your best bet if you want something that is more gentle and is very forgiving to brew.
I'm aware of its forgiving nature. I would like to get more whites in the future, as I've enjoyed sipping on my shou meis. I am still working with some shou and dark tea at this time though, so I don't know if it is appropriate to buy more or not. I have fully sampled and journaled on 36 different teas to date now. Perhaps 2/3 or so of those were samplers. I only have two miscellaneous pu'er mini tuos to go before I'm out of teas to journal on with gaiwan brewing, unfortunately.
>>15992645
I dislike it, so I've been wearing a hair band and sometimes turning on the AC for my tastings. Why not have a bottle of cool water or coldbrew tea on hand when drinking your hot-brewed tea? Could help clear your palate and moderate your temperature at the same time.

>>15992686
> I have fully sampled and journaled on 36 different teas to date now
Damn anon, you are really making steady progress.
I do think it can be helpful to brew the same tea several days in a row and look for the variations in flavors and textures that you get. I feel like i can never really fully understand the nature of a specific tea untill i have drank it several times. Of course not all teas are worth taking the time to explore thoroughly.

>>15992686
>Yes, I did attempt this with some of the harsher teas.
i meant it as more of general advice. i have had some teas i found i liked more when i flashed steeped them.

>the condition of the leaf itself (size and processing method of the leaves).
really finely broken black tea may not be possible to brew up without harshness. i find CTC Assam to be for the most part undrinkable plain.

>so I don't know if it is appropriate to buy more or not.
it depends on you budget and weather or not you want to invest in storage for your tea. i currently buy a bit more than i drink with the intent of building up a bit of a collection of heicha and other age-able tea. that way I can drink something different when ever i want to.

>>15987399
>It's fun to try poison-laden, vague label samplers, though I wish I could find out more about them for the purpose of journaling.
if you want to try more low commitment grab bag style samplers at some point in the future check out the packs from https://www.ebay.com/usr/niequn-oleg on eBay or his website www.tea-expert.net

he sells a 30 different kinds of puerh sample set (broken off of cakes not mini tous) for a good price but it is out of stock on eBay right now. i know a few people here have ordered it (i intend to try it at some point myself). he also has some factory specific samplers.
https://tea-expert.net/magazin-kitajskogo-chaya/puer/shu-puer/00102-shu-he-sheng-30pcs
https://tea-expert.net/00112-mengku-yi-tao-cha
https://tea-expert.net/00099-haiwan-yi-tao-cha-shu-he-sheng-20ge

happy sipping

>>15992736
>Damn anon, you are really making steady progress.
I try. I certainly believe I need more experience, but I've become comfortable and increasingly analytical with regards to the whats, hows, and whys of infusion. It is thanks to the support of fellow anons in this community that I've been able to improve as much as I have. It's pleasant to share my tastings with everyone, including the weird and dopey teas.
>I do think it can be helpful to brew the same tea several days in a row and look for the variations in flavors and textures that you get.
Personally, I haven't found grand changes in flavor when doing that. I think the biggest change for me is had with time. Allowing cakes to acclimate to my environment, and providing time for me to learn and develop my skills changes the results the most. Though, some teas still maintain being weird, such as my very dank 2014 Gong Ting shou from Verdant Tea. I had that last night just to see how it has developed. I thought it would have changed more, but it still smells like it came from a fish yard. That said, it also continues to have most of its original maple syrup-like flavor, so I suppose that's fine. It's funny that one of my favorites is from that company, and then that thing is too. Verdant is unpredictable in general from my experience.

>>15992828
>eBay guy
I recognize him, and have seen others post about his stock before. One anon mentioned his oolong sampler was particularly good, and I like that he seems to break off parts from cakes instead of using mini tuos. I don't know if ~$0.23/g is considered a good price for something like this or not, as I've mostly only bought from lower-cost vendors like Fullchea.
>it depends on you budget and weather or not you want to invest in storage for your tea.
I was commenting more on the sensibility of purchasing new tea cakes when I already own perfectly acceptable tea, rather than space constraints or not being willing to have a pumidor. It's true that I have yet to invest into a pumidor, though. I've been told that the amount I have may not be worth it by a few anons before. I have no exact idea, but I may have around 1.5kg at this point. It's all pu'er, some dark tea, and about 100g of white tea. Mostly good stuff, though I sometimes wish I had some gentle fruity/honey-oriented teas to go easy with. Blasting shous can be rough on me, so I have to go lower and forfeit the texture. I've been thinking of using some of them in kombucha instead so I get some interesting notes or textures.

>>15992977
>I don't know if ~$0.23/g is considered a good price for something like this or not
you pay a bit of a premium for small or single serving samples from any vendor that offers them (it takes them around the same amount of time measure and package each one as it would a bigger package). as a note he includes shipping on ebay at least not sure about his own site. I cant vouch for the quality of the material he includes but if it half way decent on average then it is a really good deal if you want to try new things. I have not seen anyone else sell samplers quite like it. $0.23/g is in no way on the super expensive side of things for specialty tea either, though i tend to buy cheaper most of the time myself.

>>15992637
Nice! Tyvm.