/ck/ - Food & Cooking

First for peepee poopoo.

>>18655500
Yerba mate thread? Slurp slowly edition..

bumping >>18655476
Probably gonna buy a few cakes after Christmas and ill post the results along the year then
>>18655521
Ty, ill try too look for maybe a 150g cake or a tuo from somewhere around 2015 also since i dont want to spend too much money because im scared of mold growing. will keep 50g in my regular pumi also

For me, it's Newmans Own

>>18655659
The Haiwan cake you linked does seem to be one of the best options for very cheap young sheng on fullchea.
https://www.fullchea-tea.com/2022-haiwan-raw-puer-chinese-tea-lao-tong-zhi-9948-batch-221-old-sheng-puer-chinese-tea-357g-p0864.html

For semi aged stuff I would look at cheap toucha from Xiaguan or Tulin. for example
https://www.fullchea-tea.com/tulin-2009-aged-pu-erh-tea-yunnan-phoenix-tuocha-sheng-puer-100g-p0497.html
or
https://www.fullchea-tea.com/xia-guan-2016-yr-pur-tea-jia-ji-tuo-cha-raw-puerh-tuo-tea-cake-boxed-100g-p0408.html

If you want to try some cheap dayi there are these
https://www.fullchea-tea.com/2012-puer-tea-dayi-taetea-7542-150g-gift-package-china-yunnan-menghai-puerh-puer-pu-erh-raw-organic-health-care-food-chai-aged-puerh-best-organic-tea--p0139.html
https://www.fullchea-tea.com/taetea-2017-raw-pu-erh-tuocha-sheng-puerh-tea-100g-p0669.html

What is your heated set up going to look like? What temp and RH are you looking to target?

>>18655500
Anyone have a recommendation for a good oolong on fullchea? Not looking for something extra, just a daily drinker TGY or phoenix oolong that isn't complete trash. There's so many packaging and the price varies and I can't tell which ones are good

>>18655744
Thanks, ill get the 150g 7542 dayi then along with the two haiwan cakes, i already have the tulin tuo but if it goes well in the first year with no mold ill put it into the heated storage also assuming i havent drunken it by then
For the setup ill use one of those heated mats for lizard aquariums or whatever its called and the temperature will be controlled using an inkbird controller, ill put the tea inside a metal cookie box ontop of the mat using 65%rh boveda packets and 33C, the whole setup will be inside of a cabinet. im putting the tea inside of the metal box to keep it away from outside smells and im looking for some insulation that wont stink to save on electricity maybe. a bit scared of the metal box choking the tea but i will probably open it once a month for a few minutes

>>18655916
The problem is just about no one here has actually tried any of fullchea's oolong or at very least they have not posted notes on it. The topic of fullchea's non heicha teas comes up again and again but then people end up not ordering anything or not coming back here. My advice would be to just grab a couple things with good reviews or sort by "Most Popular". I have no reason to think they would not taste at least decent.

for cheap tgy maybe grab a bag of each of these
https://www.fullchea-tea.com/250g-top-chinese-anxi-tieguanyin-green-tea-oolong-tie-guan-yin-1725-gold-gui-weight-loss-china-green-food-slimming-teas-gift-best-oolong-tea-p0034.html
https://www.fullchea-tea.com/250g-top-chinese-roast-tieguanyin-green-tea-oolong-tie-guan-yin-1725-weight-loss-china-green-food-slimming-teas-gift-best-oolong-tea-p0043.html

Does anyone here drink tea while eating actual meals? I usually just drink it by itself or with small snacks, but I'm looking for something to drink with meals too.

>>18655916
>>18655969
i tried their milky oolong from 2021 and it wasn't half bad, probably lots of pesticide in it though since its fairly common with taiwanese oolongs.
I havent tried milky oolong from a more trusted source before so i cant compare it to anything but it had a kinda wierd plasticy bitterness to it early on, similar to the bitterness of high mountain oolong maybe, i dont think it was any additives though because i probably wouldve noticed if it was overly non-tea like, they specifically say they dont flavour it but im unsure. It smelled really good and had a nice taste other than that, didnt write notes on it so i cant remember any specifics.

>>18655659
If you haven't seen them there are some articles on teadb.org about heated tea storage, and tea storage in general.
https://teadb.org/puerh/

>>18655954
here is a lazy link dump on heated puerh storage
https://mgualt.com/tealog/tag/experiment/
https://empiricaltea.com/category/storage/
https://www.teaforum.org/viewtopic.php?t=20
https://teadb.org/puerh/
https://teaintheancientworld.blogspot.com/2017/11/puer-storage-optimums-and-relative.html

>>18655916
>>18656039
I'm still waiting for my Jin Xuan and Dancong to arrive. They both seemed well-liked by the russians. I bet those more premium grade teas they have are decent

>>18655503
Based

Chen Sheng Hao is doing a limited time promotional $5 sampler pack with free shipping if anyone is interested.
https://cspuerh.com/collections/best-selling-items-from-chen-sheng-hao/products/2022-chen-sheng-jiang-xin-sample

>>18656224
Is this site legit? Never heard of them before

>>18656297
Not that anon. But it is definitely the website for Chen Sheng Hao which is a higher end puer brand in china.
I ordered with paypal so not much risk to me
>>18656224
Thanks ordered

>>18656224
Interesting i guess CSH wants to get in on the direct to consumer sales model and made a website for international sales. Kinda cool.

>>18656297
yes, that is Chen Sheng Hao's official international outlet store. Never purchased from them before now though because Chen Sheng Hao is kind of a snobbish high end brand that mostly makes really expensive teas I can't aford. They are perhaps most famous for having 30 year exclusivity contracts with many of the tea farmers in Lao Ban Zhang (a highly desired location). They are kind of unique among the well known high end puerh brands in that they have been pushing pretty hard to have a factory direct presence in the west. Not sure how big the market here is but it probably does not cost them that much to sell here either.

>>18656224
Thank you anon. Checkout was kind of wonky and the 2 gram samples made me chuckle, but it's a no brainer at 5$ with free shipping
>>18656347
Man, raw pu er prices have gotten kind of crazy, haven't they? Feels like a bad time to get into it, I hope the hype machine dies down a bit

>>18656549
>I hope the hype machine dies down a bit
People have been saying that since 2002, the ride never ends

>>18656224
>that one 43 000$ pu erh set
Lmao. You could buy a nice car for that money.

>buy that discounted earl grey that anon posted
>it's 100 grams, I'm a burger so I think it's slightly bigger than a cigarette packet
>it's a shit load of tea in a box the size of roughly two big macs
what a deal!

do you guys pay by the kilo/pound?

how much do you pay for a kilogram of tea? i'm paying between AU$38-$44 for a kg of coffee beans so i'm curious if tea is any more expensive.

i can pay over $60 per kg but the average for a daily brew is around forty dollars a kilo.

>>18656549
>Checkout was kind of wonky
What was weird about it? They use the same "shopify.com" cart system many other small web shops use.

>2 gram samples made me chuckle
A little silly I agree. I think they may be tea bags (at least the black tea is). Probably just trying to keep the costs down because most the teas they sell are rather expensive per gram.

>Man, raw pu er prices have gotten kind of crazy, haven't they? Feels like a bad time to get into it
That is true but only to an extent. While puerh (especially aged stuff) is definitely more expensive than it was a couple of decades ago and the prices for tea from some of the famous locations have blown through the roof (though back in they day you may not have been able to find them for sale at all), you can still get plenty good sheng for no more than you would pay for other nice teas and I don't see that changing in the near future. I mostly drink budget puerh and am pretty happy with it. Perhaps, if I was accustomed to being able to buy 30+ year old high quality aged cakes for dirt cheap and considered young sheng unfit for drinking like some of the old pu heads I would feel more upset. One day I will sample the fancy stuff and see what I may have missed out on but until then I am happy with what I got. I wouldn't avoid puerh because the current market if you wanted to get into it, just avoid getting caught up in the hype.

>I hope the hype machine dies down a bit
Same, I am hopeful the market will cool. I get the impression expensive tea is more of a "boomer" thing and the younger generation is more interested in boba. However, prices on handmade Chinese tea in general may continue to rise in as the Chinese standard of living goes up. Though in that case we will likely see more automation help to offset labor costs, kind of like how Japanese tea is still reasonably affordable despite Japan having very high standards of living.

>>18656755
>What was weird about it
Said my card was overdue and the paypal window was kind of glitchy too for some reason. Express order with paypal worked in the end

What inexpensive pu-ehr would you recommend? You seem to know your stuff

oolong recs please, will be drinking straight and making milk tea before bed with it

>>18656753
If you are buying in bulk you can get as cheap as $10 per kilo, but its not particularly good tea.
I typically spend about 10¢ per gram sometimes more on the teas i drink. I also use 7 grams to brew about a litre of strong tea instead of 20g of beans to make 300ml of pour over coffee, so you have to consider that aspect as well.

>>18656985
>10¢ per gram
x 1,000 grams to make a 1kg = $10,000 per kg

wew

>>18657006
Anon…

>>18655500
bought some constant comment tea. its ok. i think i prefer earl grey bergamot flavor

>>18657015
i mean 10,000 cents to make $100 per kg

yeah

>>18656929
If you like oolong with milk you could try jin xuan - it's milky on its own
As for oolong before bed GABA oolongs are designed to relax you

>>18656796
>What inexpensive pu-ehr would you recommend? You seem to know your stuff
here are some recommendations that I have tried. Other anons probably have stuff to add as well. Shame the Black Friday sales and LP's 2022 Puerh Beginner Packages are over though. For sheng I would generally recommend using a gaiwan or small tea pot and brewing "gongfu" style. A lot of it is easy to oversteep.

Young sheng: (kind of like strong less grassy more spicy/fruity green tea)
https://www.liquidproust.com/listing/1010745017/2022-the-blister-exist-200g
Ignore the goofy name LP added, it is a nice tea. I bought a cake of this the other year that I really liked and I plan to buy more this year. It is not really a standard sheng though.

https://www.liquidproust.com/listing/936595693/2020-jinggu-200g
Admittedly I have not had this cake yet but I am going to order one soon. It looks like a good cheap cake to me.

https://www.farmer-leaf.com/collections/yunnan-pu-erh-tea/products/autumn-2021-jingmai-shengtai
Good easy drinking young sheng. Perhaps not as bitter as some people want for long term aging but it is tasty to drink now. Note that Farmer leaf has free shipping over $30 and he does sell samples if you want them. While I have not had them, farmer leaf's other $40-50 cakes are probably good as well. The "Spring 2022 Huey Wa" looks promising to me.

part 2 to follow

>>18657017
Yeah, i think constant comment is best for cold winter days

What's the cheapest tea that's not disgusting?

>>18657075
black tea i guess. everything else is stupid. i should buy a tea bush or two and learn to make my own

>>18657075
Ahmed tea is about $12 a pound on Amazon

>Heicha
>"Golden Flowers" fungus
What is it

>>18657141
*ahmad

>>18657145
Its some fungus, the Chinese belive it has medicinal properties.
The tea is processed and inoculated with the fungus then press into bricks while somewhat moist, then the bicks sit for a few days to let the fungus grow and are then dried to proper humidity for storage and aged/sold
I don't think the fungus itself has much taste to it but the tea is nice. Very smooth and mellow, easy to drink, nice after a greasy meal.

>>18657075
mint

semiaged sheng: (harder to pin it down to simple easy to understand description, generally more complicated to get into, and people tend to have strong personal preferences on style and storage. Unfortunately, it can be tricky to navigate what aged tea is both cheap and good as most of the fancy stuff is no longer cheap once aged and I am trying to only recommend things I am familiar with and are still in stock at a place with cheaper shipping.)

https://www.fullchea-tea.com/xiaguan-2014-aged-tea-iron-cake-gao-yuan-chen-sheng-puerh-357g-p0433.html
I hesitate slightly to recommend this because it is finicky to brew right. Like a lot of chopped up young plantation material it can get bitter quickly when over brewed and iron cakes are a bit of a pain to break up. When you do get it right this tea has a nice sour plum and mineral taste to it. fullchea has cheap but slow global shipping.

https://www.fullchea-tea.com/tulin-phoenix-2011-the-puer-quotfuquot-raw-puerh-tuocha-china-cha-336g-p0548.html
Have not had this exact tea but I have had others from this factory and this one looks nice. Should be fairly representative of dry stored big factory cheap tuocha. The other semiaged XG or tulin tuos on fullchea are also options. Will probably need to brew them carefully as well.

Aged sheng: (again hard to pin down if you have not tried it)
https://teaswelike.com/product/twelve-cent-brick/
Cheap and good though not as complex as some more expensive teas. Unfortunately shipping prices suck right now. While not as cheap and I have not personally had them the Teji and Jiaji tuos from TWL should also be good.

https://www.liquidproust.com/listing/1342646602/2004-fangcha-xiaguan-125g
I have also not had this one but I am putting it here because LP ships from that states which will be cheaper if you are not a euro. Shipping these days makes it a pain to recommend small orders. Most cheap XG factory productions share a somewhat smoky bitter house taste that mellows out as they age.

>>18657255
is a reply to
>>18656796
>>18657039

>>18657255
Big thanks anon, I'll save your posts and will try some of these in the future.

>>18657341
your welcome. if you have to pick one young sheng is perhaps easier to get into first. Don't treat my list as comprehensive though as there are many other options some of which may be better. If you lurk /tea/ (assuming you are not already a regular) I am sure other good options will be brought up occasionally. I learned a lot of my tea knowledge by lurking and window shopping vendors. The local puerh drinkers like discussing and trying to find bargains. I think most of us tend to drink cheaper puerh besides that one (sometimes cranky) euro that has more upmarket tastes.

>>18655969
thanks, I'll grab some TGYs and phoenix bags when I run out of current tea and make sure I review them here. Also have some 1st gen chink acquaintances so I'll ask them if any of the brands is well known or good

>>18657436
>so I'll ask them if any of the brands is well known or good
A lot of Chinese loose leaf tea is sold unbranded so a lot of those packages are generic and will just say stuff like "finest green tea" or what not.

My wife has hinted that she wants a new tea pot. I would like to try replacing my coffee with tea for my dental health. She cannot drink caffeine because she's breastfeeding, and I need very high amounts of caffeine to get through the day.

Should I just get her something nice looking and a few sampling sets?

I've been suggested Yorba Mate or Assam for their caffeine quantity, but I need to read more into it. As far as taste goes I do not like bitter and enjoy a smooth flavor I can sip throughout the day. I drink my coffee with cream but no sugar.

>>18657019
Tea doesn't scale linearly, I would expect to pay about $87 for a KG of tea that is "10c/g" in normal situations (i.e. 100g or even 250g bags)
Also keep in mind as that guy said a KG of tea lasts twice as long as a KG of coffee, so comparing 1KG of tea to 1KG of Coffee that $87 tea is really closer to $40-45 i.e. not that much more expensive than your coffee.
If you're doing gong fu and getting the most out of each steep, and maybe using closer to 5-6g instead of 7g, you can probably pay closer to a ratio of $20 per "effective" kilogram and drink tea cheaper than coffee.

>>18657611
Just buy the Yorka Mate and Assam and also, drink black tea mixed with a shot of coffee with cream. Looking into HK milk tea, and HK milk tea with coffee. HK milk tea is very very high caffeine

>>18657611
just ask your wf to get an aboryion

Drinking Longjing.
Bit out of season but still good.

>>18657611
I just started drinking yerba mate, it has a nice kick to it but the way you brew it is probably too fiddly for most people.
Check out this video for an explanation.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=swKRdBqoOTs
Get a stanless yerba mate cup, a couple straws and a kilo of cruz de malta (mild taste) or rosamonte especial (slightly stronger taste bigger caffeine punch) on amazon if you want to try it.

It looks like my mini-tuo is a 2003 "Jiazi Xiaofang" from Xiao Cha Ba 小岔巴.
I found an Amazon listing for it but surprisingly hard to actually track down any information on who made it.

>>18658068
I strongly doubt those were actually produced in 2003, mostly because they didn't really bother to print the dates on lots of tea wrappers back then

>>18656224
The $5 box sold out while it was in my cart because the shop page was being glitchy.

Still worth it for $10?

>>18658245
Its a decent thing at $10, you are basically paying for the sample and then getting free shipping.
The cake sells for $259 for 356 grams so about 72¢ per gram
.72 x 14 = $10
Samples are usually more expensive than the cake price per gram and you have to pay for shipping so if you want to try some old tree bulang go for it

amanda 3kg $26
https://www.amazon.com/Amanda-Yerba-Mate-Tradicional/dp/B07LGF919M/

>>18658245
Yes, but it is just not as good of a deal at $10. If you are not interested in trying high end young sheng it may not be worth it.

You can technically still get the samples for free if you sign up for their newsletter and put in an order for other stuff but then you basically commit to spending $50 for the free shipping (possibly only $30 with a referral). if anyone actually wants to do that I can spin up a referral link tomorrow and we would both get $20 store credit. The downside is they don't have a very big selection of cheaper teas.

>>18658307
the black tea bags actually sell for like $1 a piece and I imagine the other two tea bags are probably similarly priced so it is more like $13+tote bag+free shipping

>>18658331 <-- don't buy this i fucked up
amanda 3kg $27 https://www.amazon.com/Amanda-Yerba-Mate-3-Kilos/dp/B004OP2V9U/

I put a splash of angostura bitters in my tea and I'm not sure what to think of it

Anyone ever try a /tea/men cocktail?

https://ippodotea.com/products/green-tea-beginners-set
this looks good

Bana Tea has 15% off Total Purchase Over $50.00 and old bush shoumei and pu-erh pick for over $100
>coupon code HOLIDAYS2022

https://www.banateacompany.com/promotions.html

>>18657611
Yerba mate can have a really strong kick, but not everyone likes the taste. You can also try it flavored or mixed with mint.
Also consider getting a bunch of different teas and trying gong fu brewing, that can alsobfive you a nice kick and you're bound to find something you like.

>>18658219
Who knows. I can definitely taste a significant amount of age. I don't know that it's actually 20 years of age, my palate isn't that refined, but I like it if I can get it for a good price.

>>18659446
I've already spent so much on tea this year...

>>18655500
WHERE THE FUCK DO I SOURCE DECENT TEA FROM.

>>18660113
walmart

>>18660113
What's your budget and what are you trying to get? Pastebin is useful to a degree, you may have an okay local tea shop, etc.
I assume by decent you mean loose leaf rather than shitty grocery store bagged tea but then again I see a lot of people who have graduated to "quality" tea but still insist on teabags for some banal reason. They'll buy pyramid bags from mid/high-tier brands and pay a premium just to have the convenience.

>tfw my septum is so deviated the only tea I can taste is lapsang
I love my cancerslurp bros

So ive been drinking yerba mate in the mornings for a few days so far. After a week i will try and post a longer review but here are some of my thoughts so far.
The buzz is different from tea and interesting, it can get quite strong if you drink it fast enough.
If you drink this regularly you will go through a lot, 500g is maybe a weeks worth, less if you make multiple cups a day. Luckily it gets pretty cheap when you buy in bulk.
Preparing it requires specific equipment, you will need an insulated bottle, and really one then lets you pour a small stream of liquid through the lid, just pouring from an uncapped bottle makes a mess
Learning how to prepare the yerba in the cup with the mountain and placing the straw is a bit fiddly, its not hard if you want to get the hang of it but you will never get your disinterested friends or relatives to try it out.
This is not something you could drink at the office, clearing out the water at the bottom so you can leave the cup sitting between refills requires loud slurping, you would drive people near you crazy.
Its also not something you can just drink on the go without bringing a satchel of equipment with you, no option that is equivalent of filling up a thermous with tea and sipping on the go.
The taste is good, ive only tried one brand so far but ive got a decent feel for the spectrum of flavors. It tastes good, there is a decent spectrum of tastes from different brands but its not really going to measure up to high quality teas. The flavor does not linger on the palate for 10+ minutes like some nice teas do. You also aren't going to get the same level of sweetness.
Overall i give yerba mate a thumbs up and will probably drink it somewhat regularly. But it absolutely will not replace tea for me.

>>18660354
Smokey tea best tea

>>18660565
I used to do the mountain but I don't bother anymore, I got lazy over the years. I agree that mate is not a replacement for tea since it's not as diverse and not as refined and stunning as the best tea can be. It's more so a replacement for coffee with its strong kick and robust flavor. What brand did you buy?

>>18660618
I got this Argentinan brand called mate & co, the desplada version.
Its very nice, im happy with the taste and quality but too expensive, i got it because it was slightly less of a ripoff than anna park which costs $20 a bag in the US. If i start drinking mate regularly i will find some other brands to drink. Right now i am eyeing kraus and kalena but i will probably just start drinking barbacua yerbas if i get into it.

I have only drink cheap tea bags, this is new for me, did I do it right?

this will probably get refunded too

>>18660832
Nice, that xiguan tuo might get pretty intense if you brew it too long, keep the infusions short and you should be good.
Those smokey puer dragon balls sound nice.
The tip for dragon balls. Put them in the pot, cover with water lest em sit for a minute or two. Dump out the water, wait 5 minutes then add water to the pot again and brew. The soak and wait will help open up the ball. Right when it opens up it will infuse pretty quickly so keep that brew short.
Come ask the thread if you need brewing tips or have any questions.

>>18660834
Chang wont let you save money that easily
If it gets canceled buy this and review it for us
https://www.fullchea-tea.com/shudaizi-2020-mo-lie-yunnan-raw-puerh-tea-cake-spring-tea-shen-puer-200g-p0702.html

>>18660832
I like the cups. the raw pu-erhs might be a little rough / hard to brew for a beginner, might take a few tries to get them right

>>18660883
naruhodo, thanks

bought some rolled oolong from amazon, feels like it needs at least 3 minutes of steep time until i can even taste any tea
are my tastebuds just fucked or is the tea fucked?

I poured way to much yerba in my cup this morning, i have already gone through 1.5 litres of water and its not spent yet. I need to make sure to weigh it out tomorrow

>>18660915
Rolled oolong takes a while to open up. The pastebin times for western brewing are shit. Just brew for 5 minutes and see how that tastes.

>>18660651
yeah 20$ for a bag sounds a little weird. the stuff I buy is usually 5$ per half kilo bag and I haven't found a big correlation between price and taste when it comes to yerba mate, though admittedly I also haven't tried the tiny super premium mate market like MetaMate or whatever. I do know they have some single farm stuff which could be interesting to try, though the large amount of "picked only by moonlight" marketing gibberish has me sceptical

I do like Kraus, it's a nice choice if you want non-smoky organic mate. be sure to try some mate outside of Argentinian brands though, Paraguayan mate tends to be my favorite. a bit more sour, less fresh grassy and more of a "seasoned" flavour, often with some nice smoke

>>18660651
if you prefer despalada, La Mejor is one of the few Paraguayan despaladas on the market btw. I recall it having quite the kick

>>18660915
the first steep of rolled oolong tends to take its sweet time because the balls haven't opened up yet. the second steep is usually much quicker
experiment with the time a bit, a lot of oolong is hard to overbrew desu. you can also try rinsing it (pour water in and out before the first brewing) to open up the leaves more quickly

>>18660941
>>18660960
thanks i'll give it another shot

>>18660948
I mean yerba mate is more expensive in the US in general, tends towards $8 for a 500g bag and $12 for a kilo unless you buy in bulk. I think anna park is supposed to be the same price as la merced, or at least it used to be, but it's very expensive in the US because it gets recommended to all the health conscious people that want to try yerba mate and it drives up demand.
Anyway thanks for the suggestions, i will try them out. The Paraguayan types sound like they will be right up my alley.

Newfag here

What's the best black tea for caffeine?
I want a consistent source of 100-200 mg of caffeine and a bunch of sites just say a wide range since steep time can vary
Is there an optimal way without just steeping it for a long time and getting too strong a flavor?

>>18661125
Caffine levels in tea are fairly consistent except when they arent. Yes steep time will increase caffeine content. The easiest thing to do is to just get a black tea with a slightly more mild flavor so you can steep it for a long time without it getting nasty tasting.
Try this, is uses larger pieces of leaf so it won't be as strong with a long brew.
You can also just experiment with using a lot of tea with a short steep, say 2-3 minutes since a lot of the caffeine releases into the water very quickly at the beginning of the brew, so that might work to make a brewed tea with more caffeine without the taste being too strong.
https://www.amazon.com/Ahmad-Ceylon-OPA-Tea-Carton/dp/B0011010XY/

>>18661125
>consistent source of 100-200 mg of caffeine
Yeah they make pills for that.

I bought my wife a tea pot and a variety of white and black teas for us to try. It's a bit of a gamble because she only drinks flavored bagged teas currently, so I'm not sure if she'd be excited about something more snobbish. I'm excited to try though.

>>18661313
Nice, good luck.
Looseleaf teas can be surprisingly interesting flavor wise. I think most people would enjoy then given the chance to try them.

>>18661125
You can get a cheap flavorless buzz on one of these https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0009X65FC
Steep 8g in half a mug of water multiple times for 5+8+10+15+20+60 seconds and pour into a pitcher. Lots of caffeine, no flavor or astringency.
You can also get the $10-15 1lb-1kg black tea of your choice on amazon.
If you want something that actually tastes good: https://yunnansourcing.com/products/yunnan-black-gold-black-tea

>>18661287
Caffeine pills kinda suck.

>>18661313
well, men create culture, females merely pretend to enjoy it.

>>18661125
This is the strongest tea:
https://camellia-sinensis.com/en/ceylan-new-vithanakande/2243
https://what-cha.com/products/ceylon-new-vithanakande-fbopexsp-tippy-black-tea
5-6 minutes is the optimal steeping length. If it's too strong for you simply add water, milk, or sugar.

>>18655500
is it worth buying something like this + some really expensive japanese tea if you think the taste of cheap green tea without sugar is completely forgettable? will it be just as soulless or is the difference between expensive high quality tea and cheap stuff just as big as it is with coffee?

>>18661822
What are you drinking now?

Where could I buy japanese teas for cheap? I suppose that's kind of an oxymoron, but these days I drink anywhere between 3-6 .5L cups a day and ippodo is a little pricey although I'm buying from them this christmas

>>18661885
mostly espresso. pic related wasn't cheap by supermarket standards but it wasn't a real improvement over cheap stuff either, none of the 4 flavors I tried. I'm guessing you have to buy tea leaves online

>>18661822
Nah

>>18661822
Dont buy cast iron teapots they are kind of finicky to brew with and don't really offer any advantages. Get a clay or ceramic kyusu if you want to drink Japanese tea.
Nice Japanese green tea tastes completely different from cheap green teabags or some other lame asain market green tea. Its powerful and savory, quite surprising and probably different then what you expect. Check out the vendors in the pastebin and get some Japanese green tea from a shop that specializes in them. And a cheap Japanese teapot, i think sazen has some 180ml kyusu pots for about $40.
Or just buy some half decent sencha teabags on amazon to try em out and see if the taste does anything for you. This one be as good as the premium loose leaf but it will give you an idea of what Japanese green tea is like. Make sure to follow brewing instructions and not use overly hot water or they won't taste great
https://www.amazon.com/Sugimoto-Tea-Authentic-Antioxidants-L-Theanine/dp/B06XX2Q4NF/

>>18661887
These guys sell bulk bags at reasonable prices, make sure to sample their tea firat before you buy a pound but they are your best bet for decent tea at an affordable price
https://www.sugimotousa.com/
Or start ordering from japan, shipping is finally getting reasonable again and the Japanese shops are typically half the price of ippodo, see the pastebin

Would it be a waste to order form Yunnan Sourcing if I'm going to drink it the western way?

>>18662088
Nope not at all. I always brew black tea western style, and most other teas taste great that way too. Don't get any bitter young puer and you should be golden!

>>18662023
thanks anon, this is really helpful. lots of those cast iron teapots look pretty kino but it's extremely hard to find decent looking kyusu. I'll look again.
can you drink that japanese green tea without sugar and does it still taste good or boring?

Rate my glaze

>>18662180
Something like this
https://www.sazentea.com/en/products/p56-takasuke-ivory-kyusu-small.html
Is what you want, around 160-200ml in size, simple and not expensive.
That tea i liked will be interesting and not require sugar. Again follow the brewing instructions, give it a try and if you don't like it then Japanese green tea probably isint for you. I definitely would not call good Japanese green tea boring but again it might be different from what you expect, very rich and somewhat savory.

>>18662210
Pretty dope

>>18662213
>Actual usable water capacity is about 92ml
is this true? I'm used to small espresso quantities but not sure it would work for tea. other than that it looks decent for the price.
I need a new gooseneck for pour over coffee (not espresso) anyway so I'll try to find something that will also work for tea

>>18662210
thought it was cool at first for a few seconds but the more I look at it the tackier it gets. it looks like something you would see in turkey. sometimes less is more

>>18662286
No that's actually a bit small.
My bad i hadn't read the listing in a while, you want something close to 160-180ml
When brewing Japanese green tea you typically brew the same leaves 3 times so with a 160ml pot you will end up with 480ml of brewed tea in total.

>>18662306
I like this one. 150ml. it looks like it came straight out of game of thrones

https://www.sazentea.com/en/products/p1044-junzo-kurokinsai-gokuhira-kyusu.html

>>18662378
I want it

>>18662378
Yeah that's pretty damn cool looking.
As much as i love teaware i do suggest you try some teas before investing to heavily in teware. That's a size where its pretty versatile

>>18662387
also

>>18662409
yea I think I'm gonna buy some quality tea first

>>18662423
That's for cooling water before brewing, or you pour your teapot into that and use it to fill your individual teacups. For single person drinking i generally recommend just getting a teacup that's big enough to hold the full contents of the teapot. That way you can just pour the teapot directly into the cup.

>>18662032
Thanks, cheap and their product seems really good. Ipoddo had me completely sold on jap tea but I'd like to try before I buy. Gyukuro seems really interesting with the umami flavors, a thick tea sounds fun. I'll grab some samples and see what's what.

>>18662457
Nice, tell us what you think when you have had a chance to try them

>>18662423
>buys fancy teaware before buying fancy tea

I'm still drinking Bigelow clippings in teabags. I consume it for the caffeine and antioxidants. Recently, I tried the jasmine tea and it's so delicious and relaxing. If I buy tea that's twice as expensive, will I get tea that's twice as good? Or does it not scale linearly?
Thanks /tea/

>>18662563
It really depends. There are some super expensive jasmine pearls that kinda suck.
The classic jasmine tea is the big cans you can get at the asian market for a few bucks. If you have an asian grocer nearby go grab a can.
If you want to try some more premium loose leaf teas maybe grab a few 50 gram portions from yunnansourcing.us

>>18662638
Cool thanks.

>>18662447
>That's for cooling water before brewing
why would you do that?

>>18662491
>not just buying fancy teaware for your pantry of discount store loose leaf

>>18662563
>>18662638
>>18662642
https://www.amazon.com/Sunflower-Jasmine-Tea-LB-454/dp/B000NIHZMU

https://www.amazon.com/Golden-Sail-Brand-China-Lichee/dp/B003L8LX7M/

>>18662672
Japanese tea service autism
They want the water at about 170° for brewing delicate greens, but before things like temp control kettles they would bring the water to a full boil, then transfer it to a secondary cooling bowl that would reduce the temp of the water by 10° or so just because the bowl takes some energy to warm up, then they could pour the water out of the cooling bowl and into the brewing vessel which if not preheats would soak up another 10° or so and then it would be the perfect temp to brew the tea. They aren't really used often anymore unless you are trying to put on a show.

>ctrl+f
>no sleepy time
who here sleepy?

>>18662686
Its pretty good

>>18662683
so drinking out of that thing would not be a good idea? I mean the surface is pretty rough as well so it probably doesn't feel too nice but it looks pretty damn good

>>18662563
>If I buy tea that's twice as expensive, will I get tea that's twice as good? Or does it not scale linearly?
Humans experience most things logarithmically. It's a lot easier to tell the difference between a cup of tea with 1 packet of sugar and 2 packets than with 9 and 10, respectively. This applies to temperature and taste as well, and could be why time seems to pass so quickly as you age.
That said, there's a good chance that you will appreciate the step up from the tea fannings you've been getting, even at double the original price. But, a jasmine tea at 10 times the price may taste great, but would likely price you out and would be relegated to something you enjoy occasionally. You may also end up preferring bigelow to everything else you try because of cost or taste (likely a combination of both) but it's always worth trying out new stuff if you can.
tl;dr: taste does not scale linearly, but try new things anyway lol

>>18662681

>>18662713
You could, its just a cup with a pouring spout. Nothing special about it.
But spend some time looking at Japanese teacups first specifically tenmoku, some pretty cool shit out there.
Etsy has a bunch of em

>>18662729
This was exactly the insight I was looking for. Thank you.
I think I'll buy the triangular sacks then move on to loose leaf if I'm not satisfied and find more value.

Out of the yerba I've tried, I think a tea drinker would like this the most because it's bitter yet complex and flavorful.
https://www.amazon.com/Cruz-de-Malta-3-Kilos/dp/B004OPAI5E

>>18662969
Ive seen that one recommended frequently, i will have to try some eventually

talk me out of getting a 33 oz $18 thermos for tea when I already have a hydroflask that's 32 oz for watre

>>18662969
Also there's more bitter and more black tea-like yerbas out there but not as good of a price as this which is the main reason I'm recommending it

>>18661153
>>18661336
what about green tea or is it only really black?

>>18663026
There isn't really any difference in caffeine levels between green and black tea

>>18663026
>>18663028
I heard silver needle (white) has the highest caffeine.

found a good chrart but it's only for branded pre-bagged tea it seems but still seems to be good estimates
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19007524/

>>18662683
>They aren't really used often anymore unless you are trying to put on a show.
you have no idea what you're talking about lol look up some japanese tutorials on sencha and they'll use it even the ones that brew for daily home use
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IK-IC98REOU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOzknSmlD8A

Another caffeine content chart from some study

>>18663249
That's what a temp control kettle is for

>>18663254
but not everyone has one?

you don't need the yuzamashi or the temp control kettle
bring water to boil --> 100°
pour water into empty kyusu --> 90°
pour water from kyusu into empty cup --> 80°
put tea into kyusu, pour water from cup into kyusu
for the 2nd and 3rd brews you can use higher temps no problem

>>18663251
I wonder why green tea has less theobromine than black

>>18663384
I looked closer and it looks like Assamica as significantly more than green

nothing beats a nice puer
2020 Xiaguan Bao Long Gong She
This stuff is outrageously sweet

>>18663389
Yeah that makes sense, i didn't think the processing would make that much of a difference

>>18662986
No, I won't. Get it.

>>18662986
Make sure to get a 22oz zojirushi cooling thermos too.

>>18655500
Drinking tea makes me nervous...Why? Is it cuz i have the tea bag in for too long or something i dont get it i get nervous as fuck on tea

>>18663577
Probably caffeine, but i find it tea to be pretty easy on me, it doesn't make me twitchy like coffee. Try some different brand of tea and only brew the bag for 3 minutes

>>18663584
i had the teabag in for the whole duration of my drink so that might be why

>>18663589
It certainty doesn't help

Thoughts on Rooibos?

>>18663652
Its good, honeybush too
I found it tastes best with a short brew 90 seconds or so but other disagre experiment and see what works for you.
Very sweet, easy to drink, it pretty much all comes from the same farmers collective so don't pay out the ass thinking you will be getting a more premium product, as long as its not old it should be pretty similar from different shops.

Puerh for caramel+vanilla flavors?

>>18662986
I got a 500ml/17oz thermos and it was the best tea thing i bought. Brew 500ml, get a gay little asian cup ~100ml and you can enjoy hot tasty tea for hours. I drink so much more tea now.

Damn yerba mate is pretty strong stuff.
I figured yesterday that i was putting way too much mate in my cup and that's why it lasted most of the day and left me more caffeinated than i usually am with a few gongfu sessions. This morning i weighed out my yerba in my cup and i probably had 20-25 grams yesterday.
I guess i don't need the extra kick of the no stems versions. Maybe i will order one of the more mild yerbas next time, not suave but just something that reviews as not being very strong. Porongo seems interesting. One review said the dry leaf smells like jelly donuts.

>>18663667
I have heard that dayi 7572 is pretty caramel tasting, but shamefully i haven't gotten around to trying it, pricing on it can get a little silly but you don't really need to worry about getting first batch stuff or age so just go for the examples with reasonable pricing.
Here is a 150g cake if you want to try it.
https://www.fullchea-tea.com/2012-yr-menghai-dayi-classic-7572-ripe-puerh-100-quality-guarantee-taetea-chinese-puer-tea-for-gift-packing-150g-pc37-aged-puerh-best-organic-tea-p0140.html
You can also get them from the taetea official store on Amazon. Just make sure you get one that's listed as sold by taetea and shipped by Amazon and not some third party seller.

>>18662754
>he hasn't tasted the wonders of xboxcha

>>18662306
i like 90ml for gongfu and 200ml for jap teas

Any tips on brewing yerba western style with an infuser?
Last time I tried yerba I'd constantly burn myself and by the time the temperature became tolerable it would just taste bitter and overbrewed...

Does anyone know of a japanese store with more options for bizen ware? i like the stuff artisticnippon has but im looking for more

>>18665208
I bought my bizen yunomi from an ebay seller by the name of nonyoppy or something like that. he has a bunch of bizen, generally cheaper than artistic nippon though not all of it is as nice

>>18665423
pic from other side. sorry for rotation, phoneposting sucks. the artist is takushi takahara

>>18665423
looks like a sawed off sewage pipe you picked up at a construction site

>brew some early grey for 4-5 minutes for muh caffeine
>tastes too strong but bearable
>get some leftovers and add milk
>entirely gets rid of the bad taste and replaces it with a milky flavor with the nice taste of the tea

holy shit no wonder brits add milk to tea
we only mostly drink hyper sweet watered down black tea here in south USA

wrong thread oops>>18665498
drinking some shou and gaming runescape again

>>18665435
yep, that's how you know it's good bizen. the more it looks like a rusty piece of metal or a weirdly shaped moss covered stone you found sonewhere the better it is
the ones that look like pastries are also acceotable

>>18665486
Tea is better with added ingredients. Give me milk or give me sweet tea with lemon.

>>18665645
>>18665486
low qi energy posts

>>18665196
>Any tips on brewing yerba western style with an infuser?
Short infusions, keep the water temp around 140-150
See
https://youtube.com/watch?v=60GyahgLgCo

>>18665208
Use from japan and shop on yahoo auctions japan and or rakuten.
There is a tremendous amout of stuff on yahoo auctions and prices are incredibly good right new due to the weak yen, basically 1/3 less than prices last year, even with the proxy fees and international shipping its still your best bet.
You will have to grab some Japanese characters to search effectively but you shouldn't have too much trouble getting the ones for bizen ware. According to my weeb friend who proxy shops yahoo auctions regularly from japan has the most robust repackaging for international shipping but there are several other proxy services outt there like zenmarket you can also use.
There are also some stores on etsy that sell lots of vintage Japanese teaware, many of them based in Thailand, but the proces won't be as cheap.

>>18665208
>>18665710
This should be the right kanji for bizen yaki
備前焼
I checked an got 500 pages of results on yahoo autions
Lets see tips about yahoo auctions, buy it now is less comon, most items are sold auction style with a reserve. Descriptions of quality are usually very accurate. Returns are highly discouraged and probably impractical with international orders.

GOOD MORNING

>>18665423
Very nice, i feel like i should still buy more tea instead of teaware though..
>>18665729
>>18665710
thanks im not a super fan of auctions but if i end up getting something ill post it

more cheap o bone tea cups

This is the gayest thread on this website right now. Think about that.

>>18665905
>>18665912
>>18665917
>flowers
do these belong to your mother?

>>18665924
I think /lgbt/ and /cm/ might have some gayer threads. why don't you go there if you want to discuss gayness in the future?

>>18665905
>>18665909
>>18665912
>>18665914
>>18665917
some nice finds anon

>>18665917
Nice

>>18656015
like a digestive tea? let me know what you are after and i can reccomend a blend

are there any unironic weight loss teas?
asking out of curiosity since teas and health are shilled together

>>18666203
Ephedra sinca
Order from china on ebay sold as mo huang

>>18665924
not drinking tea because you fear being called gay is massively homosexual
fags don't even drink tea they get drunk and smoke meth

>>18666203
Yohimbe
tl;dr you lose weight by not eating

>>18656015
I usually drink yerba or coffee with meals desu.

>>18666203
ripe pu-ehr and yerba mate supposedly, but don't expect too much

>>18662686
teddy bear tea

>>18665946
yep stole them from her grave

>was going to start drinking tons of tea
>became a Mormon

>>18666345
Drink mormon tea

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B089RB2BQ4
Absolutely delicious. Good with sugar, good without, has a flavor that reminds me of rose but I had someone else try it and they said honey.

>>18666399
Awesome, thanks for reviewing it anon.

>>18666351
>no ephedrine in it
Give me the full stuff

>>18666345
I thought only coffee was forbidden, I have been committing apostasy without realizing it?

>>18666432
See
>>18666243

I ran out of jasmine, recommend me your favorite jasmine and I'll try it

>>18666432
well I am not endosing Ephedra use, Ephedra viridis does contain Ephedrine. I think they are just being coy in order to try to avoid legal trouble.

>>18665917
I really like those cups. I am normally not a huge fan of western teacups but those two are particularly tasteful. I especially like the "blue" one. it looks like they hired a naturalist illustrator for it.

>>18666606
Oh i was wondering about that
Makes sense they would just lie on the label since the fda is happy to just ignore it.

>>18666595
I was going to tell you to buy some jasmin liu bao but i can't find anyone selling it. I just got it as a freebie with an old tea order.

>>18666203
Three cups of green tea a day is associated with increased weight loss
I think you can get similar results with yerba and fu bricks with gold flowers

>>18666606
>>18666643
I am going to have to take that back. it is apparently still a matter of debate as to what exactly the the American Ephedra species contain. Unfortunately, I don't have time to do more thorough research tonight.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7397145/

>>18666461
... yeah... I haven't been in long enough to know if it was ever just coffee, but everything certifiably says no tea.

>>18666854
Where do you source your magic mormon panties from? Is there a subscription model like meundies?

Hot leaf juice....

>>18666879
not him, but there is a store inside the church that sells bibles and various items such as underwear.

>>18661887
Hibiki-an has pretty cheap sencha (less than half the price of Ippodo). They have 7 oz for 20ish bucks which strikes me as a good deal for the quality. They also have $6.50 shipping from Japan which is great.

https://www.hibiki-an.com/sp/product_info.php/products_id/600

>>18661927
You can get a much better deal online. Harney and Sons has some decent sencha that comes in bags and loose leaf.

https://www.harney.com/products/japanese-sencha?variant=1339301068806

If you want something nicer, you can always try some specialist vendors, although they will be pricier.

https://www.hibiki-an.com/sp/index.php

https://ippodotea.com/collections/sencha

https://www.tezumi.com/

I would try some nicer, loose-leaf Japanese green tea to see if you like the flavor. I wouldn’t bother with getting anything super expensive. Although it might be better quality, the difference won’t be worth the price different unless you are sure that you like the flavor of Japanese green tea in general.

>>18666731
Wouldnt that just be because caffeine is associated with weight loss (by promoting movement)

>>18667025
Not him but stimulants are also associated with not eating.

Where to buy real deal guayusa and not just mate sold as it

What's your preferred tea type?
I think overall I like white tea the most, but green tea can be nice in the spring and summer, and black tea in the fall and winter.
Puerh is the most interesting to me in theory.

>>18667468
still a bit new, but so far I'm liking oolongs the most I think. seems like there's a big variety of flavors
any reccs foe good whites I could try? the ones I had I didn't like too much (a ya bao, bai mu dan and something called snow buds), but I'm sure there's more to white tea than this

>>18666243
Wouldn't recommend it, not the plant. One of the most disgusting teas I've ever tried and the high is shit. Just get ephedrine pills.

Any good charcoal TGY you've personally tried and would recommend?

>>18666203
replacing soda and other sugary drinks like juice with tea will make you lose weight

i fucked up real bad kek, only 12 days till christmas i dont think any tea gifts will arrive if i order it now oops, guess i will find a local store maybe they have something interesting

>>18662457
>>18661822
yes its absolutely worth it to buy quality japanese green tea, it's a completely different thing that average green tea, even decent quality. gyuokuro is a punch of flavor in the face and that's exactly what you need to start with

>>18667722
I have a bag of this ive been drinking through and really enjoying. I think its solid tea but probably a bit more expensive then it should be. Still its got a proper roast on it by somone that knows what they are doing and it's well processed.
https://purplecloudteahouse.com/collections/tieguanyin-collection/products/traditional-roasted-tieguanyin-oolong

Day 5 of yerba mate.
Im starting to get the hang of brew times. With the large leaf pieces in this blend i need to let the water sit for a little while before drinking. Before i was going through 2+ litres of water for a single mate before it lost flavor because i wasn't letting the water sit long enough.
Does anyone who drinks yerba mate and tea think that yerba is rougher on the stomach? I feel like this yerba has a green aspect to it that bothers my stomach a bit. Im thinking a roasted or barbacua version might alleviate that issue some.
Its really convenient that i had this ceramic cup on hand that is roughly the right size and shape to act as a ceramic gourd. Im thinking i will order one of those double wall steel mates eventually, they seem more durable and the steel won't soak as much heat out of the water as the ceramic does.
Can't decide if i want to bother with an actual gourd, they look cool but they seem like a bit of a hassle.
I know a few posters have bought gourds, how are they holding up?

>>18668025
I have a palo santo wood cup with a metal outer layer. it smells nice and is very durable, though it does take quite a bit of heat away. but you can always just adjust your water temperature to compensate

>>18668037
Wood cups seem like they will be more durable than gourds. Thanks i will look into it.
Any maintenance or upkeep you have to do on your cup?

>>18668050
not really. it can dry out and crack if you don't use it for a while, but with the metsl outer layer it's not a problem, it keeps it together and the resin seals the crack easily

>>18666963
Theres no store inside my church wtheck.

>>18668108
lol sounds like you're a poormon.

>>18668025
>I know a few posters have bought gourds, how are they holding up?
Been using mine for about a year and a half and it's doing just fine. I like the aesthetic and have had no noticeable wear and tear or mold issues, so I'm comfortable recommending them. The people who think they're for tryhards are tryhards.
Enjoying some quality time with the Don before breakfast atm.

>>18668368
Nice, thanks anon
Have your tried any barbacua yerbas?

>>18668025
I've never had green tea nausea from Argentinian yerba

>>18668368
Is that the guy who fired Norm Macdonald?

Mulch bros
Check out the new bricks on KTM

'ate mohammedan bean juice
'ate african pine needles
'ate tisanes (not caffeine addicted just don't like em)
'ate spic bushes
luv me chink leafs
luv me baked goods
luv me afternoon tea ceremony
luv me biscuits
simple as

>>18668562
y'all really drinking stuff that looks like it came out of my compost bin?

>>18668625

>>18668450
I sometimes drink gunpowder green from my yerba mate, through a bomba straw.

Honestly Yerba makes my gums feel like I've been drinking fiber glass.

Yerba mate is weird

Already got a tracking number for my chen sheng hao tea sampler, ive got a feeling its going to come pretty quickly.

oooh fuck i made too much earl gray

>>18655500
Is there a way of getting more pu erh tea that doesn't involve buying online or buying from slants?
It seems like most of the shops selling it are run by chinese.

>>18669995
well, it is a chinese tea, made pretty much only in china
the ones you can buy at supermarkets or whatever are almost invariable horrible

A giant thermos is the best tea investment imo. It unlocks the next level of grampa style laziness. I can really feel myself becoming in tune with the Tao.

Tracking link is broken but my FarmerLeaf order has allegedly shipped. Anyone know how long it tends to take to get to the US?

>>18668402
Don't think I have, I tend to go for straightforward Argie mates, will have to expand

On the topic of laziness, what is the laziest plastic free tea brewer? I have one that automatically empties into your mug if you put in on top of it, but it's made of plastic.

>>18670097
You put leaves in your cup with hot water and wait for them to sink

>>18670163
That is the laziest way, but it doesn't work for everything. White and green teas tend to float forever.

>>18670080
>Anyone know how long it tends to take to get to the US?
My last few orders to the US from china arrived in about 20-25 days but half of that was delays omce the package was in the US
I ordered some junk off aliexpress recently and it came in like a week and a half

>>18670195
You have to put the tea in the cup and pour the water, not the other way around. Also if your temps are too low they won't sink so that can be an issue for green teas.
Based on your criteria i would say western style brewing in a teapot with a removable brew basket.

>>18670071
Very true. It's probably even more useful than a little digital scale.

What exactly is "white" tea? Literally every vendor and white tea I've bought was totally different.
Colombian "organic" white tea from Upton? Some roasted unrolled stuff with a color and flavor reminding me of okish black tea.
Indian moonlight white? Pretty greenish and has a melon rind and vegetable flavor.
Some weird Chinese loose buds stuff? Flowery, perfumey.
I notice some of the pu'er lesbian types of sites sell white cakes with what looks like giant unrolled leaves.

>>18670686
Its minimally processed tea leaves. They are basically just harvested and dried, no kill green no fermintaion, partial oxidation.
But there is a lot of leeway in how it can be processed, so processing differences and different varietals end up tasting fairly different. I know the whites from puer vendors are usually made from the same varitao they make puer from and the leaves are basically just picked and dried.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=yRxrEWs3QY8

>>18668587
>luv me biscuits
those aren't biscuits

Speaking of Grandpa style does anyone make a Thermos with a filter?

>>18671207
why not just filter it before pouring it in lol?
you COULD attach one to the little cup

>>18671207
at that point, why wouldn't you just make tea in a large plastic container and pour it into your thermos for later?

Is Twinnings just overrated?

>>18668037
palo santo smells heanvenly, got it as incense wood, realized I can use it as a whole spice by merely putting it in water
you can infuse it in the water you brew with, and in a fermentation jar it give its perfume to everything. its so versatile

>>18668587
can't figure out african pine needles

>>18671568
I think he means roibos or something

What kinds of caffeine containing plants have you guys gotten to try so far ?
I've had coffee, tea (black and green only), yerba maté, guarana (only powdered supplement form sadly), cacao (surprisingly does contain caffeine). I'm looking forward to order guayusa and I found kola nuts in a grocery store. Do you know of any other kinds of plants that naturally contain caffeine, am I missing some ?
Maybe this could be a thread theme, unusual sources of caffeine, since we've had a maté thread already

>>18671599
Been meaning to try cleavers/goosegrass, the only native European plant to contain caffeine and a common weed in most of the Northern Hemisphere.

>>18670071
Agreed. I drink much more tea now i have a thermos. I just want my cheeky little 110ml cups from china to arrive so i can stop pouring into a gaiwan.

>>18671599
yaupon, dahoon

I have black rum, gonna try mixing it in roasted oolong and a couple yerbas.

dark rum overpowers and overwrites the dong ding i just tried it with, not necessairly bad

Dark rum overpowers and overwrites the dong ding i just tried it with, not necessarily bad, smells amazing though

me thirsty
me make tea
life is gud

Had some solid liu bao last night. Took a picture of the dry leaf, but neglected to upload. Roasty wood notes, deep soil sweetness, subtle hit of barbeque smokiness, and smooth texture. Still in my gaiwan, so I will drink it now. I'm waiting on a bulk shipment of miso/doenjang and some other goods to consume in a few hours. Good soup and pairings soon to come; today will be comfy, lads. Come drink liu bao/heicha with me today, anons.

whats the latest you guys will drink tea generally?
home general being uncomfy today and im bored but i feel like its too late to drink tea now since i dont want to stay up the night from caffiene

>>18673715
I have no limit. I'm sure many of us will just infuse as the whim hits us late at night. I may drink a lighter infusion in such a case, but caffeine doesn't keep me up. That said, many opt to switch to tisanes at such a time. I have very few on hand, but I like non-sweet nightcaps. Been ages since I've had the real deal, but I wish I could infuse proper mugwort again. No doubt an interesting choice before bed too.

Whoa... The charlies know how to make Oriental beauty. Taiwan btfo?

>>18673779
I've had some very nice si hi chun from vietnam. seems like Vietnamese oolongs might be a nice cheaper alternative to Taiwanese stuff

>>18673715
Like most Englishmen i have a cup of tea just before i go to bed. I got some bocha (stems and twig tea which has low caffeine) because i am slowing trying to wean off evening caffeine, it tastes great but i havent give it a fair shot yet because i still drink normal tea in the evening.

Order from sugimoto arrived. I ordered the sencha and genmaicha sampler sets and the gyokuro, bancha, and konacha samples. It came nicely packaged and with a matcha sample and a few teabags and even a handwritten postcard saying thank you as well. What should I start with and how should I go about brewing it? I don't actually have a teapot, just the strainer I've been using, and I don't have any equipment in which to brew the matcha the way one does.

>>18673913
Save the gyokuro for last, try genmaicha with a meal.

>>18673913
Start in order of quality. Matcha > gyokuro > sencha > the rest

>>18673715
I'm drinking the same gunpowder leaves I started this morning, and probably will for the remainder of the night unless I move on to beer.

>>18673691
No picture but i just stared some liubao grampa style. I still have a box on cnnp liubao i haven't opened yet. I will crack into it eventually.

>>18673715
I usually try and make sure to stop drinking tea by 9 or so. I didn't used to drink it after dinner at all but i have taken to having a smaller session after dinner recently.

>>18673945
>Matcha > Gyokuro

>>18673913
>just the strainer
Thats all you need, follow the directions from
https://www.o-cha.com/make-green-tea.html
But improvise with a strainer and a mug
Start with the sencha, that site has separate links for brewing gyokuro so check that as well.
Times and temperatures are the most important part.

for me it’s lipton peach tea made in a takeya pitcher in the fridge with a smidge of sugar

>>18673715
>>18673744
Yeah I can also enjoy tea as a nightcap

>>18670783
[laughs in crisps]

I made the gyokuro and the genmachia as instructed on the packaging.
Gyokuro was 5g with 6oz of water I used 135F water and steeped for 3 minutes. I used a metal strainer in one cup and then put that strainer and poured the liquid in the original cup through the strainer into a second cup. It's an acquired taste, to say the least. I like it but it's something I have to sit down, sip, and dearly think about. When I was taking it out of the bag for measuring the tea itself had very soft and silky feeling in my hand.
The genmaicha has a beautiful nutty scent and flavor that was very approachable and mild. I used 5g with 12oz of 180F water for 45 seconds, the larger amount of water let me use a normal mug with the strainer. I resteeped for 90 seconds with the same amount and temperature of water and got the same exact flavor with a little more bitterness and it started giving me this odd sensation that tingled my mouth that I don't think I quite got the first time.
They're both excellent teas, I'm also saving the matcha for next week so I can probably pick up one of those bamboo whisk things from daiso if they have any

>>18673715
3 pm. I can't stand any tisanes either so rip.

4:30
aultmore 12
glenfarclas 105
ledaig 10
water

ganja cigarettes

pilsner

liu an from yeeon maybe tomorrow to start me up

>>18673691
What kind of soup?

>>18674671
Mixed some miso paste and a bit of my nattou into some ready-make Viet pho. Little slick due to the nattou, but I found that pleasant. Rich flavor, but not excessively thick, and a bit of the fermented funk I desired for a while now.

The liu bao an hour or two beforehand was a good contrast. I'm having some lowish grade jasmine green now, which feels nice as it is lighter. A good tea selection is only further improved by a solid diet. I'm looking forward to eating these foods again

>>18674371
Nice, thanks for posting

>>18673715
drinking raw puerh at 2:30am boutta sleep soon

can someone help me find a tea for my mom? back in the soviet union days she said she used to drink some sort of Russian black tea in Hungary that was really delicious.

I do not know if it was flavored or not, but she said she tried many black teas but none of them tasted like that soviet era black tea. Any idea which type it could be? Maybe some flavored black tea? She tried black tea from the local Russian store a few years back but she says it doesn't taste like the one she remembers.

>>18675587
could have been Georgian tea, since most of the Soviet tea production was in Georgia AFAIK. the Georgian teas I've tried have been lighter and fruitier than the typical Ceylon or Asam black most people know

could have also been Russian Caravan I guess, a stronger, smokier blend of teas with lapsang souchong

>>18655505
is it mate like mate, or like mah-tay. ive never heard it said outloud and im paranoid to mispronounce

While on a trip I stopped at a small tea shop in Montana and tried a tea called prince of wales and loved it, but havent seen it in any tea shops on the road or back at home. It doesnt seem particularly rare, it was a simple black tea with cormflower i think.

>>18676241
mah-tay or mah-teh if you want to be sound less american and more spanish

>>18676259
grassy ass

>>18676259
Mating.

New thread coming right up

>>18655500
NEW
>>18676635
>>18676635
>>18676635

>>18676251
They may have their own house blend so if its an exact flavour your want you'd have to buy from that shop. Otherwise just buy earl grey with cornflour.