/ck/ - Food & Cooking

t

>>16509437
Thanks for making a new thread.
For me it's old puer.

>>16509504
Raw or ripe?

I have my first Yixing teapot on the way, super excited to try it with pu erh

Tea portafilter is otw from honk kong. I'm pretty excited.

>>16509834
For me it's raw in the daytime and ripe at night

>>16509834
Typically raw but ripes are very cozy sometimes.
I use my yixing for young and old raw, oolongs and some hei cha. Eventually i will get another for postfermented stuff like ripe puer and some hei cha.
Some tips for getting your yixing ready to use
https://mudandleaves.com/blogs/teatime/dont-boil-that-teapot

>>16509950
Wild project, im excited to see what happens with it.

>>16493302
Same poster here, last night I tried the 2008 Hei Shan "Old Tree Raw" Liu Bao from YunnanSourcing, a purchase made at the request of >>16416365 from a few threads back. This was certainly an interesting one, it was neither smoky nor reminiscent of tobacco, but I could definitely tell it was aged. It has a mellow flavor, maybe like old books or an attic, something that's been sitting around for a long time. If I had to compare to a food, maybe ancho chilis, but no spice, just the deeper earthy flavors they have. I got 10 brews out of it, so it has good longevity there. I'm increasingly believing that I'm not really into heicha/raw puerh, I only crave these flavor profiles infrequently, although when I do these teas will be enjoyable.

What do people mean when they say "storage taste?" It's possible that I am getting that with this Liu Bao but I have no frame of reference.

>>16510293
>reminiscent of tobacco, but I could definitely tell it was aged. It has a mellow flavor, maybe like old books or an attic

>>16510334
I don't know what the hell I'm talking about, but it is what it is.

I tried steep times of :45, 1:30 and 3:00 like one anon suggested for the dragonwell i have, and it definitely improved my experience. I just tried it on some moroccan mint tea, I'm really looking at it differently. Thanks, anon.

I will NEVER be Chinese.

"Dude it takes at least 30 minutes. Between measuring the leaves, getting the water to boil, cooling the water, and steeping, it's gonna take time.
>10 measure
>10 boil
>5 cool
>20 steep
At least 55 minutes, retard."
Why not just microwave the water and steep? Takes less than 10 minutes. Dummy.

I like iced tea. Is there anything better than lipton bulk iced tea bags

>>16510594
My kettle can bring water to a boil in 60 seconds

>>16510594
>he doesn't put his tea in a mug and microwave it for 5 minutes
Subhuman faggot moron.

/tea/! Been ages! I'm glad you anons are a permanent fixture here still. /ck/ is salty, ironically.
Been drinking mostly shou puer on the weekends, my favorite, and some sheng once in a while. While at home I use one of three very nice gaiwan sets.
When I get my teas from Yunnan Sourcing, I store them properly in a proven pumidor, when I pick some from the cake, I write down its name on the tin. I then try to commit the name to memory, especially if I like it. However, this has never worked. Chinese chings and changs is just babble to me. I cannot store those in my head. Is there a better technique? Are you remembering other characteristics and drawing a mnemonic? When anons recommend teas, are they pulling that from their head or a spreadsheet?

>>16510617
buy some bulk ctc black tea

>>16511261
I just screenshot my orders and toss them in a folder to refer to later.

For me, it's yancha
>>16511261
I second the suggestion to refer to your orders. Learning a few of the chinese words definitely helps remember, especially place names and terms like 'huang pian' that describe the tea itself. Puerh tea is the worst with this since vendors sell it under weird made-up names. Oolongs are nice and consistent since they're named for the cultivar of tea they come from.

>>16510293
I was the one who suggested trying that. A bit risky but it sounds like you got a good example of the genre. That sort of essence of root cellar. I agree it's not a tea for every day but on a cold winter night or after a heavy greasy meal it can really hit the spot. Something very comforting about it.

>>16510293
>What do people mean when they say "storage taste?" It's possible that I am getting that with this Liu Bao but I have no frame of reference.
Yeah that's probably what you are experiencing, the storage taste is sort of when storage conditions not only mellow the tea but impart their own unique flavor profile too the tea. The traditional storage where liu bao is made is typically hot and humid and so they tend to impart that root cellar / soil / loam / forest floor flavor to the tea. Puer stored in hong Kong also tends to have some degree of storage flavor.

>>16511261
I just forget, tea is a very ephemeral experience, i think it's important to keep exploring and experiencing new teas instead of trying to repeat an enjoyable tea session over and over.

>>16511261
Buy a nice notebook and make it a tea journal. Writing down stuff makes you memorize better than excel sheets or having open 30 tabs.

Has anyone here had the old "White Whale" brick from White2tea? It has been sold out for ages, and it tasted like nothing else I have ever had... are there any other similar teas out there?

>>16512577
What did it taste like specifically? It was a white wrapper warehouse find so you best bet is probably digging through random old noname teas on King Tea Mall.
If you are in the US take a chance on this guy
https://www.liquidproust.com/listing/984860088/2005-mengban-shuangxiong-tea-factory

I had 12 grams of Earl Grey between the morning and the afternoon but now I want to drink more, is that a lot for a day?

Thinking about getting a podstakannik for grandpa style brewing at work, since I currently can't conveniently drink tea at work. Do you think it would be too small at 7 ounces? Never done the grandpa style before.

>>16513348
I brewed grampa style every single day last year.
I have used an 8oz mug however i found that it's not ideal, you have to refill too often. I currently use two very thin walled 12-14 oz mugs with about 4.5-6 grams of tea depending on the type. I think that is about the ideal size since you can drink around 8oz before refilling.
>>16513336
Drink more tea

How substantial are the health benefits of tea?
I'm an old fitfag who is absolutely anal about my micros/macros using chronometer every day and was wondering if it would be worthwhile to switch out my iced black tea with iced green tea.
Favorite type of hot tea is oolong if that makes any difference

>>16514259
It seems like green tea was hyped partially because that's what they were doing the most studies on, i guess it has slightly more antioxidants. You will probably gain more by ditching teabags and switching to a decent quality looseleaf tea. If you are in the US try upton tea company, their java or ice tea blend for black, or one of their seasons pick green teas for green.

>>16514259
The only health benefit from tea I subscribe to is if I have a sore throat it makes it feel better. There are other purported health benefits but it's not substantial enough that they are without question. Getting a conclusion from a study on this type of thing is difficult.
>if it would be worthwhile to switch out my iced black tea with iced green tea.
It's all healthy. There's no substantial difference there. So just drink the tea you prefer.

>>16514284
>You will probably gain more by ditching teabags and switching to a decent quality looseleaf tea
I'll look into this, thanks man. Should I bother with learning about getting better tea leaves or is ignorance bliss? I have became a coffee/espresso snob over the past year and wish I could go back to enjoying shit coffee

>>16514302
Generally if the leaves you buy are broken up and have a lot of dust, it's lower quality. Better tasting tea is more likely to have better health benefits, so just get something that isn't the dust they sweep off the factory floor. I generally don't really like blends. Going with the other anon's post, Upton has "Season's Pick Assam GFOP Organic" which is only 5 cents/gram, and I've personally tried it. It tastes decent, it will definitely blow away any teabag you've had, at least. I've rapidly become a tea snob in the last few months and I can tell the difference between the shit blends Upton sends as free samples and this Assam, it's definitely a step up, but still extremely affordable. If you want to get more adventurous, yuunnansourcing.us sells Chinese black teas which taste a little different from Assam (which is a pretty standard "black-tasting" tea) all while still being quite affordable, maybe 10 cents/gram or so. The possibilities are endless and I would encourage experimentation, but don't be afraid of just getting a bunch of a plain jane tea for daily drinking.

>>16513524
Is it important that the walls be thin?

>>16514582
One of my mugs is too nice to grandpa in :( Holds heat way too long.

>>16509472
extremely based fpbp

I'm getting really rich, full-bodied heads and then as I drink the cup the flavor dulls out until the last bit of tea is bitter. What am I doing wrong?

>>16514821
Are you drinking the fine sediment that collects at the bottom? Most teas I've had will leave little black bits that are quite bitter, make sure to let it settle before drinking and then just toss the last few drops.

anyone know a good website for British teas that ships to the middle east?
already checked the pastebin, Upton was nice but I'm not paying 30$ in shipping for every order.

also fuck this new captcha

>>16511699
I'm leaning towards this approach.
>>16512192
This is up there, too. I started journaling at work recently. It's grown on me.
>>16511533
>>16511504
I had a similar thought too. The wrappers are fairly distinctive and I always remember labels before a name. Works until you get to the big tea factories when wrappers are less distinct.

>"he" uses an infuser

>>16516166
Why not, it's nice for herbal teas

fuuuk im running out of tea
good thing i still have a few kilos of tuos for emergencies

>>16516492
brought 3kgs last year, it was the only panic buying I did. still have over half left, itch to buy more is insane

bagged tea is good

>>16516587
Yeah im pretty much in the same boat, i bought a kilo and a half of interesting diverse teas and than a shitload of tuos and now I'm making some serious progress in getting through the nicer teas. I should probably hurry up and put an order in.

>>16516595
Bagged tea is better than no tea but it's mostly not very good

what's the most basic tea doohickey i can buy to make filtered grandpa style tea with?

i need something that wont break and wont be a pain in the ass to clean, that i can just continuously pour water into and pour out only the liquid into my disposable cup(s)

Should I drink tea or coffee

>>16517015
Both.

>>16517217
cofftea was a thing for a while in the 00's
>>16516771
something like this, the infuser top clips into the bottle neck so you can just use the top as a filter, i brought one years ago just look for glass bottle/tea infuser.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Tealyra-teaTRAVEL-Removable-Stainless-Borosilicate/dp/B07KRL4XZF/ref=sr_1_51?dchild=1&keywords=glass+tea+infuser&qid=1628283362&sr=8-51

>>16516771
theres lots of glass teapots with removable infusers

>>16517305
>cofftea
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rwe1o1tRmZo
>What? Not mixed together.

>>16516771
The teavana ingenuiTEA 2
You put leaves in, add water than put it on a cup to drain the tea into the cup, can be fully dissembled and cleaned

>>16517662
Stop supporting starbucks.

>>16517696
Nobody else makes one of those that you can take apart and clean. I'm not recommending their tea

>>16516771
What the fuck is the difference between "filtered grandpa style" and just using a gaiwan

What's /tea/ caffeine free drink of choice for that pre-bed relaxation?

Pic rel is my pleb choice

>>16518572
Sleep Tyme is for discerning tea drinkers anon

>>16516771
>most basic tea doohickey
a cup and a small plate
don't be a consoomer
u think gramdpa got $40 for a luxury Taiwan?

what's a great decaf tea to make iced tea with?

>>16518572
Rooibos, every time.

Been trying out different teas,
can anyone recommend me some?

Tried Dark tea and didn't like it

Love black tea, especially malty or sweet.

Like oolong (Stick rice Oolong)

Green tea is nice on occassion too

Pic related, its the golden malty snail tea i love

>>16520267
This is a classic malty tea from a popular factory. I wish they had a smaller package but they dont.
https://www.fullchea-tea.com/2019-yunnan-old-tree-black-tea-dianhong-feng-qing-red-tea-cake-357g-p0593.html

>>16520267
lapsang

>>16520267
Seems like you've tried every major tea type except white, so I would get some reasonably priced bai mudan for an idea of that flavor profile. You might also want to try ripe puerh, I'm not a huge fan of heicha either but I found ripe puerh to be very noob friendly and easy to drink any time of day, much like a black tea, just different.

Bought a whole bunch of teas, excited to try new stuff. Especially the Gyukuro despite how pricey it is.

>>16520764
Post about what you enjoy when it comes in. Japanese greens are really something special, so rich.

Can you have multiple infusions with herbal tea or berry tea?

Feel like washing money away when putting 12g of herbs for a liter and throwing it all away, when good oolong or pu erh will last 5-6 infusions

>>16520994
Try it, that's the only way to know. I find some herbs can be brewed several times and some get bitter and nasty or otherwise taste off.
Depending on the herbs you might be able to simmer them in a few cups of water for 10-20 minutes to make sure you get a complete extraction, then diluted it with a bunch of water to make your bog batch of iced tea

>>16520937
>when it comes in
I actually found a respectable local place, the guy who runs it seems knowledgeable and pleasant and the prices are about what I would pay online so I'm happy to support a local business. I've been sipping some Rooiboos Provence that he graciously provided me a small sample of, I might try Russian Caravan tomorrow before settling back into more regular teas.
Otherwise I got a good Ceylon, a cheap Chunmee for a daily drinker, the Gyukuro he talked me into by saying it's some of the best he's had, and a few tisanes.
He had a really interesting estate Darjeeling that was supposedly a super limited run but at $32 for 25g it was a bit too rich for me, I feel like I wouldn't have appreciated the flavor enough to justify buying it.

>>16510334
I lick old books

>>16521073
It's really nice to have a decent local place, i have an okay one nearby but the kids who work there don't really know anything about the tea they are selling.
>He had a really interesting estate Darjeeling that was supposedly a super limited run but at $32 for 25g
Ouch that's rough
I always recommend Margaret's Hope Estate second flush as an affordable but still very nice darj

>>16520294
Different anon, I'm looking to explore more so I grabbed some. Also got some longjing dragonwell and some da hong stuff for an oolong, which I still haven't had yet.

>>16521522
Nice, tell us how it goes

for me it's Taiwanese oolong

>make tea the same way that I always do
>it smells and looks exactly the same
>tastes like nothing
What the fuck did they do to me? Is it too late?
>tried to post this once
>No Valid Captcha
What the fuck bros. WHAT ARE THEY DOING

>>16523118
Did you eat something beforehand? Maybe you are just having an off day, the same tea can taste different depending on how *you* are.

>>16509437
Looking forward to a cup of ginger tumeric tea tomorrow

>>16523131
I ate an M&Ms ice cream cookie sandwich 25 minutes before starting the session but that shouldn't have affected anything. Also I just saw the shadow goblin who lives in my apartment again so maybe he did something to it.

>>16523118
Corona?
Are you used to hipster tea from startups? Some of those brands had added sugar pearls in their bags and herbs to make it taste sweeter

whats even the point of putting lose leaf tea into bags? just put the leaves in the cup i dont understand why do people buy lose tea, just to make it into bagged tea??

>>16523143
Fats can coat your tongue and reduce the perceived flavor of tea, things like butter, oils, dairy products

>>16524061
People are afraid of having the leaves in the cup, they fear the loss of control, they can't handle the freedom that grampa style gives to the leaves to swirl and dance and release their flavors.

Where do you buy teacups and trays from?

>>16524337
Lot's of places, depends on what you are looking for exactly. King tea mall has lots of very well priced cups, i don't know how much they charge for the shipping on tea trays but they have a decent selection. Aliexpress is actually pretty decent if you dig around some.
In the US purplecloud tea house and kong mountain tea have some cool unique stuff.
If you want the fancy stuff mud and leaves has some real premium pieces, essence of tea usually has a few antique ming cups and they have some really nice wood fired ming reproductions.

>>16524337
ebay, aliexpress

So despite being led to believe it was going to kick my ass and taste like old boots or something, (this blend of) Russian Caravan has a relatively moderate black tea flavor with a light smoky bite that lingers for a bit. Maybe I didn't steep it long enough (4 minutes with boiling water) and I'll see if steeping it longer (6 minutes) brings out a sharper and more offensive flavor on the second steep but so far this seems like an entirely approachable tea and not some masochistic acquired flavor. The aroma is definitely very strong but it's not an unpleasant one. If you are the type of person who enjoys smoked meats, especially smoked bacon, I would probably recommend this tea.

>>16524698
dont the russians boil big amounts of it for 10-15+ minutes?

whats the best way to clean out a fine mesh strainer? mine's draining slow and blowing/washing it out isn't helping

>>16524725
I'm not Russian so I'm not privy to their tea secrets (I don't even own a Samovar) but if you know a specific Russian method of prep I'm willing to give it a go.

>>16524698
Russian caravan isint usually too aggressive, its typically some kind of black tea blend with some smokey tea mixed in there. Maybe too much for someone who has only had lipton before.
It's usually pretty tasty, a nice afternoon tea.

>>16524746
think they make a concentrated brew then dilute it down, similar to turkish tea, also like the british they all milk but jam instead of sugar
https://www.samovartea.com/5-steps-to-the-ultimate-russian-tea/

>>16524746
Don't do it it's gross.
You are definitely brewing your tea the way it's intended to be made

>>16524759
>they all milk
*they add milk

>>16524759
I'll add a bit more tea leaves and let it steep for 15 minutes. I'm probably drinking it straight though, I don't usually keep milk in my fridge.
>>16524760
Everything is worth trying at least once.

>>16524746
i heard from a russia-adjacent friend that some boil their black tea for ages to make it omega strong. i dont know the details about it though.
the strong+ dilute doesnt sound very inviting to me, but i dont drink much black t to begin with.

>>16524743
Maybe use drain cleaner? Alkaline solutions will dissolve organic matter, although I'd double check the chemistry on that so you don't fuck up your strainer.

>>16524269
It was made with low-fat ice cream

>>16524886
>drain cleaner
bicarb soda seems more sensible but i'll try this first. fucking burn it off, makes sense its all organic leaf dust
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9px0L_f_Zc

>>16524743
Citric acid, you can buy bags of it on Amazon or it's sometimes sold as coffee pot cleaner. Mix up some in water, you can look up the proper ratios online and leave it to soak for a few hours.

>>16509834
Raw or ripe? Uhm... rape.

Im actually having some ripe this afternoon, it's pretty dry, but i like it.

>>16524947
i burnt it off and it now drains like a charm again

>>16524947
>how to clean without detergents
>burn it then clean it with soap anyway
wut

>>16526020
i use rinsed with water after letting it cool

>>16509834
What pot did you buy?
The info in the pastebin has been a bit overwhelming for me, I'm considering a green label from 2088 taiwan

>>16526717
Vintage is kind of a minefield, i think essence of tea and mud and leaves or the ones on purple cloud tea house made by Lin Hanpeng and Chen Chunhong Studio (same as mud and leaves) are the safest bets.
yinchenstudio also has some new stuff that looks good and is priced well
I have one from Essence of tea and it's quite nice but the single hole filter does clog occasionally, you have to keep a bamboo skewer around and poke it sometimes for me it's maybe 1 in 5 sessions.
I really need to work on that part of the pasebin, I'm probably going to break vintage out into a different category with a warning that collecting vintage is a pain in the ass, don't fall for the merchants tricks talking about amazing old clay you can't get anymore and master teapot makers doing exquisite work while doing forced labor in a communist run factory.

>>16509437
I would love to fuck their hairy cunts

damn i want to spend a few thou on clay pots
I wont, but it's pretty tempting

>>16526845
Based hairy cunt fucker

>>16509437
What do you think they added to their tea? Cream, sugar, coffee, their husband’s Scotch, Cognac?

Why does ripe puerh smell like fish pussy

>>16527990
It's a by product of the wet piling method of fermentation used.
However eternal reminder that if you get puerh that has that smell still on it, it has not been correctly prepared pre pressing/wrapping.

>get big ass cup that i got for christmas that was a nestle gimmick that came with fudge mix and you were supposed to make some kind of chocolate cake in it
>get 3 teabags
>pour freshly boiled plain water into cup and onto teabags
>stir and press tbags into side of cup to get maximum absorbance
>remove 3 teabags and throw them at my bin (i never miss)
>put 4 teaspoons of sugar in, i vary the amount a little to make the tea taste different since if it always tastes exactly the same you get too used to it and it is no longer as enjoyable
>drink and sip hot tasty tea for 30 minutes to an hour
>always leave a 5th in the bottom so i dont drink the concentrated sugary part
>make another cup a couple hours later

is there any other black tea brands anons reccomend?

So I cracked open my 2020 Yunnan Sourcing Impression Raw Puerh cake at last, had a sample of it before. But it tastes entirely different than the sample I got before hand.

The lid fragrance clicked to my senses as a high quality frosty or a sugar cookie dough, lil nutty. The wet leaf smelled strangely sweet as well, like I was huffing confectionaries sugar, with just a pinch of sheng funk to it.

Now that alone would be weird and intriguing. But the first steep (10 secs, 95c), tastes like vanilla. , almost sinfully sweet. Has a luxuriously thick mouthfeel to it. Has a little astringency, but not much.

This is one of the oddest tea cakes I've broken into, especially for a Sheng. But it is very enjoyable.

>>16528579
Also should mention the cake was very easy to break into and pry leaf from. Looks beautiful too, every leaf is visible. I could probably pull it apart with my hands if I wanted to

>>16528579
>2020 Yunnan Sourcing Impression Raw Puerh
>This is one of the oddest tea cakes I've broken into
?

>>16528613
>?
?

>>16528613
it was odd because it tastes really different from the sample I got, and because it tastes like a vanilla flavored sweet, even after a few steeps and the astringency growing stronger. Which is weird, vanilla isn't a common flavor in tea. It's like with White 2 tea's waffles which tastes like maple syrup, or that fu brick I have that tastes like molasses, oats and lemons. When something steps outside of the pack, its more noticeable

>>16528659
shit miss read oddest as oldest

>>16528683
>or that fu brick I have that tastes like molasses, oats and lemons.
oh damn that sounds interesting, whats its name

>>16528696
Ah. that makes sense. Nah oldest I had was some aged roasted oolong I got once when I bought some teaware. Was older than I am, it was also delicious

Can't remember what it was though. Think it was late 80s, not sure though. Threw the packet away after I had the 5g I bought

>>16528698
2018 Mojun Fu Cha "Fu Shen" Fu Brick Tea from YS

Costs 30 bucks for a 400g cake. Very nice. Has golden flowers in it, which is what I imagine makes for its unique taste. But it could be the fermentation for all I know. Very refreshing tea.

Thoughts on rooibos?

>>16528862
wanna drink the piss right from the source

stroking rn

>>16510617
I like making iced green tea with loose leaf. I get the cheap sencha from ocha. There's also a blueberry hibiscus tisane I have that is really good iced

>>16529264
God i love Japanese greens. So rich, so tasty

>>16527990
Is this why there’s the puerh lesbian meme?

>>16528088
This was one of the most popular and highly rated teas on YS so I would hope that it wasn't prepared improperly for their sake because that would be embarrassing. I just added 3 mini tuo of this 15 year golden melon ripe to my cart in order to get over the threshold for free shipping. And it smells like a freshly cracked tin of /deenz/.

>>16529649
Those mini tuos sell so well because people don't want to buy full cakes and prefer smaller amounts, mini tuos generally aren't very good quality. Typically ripes air out over the course of a year or two after pressing and get less funky, however those ones from ys are so densely compressed, and it's so dry in Kunming, that they probably haven't changed at all in a decade.
All that said most ripe has at least a hint of funk too it. For future reference avoid boutique ripe puerh and just get cakes from menghai TF / dayi / tae tea and haiwan if you want cheaper ones.

Is it ever okay to drink earl grey?

>>16530899
Why wouldn't it be?

>>16509437
mint

>>16530899
On one hand I want to feel superior to people who drink Earl Gray. Sometimes I think it’s baby’s first black tea because it’s so popular and well-known. Some people I think drink it because it has the association from Star Trek TNG with Cpt. Picard ordering it all the time.
On the other hand I figure some people like that taste of bergamot flavoring their tea, so I don’t want to shit on someone’s personal preferences. Maybe some people like flowery orange taste added to their tea, I don’t know.

>>16531090
>baby’s first black tea
never had it

>>16531121
It's alright, i haven't tried any premium versions, maybe those are better.

>>16528704
thanks, ordered

>>16523143
TELL ME MORE ABOUT THE GOBLIN

>>16530899
Yes. I have yet to have a good london fog though.

Good morning /tea/. Have you got a. Nice cuppa going already?

>>16511261
>Chinese chings and changs is just babble to me
Racism truly does turn otherwise ordinary people into retards.

>>16532624
He isint wrong though, i drink lots of chinese tea with long ass names and when I'm reading posts on /tea/ about what people are drinking sometimes it takes me a second to figure out if they are talking about a real tea or just shitposting with a bunch of ching chong bing bongs.
Take for example Gao Shan Yun Wu Lao Shu Hong

>>16532624
>Implying Chinese doesn't sound like a bunch of ching chong bullshit to someone who doesn't know the language
It's made even worse by the fact that japanese teas are often talked about in the same discussions as chinese teas so it's even more nip nong ching chang bullshit mixed together, I don't blame him at all.

>>16532629
Or who can forget the classic
Xiao Bai Cai Gu Shu Pin Pei Zhen Cang
Maybe
Bao Yan Lian Xin Tie Bing

>>16532624
I dare you to say even something like "Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong" out loud and not feel silly the first few times

>>16532624
>have you heard all the weird names white people give their tea?
>sleepy time fruity rest
>pine relaxation
>wedding breakfast Earl of Dorchester
>peach rose-mint chai
>do they not feel silly going into Starbucks and ordering a tall venti 40 gallon of one of these?

>>16532633
Japanese teas are very simple and cleanly named.
Genmaicha - Brown Rice, Tea.
Sencha - Infused, Tea
Shincha - New, Tea.
Matcha - Fine powder, Tea
Gyokuro - Jewel Dew
None of them have weird, unusual names.
Sencha often has qualifiers, like Asamushi or Fukamushi, but that again is very simple - Mushi refers to the steaming. Asa is Light, Fuka is Deep, Chu is medium.
It's all very logical and meaningful once you take a few seconds to learn it.

>>16532701
Yes, now you are getting it

>>16532701
Yesh now you are getting it it's as weird to them as them naming teas things like
Small cabbage cloud fog round tea of yiwu
Is to us.

>>16532701
Being from Boston, Earl of Dorchester tickled me.

for me it's a kilo of cheap tuos

>>16532125
He's like one of those shadow people that you see on /x/ but he is a very small goblin-like creature

So, I might sound like a moron here, but if I take the infuser out of my traditional western teapot and use it to brew Gaiwan-style with a filter over the spout it'll be basically the same experience as a Gaiwan taste-wise, right?
Obviously it'll be a bit clunkier and I'll probably buy a proper Gaiwan, but in the meantime there's nothing actually special about a Gaiwan other than ease of use right?

My favorite tea is the Turkish Tea.

>>16533561
Even easier, put the infuser basket in a mug, then you can use a small amount of water and do short infusions like in a gaiwan, you can just pull the filter out and rest it on a plate in between brews. Just sort of measure how much you need to fill the mug for it to be 150ml of water and only fill it up that far.

>>16533561
nop, its just a cup with a lid to hold leaves back when pouring. i did what >>16533703 proposed until i got around to getting a gaiwan myself. easier if you have a cup with a wide rim.

>>16510121
Touched down in LA. Hopefully it clears customs this week.

>>16532087
>ning'er yunnan black
kek

>2nd time trying 2008 Liu Bao I bought
>I definitely don't like it, it's drinkable at best
>90 grams left out of 100 grams I bought
Is there a red cross for unwanted tea or something? It was only like $15 but I'm really gonna be forcing myself if I have to drink this 18 more times.

>>16534664
Sorry you aren't digging it anon.
I occasionally do some trade or send care packages to anons but i haven't renewed my po box lately. Hold on to it and i will hopefully get things set up again next month.

>>16534277
What's wrong with a black Ning'er?

Was watching a chinese movie and all the cups had lids. Anyone know why or what its called? Not sure if its a tea thing or not

>>16534840
If you have anything you think would be lulzy to run through the tea portafilter lmk.

>>16532087
Is white tea good? I was going to make a big order from YS and have never had it before and was thinking about adding some

Are those ripe puerh that they stuff inside of citrus rinds any good? I would think that they would use cheap shitty tea for that sort of thing.

>>16535707
White tea is great, you also get a full spectrum of flavors within the family depending on the leaf size you get. Personally I prefer aged white (shou mei) for a deeper flavor mixed with sweetness, but Bai Mu Dan has a very delicate taste to it that's good in its own right. It's absolutely worth trying a few different kinds, at least.

>>16535738
I want to add some to my order but I am already over $100 and shipping from China is probably going to be $30-40. I wish that YS would stock more stuff in their US warehouse.

Does this look like a good order 1/2

2/2

>>16536033
i'd advise against the golden pig raw, its pretty rough. the spring morning however has really mellowed in the year and a half i've had it, its quite drinkable now. surprising considering they're stored in the same place and the same age, it might get better after 7+ years but if your planning to drink it young i'd drop golden pig. also hairy crab you should drink without a filter so you get the hairs its named for in your cup

>>16536133
Okay thanks I was going to get one golden pig to drink since it's cheap and then keep the other for a few years but I might just get one to age and not drink one young. I was going to try grandpa style brewing for the first time with the hairy crab and the purple beauty but I will remember the hair thing if I ever use my gaiwan for it.

>>16536033
Can't speak for the fermented teas, but both of those white cakes are excellent, and Hairy Crab is generally well-liked. 100g of Yunnan purple green seems like a lot; have you tried anything like it before?

for me it's dayi menghai tae tea puer factory of menghai

>>16537093
Wait it's actually
Menghai Tea Factory, TAETEA Group - Xishuangbanna, Yunnan, China

>>16537099
>My complaints about Menghai Tea Factory, TAETEA Group - Xishuangbanna, Yunnan, China

>>16537544
Kek thanks anon

>>16536902
>have you tried anything like it before
No

having some more of that HK stored raw from whats his face, i really need to get some from the tea vampire. I'm pretty convinced that good hk traditional storage is THE way for raw puer.

How cringe is it to listen to Chinese folk music while doing gong fu?

>>16538533
>china
>folk music
Anon...

>>16538533
One of my favs.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CawoPNkY00

Is their any good green tea coming out of countries that aren't japan or china?

my doc say caffeine is bad for the eyes but green tea must be better than a monster or bang right?

>>16539929
If you're actually trying to avoid caffeine you can get green teas with little to no caffeine, or you can drink a herbal tisane like Rooibos that has absolutely no caffeine.
Just do your research because there are green teas with very high caffeine contents.

Coof

odds i drink old puer evens i drink new puer

>>16541380
Well 2016 is fresh right?
I'm not going any younger for my first pot.
Please excuse my shit photography, the leaf actually looks decent in person.

>>16541402
Anyway it's okay, i usually get better brews out of this. Upfront i get a greanbean note and some bitterness, this transitions into a creamy finish both texture and flavor wise. I probably pushed the early infusions a bit too hard.
Not bad but I'm going to have to eat a heavy breakfast before i brew any more.

>sipping strong Russian tea out of a thermos on break
>co-worker comes over and tries to make small-talk, asks me what I'm drinking
>without thinking respond to him in broken Russian
>he laughs and says "Get out of here stalker" before leaving
It's over for me. I'm just glad I wasn't drinking Chinese tea.

For this afternoon its a 2009 xiaguan fangcha. I didn't like this when i got it but either brewing in clay or 6 months in my storage have really helped, typical xiaguan smoke, sweet, bitter dark brew.

Has anyone tried indian green teas? Are they any good?

Haven't been making tea much at all due to needing to store it in a less temperature-sensitive environment. If I want to bring a few into my refrigerator, will it impact the flavor/aroma much? I hear people do that with green/black/oolongs often, but I mostly have fermented and aged teas (pu'er/heicha, white, etc). So, I don't know how they would perform. I'd only be moving very small quantities at a time for more ready consumption.

>>16544134
Just throw it onto the roof like a Frisbee and then get out a ladder to retrieve one of the cakes when you are ready to drink it.

>>16544145
I just want to drink my tea without it being roasted by my ridiculously hot environment. I had to move it all to avoid further damage before. It only started to reset after doing that.

>>16544165
How hot is it anon?

>>16544182
Hot enough to cause me to pass out if sufficient care isn't made. Temps differ, but unless I use AC (which can't be done if asleep or when power issues occur), it will cook me. Either way, the constant radical shifts in temperature are terrible for my tea, and I couldn't accept what was happening anymore, so I moved my entire stash. I haven't had much recently, but when I tried stuff before, it seemed healthier. Maybe it has healed back closer to its previous condition by now, but I've been hands-off for at least a month or more.

>>16544253
Jeez, idunno about the fridge, it is very dry, it will suck moisture out of tea unless its in sealed mylar bags. Sorry anon, i know you have been stressing about your storage.

>>16544280
>it is very dry, it will suck moisture out of tea unless its in sealed mylar bags.
Yeah, this is what I've been concerned about. Someone did give me some cheap, tiny bags a month or two ago which appear to be some form of mylar or similar (I'll have to check), so perhaps I could try that with a small amount, perhaps 50g. Thank you for the recommendation. As I said, I don't need to worry about my whole stash, I just want to have something nice to drink while I pass the months until I leave this place.
>i know you have been stressing about your storage.
All's well, better that it stays safe since it won't really 'expire' so much as age. Nice to know I can still get useful feedback from the community of this general either way. It has been a while; pleasant as always. Hopefully I can share some pics again sometime soon.

>>16517305
I had one of those and i dropped the strainer into the glass and when it hit the bottom it shattered the entire bottom of the thermos

>>16537544
Checked and kek'd

I want to make a moderate quality of tea (1 liter or so, several cups worth) and keep it warm for a couple hours.
Currently I have an electric kettle and a cup+basket i steep in.
What should I get to accomplish the above?

>>16545027
A thermos will serve you most appropriately for this task. Make the tea, pour it into the thermos, close, pour and drink as you wish. I've heard some people let it cool briefly before pouring to avoid off-flavors from coming about in the thermos, but I haven't tested it myself.

>>16545052
I still need something larger than a 400ml cup to steep the tea, but that's a great point. A thermos seems like a much better solution than a warming pad or pot like I was thinking.

>>16545058
You can grandpa-style it in whatever large vessel you have, and then pour. Alternatively, you can leave hot water in your thermos and make it on-site. That would probably taste better/fresher anyway, though you'd have to bring more equipment/materials.

>>16535456
it's called Tea Lid. ancient Chinese tradition

is anyone concerned about the flouride

>>16545149
Are you concerned by potential mercury poisoning from eating fish? Just don't drink absolute shit alleyway tea and you're probably fine.

>>16545149
Take lugol's iodine solution every day mixed in a glass of water, it's been shown in at least one small study to increase fluoride excretion by 10-15x. Iodine and flourine compete for one another inside the body, fluorine is actually used as a treatment for excessive iodine and it seems the reverse can be done as well.

>pour water over Gyokuro leaves
fucking incredible aroma
this is going to be next level I can already feel it

>>16545027
Simmer the water in a pot on the stove, kill heat, wait a few seconds, through in tea, stir just enough for it to sink, steep for normal amount of time, pour through strainer to stop brewing process.

>>16545149
The only known cases of flourosis from tea in the USA are from people drinking 80-150 tea bags PER DAY for decades at a time with the cheapest dollar store tea.

>>16545936
Nice anon, enjoy the broth

I've come to a conclusion - I absolutely cannot fucking stand cold brewed tea. it doesn't matter what type of tea it is, the second it reaches even room temperature it is fucking disgusting.

>>16546040
Based warm liquid appreciator

>>16509437
builders tea and mint tea :)

I bought some matcha, non-ceremonial grade. I'm used to iced coconut milk matcha lattes so a regular cup is a bit bitter on the back end, but I do like the taste.
So far I've tried a regular cup at 175 degrees, a cup with sugar, iced, with milk, and iced with milk and sugar. My favorite is a regular cup and iced. Regular milk isn't the greatest, I need to get something heavier or some coconut milk.

>>16546484
Try mixing it with some stevia (and optionally spices) into Greek yoghurt. Mix thoroughly, don't be afraid to use more if you have a sweetener to balance the mild bitterness. Delicious every time, wish I had some matcha to eat it today too.

>>16546484
Make freeze pops with it

>>16541999
Checked, based, would work with.

Recommended some ripes that have minimal skank, preferably from fullcha.

Do I need to store fu and white teas separately from my puerh

>$52 shipping
How do I bite the bullet teabros? I want to get like a year or two supply at once but paying 25% the cost of my order in shipping makes me want to kill myself.

>>16547952
Can't you order from a place that ships from the US? If not, keep in mind that either way you are paying for shipping, if you are ordering directly from China prices will tend to be cheaper. You can actually comparing yunnansourcing's .com and .us sites to see this.

>>16547955
Yunnansourcing US only has a fraction of the selection that the Chinese warehouses have. Most of the teas are 2-5 dollars cheaper than the US site and that does make me feel a bit better but I don't think that it is making up for the difference caused by shipping in my case.

>>16547952
order from upton or something

>>16547981
No

>>16547952
What's your order look like? I got 3 kilos or so of tea from china from king tea mall for $64 shipping. Yunnan sourcing china charges out the ass for shipping and the bat aids hasn't helped.

>>16548040
I have around 2 kg of tea and a few miscellaneous items that I needed and the DHL shipping is $52. I can get the YS express shipping which is like a bulk DHL shipment of every order placed that week which goes to the US warehouse and is then shipped out from there, and it's $42, but I don't really trust it since it doesn't require a signature.

>>16548061
I’ve been going through the same debate as well anon. I priced out YS main vs us sites. Main is about 10% more + waiting for shipping. The price you pay for selection, I guess. I also found that ordering fewer ‘larger items” is cheaper than a bunch of small items. Cut out anything you can purchase USA (tea ware, tools, etc). Following the above I got the price+shipping down to something I’m willing to pay.

>>16548036
Ok

>>16548061
Do you live somewhere where packages get stolen? I usually get stuff shipped using EMS which doesn't require a signature. If you don't have to worry about stuff getting snatched off your porch i would get the bulk dhl option.

Trying to get into making tea. Should I buy a kettle that has an integrated thermometer or should I just git gud and learn how to time pouring at the correct temperature?

>>16548421
dont make things harder for yourself, they aren't that much more expensive hell you can pick one up for £30

>>16548421
Temp control kettles are more easy, if you are planning to drink lots of green tea you should get one.

>>16548451
mine goes down to 40c so its great for activating yeast for baking as well

>>16548481
>>16548451
>>16548441
Thanks anons, temp control it is.

Any recommendations on a temp controlled kettle (budget oriented)?

I'd be interested if you can get a cheap temp kettle (even just a built-in thermometer) because I'm a poorfag and I can't justify a $70 kettle.

Whats a good place to get tisanes in the US?

Want to get some peppermint and some chamomile, dunno if just the Amazon stuff will do

Brought out my teas I've kept stored out of my hot environment. They smell healthy, so it seems I made the right move. I took about 56g of some cheap shou mei and put it into some polypropylene bags. Having 6g now, smells pleasant and is comfortably smooth and light. The rest will be for daily drinking for little over a week. I'll let you anons know if anything unpleasant happens as a result so you can know if it is an option for you too (at least for short term durations such as under two weeks).

Mylar is likely a better choice, but it does cost more and may be more difficult to source. It is what I had on hand, anyway. Looking forward to sipping more tea again.

Planning to order some Mariage Freres' Wedding Imperial for a friend's wedding gift, but I want to add another of their teas to my order to make the most out of shipping costs. Any recs for someone who's usually not into flavored tea? I like first flush Darjeeling and lighter oolongs, if that helps narrow down recommendations.

>>16548827
Mountain Rose Herbs is the gold standard. Most anyone here will tell you to avoid their C. sinensis, but for herbals MRH is great.

>>16547952
add more tea so the shipping becomes a smaller part of the overall price.

>>16547952
ordered 1.5kg and shipping costed me £15

Germans, can you recommend TeeGschender, and if not, where would you order your tea instead?

I'm interested in this Pu Erh after tasting in once, but I don't know if there's cheaper suppliers

https://www.teegschwendner.de/tee-shop/china-mannong-pu-erh

>>16548617
OXO

>>16549546
Those bags should be fine. Hopefully you have better luck with storage in the colder months

>>16549565
Marco polo is their most famous blend. They do have some fancy unflavored teas but they are pretty pricey iirc.
I was kind of interested in those smoked Japanese teas they had, i guess that depends on how much you like smoke.

>>16548617
Can't go wrong with a Bonavita

>>16550457
If you like it the price isn't terrible for buying in europe, the quality of those loose leaf puers can be pretty bad but if you liked it and it didn't taste like fish it's probably okay. I looked through the European vendors in the pastebin some, nothing super exciting for puer.
One of our posters is in the eu and he orders most of his puer from china and occasionally this guy, https://www.farmer-leaf.fr/ who is mostly sold out right now.

>>16550457
not german, but in norway. i assume the import taxes is probably around the same, but that might be wrong.
I order my puerh from china, white2tea is what i usually order from, but ive also tried fullchea and bitterleafteas, and have had no problems with either of them. I have ordered from https://www.farmer-leaf.fr/ as well, but the frenchies dont lie about price on their packages so i got slapped with big import and vat taxes.

>>16526717
This one https://mudandleaves.com/products/tianqingni-small-shuiping-yixing-teapot-天青泥小水平壶-75ml

I really like small teapots so I can make it through the full number of infusions by myself without overdosing on caffeine. Just had a chance to use it for the first time (pic related) with a raw pu erh

>>16550948
Cute pot anon! Looks very well made.

What's the go to aliexpress/cheap chinkshit teapot and cup/mug?

Preferably something around 500ml.

>>16551081
500ml teapot? 500ml mug?
Anything porcelain. Lemme take a look around real quick.

>>16551090
500ml teapot and small cup.
Sorry for the confusion.

>>16551094
okay
Im not seeing anything great on ali, I would probably recommend just digging around for a vintage piece you like on ebay, you can find great teapots really cheap "hall" brand is a good place to start also "Homer Laughlin"

Does any tea give you a headache? For me it's darjeeling.

>>16551429
Every tea/herbal mixture that has cinnamon as a spice. Took some time to learn that lul

Didn't know it, but many "Christmas" teas have cinnamon in it, and for some reasons, there's people who get headaches whenever they get in touch with it.

hello, tea friends how is it going! i have been away for awhile because i have been busy (don't worry "retro-nasal" anon you did not scare me away with your reviews). hopefully i have not missed anything too exciting or informative here in the last few months?

lately, i have been drinking a lot of cold brew tea. if you have not tried it yet i highly recommend you do. try putting 8 grams or so of tea leaf in a quart jar of water and letting it sit at least overnight (12+ hours) then strain the tea out. you can get a second steep as well but it will be weaker. green, black, white, and oolong tea have all worked well for me so far though i have not tried cold brewing heicha yet. i had actually not tried cold brew until recently when i decided to experiment with some mid grade loose leaf tea that was sitting around in my tea stash and i was very impressed with the results.

I just bought a loose leaf tea sampler from amazon, i love the taste but it comes out much weaker than bagged tea steeped for 5 minutes with the same setup as before. I can steep it for 8-10 minutes to get it how i like it, but only once, the second steep is terrible. Did i get a shitty tea or is this expected?

>>16551953
given you bought it on amazon its probably not the best

>>16509437
i like bag tea. wildberry zinger and english breakfast. maybe some earl gray.

>>16551953
It’s probably not great tea but how much tea and water are you using? You might just need to use more tea

>>16551867
Cold brew iced tea tastes better than hot brewed iced tea to me. All you have to do to cold brew vs hot brew is double the tea leaves to make up for the processes not being activated by heat.

>>16551953
I wanted to buy tea from Amazon once. Read the reviews, where someone opened the Jasmine peals and showed little larvae was living on the outer leaves.

Stopped considering Amazon as asoirce for food altogether

>>16544134
>Haven't been making tea much at all due to needing to store it in a less temperature-sensitive environment.
if it does not mold (and perfectly does not completely dry out either) your tea will be fine. you de realize heicha has be traditionally stored in non climate controlled environments (think shoved up in the rafters of rural huts) in a variety of climates for literally ages. Hong Kong storage (hot and wet) is among the most popular on the other hand heicha is common heat in and of itself is fine. different conditions may change the flavor over time but in general you will end up ok.

keeping the tea away from light and unwanted odors is still important though.

>If I want to bring a few into my refrigerator, will it impact the flavor/aroma much?
you would have to find out on your own. i have not seen anyone else experiment with refrigerating heicha. the main reason people refrigerate tea is to stop oxidation. most heicha is already oxidized or is intended to oxidize so refrigeration probably is not helpful unless you want to keep young sheng puer from aging. though, if you do try tell us how it goes.

>>16544253
>constant radical shifts in temperature are terrible for my tea
try using a cooler to keep the temp more stable if you want. also be careful about adding to much humidity and hitting the dew point when the temperature drops.

>>16552140
Yeah amazon is pretty much hell world, everything wrong with the modern world wrapped into one website, fakes, moldy rotten food, zero quality control, frequently higher prices than in stores for things like socks and other random goods that aren't electronics, miles of cheaply made junk random 3rd party vendor listings crammed together where reviews aren't separated on a per seller basis. It's awful.

>>16552058
Im using 2-3 tbps for around 18-20 oz of water

So I've been brewing a loose leaf black Ceylon and I'm not sure if I'm just defective but I'm not really tasting much special. I've been trying between 85-95, I've tried longer/shorter brews, I've even tried Gong Fu style brewing (6g/150ml of water) but it really doesn't taste much different than my bulk bagged "Orange Pekoe" tea.
What am I doing wrong? Is it a water quality issue, is there a special brewing method I'm missing or am I really just lacking in any sense of taste? I can more or less appreciate green teas.

>>16552278
Don't forget the reselling brands.
I thought about buying a teapot on Amazon cause I didn't want to visit the mall during covid.

I found a pot that was the same, but sold 10 times with different brand names taped on top. Talking about illusion of choice...

>>16552440
Where did you get the tea? I mean loose leaf Ceylon is one of the teas that typicality ends up in teabag blends so i wouldn't be surprised if you got a fairly similar flavor profile. But it is also possible the tea you bought is just nothing special. If you are in the usa and want to try some traditional stlyle english loose leaf teas check out upton tea imports, look at their blends, get that ctc Irish breakfast if you really want a kick in the balls but the bond st blend, robert fortune blend, and russian caravan should all be nice.

>>16552507
It's from the "Lover's Leap" estate which I can find a bunch of listings for online. I bought it from a more local place and while it's a fine black tea, nothing wrong with it, I'm not really tasting anything special and I want to make sure I'm not just a tastelet before I write it off.
I've tried Russian Caravan which definitely has more distinctive notes, is Lover's Leap just meant to be a very milquetoast black tea experience? The online tea stores say it works well with milk and sugar which does worry me a bit.
Is there anything you (or anyone else for that matter) would recommend for a more "exotic" black tea with notes? I've heard some (unblended/flavored) black teas taste like apple for example and that sounds interesting to me.

>>16552594
Lower priced loose leaf teas won't blow you away, although they generally will lack some of the harshest and stale flavors that bagged teas can have. As you go higher in price things do get better, up to a point. If you want to experiment a bit, you can try some teas from Yunnan Sourcing, I've personally tried this one and really liked it:
https://yunnansourcing.us/products/yi-mei-ren-wu-liang-mountain-yunnan-black-tea

You can also just order some higher quality Assam teas from Upton, I have only tried this one (link below) which is "pretty good" in my opinion, but I've compared it side by side with a low quality English Breakfast blend and there is definitely a significant difference where I don't even want to drink the EB anymore. You can probably get even better stuff if you go up in price brackets.
https://www.uptontea.com/assam-tea/assam-loose-leaf-black-tea/p/V00403/

I haven't had Lover's leap but it just looks like bog standard black tea from what I see online.

>>16549546
lmao it just looks like someone grabbed some leaves off the ground and stuck them into a bag

>>16552826
yeah white tea does just look like leaves, the enzymes aren't killed to keep it green and its not oxidised to turn it black so it just ends up looking like what it is, leaves

>>16552846
God i love tea that looks like much bros

I drink a lot of crystal light iced tea, does that make me a /tea/ bro?

>>16552826
I'm glad someone else thought so, I was going to comment it looks like fucking leaves/twigs/dirt from a storm gutter.

>>16552846
>Tfw some anons make fun of my leaves, but one Anon backs me up.
Drinking the same tea today as yesterday. Seems fine, though I should have picked one that was more flavorful to begin with. This particular leaf is pretty mild in general, so it may not have been a good tester for refrigerator impact results. Whatever the case, it's nice to have my tea again.

What's the most powerful tea to have a relaxation effect, and put you to sleep?

>>16554139
All tea (camellia sinensis) has caffeine, which is a stimulant. So, none. L-theanine is a natural anxiolytic found in tea though, and you can buy that as a supplement powder or in pill form. Good for promoting relaxation.

>>16554139
Some people insist they find some teas sedating, but I have never once experienced this. Herbal tea is the only way to go if that's what you're after; try chamomile, lemon balm, skullcap, or valerian.

>>16554706
If you build up a caffeine tolerance then there is a sweet spot of tea consumption where the caffeine doesn't really energize you, but it takes away withdrawal symptoms, and the L-theanine relaxes you. It's not "sedating" exactly like an opiate but there is some effect.

>>16554706
I don't know if i would call tea sedating, but the caffeine buzz is much smoother and less jittery than coffee or energy drinks, so i can see how some would interpret that as making them feel relaxed.

Ok tea newfag here my local branch of paris store asian market started importing cooked pur-erh shitbricks of the mystery kind. I was looking for a stronger tea because I'm sick of sencha and saw this.

I don't know what it is exactly but its good. No pussy smell and has a very pleasant, floral and fruity aroma reminiscent of date fruits.

Its my first time drinking pur-erh and I'm very pleased. Hard to describe the taste as I'm such a newbie but its very mellow slightly earthly and has some woody flavors. Its also beautifully red. Very good.

It has a slight cardboard flavor though, probably because of the box. I'm guessing this is storage taste ? How do you guys store your cakes ?

>>16555343
Pic related

>>16555343
Wow lucky anon, that's very nice for an asian market puer shitbrick. I guess the french have had a taste for those ripe tuos since the 70s so you end up with some drinkable ones their. Keep an eye out for pic related green boxes and grab one if you see it.
Anyway, just keep it in a plastic bag. Don't worry about elaborate storage unless you plan on keeping it for several years.

>>16555431
Ahaha Paris store is actually the name of the importer chain and they don't only operate in France. I am French though, just not from the Paris region (Thank god). Parisian tea autism is notoriously high level though, with an excellent selection I hear.

Thanks for the suggestion I'll keep an eye out. No risk of mold or unpleasant for storing this in a ziplock back for a few months ?

>>16555343
>>16555347
china tea (also known as Zhongcha/CNNP/COFCO/Kunming Tea Factory) makes some good tea still. the make a lot of cheap stuff as well but even that is likely a step up from no name mystery brands.

can you post pictures of the side and bottom (if it has anything there) of the box? i am just curious as i have not seen CNNP sell as "china tea " before. perhaps this is an export product.

>It has a slight cardboard flavor though, probably because of the box. I'm guessing this is storage taste ?
possibly, though some shou puerh may have woody flavors on its own.

>>16555525
>I am French though
fun fact one of the first places (and for the most part) that puerh was officially exported to the west was France back in the 70s or 80s. i don't know the history of how or why it happened though. the picture of "the toucha" posted by another anon is the modern vertion of the specific product that was exported. they have changed the packaging only slightly over the years.

>No risk of mold or unpleasant for storing this in a ziplock back for a few months ?
not unless you trap excessive humidity in with it. actually a lot of people store there puerh sealed up to protect from outside smells and to keep it from drying out.

puerh storage and aging is rabbit hole in and of itself but you don't really need to look stuff up unless you get into it as a hobby. just store the tea somewhere dark, not too hot or cold, away from outside odors, and don't let it dry out too much or get too humid. for casual storage putting it in a ziplock bag or two in a cabinet is perfectly adequate.

as a final note you should look up the difference between shou puerh (heavily fermented, tends to taste earthy) and sheng puerh (lightly fermented when young, changes significantly with age, young stuff is a bit like a very strong and wild green tea, old stuff becomes more earthy but still different then shou) so you don't get surprised if you buy sheng as it is very different.

>>16555780
Yeah i couldn't tell either if that was an actual cofco production or just something labeled china tea. I got a random cake in a an asian market once that had the zongcha character on it but wasn't actually made by cofco.

>>16555861
yeah that is why i wanted to see the rest of the package. this one looks like it may be legit though as they use the trademark symbol and the package looks modern and professional. the no name imitators tend to be pastiches of classic zongcha wrappers and don't explicitly claim to be zongcha besides using the "zongcha" symbol. after further searching cofco seems to have stated to use "china tea" more prominently on their labels and branding more recently as well.

>>16555780
>>16555861
>>16556007
Its COFCO branded.
Imported by Paris store, France.
Paris store is legit. Their stores are where the diaspora goes so you know its at least not garbo. Very fair prices for imported stuff too. My local branch is one of the nicest around though. This is brand new or at least wasn't carried in this store until recently. I guess they got requests from their clientele for something that isn't jasmine tea.
They often import products in a package style/format more suited to their business and brand them so they probably have a direct deal from COFCO to produce these.

I guess this about as good of a product I can expect to get outside of specialty dealers. Nice.
Its pretty cheap too. 4$ for that brick.

I actually knew the difference between shou and sheng beforehand and I fully expected (and hoped) to get shou. I doubt a general goods stuff like Paris store would carry anything that would age or be susceptible to degradation, especially if its imported anyway.

I'll have to check if I can get my hands on that "toucha" stuff too.

Thank you gentlemen for the nice trivia and advice.

If you could recommend only one pu-ehr cake from Yunnan Sourcing (under $50), which would it be?

>>16556370
cozy, couldn't say for raw as never had any i've really loved

>>16556360
>I guess this about as good of a product I can expect to get outside of specialty dealers. Nice.
>Its pretty cheap too. 4$ for that brick.
Yeah that's a fantastic price, enjoy those anon, you would pay $10-$12 each for those if you ordered them from an overseas dealer. Maybe a bit less but not much.

>>16556370
If you don't mind young
https://yunnansourcing.com/products/2019-yunnan-sourcing-impression-raw-pu-erh-tea-cake?_pos=2&_sid=a2c829f56&_ss=r

picrel is my current tea kettle. I bought a "hand crafted" glass one from amazon for like $20-30, cant remember exactly. Was supposedly stove safe, ended up cracking about 2 months of use later. Bought this one from amazon for $36, and its perfect. Tells temp, you can heat to whatever temp you want, built in diffuser, etc. thick fucking glass too. My dad or I make tea with it ever day.

>>16556438
If you want something older get the 2014 impression. Or this
https://yunnansourcing.com/collections/shuang-jiang-mengku-tea-company-1/products/2013-mengku-da-ye-qing-bing-raw-pu-erh-tea-of-yong-de
Maybe this is you want something more aged and mellow
https://yunnansourcing.com/collections/new-products/products/2011-lao-mane-brand-bu-lang-mountain-certified-organic-raw-pu-erh-tea-cake

>>16556484
Okay last one, this is also probably good.
https://yunnansourcing.com/collections/pu-erh-tea/products/2009-liming-0432-raw-pu-erh-tea-cake

>>16556460
Link?

>>16556360
>Its COFCO branded.
technically china tea/zongcha is the brand and COFCO is the parent company (which is at least partially state owned).

i see that it actually has french labeling on it which confirms it was specially packaged for export. neat

>Their stores are where the diaspora goes so you know its at least not garbo.
i have heard some Asian grocery store only have really cheap/low quality stuff but don't have much experience with that myself. remember most Chinese are not drinking fancy tea all the time. as you noted lot of people mostly drink cheap jasmine tea all day long. honestly, i need to check out what my local stores sell.

>Its pretty cheap too. 4$ for that brick.
yeah, for that price getting a name brand product like that is is actually fantastic. i doubt you could get it cheaper online actually. i would grab one to try it myself if i lived there.

>doubt a general goods stuff like Paris store would carry anything that would age or be susceptible to degradation, especially if its imported anyway.
all food changes with age, you just have to sell it fast enough. people intentionally age puerh though and it actually increases the value. but yeah a normal grocery store will not sell anything pre-aged. a lot of puerh come in unsealed paper or cardboard (for ageing purposes) so it can be a problem if it sits next to something smelly for a long time as it may soak up some of the aroma.

your tea should have a date of production stamped somewhere on the package.

>I'll have to check if I can get my hands on that "toucha" stuff too.
as another note toucha refers to that shape of presed tea (your tea is also a "toucha). "the toucha" (also know as XiaoFa 销'法 which literally means to sell to France) by XiaGuan is a specific product line. by sheer coincidence i actually drank some of one today.

I hope you enjoy your tea.

Do I REALLY have to drink Puerh?

>>16557120
Drink what you like. That's the point of these threads. You can also take a shortcut in flavor and go straight to drinking white tea.

>>16557127
White tea is super expensive, is it really worth the tag?

>>16556982
>Should be stamped
Yep its dated to the 25th of February 2015.

>Asians stores are low quality
They usually are but mine is a large and fancier one. I get quality jap grocery store tier sencha from them and have been very pleased until now. Now and again I get some matcha too. I also get those classic green tea boxes they use to make traditional mint tea back in Africa. But as you noticed that's a whole lot of green so I was very happy to see these cakes turn up.

>They mostly drink jasmine tea
That they do. This particular store stocks what probably are every single brand of jasmine tea under the sun. They really want for their clientele to get the taste from home. They even have a high quality halal butcher there that can prepare glazed duck on order for family gatherings among other things. They also make rad sandwiches.

Thank you very much for all that info that will make finding this tea much easier. I also learned a lot on tea and I can act like a posh tea drinker to my clueless friends hehehe

>>16557137
>White tea is super expensive
I don't know where you're looking, but most white tea cakes I've found are cheap. White tea generally has comparatively less processing involved compared to most others, so costs of material/labor are usually lower. You don't even need big name whites most of the time. I've bought mostly from Fullchea and a little from Verdant Tea, though some people here dislike using those vendors. White tea is usually quite different from most pu'er, typically being much lighter and less earthy in general.
>is it really worth the tag?
Preference. Give a few a try, same with pu'er.

>>16557137
w2t's latest white cake is PHENOMENAL.

>Ye sheng gushu baicha
I've had a few cups of it loose and I really want to splurge for the full cake. Also my tea portafilter gets here tomorrow so experiments will begin.

Heyo just spotted this on ktm
Those in the know might want to grab one, or a tong
https://kingteamall.com/collections/new-arrivals/products/2007-liming-bu-lang-shan-qiao-mu-gu-shu-nv-er-gong-bing-bulang-mountain-ancient-arbor-tree-cake-357g-puerh-raw-tea-sheng-cha

Or not

>>16509437
New Thread
>>16557312
>>16557312
>>16557312