First order just arrived!!! How do I train up my palate?

[Dresden]

Well... I just got in my first ever loose tea order. Fast shipping and extras to boot.

In my order I received the following:

Green Tea Starter Kit (Gunpowder, Genmai Cha, Pomegranate Green, Green Pekoe)
Green Savant Sampler (Gyokuro, Dragonwell, Green Anji, Pi Lo Chun)
Black Tea Sampler (Darjeeling #22, Ceylon Sonata, Assam Melody, Keemun Concerto, Yunnan Jig, Golden Monkey)

As a bonus I also got a Red Bloom and a sample of Leo. I must say that although I haven't tasted any of the yet the smells are heavenly. Leo is quite a unique scent to me.

My question is, what is the best way for the newly initiated loose tea drinker to train up their palate so that they can recognize all those lovely adjectives that people like to throw around when talking about teas? It can all be quite overwhelming to the newbie.

Anyone?

Cheers,
Mike

[olivierco]

My question is, what is the best way for the newly initiated loose tea drinker to train up their palate so that they can recognize all those lovely adjectives that people like to throw around when talking about teas? It can all be quite overwhelming to the newbie.

Anyone?

Cheers,
Mike

Even after many years of teadrinking, I don't feel the the need to "lovely" adjectives to enjoy tea.

I stayed on a like/don't like categorization. Easy and clear.

Here are all (I guess) the adjectives I use to qualify tea a little more precisely.
Excellent, nice, good, just decent, bad, sweet, astringent, bitter, grassy, floral, fruity, smoky, clear and complex.

[kymidwife]

My untrained palate thought all the black teas tasted very similar at first... but I was taking them with sugar and sometimes cream. After I started tasting them side by side, unsweetened, just the tea... I was able to start to identify the characteristics I'd heard mentioned by others here. I also learned to really appreciate the pleasure of tasting the tea, so I stopped sweetening all unflavored teas. It's a journey.

Sarah

[chamekke]

I agree with Olivier.

There are four stages involved in wine tasting: examining the appearance, experiencing the aroma, actually tasting the liquid, and experiencing the aftertaste. That's not a bad approach to take with tea, too. You can also hold the tea in your mouth, "swish it around", etc. so as to ensure that it hits all the taste buds.

[entropyembrace]

And like Sarah says don't add anything to your tea, it will mask all the subtle flavours. Good quality loose leaf tastes great on it's own anyway.

[woozl]

Make two or more small cups of similar teas and try side by side to see if you can taste some differences.

[Proinsias]

Side by side comparison is great for getting to know teas quickly. I prefer to drink endless amounts of the stuff one at a time.

[Pentox]

So much of the tea drinking experience is comparative. So start drinking and think about what you're tasting. And as you move down the line think about how each relates to each other and remember that this is all just one remarkable plant.

[tenuki]

I would recommend drinking it and paying attention.

[bsteele]

I would recommend drinking it and paying attention.

haha simple and to the point.

I was going to recommend to just drink, drink, drink and sooner than you think, you'll start to taste/recognize things differently than initially.

[hooksie]

In my opinion, drink for the enjoyment of the tea. The refined palette will come with time.

[auggy]

In my opinion, drink for the enjoyment of the tea. The refined palette will come with time.

Ditto. It will take a little time to start picking out flavors (or at least it did for me and seems to for others). And I suggest that after about 6 months or so of drinking tea, retry some of the teas you didn't like at first. Your tastes will change as you get more familiar with tea and you'll notice the subtitles more.

[bsteele]

To get the real secrets of training your palate to become an expert in 6 easy steps, just send a self-addressed stamped enveloped with a check or money order for $39.95 to...

[hooksie]

To get the real secrets of training your palate to become an expert in 6 easy steps, just send a self-addressed stamped enveloped with a check or money order for $39.95 to...

... well? Go on...

[CutieAgouti]

I guess this really isn't training but remember to experiment with different steep times, temps, etc. A few times I disliked a certain tea only to find out that my methods were "poor" or needed tweeking (e.g. roobios for 7-10 min, otherwise it's not so good).

And have fun!!