FRIDAY!!! TeaDay 6/06/08

BYOT! Enter TeaChat here, you never know what you may find!


Salsero asked, "are you a 'teatotaler' or do you drink alcohol?"

I do not drink alcohol
11
18%
I virtually do not drink alcohol
6
10%
I drink acohol on occasion
26
43%
I drink alcohol
15
25%
Other
2
3%
 
Total votes: 60

Jun 6th, '08, 17:07
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by Beanbean » Jun 6th, '08, 17:07

I'm not quite sure how to answer this one. As someone who drinks fewer than six alcoholic beverages a year, am I an "occasional" imbiber or "a virtual non" imbiber?? I don't have anything against alcohol and I certainly enjoy a Guinness with my corned beef and cabbage on St Paddy's day but I honestly don't think about drinking. I'm too cheap to order wine when we go out and we don't really entertain.

Eh, I'd rather drink tea. 8)

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Jun 6th, '08, 17:45
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by CynTEAa » Jun 6th, '08, 17:45

Chip wrote:Mmmmm...Fukamushi...man this stuff is dynamite this year. I am blown away.
Is that the same as the sample I'm enjoying? The Uji.....mmmmmm! Many thanks!

:D

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Jun 6th, '08, 18:02
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by Ron Gilmour » Jun 6th, '08, 18:02

The only alcohol I drink is wine, which, as CinnamonKitty mentions, is a good choice here in the Finger Lakes. I like wine, and I've tried to learn a little bit about it, but I'm not nearly as passionate about it as I am with tea.

This afternoon I tried my very first cup of Adagio Silver Needle. I know a lot of people here really love this stuff, so maybe my hopes were too high, but it didn't really do much for me. It didn't taste bad, just not very interesting. Maybe it's just too subtle for me.

Now I'm drinking some 2006 Arbor Yinhao Tuocha Pu-Erh. It's very clean tasting with a nice camphor aroma. Yum!

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Jun 6th, '08, 18:24
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by Katrina » Jun 6th, '08, 18:24

I'm in the "occasional drink" category. My husband's family is Italian so wine with dinner is common when we visit. We occasionally have wine with dinner or an aperitif on the weekend. That's pretty much it around here. I guess I mostly choose it for taste and am not interested in much more than that, so one drink is plenty.

Slow tea day around here. Finishing up some caramel oolong I had in the fridge from yesterday. About to brew my first hot cup. No idea what it will be. I may just have to close my eyes and point to something. :wink:
Visit my website and blog at http://www.teapages.net and http://teapages.blogspot.com

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Jun 6th, '08, 18:47
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by daughteroftheKing » Jun 6th, '08, 18:47

Huang Guan Yin oolong in my cup today. Lovely stuff.
But on ice I did something totally different: limeade. 2 packets of True Lime (crystallized lime juice) and several drops of stevia in a big glass of ice water. Nice refreshing change on a warm day.

Virtally don't drink alcohol. In the past 3 years, I've think I've had only 1: a really delish after dinner chocolate cafe martini that didn't even taste like alcohol. Sweet drinks like that are exactly how I could have turned into an old rummy years ago, and with my addictive personality, why I've never played around with it.
I didn't grow up with alcohol and never learned to like the taste or the smell, and no matter what kind it is (not that I've been exposed to very many :) ), it always burns by the time it hits my stomach. But for me, the main reason I abstain is that I've seen the damage overdrinking has caused to so many people, and I just can't give any of my money to the industry.

Chip: 20+ years...excellent job. Your world did not come crashing down around you last weekend because you have continued to make good choices and you have not allowed the thoughtless act of an idiot to take control of your life. Proud and happy for you.
"Top off the tea... it lubricates the grey matter."
(Jerry Ledbetter, "Good Neighbors")

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Jun 6th, '08, 19:25
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by Salsero » Jun 6th, '08, 19:25

Victoria wrote:Sal, I think you are in for some competition if those are her crappy photos!
Long as I get to see the pix I love it.

Jun 6th, '08, 19:58
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by CanadaBlue » Jun 6th, '08, 19:58

No tea yet today...but it will come, likely a an Adagio flavored green tea. Or maybe a white before bed time.

I'm a 'regular' craft beer drinker - I average 6 or 7 in a week. I enjoy a good beer when I get home from work, or maybe later in the evening. One is my usual limit, although I have two on occasion.

I like to try different styles and types - of tea and of beer. I guess I enjoy a variety well crafted flavor and aroma experiences.

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Jun 6th, '08, 20:06
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by Chip » Jun 6th, '08, 20:06

CynTEAa wrote:
Chip wrote:Mmmmm...Fukamushi...man this stuff is dynamite this year. I am blown away.
Is that the same as the sample I'm enjoying? The Uji.....mmmmmm! Many thanks!

:D
Nope, not this time. I have had the O-Cha and Den fukamushi today.

I sound like a broken record...sorry, but wow.

The Uji is great too.

I really need to do a triple play review under Shincha.
blah blah blah SENCHA blah blah blah!!!

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Jun 6th, '08, 20:46
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by Salsero » Jun 6th, '08, 20:46

Chip wrote:I really need to do a triple play review under Shincha.
If you can that would be fabulous.

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Jun 6th, '08, 22:34
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by greenisgood » Jun 6th, '08, 22:34

there are enough toxins in the world (and perhaps in some of my delicious dragonwell), i don't need to try to take in anymore. just because its legal and socially acceptable doesn't mean its good for you.

i've been shamelessly drinking (really good) coffee more often than tea lately as i have been incredibly busy and sleep deprived, but i managed to mix in some yutaka midori today.

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Jun 6th, '08, 22:46
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by Geekgirl » Jun 6th, '08, 22:46

In my cup~

My Adagio sampler arrived. Wild guess which one I tried first:

Image

Yep, oolong #40. This is much closer to the oolong I remember as a kid. I knew as soon as I saw that dark apricot color that I was close. Very good. This will be a definite re-order.

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Jun 6th, '08, 23:30
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by Chip » Jun 6th, '08, 23:30

GeekgirlUnveiled wrote:In my cup~

My Adagio sampler arrived. Wild guess which one I tried first:

Image

Yep, oolong #40. This is much closer to the oolong I remember as a kid. I knew as soon as I saw that dark apricot color that I was close. Very good. This will be a definite re-order.
Show off!!! 8) Gimme that cup...or face possible banning. :wink:

Shincha Kirameki to finish the day, This is likely the best session with this sencha so far and I have had a bunch.
blah blah blah SENCHA blah blah blah!!!

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Jun 6th, '08, 23:49
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by Salsero » Jun 6th, '08, 23:49

GeekgirlUnveiled wrote:In my cup
Yep, oolong #40. This is much closer to the oolong I remember as a kid. I knew as soon as I saw that dark apricot color that I was close. Very good.
Dang, girl, do you have a license to display images like that? Maybe I am getting worriedl! And a little jealous.

Oolong #40 is, I believe, the tea that goes also by the name of Dong Fang Mei Ren (Oriental Beauty), Bai Hao, Silver Tip, Pong Fong Cha (Bragger's Tea), Wu Se Cha (Tea With 5 Colors), and probably several other monikers. The difference between it and the gao shan you are less than crazy about is not roasting, but oxidation level. The interaction of roasting and oxidation can make me get really confused about oolongs, but Bai Hao is not usually roasted much, if at all. It is however, typically harvested only after the Tea Jassid has bitten the leaves and started the oxidation process while the leaves are still growing on the plant. After harvest, the oxidation is often ramped up to the ~70% level.

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Jun 6th, '08, 23:59
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by Katrina » Jun 6th, '08, 23:59

Salsero wrote: Oolong #40 is, I believe, the tea that goes also by the name of Dong Fang Mei Ren (Oriental Beauty), Bai Hao, Silver Tip, Pong Fong Cha (Bragger's Tea), Wu Se Cha (Tea With 5 Colors), and probably several other monikers...
Thanks for all the great information. Really thorough. I, for one, really appreciate it.

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Jun 7th, '08, 00:08
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by Geekgirl » Jun 7th, '08, 00:08

Salsero wrote:The difference between it and the gao shan you are less than crazy about is not roasting, but oxidation level.
Excellent! I've been reading the book "The Story of Tea" from which I've learned a LOT about tea processing, but it's details like this that one can really only learn by interacting, IMO.

Hey, the photos... just a little hobby of mine. :lol: Seriously though, I love that this site seems to be so oriented toward images. It's great to see what the leaves produce in the cup, and equally great (I think) to feed my lust for teaware by seeing what everyone else puts up.

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