Green Darjeeling?

by **chef_darnell** » Dec 26th, '07, 18:34

Green Darjeeling?

by chef_darnell » Dec 26th, '07, 18:34

Well I am a fan of Darjeeling black tea's and am curious what the consensus of their green teas are?

by **Chip** » Dec 26th, '07, 18:53

by Chip » Dec 26th, '07, 18:53

I hate to say this, because I am a fan of Darjeeling, but to me, it just tastes lighter, not really significantly different. This is when I have tried a green from the same estate and flush as a "black" that I have on hand.

However, they are still generally good as long as they are fresh. I remember one of the first greens I had, I got from Stash direct... it had NO FLAVOR AT ALL. I think it was just old.

by **joelbct** » Dec 27th, '07, 00:50

by joelbct » Dec 27th, '07, 00:50

I like the Makaibari Green quite a bit. You can order it here, the site is owned by a member of the family which owns the Makaibari estate so the prices are reasonable:

http://www.silvertipstea.com/fusionecommerce/browse/

And Chip, as far as Stash goes, I was unimpressed when I ordered from them as well... was in my early tea-drinking days, so perhaps my palate was less developed, but the Stash tea did indeed seem bland and stale...

by **Salsero** » Dec 27th, '07, 01:59

by Salsero » Dec 27th, '07, 01:59

...and there's nothing less inspiring than a stale green.

I tend to side with Chip, however, on subcontinent greens. A good darjeeling green tastes a lot like a first flush darjeeling and not much like a Chinese or Japanese green. Don't get me wrong, I love darjeelings, but that part of the world is at the very beginning of learning to make green tea. Why not enjoy the product of a century and a half of their making great black teas!