New to tea, suggestion of oolongs

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Jan 29th, '11, 11:52
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New to tea, suggestion of oolongs

by Squirrel » Jan 29th, '11, 11:52

Hello I'm starting to explore teas and so far my favorite are oolongs epically Axi Fujian Ti Kuan Yin. Can anyone suggest some to start with; name and where to purchase. (online only please, I live in the middle of nowhere :D ) thanks!

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Jan 29th, '11, 12:02
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Re: New to tea, suggestion of oolongs

by Mrs. Chip » Jan 29th, '11, 12:02

Hi Squirrel, glad you are exploring the world of tea!

You may want to check out TeaVendor Guide, located under Tea & Teaware. There is a whole section for Oolongs, many vendors that specialize in oolongs, with great descriptions and reviews by TCers! That way you can read for yourself and possibly locate a few vendors you would like to try based on these recommendations.

Have fun!

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Jan 29th, '11, 14:04
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Re: New to tea, suggestion of oolongs

by debunix » Jan 29th, '11, 14:04

Are you drinking a dark brown deep-roasted Ti Kuan Yin (looking like this), or a green-leaf version (looking like this)?

That helps us give you more specific suggestions, although I love both types very very much.

Jan 29th, '11, 15:14
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Re: New to tea, suggestion of oolongs

by Squirrel » Jan 29th, '11, 15:14

The tea actually is all in Chinese so i don't actually know which on it is lol. It me it looks like more of green-leaf version.

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Jan 29th, '11, 17:33
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Re: New to tea, suggestion of oolongs

by debunix » Jan 29th, '11, 17:33

Other teas you might like that are similar would include other Ti Kuan Yins, or Tie Guan Yins, and the green versions are widely available from good online sources: I have gotten terrific versions from norbutea.com and jingteashop.com. Other wonderful green oolongs from Anxi include Mao Xie and Huang Jin Gui. Taiwan makes a lot of wonderful green oolongs including those from Alishan and Zhang shu, and I'm sure a lot of other people here can give more specific tips. Both of the sources I mentioned above have good versions of these or similar teas. And check the oolong TeaVendor guides for more details. I know there are lots of sources of great stuff, but those are two I've personally had excellent service from.

And consider getting samples of some other darker roast oolongs, wuyi oolongs aka yanchas, and have fun!

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Jan 31st, '11, 14:24
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Re: New to tea, suggestion of oolongs

by brad4419 » Jan 31st, '11, 14:24

If you want to try a variety of oolongs check out jingteashop.com. They have sample sizes to order for everything. You can try a large variety of oolongs for a good price. This is where I got my start with oolongs and I don't regret it at all.

Heres a link to their sample page. http://www.jingteashop.com/cat-jing-tea ... sample.cfm

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Jan 31st, '11, 17:46
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Re: New to tea, suggestion of oolongs

by kjs » Jan 31st, '11, 17:46

brad4419 wrote:If you want to try a variety of oolongs check out jingteashop.com. They have sample sizes to order for everything. You can try a large variety of oolongs for a good price. This is where I got my start with oolongs and I don't regret it at all.

Heres a link to their sample page. http://www.jingteashop.com/cat-jing-tea ... sample.cfm

Nice of you to point that out. But, which is good for me to try?

The one I have now is a WuYi that I bought out of a glass container at a health earthy co-op store. Nice looking leaves but dosen't taste the best.

Kinda has a very slight seaweed after taste. I would like to try an Oolong with a light nutty flavor...like I would have at a Chinese restaurant in USA.

You know what I mean? :roll:

Z

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Jan 31st, '11, 19:38
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Re: New to tea, suggestion of oolongs

by debunix » Jan 31st, '11, 19:38

There are so many slight variations and nuances that change harvest to harvest, slightly different grades of teas have slightly different qualities, so that it's hard to tell you exactly which tea to buy. I've had good enough experience with this shop to trust that what they send is going to be very good--and not just the most expensive grades either.

If you can swing it, I'd suggest picking 3 or 4 of the Anxi oolongs--one pricier TGY, the inexpensive Huang Jin Gui (I got a quite delightful HJG inexpensively from Norbu recently, and it was very popular around the office), and one or two priced in between. And then try the same with the Wuyi Yanchas--one expensive/fancy grade, a cheaper one, and a couple in between.

If you brew them in smaller batches--2-4 oz of tea per infusion--you can get quite a few sessions out of a 25 gram sample package, and get a good feeling for which of the teas you might like to buy in larger quantity

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Jan 31st, '11, 20:22
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Re: New to tea, suggestion of oolongs

by iannon » Jan 31st, '11, 20:22

debunix wrote:If you can swing it, I'd suggest picking 3 or 4 of the Anxi oolongs--one pricier TGY, the inexpensive Huang Jin Gui (I got a quite delightful HJG inexpensively from Norbu recently, and it was very popular around the office), and one or two priced in between. And then try the same with the Wuyi Yanchas--one expensive/fancy grade, a cheaper one, and a couple in between.
+1 not only are there the slight variations Debunix mentioned..everyones tastes are so different. Like i mentioned in another thread..take long jing for instance..the "highest" quality is much more..well subtle and lightly floral perhaps than a mid grade thats perhaps more nutty/heavier..BUT many people prefer that taste over the "high" grade. so it really behooves you to just try some ranges of each type from a reputable source to really see where your tastes lay

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Feb 1st, '11, 11:58
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Re: New to tea, suggestion of oolongs

by brad4419 » Feb 1st, '11, 11:58

iannon wrote: Like i mentioned in another thread..take long jing for instance..the "highest" quality is much more..well subtle and lightly floral perhaps than a mid grade thats perhaps more nutty/heavier..BUT many people prefer that taste over the "high" grade. so it really behooves you to just try some ranges of each type from a reputable source to really see where your tastes lay
Perfect example iannon. I prefer low to mid grade long jing to high because of the stronger nutty flavor.

I would agree with the above posters about just picking 3-4 samples of different varietys and see what you like. I can't really tell you exactly what to order because everyones tastes are different and if you asked everyone to recommend exact teas then you would get different answers from every person. Even what I consider high grade wuyi could be medium grade to another. Figure out how much you want to spend on this sampling and try as many as you can.

Feb 1st, '11, 16:12
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Re: New to tea, suggestion of oolongs

by Squirrel » Feb 1st, '11, 16:12

I prefer a what seems to be a buttery flower flavor type; i don't know if that helps

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Feb 3rd, '11, 04:24
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Re: New to tea, suggestion of oolongs

by Alex » Feb 3rd, '11, 04:24


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