Da Hong Pao - best tea, value?

by **spinmail** » Jun 2nd, '12, 01:28

Da Hong Pao - best tea, value?

by spinmail » Jun 2nd, '12, 01:28

I did a tea swap with a member, and was favorably impressed with a Da Hong Pao. I realize that there can be considerable range in price and quality - and that there's no guarantee the tea will be "the real thing."

Can anyone give their experiences with good Da Hong Pao? Price ranges? Recommended vendors? Alternatives?

Thanks for your help!

by **sriracha** » Jun 2nd, '12, 05:31

Re: Da Hong Pao - best tea, value?

by sriracha » Jun 2nd, '12, 05:31

I'd like some suggestions, too.

I've actually never had any DHP before so if I were to try some-what would be a good choice?
I'm more interested in something representative for this type of tea than getting something absolutely super authentic/genuine.

by **spinmail** » Jun 2nd, '12, 14:13

Re: Da Hong Pao - best tea, value?

by spinmail » Jun 2nd, '12, 14:13

Is that Yui at tea-time? Cool avatar!

by **sriracha** » Jun 2nd, '12, 14:20

Re: Da Hong Pao - best tea, value?

by sriracha » Jun 2nd, '12, 14:20

Yes! Thank you!

(I love K-ON!)

by **bagua7** » Jun 2nd, '12, 22:42

Re: Da Hong Pao - best tea, value?

by bagua7 » Jun 2nd, '12, 22:42

sriracha wrote:than getting something absolutely super authentic/genuine.

You can forget about this, sorry. Not a chance.

Here are some reviews to good commercial options:

http://steepster.com/teas/jk-tea-shop/1 ... spring-tea

http://steepster.com/teas/esgreen/27567 ... uyi-oolong

http://steepster.com/teas/yunnan-sourci ... a-hong-pao

and the medium roasted version by the same vendor:

http://steepster.com/teas/yunnan-sourci ... a-hong-pao

by **sriracha** » Jun 3rd, '12, 05:35

Re: Da Hong Pao - best tea, value?

by sriracha » Jun 3rd, '12, 05:35

Yes, I am aware of the DHP situation regarding authenticity. I'm not bothered by it.
All I want is something with a 'typical' taste, but never having tried it before I'm not sure what that is

Did you try any of these teas yourself, bagua? And thank you for the links.=)

by **spinmail** » Jun 3rd, '12, 14:33

Re: Da Hong Pao - best tea, value?

by spinmail » Jun 3rd, '12, 14:33

I have tasted the DHP from Dragon Tea House, premium grade, and was impressed. I brewed it at around 170F. The taste had two elements: there was full oolong taste, with a thirst-quenching toasted taste - not unlike a genmai-cha. Really nice, but I didn't detect the "rocky" taste that DHP is known for.

by **bagua7** » Jun 4th, '12, 05:50

Re: Da Hong Pao - best tea, value?

by bagua7 » Jun 4th, '12, 05:50

I have tried this:

http://steepster.com/teas/postcard-teas ... us-rou-gui

And very nice, the problem is that I can't compared it against other vendors' offerings because I haven't tried any others. But I have read on this forum people recommending the DHP from the vendors I linked above.

by **MIKE_B** » Jun 5th, '12, 00:27

Re: Da Hong Pao - best tea, value?

by MIKE_B » Jun 5th, '12, 00:27

http://www.bestteaonline.com/store/cata ... ucts_id=66

This is a good one.

by **puerhking** » Jun 5th, '12, 14:47

Re: Da Hong Pao - best tea, value?

by puerhking » Jun 5th, '12, 14:47

Here is one I bought which is an entry level DHP but still enjoyable.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Premium-Da-Hong-Pao-Oolong-Tea-150g-FREE-shipping-/290598895451?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item43a90b3f5b

by **GreenwoodStudio** » Jun 5th, '12, 15:28

Re: Da Hong Pao - best tea, value?

by GreenwoodStudio » Jun 5th, '12, 15:28

puerhking wrote:Here is one I bought which is an entry level DHP but still enjoyable.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Premium-Da-Hong-Pao-Oolong-Tea-150g-FREE-shipping-/290598895451?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item43a90b3f5b

hmmm, pretty inexpensive. It says 150g in the title and 100g in the detailed description. Do you remember what you received?

by **puerhking** » Jun 5th, '12, 17:57

Re: Da Hong Pao - best tea, value?

by puerhking » Jun 5th, '12, 17:57

It was 150g. I did wait about six months to let the roast settle down...then it was pretty good. Nothing mind blowing as you might imagine yet I always enjoy it when I have it.

by **spinmail** » Jun 6th, '12, 12:53

Re: Da Hong Pao - best tea, value?

by spinmail » Jun 6th, '12, 12:53

I tasted two Da Hong Pao teas yesterday at a local vendor and was not impressed. However, I do have notes on DHP from Dragon House, a well-regarded online vendor:

Dragon House Premium
100g $16.99
This has a basic Da Hong Pao flavor, at a budget price. Brewed at 180˚F, medium amber liquor. Smokiness and herbal details are blurred, lack definition. But a hint of roastiness gives some character to the tea. No trace of "rock tea" character.
100g for only $16.99, shipped. 7.5/10

Dragon House Supreme
100g $32.99
Quite good. Brewed at around 180˚F, medium amber liquor. I detected two distinct flavors: an appealing toastiness, not unlike a genmai-cha, and an integrated "green" flavor; a nice taste combination. No trace of "rock tea" character. Definitely a repeater. Consider brewing this tea at 165˚F, and you might be pleasantly surprised with the results. 8.5/10

Dragon House Nonpareil
50g $45.99
Balanced and flavorful. Brewed at around 200˚F. The tea is dark amber, but this tea aims for a mix of smokiness with subdued greenness. You can definitely detect the "rock tea" flavor this tea is famous for on the aftertaste. Very easy to like, even if you're not experienced with oolongs. Solid, but doesn't have the best value.
9/10

Last edited by spinmail on Jul 13th, '12, 00:25, edited 3 times in total.

by **bagua7** » Jun 22nd, '12, 03:25

Re: Da Hong Pao - best tea, value?

by bagua7 » Jun 22nd, '12, 03:25

puerhking wrote:Here is one I bought which is an entry level DHP but still enjoyable.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Premium-Da-Hong-Pao-Oolong-Tea-150g-FREE-shipping-/290598895451?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item43a90b3f5b

Well, I just received 100g from a different vendor of basically similar quality and for the price it is a remarkable tea. Very happy. It doesn't match what PostCard teas has on offer but I wouldn't spend again $28 USD for 20g after receiving 100g for roughly 10 bucks. The difference is that the Postcard Tea's offering had that strong underlying mineral taste typical of good yancha, whereas in the El Cheapo one was mild, but the rest is there: warm charcoal, wheat, dried plum, floral. These are the main notes I detected in all my infusions (around 12) in varying degrees.

So, I am happy with cheaper offerings as long as their quality is reasonable.

by **chado.my.teaway** » Jun 22nd, '12, 04:10

Re: Da Hong Pao - best tea, value?

by chado.my.teaway » Jun 22nd, '12, 04:10

I tried few DHP. This from DTH Sale.

This too

And I order this