TeaTuesDay, not just another TeaDay, 2/12/08

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Oy...'fess up, how much do you estimate you will spend on TEA in 2008 (Tea only, no accesories)? Do the math!!!

Less than $100
7
13%
$100-199
9
17%
$200-299
9
17%
$300-399
8
15%
$400-499
2
4%
$500-599
5
10%
$600-699
3
6%
$700-799
2
4%
$800-899
0
No votes
$900-999
1
2%
$1000-1299
5
10%
or more...
1
2%
 
Total votes: 52

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Feb 12th, '08, 16:46
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by Chip » Feb 12th, '08, 16:46

Russian Soul, this would be trade between individuals. That is ok. Adagio would be out of the loop completely.
blah blah blah SENCHA blah blah blah!!!

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Feb 12th, '08, 16:47
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by RussianSoul » Feb 12th, '08, 16:47

Chip wrote:Russian Soul, this would be trade between individuals. That is ok. Adagio would be out of the loop completely.
Chip, I understand. I was joking about FDA :D .

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Feb 12th, '08, 17:00
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by JT » Feb 12th, '08, 17:00

LavenderPekoe wrote: JT - Where in MI do you hail from?
I'm from south east Michigan, north east of Detroit. Are you a Michigander too?

Now to figure out what tea is good after Lebanese food. mmm garlic.

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Feb 12th, '08, 17:03
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by Cinnamon Kitty » Feb 12th, '08, 17:03

Sencha after yoga class makes the experience so much more rewarding. I would keep it traditional with a tea from India, but I do not have any of those for the time being.

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Feb 12th, '08, 17:05
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by LavenderPekoe » Feb 12th, '08, 17:05

JT - Me too - ish. Ever been to Karma Tea + Tonics in Ferndale? It's basically the only "tea shop" I have gone to in the area and it was a long time ago.

And to be back on topic, I ended the work day with Dragonfruit from Stash teas.
Last edited by LavenderPekoe on Feb 12th, '08, 17:15, edited 2 times in total.

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Feb 12th, '08, 17:07
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by tenuki » Feb 12th, '08, 17:07

Was in Udistrict area for lunch, so stopped by an unnamed tea shop in wallingford for some of their 'premium' Ali Shan and ended up sorely disappointed. It was stale, broken up, dusty and not the best quality. I'm used to seeing only whole 3 leave clusters once the balls unfurl, in this case I actually couldn't find a whole leaf in the gaiwan. Also, the staff gave me way too much leaf and water too far from boiling. I finally found the Ali Shan hiding in the mess after about 5 horribly bad brews.

The shop generally has good tea, and I've had passable Li Shan there in the past. To be fair their speciality isn't taiwanese tea, and they have a very wide selection from china and some good blends. I'm gonna just write it off as one bad data point.

I'm home now and pleased to be digging into a high quality, known stash again.
Do something different, something different will happen. ( Gong Fu Garden )

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Feb 12th, '08, 17:25
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by JT » Feb 12th, '08, 17:25

LavenderPekoe - I haven't been to Karma Tea + Tonics but my sister bought me some tea from there once. I wasn't very impressed with the quality of their white peony or their Ti Guan Yin. It seemed old or improperly stored. I heard a new teashop opened up in Royal Oak recently. I might have to make a trip down there soon.
Back to my tea decision...
I think I'll go for some Wuyi oolong. Now which sample to crack open, Qi Zhong or Golden Buddha....

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Feb 12th, '08, 18:33
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by Warden Andy » Feb 12th, '08, 18:33

I just finished Anji Baicha/Baipian not too long ago. It's quickly becoming a favorite.


Now it's '99 menghai yiwu dark blue piao green big tree.

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Feb 12th, '08, 18:40
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by Wesli » Feb 12th, '08, 18:40

Woke up with some earl grey, then had some top leaf before class, then got home and made some guricha from Den's. I'm making some food now, then moving on to some puerh I believe.

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Feb 12th, '08, 18:42
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by tenuki » Feb 12th, '08, 18:42

ok, trying some 2007 Autumn Xi-Zhi Hao 'Sa Shui Shan' sun-dried mao cha from Hou De.

that's a mouthful to say for a midwest farm boy like me, lets see how it brews...

first brew I tried 30 seconds and 2nd boil, with about half gaiwan of leaves ( really loose packed ) it was excellent, but i think a shorter brew would be good, maybe 15-20 seconds. This tea's scent is totally different than it's taste, very interesting. earthy and faint fruity notes in the nose, overwelmed by a acidic soupy taste with a hint of pleasant bitterness that trails into a long, strong sweetening aftertaste. even brewed wrong this tea made me stop what I was doing and pay attention. Yay!

[edit] into the third brew now, the earthyness is still going strong although the acidity is slightly muted, allowing a peachy note to come through. but it's a earthy peach. This is a tea that a puerh lover would love I think, but still approachable by others. The sweetening aftertaste is really pronounced. A little research revealed a new to me tea term that really describes this sweetening aftertaste - 'Hui Gan' - translated 'reflect on sweet memory' or something like that. Check out this description if you are interested. wow.

[edit #2] 6th brew, and going strong. Next time I'm brewing this in my puerh pot! All the same stuff, but it suddenly turned on me, for some undefinable reason I felt repulsion and nausea for just a moment. I've felt this before with Puerhs and it passed quickly. Strangely it wasn't unpleasant, but mind you this is coming from a person with a enthusiastic recreational substance history (confined nowadays soley to tea and chili). ;) You gotta love a tea that kicks you in the gut!

[edit #3] Ok, I surrender. It is a rare tea that outlasts me, but I'm beat. 8th brewing and no sign of it stopping, no diminishing even and now the brew has a red tint hinting at some subtle change. You win you wanton hussy, find a younger man who can keep up with you!

(PS: I'm blaming this long post and multiple edits on the tea)
Last edited by tenuki on Feb 12th, '08, 21:10, edited 4 times in total.

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Feb 12th, '08, 18:58
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by skywarrior » Feb 12th, '08, 18:58

I really don't want to think about how much I spend on tea. I really don't. I'm guessing the price is somewhere between $300 and $500 a year, so I took the average of that.

On another note, I got my zarafina cups today and in that was a code for a free sample of their tea. It looks like I'm getting Wuyi oolong because that's all that was there. That's ok, I like Wuyi. The cups are interesting. Not sure if it would be something I would use, but I have them. That is cool.

Tea today is valentines. Not being particular here.

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Feb 12th, '08, 19:06
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by daughteroftheKing » Feb 12th, '08, 19:06

Some of you chatters are making me feel like a tea-cheapskate. I thought my estimated spending of close to $300 on tea alone was going to be a ridiculous amount, but now I'm much calmer.
It may go higher, though, as I'm being pulled into the macha madness that's so contagious around here.

For the 1st time, I made TGY gong fu style this morning. This is going to take a while to get used to, but I want to give it a fair shot. I've long had this little-bity teapot that I thought was purely decorative (who would serve tea in something so small?). Watching an online tea video the other day, I suddently realized that I have the same pot! 1st steep was strong for my taste, but 2nd was more enjoyable. Subsequent steepings to try tonight.
Ooooh Darjeeling at work all day. Love that stuff.
"Top off the tea... it lubricates the grey matter."
(Jerry Ledbetter, "Good Neighbors")

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Feb 12th, '08, 19:07
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by Chip » Feb 12th, '08, 19:07

Wow, great teas everyone. Tenuki, you are killin' me. That sounds really awsome.

Still not feeling right, so, I think another tea is in order. I am continuing with greens. Chinese or Japanese???

Andy, are you drinking all Pu-erh these days?

dotKing, funny teapot story...gong fu takes time and practice. I personally go semi gong fu.

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Feb 12th, '08, 19:18
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by Victoria » Feb 12th, '08, 19:18

Chip wrote: Still not feeling right, so, I think another tea is in order. I am continuing with greens. Chinese or Japanese???
I say switch to oolong. But then I aways say that. Hope you feel better!

Feb 12th, '08, 19:44
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by Pentox » Feb 12th, '08, 19:44

Chip wrote:Wow, great teas everyone. Tenuki, you are killin' me. That sounds really awsome.

Still not feeling right, so, I think another tea is in order. I am continuing with greens. Chinese or Japanese???

Andy, are you drinking all Pu-erh these days?

dotKing, funny teapot story...gong fu takes time and practice. I personally go semi gong fu.
Japanese!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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