I've tried a couple of DHP's so far: 2 from local vendors and the regular grade one from GoldenTeaHouse. The goldenteahouse one is definitely the one I enjoyed the most. I think it is pretty dark but I guess I like that.
I'm looking to try some other DHP's so I would like to hear other people's experiences with this oolong superstar.
Sep 23rd, '08, 19:43
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Sep 23rd, '08, 20:01
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The Lao Cong Shui Xian Oolong Tea was quite tasty. The Da Ye Wuyi Oolong Tea is sold by 100g so its a decent value and serves as a nice everyday tea. I didnt really like the Magnolia Dan Cong and would stay away from that particular one.taitea wrote:They same to have a few, do you mean this?Teacuppa has some good Da Hong Pao.
What else can you or anyone suggest (to get or avoid) from Teacuppa?
I'm planning on making an order sometime in the near future to try out some of the more expensive Wuyi teas that teacuppa offers, seems everyone has good things to say about them.
Sep 25th, '08, 22:41
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Yes, I think he means the E or Exquisite, dollar-a-gram stuff, which is amazing, but obviously too costly to do more than taste once per lifetime. He reviewed it in his blog a couple months ago.taitea wrote:They same to have a few, do you mean this?ScruffMcGruff wrote: Teacuppa has some good Da Hong Pao.
K..I didn't get the "e" but I did buy the implied "a" and it is Very good. what I mean is the flavor is very good, but over half of the weight of the "absent A designation" da hong pao tea was crumbs or powder. seriously, under half of the tea in weight was actual leaves. . . I weighed it.taitea wrote:They same to have a few, do you mean this?
That's roughly $400/lb, right? That's somewhat expensive, but not anywhere near unheard of in the world of tea (and, if you figure 6-10g each time, with probably a good 8-20 infusions, it's not that insane an amount of money to spend). I don't think I've tried that particular tea, so I can't speak to its quality, but given that it's such a prestige tea, it's hard to find high grade, hand processed DHP for cheap (though, of course, if you pay a lot of money for the tea, it still may not be good).Salsero wrote:Yes, I think he means the E or Exquisite, dollar-a-gram stuff, which is amazing, but obviously too costly to do more than taste once per lifetime. He reviewed it in his blog a couple months ago.
I /might/ have tried this once, with the LA tea group, and if it's the one I'm thinking about, I didn't get my socks knocked off or anything (neither did most of the other folks at the table). I'm pretty sure it was from teacuppa and a red box w/ two small packages inside.
I do like the one (a 2006 or 2007 hand crafted one, supposedly from the scenic area) that Guang / Hou De had, though I think the sample I had from him was slightly better than the second batch he got, from which I ordered. He doesn't have it any more. I've heard good things about the Rou Gui from the same factory too.
I have a medium roast one from my trip to Wuyishan that I think is pretty good for the price (roughly 60 US for 1 jin (500g)). It's not a traditional roast, but not super green either, and has a nice little spicy flavor.
Yan cha is tricky to brew IMO, and I think it takes a while to learn how to appreciate it too. I don't claim to be good at either thing, but I'm definitely hooked anyway.
Sep 25th, '08, 23:45
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It did not impress me particularly either. To me it seemed very like hot chocolate and pretty monotone. A high price does not assure a fine tea. Scruff got a bit that a group of us shared. I think he actually ordered it without the fancy packaging and got a slightly lower price ... down to about $1.00 per gram that is. He also shared a 2002 Rou Gui that was one of the best teas I ever tasted ... at about one-third the price. That one is now out of stock.wyardley wrote: I /might/ have tried this once, with the LA tea group, and if it's the one I'm thinking about, I didn't get my socks knocked off or anything (neither did most of the other folks at the table). I'm pretty sure it was from teacuppa and a red box w/ two small packages inside.
Sep 26th, '08, 11:49
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TeaCuppa's other DHPs are actually quite nice as well. Perhaps not quite as good as the DHP I got from Hou De, but a very close second. Those folks drink yancha regularly, so they generally have good tastes.
The strange thing about that Exquisite is that the first time I got it, it pretty well did knock my socks off, but after that it was just pretty plain. I suspect that it had something to do with how I brewed it - it's one of those that's just 'pretty good' until you hit those magical set of environmental conditions, parameters, star alignment and karma for it to come out great
The strange thing about that Exquisite is that the first time I got it, it pretty well did knock my socks off, but after that it was just pretty plain. I suspect that it had something to do with how I brewed it - it's one of those that's just 'pretty good' until you hit those magical set of environmental conditions, parameters, star alignment and karma for it to come out great
I was wondering about that brewing. I found better results using more leaf with the teacuppa 2007 rou gui, but it was 'dry & spicy' and I didn't get any sweetness. The DHP did have a more balanced profile and a little sweetness (not much, but better than the RG). I think I didn't get the brewing quite right.