Official what GREEN are you currently drinking?

[Rui]

Sipping a very nice and fresh pre qing ming 2016 Mao Feng. A lovely mild taste and a very floral aroma.

[jayinhk]

Organic Vietnamese green from one of my sister's colleagues. For some reason, when I go back to green tea, I always seem to need a nap. It forces me to catch up on my sleep. This tea isn't as complex as the non-organic Vietnamese greens I bought in 2015, but is still quite pleasant.

[Rui]

Organic Vietnamese green from one of my sister's colleagues. For some reason, when I go back to green tea, I always seem to need a nap. It forces me to catch up on my sleep. This tea isn't as complex as the non-organic Vietnamese greens I bought in 2015, but is still quite pleasant.

Maybe that is why I got very drowsy after sipping the Mao Feng.

[jayinhk]

Organic Vietnamese green from one of my sister's colleagues. For some reason, when I go back to green tea, I always seem to need a nap. It forces me to catch up on my sleep. This tea isn't as complex as the non-organic Vietnamese greens I bought in 2015, but is still quite pleasant.

Maybe that is why I got very drowsy after sipping the Mao Feng.

Possibly--green tea gives you quite the GABA/Theanine kick. I should really go back to drinking green tea every day...

[Griff]

Just cracked open O-Cha's Yutaka Midori Madoka. It's smoother and creamier than I was expecting-- a very nice cup of cha.

[JRS22]

Now that I'm getting emails about 2016 Chinese greens I'm driven to finish my 2015 Japanese kariganes. I have a beautiful thin walled 75 mm Seong-il Kyusu that was sitting neglected in the back of the teaware cabinet. I've been brewing the tea in an unglazed Bero pot but it was beginning to taste a bit flat. I decided to follow with a second session of the same tea, O-Cha Karigane Asa Giri. I forgot how sweet the tea could taste when properly brewed.

Jing Tea Shop is offering free shipping for $30+ orders with the code spring2016. They have the 2016 An Ji Bai cha in stock. It's one of my favorites, but I haven't ordered from Jing in a while so I'm not sure whether to proceed.

[daidokorocha]

Well... I have not posted in over a year and some months I believe. I have moved back to the United State from Japan, and thus I have started my over-the-top internet tea purchasing habit all over again. I think then I will come back to this forum until I move back to Japan again. In Japan... one never needs to use the internet again. Really, for anything!

Tonight though, I am full of Chinese greens. A few weeks ago I put in a rather large order from Dragonhouse Tea. Typically they have served me well, although I am not entirely satisfied with this round of teas yet. Might be because I haven't brewed these types of teas in years, of course. I'm still getting the hang of it again.

In the last hour I have enjoyed:

Premium En Shi Yu Lu, which is a tea from Hubei I don't see talked about often. It is steamed and as such has a more pleasing taste to me than most Chinese green teas. To tell the truth, when I started drinking tea as a young teenager over 10 years ago I drank what I presume was some random Chinese green tea. However, my idea of what a green tea should be has always been that of a Japanese green tea. So, if I think of Chinese greens as greens, I somehow cannot fully bring myself to enjoy them, because I find myself saying, "This certainly isn't what I'd expect from a green tea!" So, this one is very good to me. I do wonder if Chip has ever tried it by now... A nice pale green liquor

I followed this by drinking a normal grade Lu Shan Yun Wu. This is good but not my favorite. I wonder if it the Dragonhouse version in specific, but the leaves give off a smoky aroma. It reminds me of the story one user told about beef jerky tea. However, it isn't nearly that. In the cup though, this more or less disappears only you brew it terribly. My fiancee liked it and she hates nearly everything smoked, so that should give you a hint of how it becomes once infused. Somewhat nutty and vegetal. Good, light tea. Pale green liquor as to be expected, but much diferent than the en shi yu lu's color to be sure. En shi yu lu's is a crisper and fresh looking, whereas lu shan yun wu is more dank looking.

Then, I finished with the non pareil Long Jing. Let me just say, these leaves are not as beautiful as the master grade from Yezi tea. Those leaves were absolutely stunning in the glass. Shame on me for improperly brewing my sample and wasting it. Another day... anyway this long jing is not bad. Nutty flavor dominates. The liquor looks very nutty with its browny, yellowish green. Tasty enough.


For reference, I didn't feel like doing session brewing, so I made these in a cup at 175 degrees for about 3 minutes with a teaspoon or two per 6-8 oz. These are the first time I am brewing the last two in this manner. I typically either grandpa brew them or I cold brew the long jing. I have tried various other brewing methods as well. I can't wait to do the En Shi Yu Lu again, as tonight as my first time.

Overall, not a bad night. These were of course supplemented by numerous other teas throughout the day.

[Teaarch]

Having a kamairicha from Thes, a blend of zairai-shu and oku yutaka. It's a lighter tasting tea (even with more leaf) but very flavorful for all that. Looking forward to trying the shincha I ordered from them too (kondo wase). I had a lot of good teas from shizuoka last year; hopefully this year is just as good.

I hate this new forum design. Ugly and I can barely see the text.

[Tead Off]

Hanayaka from Hirumaen. This is a tea I've been trying to figure out for a year. This tea has undergone Hirumaen's mystic processing and not sure if I should now call it an oolong or green tea. Whatever you call it, the flavor is unlike any other tea I've had from Japan. His brewing recommendation is 3g/90ml at 70c for 20 sec. Then for subsequent brews, bumping up the temp to 90c for 10 sec. Definitely not your average sencha.
I brewed 2g in the Seong IL 60ml teapot with the above parameters.

[ethan]

Teadoff, You are mysterious as Hirumaen. You did not even let us know if you liked that tea! Cheers.

[jayinhk]

Jiangsu biluochun from spring 2015. This stuff is quite nice and supposedly is organic. Very tippy and a sweet bean and malt flavor, even after a year. The color has changed somewhat, but it's still good drinking, if not mellower. I still have 250g of this stuff. Note to self: only buy as much green tea as you can consume within a year.

[Tead Off]

Teadoff, You are mysterious as Hirumaen. You did not even let us know if you liked that tea! Cheers.

I might buy it again. It is not really a sencha.

I brewed some Long Feng Xia, a green Shan Ling Xi Taiwanese oolong that I've had in a caddy for 3 years this afternoon. The tea has changed from a light, fruity brew to one that is deep with a somewhat sour fruitiness. More bottom to it. The bottom had a similar flavor to the Hanayaka, a particular sourness that borders on intense. You have to brew both teas light enough where the sourness doesn't overwhelm your palate. OTOH, I could probably get rid of the sourness with a bit of heat in the roaster, just enough to wake it back up again.

[ethan]

Drinkin Karigane Houjicha from Den's Tea. This roasted kukicha is not exciting but serves well as a break in routine. Roast w/ a hint of the green -- it is okay for one round. I feel wasteful dumping what could be used for a second infusion.

[jayinhk]

Teadoff, You are mysterious as Hirumaen. You did not even let us know if you liked that tea! Cheers.

I might buy it again. It is not really a sencha.

I brewed some Long Feng Xia, a green Shan Ling Xi Taiwanese oolong that I've had in a caddy for 3 years this afternoon. The tea has changed from a light, fruity brew to one that is deep with a somewhat sour fruitiness. More bottom to it. The bottom had a similar flavor to the Hanayaka, a particular sourness that borders on intense. You have to brew both teas light enough where the sourness doesn't overwhelm your palate. OTOH, I could probably get rid of the sourness with a bit of heat in the roaster, just enough to wake it back up again.

Wow, aged green Long Feng Xia! I am trying to get through my Shan Lin Xi and Dayuling as quickly as possible, but I do have some older Alishan and nondescript gaoshan from a few years ago still kicking around in the bags and tins they came in. The sourness does sound like the humidity got to your tea. I've been thinking about how I could tackle green oolongs that have lost their light aromas. I'm thinking 110-120 Celsius in the electric oven, an hour at a time, might add some interesting roast and bring out some roastier aromas, since I used 100 C for baozhong.

[Rui]

Sipping a very yummy and with great aroma Tsuen Sencha San no Ma (aka "Kirameki") from O-Cha.

Running out of it, next month I need to order some more.