Calling on all noobs and not so noobs!

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Jun 5th, '14, 14:30
Posts: 6
Joined: Jun 5th, '14, 01:44

Re: Calling on all noobs and not so noobs!

by Taleri » Jun 5th, '14, 14:30

Hello all.

How long have you been drinking tea? I've been drinking tea on at least a semi-regular basis for the past 15 years. As I've read over the board, I've come to realize that most (if not all) of the tea I've had would be rated as fairly low quality, which is probably one reason I wasn't too into it.

What was your first Tea? The first tea I remember drinking was a lipton tea that my dad had made. He called it sun-tea and basically had just put 6 or so teabags in a glass jar of water and sat it in the sun for hours.

What is your favorite Tea currently? I mentioned in another thread that recently my husband and I went to a Japanese restaurant and both ordered green tea with dinner, mine cold and his hot. His was a genmaicha, which I don't like. The burnt rice flavor makes my throat scratchy and I think it tastes like ash. I was expecting mine to be a literal cold version of a green tea, which is what the restaurants usually serve. When it came out, it suprised me with its bright green color and taste like a rich cream. I thought it was the tea equivalent of the best hot-chocolate I'd ever had. It was absolutely amazing. When I asked about it, mine turned out to be an iced tea made with matcha. I have no idea what grade the matcha was, or the vendor, or really anything else about it. Whatever it was, that tea is the one that I can't forget.

What is your next purchase? I just ordered the Kiri no Mori from o-cha this morning. I had been debating and researching for a week to figure out what matcha to try, not wanting to blow a lot of money on something that I may not end up liking. Reading this forum was amazingly helpful at helping me narrow down the choices.

Where is your favorite spot to brew up? The kitchen.

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Jun 8th, '14, 11:45
Posts: 32
Joined: May 12th, '14, 11:34
Location: Oregon

Re: Calling on all noobs and not so noobs!

by TimsMom » Jun 8th, '14, 11:45

I just ordered 2010 Jingmai Aroma Qiaomu Green cake from Puerhshop. It sounds good; and it's my first green tea cake.

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Jul 5th, '14, 07:11
Posts: 6
Joined: Mar 6th, '14, 07:17
Contact: ChaShiFu

Re: Calling on all noobs and not so noobs!

by ChaShiFu » Jul 5th, '14, 07:11

How long have you been drinking tea?
Well I have been drinking tea since I was a child, since 2008 I stay in China and gongfu tea became my daily practice.

What was your first Tea?
I guess some flower "tea" like camellia, when I catch a cold in kindergarten or per-school and here I bought a 500g super cheap dark tea in Litang on Sichuan - Tibetan highway. Definitely not my best tea I ever bought, but awakened my passion.

What is your favorite Tea currently?
Impossible to say, but generally I start by brewing some Fuding white (baihao yinzhen) or green teas before I switch to sheng / raw or oolong in the afternoon. Evenings some strong oxidation oolongs or dark teas

What is your next purchase?
Since several months I trying to find some taste and payable EU organic light oxidation oolong from Taiwan for my teekenner.de project, but oolong leafs stay roughly 40 days on the bush before being harvested, this provides insects a long time to catch a bite and a lot farmers act old school style...

Where is your favorite spot to brew up?
my tea table!

Looking forward to lively discussions,

Cha-Shifu.

Jul 10th, '14, 00:55
Posts: 89
Joined: Jul 9th, '14, 18:17

Re: Calling on all noobs and not so noobs!

by mganz42 » Jul 10th, '14, 00:55

Hello from Colorado/North Carolina (I move a lot :/ )

How long have you been drinking tea?
That's a hard question to answer. I grew up in a tea drinking household, but I didn't get into gongfu cha until March. I fell into the rabbit-hole quite rapidly, and am now the proud owner of 11 tea pots and a tea blog (cha-life.tumblr.com). Oops!

What was your first tea?
No clue. My first gongfu-style tea was da hong pao.

What is your favorite tea currently?
I'm stuck between da hong pao by Dragon Tea House and bai hao yin zhen by Shanghai Story.

What is your next purchase?
Oh god. I'm trying so hard to not have a "next purchase." I have a problem. But I'm eyeing the phoenix dancong by Peony Tea.

Where is your favorite place to brew up?
In the shade outside :)

Jul 16th, '14, 13:57
Posts: 20
Joined: Jul 8th, '14, 16:48

Re: Calling on all noobs and not so noobs!

by JAndrews2 » Jul 16th, '14, 13:57

How long have you been drinking tea?
My whole life in some manner. I grew up in a heavily Indian/Pakistani neighborhood, so there's always chai floating around (sometimes literally). We make a lot of black/ginger tea and very simple chai at home.

What was your first Tea?
Probably some kind of cheap black tea.

What is your favorite Tea currently?
Black tea is still my favorite. After a long hiatus I've been back on a Assam-with-milk kick.
Sometimes puer is my favorite.. I have the worst love/hate relationship with it. When I love it, it's the most amazing thing; when I don't it's horrible. It's not a question of variety or brewing style, since this happens over two sips from the same cup sometimes...

What is your next purchase?
I don't know, because I bought way too much tea this past year and need to use it up before I move overseas and can't take it all with me! Probably a little more Darjeeling.

Where is your favorite spot to brew up?
Anywhere with books or friends or both. I like to say my daily prayers over a cup of tea, so in a sense that combines the two. Otherwise, I'm usually at my desk when I drink, unless I convince someone to try some tea.

Jul 18th, '14, 10:57
Posts: 3
Joined: Jul 17th, '14, 12:19

Re: Calling on all noobs and not so noobs!

by Be The Leaf » Jul 18th, '14, 10:57

Hi! Argentinian newbie here!

My english is not good, but i'm going to try

How long have you been drinking tea? Since september 2013. N00b
What was your first Tea? darjeeling
What is your favorite Tea currently? Difficult one. it's between gunpowder and oolong. it depends on the moment
What is your next purchase? sencha and assam tara
Where is your favorite spot to brew up? with my boyfriend. he is another tea lover.


Image

Jul 18th, '14, 17:41
Posts: 319
Joined: Jun 29th, '14, 21:26
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Re: Calling on all noobs and not so noobs!

by daidokorocha » Jul 18th, '14, 17:41

Hello, I am new to the board, but have been reading for a fair bit of time.

How long have you been drinking tea?
This is a tough one. My first tea was when I was 13, but I didn't really start drinking it regularly until I was 16 or so. Then, it didn't really turn into a passion until I was 19 or so. I'm 25, for the record.

What was your first Tea?
My first tea was actually matcha when I was 13. I was taking Japanese in middle school and our teacher brought in leaves which we had to crush and grind ourselves. It surely was low quality. In the end, I thought it was very interesting and not half bad, and then I never had it again until I was in my 20s. Still, this set the precedent to me for what green tea tastes like. More on that in a moment, I suppose.

What is your favorite Tea currently?
Japanese green teas. Matcha and gyokuro definitely, but I also really like the "low end" teas, like houjicha, genmaicha, aracha, kukicha, konacha, and the like. To me, these ARE what I think of when I think of tea and especially green tea. The majority of my teas are Japanese greens. Chinese pan-fired green teas do not taste like "green tea" to me due to this. Having said that, I do especially love white and oolong. I enjoy pu-erh and reds, as well as herbals/tisanes. I drink basically everything including mate, etc, etc. Specifically, I really enjoy Taiwanese oolongs a great deal, as well as Assams for their full bodied nature. Still, matcha is easily my favorite flavor in the entire world.

What is your next purchase?
My first post here was asking where I could get some kombu cha (Kelp tea), so I'm planning on buying either plain or the ume version of it from maiko. Also, I will probably buy more matcha in the near future. I have several grades for varying purposes (drinking, baking, sweets, etc.) and I need to replenish stock.

Where is your favorite spot to brew up?
In my home. It allows for more concentration on the brewing process. I especially like making tea for my fiancee to share with me. I never let her brew the tea, however.

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Aug 5th, '14, 00:56
Posts: 14
Joined: Feb 6th, '11, 03:09

Re: Calling on all noobs and not so noobs!

by squaretooth » Aug 5th, '14, 00:56

I live in Omaha, Nebraska and was first introduced to puerh in 2008 in a Beijing teahouse/tourist trap. I remember taking a tour and figured to experience as much of the Chinese culture as I could. It wouldn't be complete without trying some tea. So I tried several different types of teas, none of which were appealing at all until I samples some shu puerh. It was different and really resonated with me. And my journey began.

How long have you been drinking tea? Most of my life but not seriously until 2008.

What was your first Tea? Shu puerh. don't know the name, though.

What is your favorite Tea currently? Aged sheng puerh. Right now probably a mid 90's 7542 is my favorite. Wish I could drink it every day.

What is your next purchase? A cake of two of something old. If I can afford it.

Where is your favorite spot to brew up? Outside on my deck in the early morning before everyone but the animals and birds are awake.

Aug 6th, '14, 05:00
Posts: 756
Joined: Aug 4th, '14, 05:43

Re: Calling on all noobs and not so noobs!

by Bok » Aug 6th, '14, 05:00

Just did my own topic but I thought why not enter in here too?
So here it goes:

How long have you been drinking tea?
Probably as soon as my mum allowed me to have it… in my family there is always a big pot on the table for breakfast.

What was your first Tea?
Long time ago, I guess it must have been some sort of standard Gunpowder one gets in almost every country. The one which is also used for morrocan mint tea.

What is your favorite Tea currently?
Lishan oolong from the highest elevation I can get and afford, from my local shop in Tainan, Taiwan. I mostly drink Taiwanese teas (Red and Oolong) and the occasional gift from China.

What is your next purchase?
Same as above. The way buying tea works here in Taiwan in most cases is: You state your preference for what kind of tea you want to buy, Oolong and how much oxydised/aged, Red (Black), Green (though people do not tend to drink them here) or Puerh. And the rest is basically categorised by how much you pay for 4 packs, the more expensive, the better the tea. People do not tend to bother much about cultivars, farms etc, what is important for them is the elevation (for the oolongs). And normally the price corresponds roughly to that.

It is also like with wine, the nicer the branding and the design of the packaging etc. is, the less value you get for your money. So everyone tends to have “their” tea shop where they buy. Drove me a bit nuts when we were on a trip up to Sanlinshi and saw all these teashops and was told we shouldn’t buy in any of them as we do not know them, so the risk to get ripped off is quite high…

Where is your favorite spot to brew up?
Still looking for that favorite spot… so for now it is the living room. In an ideal world I would like to have an easily accessible spot up in the mountains with a nice view 8)

Aug 18th, '14, 20:27
Posts: 2
Joined: Aug 17th, '14, 22:15

Calling on all noobs and not so noobs!

by gofroggy08 » Aug 18th, '14, 20:27

How long have you been drinking tea?

I have been drinking tea since I was very young. I always drank mine with my grandma however I have only become a more avid tea drinker in the last 2 years (off and on) with it becoming a lifestyle in the last 2 months.
What was your first Tea?

Probably a black with honey, not real sure.
What is your favorite Tea currently?
I think my current favorite is Teavana's Body+Mind flavored white.
What is your next purchase?

Some really good whites and a few greens.
Where is your favorite spot to brew up?
I have my cast iron set next to my computer for studying and that is the best spot for me.

Aug 22nd, '14, 01:31
Posts: 11
Joined: Aug 21st, '14, 03:54

Re: Calling on all noobs and not so noobs!

by PaleWhiteRabbit » Aug 22nd, '14, 01:31

Hello I'm new to the forum so I think this is a great idea.

How long have you been drinking tea?

I've been drinking tea at a nearly daily routine for probably five years. I can't remember exactly when I had my first cup of tea.

What was your first tea?

Probably an earl grey. A very basic tea to start with.

What is your favorite tea at the moment?

My favorite tea is a black currant black tea. Aside from being fun to say you get the rich darkness of black tea with a sweet fruity note that isn't sour.

What is your next purchase?

Probably a blend or an herbal tea something either fruity or light.

Where do you like to brew up. I have an electric kettle and ceramic pot next to my computer and drawing station.

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Aug 22nd, '14, 05:15
Posts: 495
Joined: Jul 17th, '14, 05:38
Location: UK

Re: Calling on all noobs and not so noobs!

by Rui » Aug 22nd, '14, 05:15

Somehow I missed this thread when I joined this forum. Please find enclosed my replies to the first thread questions:

How long have you been drinking tea?
Since my childhood, some decades ago.

What was your first Tea?
Cha Li Cungo from Mozambique

What is your favorite Tea currently?
2000 Gu Pu Er "Green Mark Qi Zi" Raw Beeng Cha

What is your next purchase?
Difficult question as I am always buying tea. Whichever Pu'erh is available in UK although I am very tempted to order from one of this forum's vendors due to the tea descriptions I have been reading here

Where is your favorite spot to brew up?
Unfortunately in the office as I work long hours and Pu'erh tea keeps me going.

Aug 22nd, '14, 09:24
Posts: 37
Joined: Aug 20th, '14, 12:36

Re: Calling on all noobs and not so noobs!

by j.p.rich » Aug 22nd, '14, 09:24

Hello all, long time lurker, recently decided to finally join the community here. It was overdue.

How long have you been drinking tea? I think it has been about 5-6 years.

What was your first Tea? Some flavored/sugary concoction from Teavana. :oops:

What is your favorite Tea currently? It's hard to pick one. Have been a devoted oolong drinker for sometime (especially Yancha and various Taiwanese varietals) though have been exploring puer recently. I seem to be one of the oddballs who enjoys young, green sheng.

What is your next purchase? Very difficult to say, I already have two packages incoming from China at the moment.

Where is your favorite spot to brew up? I have a tray set up in my kitchen, I do not normally stray far from it.

Aug 22nd, '14, 17:59
Posts: 13
Joined: Aug 22nd, '14, 07:04

Re: Calling on all noobs and not so noobs!

by TeaViking » Aug 22nd, '14, 17:59

Hi all!

Im another newb on this site, but have passion for gongfu. In my short gong fu cha time I have already made two friends invest in tea sets for them self. That is just how much better the tea tastes!

Owards to the questions... (im not a native english speaker, please be nice)

How long have you been drinking tea?
Iv been drinking tea on my own choise since early teenage, about 17 years ago. I have always favored loose tea and was fortuned to have a teashop nearby my whole life. It was mostly diffrent flavored red tea.
I started drinking higher quality tea after I got a Vietnam Milky oolong tea as a christmas present in decmeber 2013. It was the new turn I needed for my tea drinking, i was getting bored.
Iv started gongfu cha brewing 4 months ago and loving it!

What was your first Tea?
My first tea was baged lipton yellow lable, with lots of honey and milk. It was my grandmothers homeremedy against the flu. I still hate yellow lable...

What is your favorite Tea currently?
I cant choose one :?
Green: Jasmin dragon pearls
Light oolong: Premium Da Guan King Hsuan
Red: Bora Bora

What is your next purchase?
Some kind of Pu-er, I have just tasted one kind so far. And more jasmine pearls...

Where is your favorite spot to brew up?
Easy version: at home, in my living room, with friends and a new tea to explore.

Cheers!

Oct 18th, '14, 15:57
Posts: 126
Joined: Oct 17th, '14, 16:00
Location: Italy
Contact: alix

Re: Calling on all noobs and not so noobs!

by alix » Oct 18th, '14, 15:57

how long have you been drinking tea?

I drink tea from 7 years!

what was your first tea?

I started with Japanese green tea!

what is your favorite tea currently?

Now I drink oolong! Milk oolong, High mountain and Gui Fei

what is your next purchase?

Not really sure, probably rare oolong...

where is your favorite spot to brew up?


1 hour around table with my wife and tea...quite!

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