Hi, I'm a new member!

[Tead Off]

@Tead off: I'll be there again probably on saturday or sunday so I'm going to ask for TGY 2013 (that got me really curious after reading about it, also I'd like to try a low-oxydate one) and buy some Bai ji guan and Tieguanyin to bring back home!

On a different note I usually buy my tea in a place in Milan called "La teiera eclettica", I'd post a link but I'm not sure I can!
It's a really nice place to enjoy some sips while relaxing ^^ Also it's in Porta Venezia, which is a place I really like.
If you get the chance to be in Milan I suggest trying the place, it's also kind of known around here I think!
Where do you guys usually buy it?
Thanks again for the warm welcome and all the suggestions They've been really helpful since I knew nothing about oolongs per se!
I'll tell you what I think after drinking them (and having a comparison)!

You should know that there can be big differences in teas even if they are the same type, ie., TGY, because the difference can lie in the processing by skilled hands. No such thing as equality in tea. Almost every seller's tea will be different than the next seller's because they buy from different sources. The best sellers are the ones that search out each region and make connections with either the local tea farms, tea masters, or distributors. The only way you can learn about a tea is to sample the same type of tea from many different sources. Then, you will get a sense of what is possible with a type of tea and begin to develop your taste. It takes time. Many years, in fact. Good luck.

[jayinhk]

Even terroir can make a world of difference. A low oxidation tieguanyin from Fujian is very different from a TGY from Muzha, just outside Taipei. Taiwanese oolongs seem to be on the sweeter-smelling and tasting end of the spectrum, and Southern Fujianese TGY is more savory.

[Chaisha]

You should know that there can be big differences in teas even if they are the same type, ie., TGY, because the difference can lie in the processing by skilled hands. No such thing as equality in tea. Almost every seller's tea will be different than the next seller's because they buy from different sources. The best sellers are the ones that search out each region and make connections with either the local tea farms, tea masters, or distributors. The only way you can learn about a tea is to sample the same type of tea from many different sources. Then, you will get a sense of what is possible with a type of tea and begin to develop your taste. It takes time. Many years, in fact. Good luck.

I didn't think there would have been differences from place to place while drinking the same teas, interesting.
Thanks I'm going to enjoy it! Not going to rush things.
Good luck to you too since you seem to be on that same path ^^ (even though much ahead)

Even terroir can make a world of difference. A low oxidation tieguanyin from Fujian is very different from a TGY from Muzha, just outside Taipei. Taiwanese oolongs seem to be on the sweeter-smelling and tasting end of the spectrum, and Southern Fujianese TGY is more savory.

I read a bit about how terroirs affect the taste of tea in a book (Manual of the tea sommelier from Victoria Bisogno - it's not in depth but it's good to get a basic understanding I think).
The Wuyi Qi Lan I drank was from Fujian, it was highly oxidate,
Can we have an idea of the taste of a tea from where it comes from?
I mean.. are all types of tea from around the same place gonna have some similar notes?

Like (it's an exaggeration to understand a point):
if I drink a white tea from a place and a puerh from the same place am I going to find similar notes, apart from the great differences between the 2 very different types of tea?


-I read a bit of an overview about taste from a cerebral point of view in a book about tea; I studied neurophisiology some years ago, if you're interested I can post the chapter about taste and smell from a book that is a reference in the field. Not sure it'd be that understandable but I usually find that book's chapters to be quite stand-alone since they're almost always like reviews from an international database.. Of course if it's not a problem for forum rules!

[Chaisha]

So..
Yesterday I drank Anxi Tie Quan Yin, I really liked it!
It was also my first time drinking from a gaiwan.
It was very different from many teas I usually enjoy.
Sorry for not being able to describe the taste but I'm afraid I'm not able to, yet. Anyway I liked it a bit more than the Wuyi!
I brought home for august (since the tea shop closes) what I drank and a Chun Mee and a Shincha Hon-Yama Nagatsumata!

[debunix]

Glad you liked the TGY.

There is a huge variety in styles & flavors of TGY, and you'll find references here to 'new' or 'green' and 'traditional' or 'dark' or 'roasted' to distinguish the very green-leaf and light-colored liquor versions that will seem closer to a green tea from the traditional darker roasted styles that look very different--thisis a link to an image that should make the difference clear (not endorsing the seller or the tea, I know nothing about them, but the photo is very useful!).

Was the TGY you had a new/light/green or traditional/dark/brown version?

[jayinhk]

Glad you liked the TGY.

There is a huge variety in styles & flavors of TGY, and you'll find references here to 'new' or 'green' and 'traditional' or 'dark' or 'roasted' to distinguish the very green-leaf and light-colored liquor versions that will seem closer to a green tea from the traditional darker roasted styles that look very different--thisis a link to an image that should make the difference clear (not endorsing the seller or the tea, I know nothing about them, but the photo is very useful!).

Was the TGY you had a new/light/green or traditional/dark/brown version?

And then there's gongfu grade TGY like this:

http://www.tealifehk.com/products/hong- ... yin-oolong

Looks like he had a very green Anxi TGY.

[Chaisha]

Glad you liked the TGY.

There is a huge variety in styles & flavors of TGY, and you'll find references here to 'new' or 'green' and 'traditional' or 'dark' or 'roasted' to distinguish the very green-leaf and light-colored liquor versions that will seem closer to a green tea from the traditional darker roasted styles that look very different--thisis a link to an image that should make the difference clear (not endorsing the seller or the tea, I know nothing about them, but the photo is very useful!).

Was the TGY you had a new/light/green or traditional/dark/brown version?

It was very green! The friend that was with me drank a wulong too but a roasted one and I had a sip to check the differences.
I liked the roasted one too (it was quite smoky) but I thought the greener one was more to my taste.
It's strange that when it comes to whiskys or whines I like more the smokier ones but when it comes to tea I usually look for softer flavours!
(I'd drink a lapsang souchong when I get the chance to have an "extreme" comparison)
I'm also drinking Pai Mu Tan Imperial and Huo Shan Huang Ya these days, they're too soft for my palate but I really like them too.
Can I ask usually how much water do you brew with? I have a teapot of 650 ml (though I don't usually fill it completely) but I think it'd be inadequate for teas like the TGY itself or the japanese green I just bought.

[debunix]

Can I ask usually how much water do you brew with? I have a teapot of 650 ml (though I don't usually fill it completely) but I think it'd be inadequate for teas like the TGY itself or the japanese green I just bought.

I brew different volumes for different teas at different times. In the past two days, I brewed some lightly roasted Tie Guan Yin in a 600mL pot, a low leaf-to-water ratio for 3 long-steeped infusions; brewed some Gyokuro in a little shibo of maybe 50mL; brewed some Fushoushan grandpa-style in a 12oz bowl; and now I'm enjoying some Milk Oolong from a 150 mL kyusu.