Hello from Norway

[plod]

Hiya,

I've been lurking here for several years. This place has been by far the most useful resource for narrowing down what to brew, how to brew it, where to get it etc. Figuring out what I like and where to get more of it would have been difficult without the internets, so thank you all for that.

Not sure how alive this place is anymore, but I'll at least try to participate and maybe eventually add to this vast library of practical knowledge.

I've been drinking tea since I was a child, mainly Twinings Earl Grey with honey at first. When a very short lived tea house opened close to my high school, I accidently tried two Georgian teas. They were great, and sort of changed things. Still, I was confined to drinking whatever half-decent tea I could find locally and mainly complained a lot about how it was impossible to find good tea in Norway. Then ten years later a friend served me excellent Tie Guan Yin, and I decided to google "oolong", et voilà.

The last five years or so I've gradually worked my way through most types of Chinese teas, a fair selection of Taiwanese teas, and some Darjeelings. I got lost in the puer-jungle for a while, and have two small plastic tub pumidors filled with all I need for the foreseeable future. I still like it, but have come to realize I mostly prefer oolongs and the odd black tea for everyday drinking. I finally have the tea stash organized and under control, and can focus on drinking my way through various types of Wuyi, dancong and roasted Taiwanese oolongs.

However, I've just decided to add to my troubles by ordering a bunch of Japanese tea. So now I'll probably get the green tea freshness paranoia to replace my previous puer-anoia. First world problems are great.

All the best,
plod

[victoria3]

Plod, great tea exploration story, before I ready last paragraph I was wondering 'well what about Japanese teas'
I also recently organized my teas into labeled bins for easy access, makes it much easier to reach for what I'm looking for. Since you are into Taiwan oolongs, Wuyi and DanCong might as well start with a Gyokuro exploration. Welcome to teachat .

[plod]

Plod, great tea exploration story, before I ready last paragraph I was wondering 'well what about Japanese teas'
I also recently organized my teas into labeled bins for easy access, makes it much easier to reach for what I'm looking for. Since you are into Taiwan oolongs, Wuyi and DanCong might as well start with a Gyokuro exploration. Welcome to teachat .

Thank you!

There is indeed some Gyokuro currently in transit, or sitting in customs (aka tea jail). But also some sencha. I've been "regressing" lately. I first moved naturally from greener, more floral and aromatic teas towards the ones with fuller and more robust mouthfeel and, finally, to the body slam of weaponized puer. I've since understood that this is fairly common (?).

But recently I've reached for DanCong more than Wuyi, and I'm craving more and more Taiwanese teas. I really look forward to spending a week or two with each of the japanese greens. Let me know if you think this means I should see my physician.