How Do You Store Your Teas?

[strickmr]

I keep my teas in an airtight container in a cupboard at a constant temperature, I will invest in porcelain containers later the one`s the are sold at Dragon teahouse.
http://stores.ebay.com/Dragon-Tea-House ... 34.c0.m322
Take a look at these... I don`t recomend storing tea in a cold fridge, store it at room temperature, the drastic temperature changes adversly affect tea.

On the other hand, perishable foods are usually kept in the refrigerator after being opened. I figure it should be the same for tea.

[Chubseus]

I found these mason jars at wal-mart and they've worked for me so far. The wide mouth might let more air in when I open them, but it does make for easy scooping. One of these days I'll have to class up the aluminum foil I have wrapped around them to keep out light .

BTW, does anybody reuse Rishi tins, like the kind you can buy tea in at Whole Foods? I have two of them laying around, but haven't actually tried storing tea in them...

[debunix]

On the other hand, perishable foods are usually kept in the refrigerator after being opened. I figure it should be the same for tea.

The problem is that for tea, the enemy is as much moisture as exposure to air and time, and cold tea removed from a refrigerator, opened to remove a sample for brewing, and returned to the refrigerator, picks up moisture (condensation on the leaves), and each time this happens, it is probably a lot worse for the tea than many days' worth of dry storage at room temp.

It would not be a problem for sealed tea, stored in the cold, and permitted to warm up completely--several hours or overnight--before it is opened for use and storage at room temp.

[Herb_Master]

Help me out here then Debunix

I drink lots of yan Cha, lots of dan Cong and more than a little greener Anxi oolong.

I read about the way that greener oolongs needed refrigeration about 3 years ago.

I have been storing my Yan Cha in various canisters in my lounge at room temperature, they seem to be doing fine. The over roasted ones, improve dramatically with age.

I have similarily been storing my DCs in the lounge, at room temperature in Canisters, and they are doing equally well. BUT I usually keep them in the foil (or paper and cellophane) packets they are supplied in - folded over and placed inside a canister.

I am also happy with them, they seem as fresh and vibrant when I revisit them as when they were first opened.

I started storing my Anxis in the fridge, inside clasp lock plastic containers - they seem to be doing fine also .

I did not have enough clasp lock containers or room in the fridge for all my Anxis.

The Anxis in the fridge seem to be as fresh as they were when I bought them

The Anxis not in the fridge seem to be as fresh as they were when I bought them

I have read about the cold shock problem
I have read about the condensation problem

I have not experienced either
I have read about the need to bring the tea up to room temperature, but choose which tea to drink on the spur of the moment, and rarely have the patience to wait, it does not seem to result in any andversity

By The way nearly all, in fact probably all, my Anxis come supplied in individual 7gm or 8gm foil packs, some with an inner poly bag. So I open and use the whole pack for a session. Are the much hyped ground rules only for loose, really loose tea?

[CasualConnoisseur]

I have a dedicated shelf in my kitchen for tea-- nothing else goes up there. The other shelves in the cabinet are for my cups, mugs, plates, etc., so I don't worry about my spices interfering with my tea. I also keep my teas in reasonable-quality metal canisters (single lid, but the gasket is good) but never have such a quantity that I worry about it going stale. Because temperatures aren't too crazy high where I live I don't have to worry about temperature (and I don't store in a fridge).

[debunix]

The refrigeration problem is not with the tea that is put into the fridge, pulled out chilled, and put immediately into hot water. The refrigeration problem is with the remainder of a package of loose tea, that is pulled out, opened while cool, and gets put back in the fridge, with condensation fresh upon it.

When I tried to keep a couple of different senchas open at once, storing them in the fridge, taking them out every other day during a hot summertime (and it is not that dry here in the summertime, so close to the ocean), I think they lost freshness faster than senchas stored at room temperature. I never did a controlled experiment to be sure, but I did notice a softness and limpness to the leaves by the end of their time in the fridge, which I attribute to condensation. And they were all loose teas in well-sealed bags.

[strickmr]

Well that's why I let the tea come to room temperature before opening it.

[Suteishi]

All my teas just stay in a desk drawer in the packaging they came in (zip bags) except the puerh I bought which lives in paper bags. Hopefully that's ok... I'm still new to loose teas.