Aug 12th, '14, 18:43
Posts: 3
Joined: Aug 10th, '14, 16:05
by jeremyll » Aug 12th, '14, 18:43
Hello all!
Just to get the problem I have at hand, I'm pretty new to the "specialty tea" thing. I'm an American who got into tea while in England, and my love has been growing. While in recently I purchased my first Yixing pot in Bejing (I kinda went overboard price wise, but from what I've been reading, it seems to be a legit handmade pot, I'd give it 4/5 stars from the pots I've been seeing in the forums too). However, I only have Teavana tea. Unfortunately I only started to do major research after I bought my pot (which I wished I had done a while ago before I bought all of the tea I did) and have heard that Teavana tea isn't the best quality tea. I do however have their Monkey Picked Oolong. From what I hear, traditionalists like to cure the pot with a high quality tea, and I'd like to play it safe and cure my pot that way. I guess my first question is 1.) Is Teavana's Monkey Picked Oolong an ok tea to cure/use my Yixing with? And 2.) What type of Oolong would Teavana's Monkey Picked Oolong be considered, light or darK?
Also I'd just like to say I'm so relieved I finally got an account so I can start discussing tea with you guys, this has been my all time favorite forum to peruse 
Aug 12th, '14, 21:11
Posts: 452
Joined: Feb 3rd, '14, 12:24
by bonescwa » Aug 12th, '14, 21:11
As long as it is actually tea without other added crap in it it's not going to make much of a difference. You just don't want it to absorb jasmine or some other non tea aroma I suppose. The experienced people around here have been saying that the seasoning/curing effect is overblown anyway, you're not going to ruin the pot. I would advise you to buy good tea before you buy good pots in the future. A good tea brewed in a neutral material will always beat even a slightly lesser tea brewed in good yixing, just my (limited) experience
Aug 12th, '14, 23:21
Posts: 3
Joined: Aug 10th, '14, 16:05
by jeremyll » Aug 12th, '14, 23:21
That's what I've been thinking, and oh yeah, I'm not planning to buy any teas from Teavana anytime soon unless they're crazy on sale. Do you think that the curing method with the Teavana tea will damage the pot? (it's a non-aroma tea)
Aug 13th, '14, 00:13
Posts: 394
Joined: Apr 17th, '14, 15:18
by BW85 » Aug 13th, '14, 00:13
Nope, if it tastes good in the pot, use it. Then when you get some nicer teas start using them in the pot
Oh, and it's a light oolong
Aug 13th, '14, 09:36
Posts: 485
Joined: Jul 19th, '13, 21:04
Location: Kentucky
by Poseidon » Aug 13th, '14, 09:36
jeremyll wrote:That's what I've been thinking, and oh yeah, I'm not planning to buy any teas from Teavana anytime soon unless they're crazy on sale. Do you think that the curing method with the Teavana tea will damage the pot? (it's a non-aroma tea)
Teavana is one of those places that its great if you are in a pinch and dont have any tea on hand... Just be prepared to fork over double (or more) the price that you would pay online for the same quality of oolong. I HIGHLY reccomend that you branch out and get a bunch of samples from various vendors (i suggest jkteashop) and see what the fuss is about.
Also, if teavana makes you happy, go for it man.
Aug 13th, '14, 10:00
Posts: 89
Joined: Jul 9th, '14, 18:17
by mganz42 » Aug 13th, '14, 10:00
Yeah, as long as it's not one of their teas that's full of artificial flavorings, you should be ok. But I would recommend finding a nicer tea ASAP - once you get used to high-quality teas, you'll realize that Teavana tea really isn't very good
Aug 13th, '14, 14:46
Posts: 3
Joined: Aug 10th, '14, 16:05
by jeremyll » Aug 13th, '14, 14:46
Cool beans (or teas I suppose in this case)
Thanks guys so much for all of your help! And thanks for that suggestion Poseidon! I'll be sure to look into that company! (And after going to China, It's hard to drink the Teavana tea, I just need to get rid of it
Live and learn me thinks.
Sep 19th, '14, 11:56
Posts: 125
Joined: Sep 29th, '12, 22:05
by heliospace » Sep 19th, '14, 11:56
Hey now, I started out drinking the organic tea from the co-op in tea bags. And then a tea/massage shop opened up in town where I was living at the time and next thing you know, I am spending a couple hundred dollars on tea and tea wares after paying 60 for a massage. I guess that massage was just that darn good. We all live and learn
Curious as to what your teapot looks like and the material it is made out of. If you don't mind sharing, I'd love to see it and I am sure others would as well.
Cheers!
Sep 19th, '14, 13:35
Posts: 452
Joined: Feb 3rd, '14, 12:24
by bonescwa » Sep 19th, '14, 13:35
Lol tea/massage shop!
Sep 19th, '14, 13:39
Posts: 321
Joined: Feb 19th, '13, 00:40
by yalokinh » Sep 19th, '14, 13:39
I personally don't season the pots, I season them through normal use. but that tea will do just fine. I'd suggest searching for better tea, teavana will rip you off with its incredibly overpriced teas.
Sep 19th, '14, 21:48
Posts: 148
Joined: Sep 12th, '14, 00:37
Location: Wisconsin
by Jaymo » Sep 19th, '14, 21:48
I wouldn't go out of my way to buy the Monkey Picked Oolong, but a friend gave me some as a gift and I actually enjoy it for what it is. There are no other added ingredients and it has some nice characteristics (again, for what it is.) So yeah, while there is a lot of other great tea out there, use this that you've got already to season it for now!
