common Japanese tea types explained by Dr. Weil

[Chip]

edit: wow chip, you are fast! I thought you were being double-mint-double-fresh-double-post!

Oops... I somehow double posted. Although seems appropriate to the double mint discussion. I will blame it on kharma.

[kongni]

In Japan, a lot of blending takes place. This is not necessarily a bad thing. But if a vendor is blending to cut costs, then it certainly can be. For instance, it is possible for a vendor to blend Chinese sencha with their blends to lower their cost and increase profits. While this practice rarely occurs for Japanese domestic market, I am 100% certain it does for international exports!

So, buyer beware!

Sorry to derail the conversation topic here but...

Chip- Do you know of any other vendors besides O-Cha that sells legitimate leaf? So far I've bought From Japanese Green Tea Online, Hibiki-an, Shizuokatea, the Japanese Green Tea Shop, and Ryu Mei. Out of all of those I feel like Ryu Mei is the most suspect because they claim that all of their tea are 100% organic but do not have certification stamps on their products. The price is also so low that it makes me wonder....

[Chip]

I completely trust O-Cha, Hibiki-An, Den's. I also will deal on a limited basis with Zencha, Ipoddo, and Maiko.

If I am in NYC, I will visit Ito-En, trying before buying. My only issue with Ito-En, they take big bags out of their TeaFridge, break the heat seal, take cold tea out of the bag, reheat seal the bags, and place it back in cold storage. They will repeat this practice over and over. This could be a little suspect in practice. Teas bagged in Japan are bagged upon final sorting and heat sealed for final sale.

I have a list of around 5 or more Japanese specialty vendors I would like to try. Kaburagien tops this list currently.

I have never dealt with any of the other vendors on your list.

[kongni]

Chip- Thanks for the info. Kaburagien looks interesting! Would you care to share the rest of your "must try" list?

[Pentox]

I agree with Chip's recommendation for O-cha, hibiki-an, and den's. I have some Zencha to try out, but haven't gotten to it yet. I haven't dealt with Ippodo or Maiko yet, but I'll give them a try in due time. (Both are quite expensive to order from in terms of shipping)

Like Chip, I have not dealt with any of the vendors on your list (with the exception of Hibiki-an).

To the list of ones that I would trust, I would add Lupicia, Sugimoto, and Kaburaigen. I've had some Kaburaigen tea, although not directly from them, and I'm a big fan of Lupicia tea. Sugimoto is fantastic, although they have a very limited selection. For Lupicia, my sureness of them being pure Japanese extends primarily to the specialized japanese teas, and not as much to the blends, and definitely not for the blacks/oolongs/etc, as one would expect.

I've been a fan of Ito-en's teas before, although I have never had the opportunity to visit the store.

[olivierco]

O-cha, Hibiki-an, Ippodo and Kaburagien (though Ippodo and Kaburagien are shipping only with EMS) are four very good Japan based shops.