Tuesday TeaDay 3/2/10 Price check on TEA?

[cls46]

This question is quite depressing since I wish I could say cost wasn't an issue however it definitely is a factor. To quote my boyfriend "I hope someday I have enough money to buy really expensive leaves to put in my hot water" For now though I am just a poor college student

[Skippyandjif]

This question is quite depressing since I wish I could say cost wasn't an issue however it definitely is a factor. To quote my boyfriend "I hope someday I have enough money to buy really expensive leaves to put in my hot water" For now though I am just a poor college student

I know what you mean! College is definitely hard on one's tea budget. I use any extra money for tea instead of partying and (annoying) stuff like that, but it's still definitely an issue. It's great to still be semi-near NYC, though, because it's possible to find some really good, relatively cheap teas there.

Right now, I'm drinking some pu-erh from my first-ever actual brick (as opposed to looseleaf). It's amazing!

[AdamMY]

Well I'll be the third college student to post in a row, and I've been lucky enough to have a good summer job my entire college career, but typically right around march is where I really feel the crunch I'm honestly hoping I can ride on my tea supplies till Shincha Season.... I could do it easily if I wished to drink puerh much more often than I do.

[beecrofter]

A dollar a day makes for quite the annual tea package , more than enough to keep you in great tea for the better part of the year.

[LauraW]

I'm in the "newly out of college, but spent a year without a full-time job" category, so since I now do have a job, hopefully I'll be able to spend a little more on tea (once I get this whole "house" thing figured out, at least). So for the moment, unfortunately, price is a fairly high consideration - which is partly why I'm hesitant to try new vendors, etc. at the moment.

But as has been mentioned already, Adagio's great about samples, and in general has pretty good prices, so it's letting me get a feel for what I really do enjoy so that once I can afford to have price be less of a consideration, I know more specifically what I'm looking for that I know I like.

[artmom]

As I am pretty much confined to home and rarely go out to restaurants, or bars, etc., I don't skimp on special food and drink at home. I like things such as real butter, artisanal bread, excellent cheeses of all types (domestic and international), and good teas, expensive or not.

However, we haven't always been in a position to not worry about the money spent on these items, so I can identify with those who must watch their expenditures. We just tell our sons we're spending their inheritance on us.

Golden Monkey from Silk Road Teas earlier. Looking forward to Red Peach after dinner.

[Chip]

I pay more attention to VALUE! An inexpensive tea that is good is a buy! A great tea that is more expensive but a good value is also a buy. So, I buy in a wide price range based more upon value than price.

But at the end of the day, price still does matter as it is a component to value, plus I just do not buy all high end teas.

So Chip, maybe a question some time about an exact price bracket that one considers as being "too expensive" for buying tea might be interesting. Set some price brackets up for say 100 grams of tea (no type specified...... just the price per unit.

All good points and a topic for another day!!! Thanks.

[Chip]

Oh, began the TD with a blend of OLD sencha with Mrs. Chip which did indeed turn out pretty good. Next up, an OLDER yet 2008 organic sencha from Ryu Mei, still quite good due to the TeaFridge! This really sealed the deal for me, cold storage really is a huge life extender for Japanese teas!

Feels good to clear out older teas and make room for new Shincha at the same time! In a few weeks, I will turn off the TeaFridge and defrost, clean, etc. And then wait ......................................................

[AdamMY]

Chip I just realized I never answered the question. I'm with you I tend to look for value also. My last Purchase of chinese teas was 500 grams of "aged" tgy which while not amazing on the scale of teas, it is amazing compared to the price at which it is offered.

Right now working on some Gyokuro I have had for 2 months now, and seriously hoping I can make my japanese teas last till shincha season.

[brad4419]

Price is a very high factor but not the #1 factor, which is quality. Some places recommended are just too expensive for me so I have to find a nice balance between quality tea and prices.

[entropyembrace]

Price is a consideration for me, but not one of the main considerations...if there´s an expensive tea I really want I´m much more likely to buy a smaller quantity of it than a larger quantity of less expensive tea...and I´ll even push my budget more than I really should...but tea gets the priority on my luxury spending

I´ve gone up to around $80-$90 per 100g...I´m thinking about pushing it a bit further with Tea Habitat´s single bush dancongs sometime this year...

Even the pricy teas are pretty inexpensive per cup...though you get a lot better value buying more tea at once than small sample...and I´m tempted to try new things faster than I drink the old teas...luckily the teas I like to drink most (oolongs) do a lot better than Japanese greens over time!

[shah82]

For those of you sampling...

1) 50gms should be your minimum. It takes at least that amount to figure out what your new teas does.

2) Another reason why 50gms should be your minimum, is that heavy sampling is not all that cost efficient, because you end up spending more money that way.

3) In general, the most important considerations is figuring out *vendors*, not teas per se. You want to be able to figure out from the description whether you'd like to purchase that tea, based on what you know of the vendor's tastes. In general, tea value == money. I can get fustrated by high end vendor's prices, but the reliable ones aren't exactly putting a huge vendor premium, and you can't really undercut them somewhere else online.

4) For the breadth tea places, like Upton or Special Teas...I suspect they make much of their money off of samples, so one has to be careful. For Upton, if you want a good value, you should stick to blacks, and be careful with the other categories. Of the blacks, see that you sample mostly the stuff that nobody else has...Outside of a certain range of about $7-$11, to my taste, Upton isn't a great value per specific tea, if it's available elsewheres, and sometimes the tea might not be at their best. Example, if you want to sample darjeelings, it's a better idea to get a sampler pack from Lochan or Thunderbolt than get upteen tiny samples that you ruin knowingly or unknowingly before you figure anything out. It can also be a good idea to simply follow other people's favorite vendors, and do a shot in the dark and get one real packet. Chances are...

[AdamMY]

For those of you sampling...

1) 50gms should be your minimum. It takes at least that amount to figure out what your new teas does.

2) Another reason why 50gms should be your minimum, is that heavy sampling is not all that cost efficient, because you end up spending more money that way.

While I agree that you spend more money on samples, I disagree with part one on the condition that you already know how to brew teas in the category that you are sampling. As you are not going to learn in 25 grams how to brew a tea and appreciate it unless you have a head start and can at least get the tea close to how it should probably be brewed the first time you try it.

Mind you there are certain teas which you might not like in the first 25 grams but you learn how to brew it and really like it by the time you finish 100g.

But if its a tea you know absolutely nothing about I agree that a sample is probably not the way to go, give yourself at least 100 grams.