Supermarket Teas...and the damage (photo heavy)

[tieguanyinfan]

Finally a break from two weeks of extremely cold weather (-16C to -30C) here in Toronto! I decided it was a good idea to take advantage of the thaw to stock up on some much need tea for the next round of cold weather. On my list was Yorkshire tea, got to have my cuppa (aka English Breakfast). But this was only shopping from a Canadian national supermarket chain

There's tea for breakfast and there’s tea for the rest of the day, so naturally that means going to Asian supermarkets for the “rest of the day” tea. Being in Toronto (and the GTA) we are blessed with numerous Asian supermarkets that all have a large variety and stock of teas. It might not be the top grade, special nor make tea snobs salivate but it’s the general common tea that average people drink (Chinese people that is). Although I did mention Asian supermarkets, I’m only focusing on Chinese supermarkets and teas for this post. So let the photos begin. P.S. this is only from one supermarket







I didn't take a pic but they also carried loose leaf tea for Hong Kong Milk tea, to be specific they had the Marathon Shop mix that won the 2012 International Milk Tea Competition in Hong Kong

[jayinhk]

Finally a break from two weeks of extremely cold weather (-16C to -30C) here in Toronto! I decided it was a good idea to take advantage of the thaw to stock up on some much need tea for the next round of cold weather. On my list was Yorkshire tea, got to have my cuppa (aka English Breakfast). But this was only shopping from a Canadian national supermarket chain

There's tea for breakfast and there’s tea for the rest of the day, so naturally that means going to Asian supermarkets for the “rest of the day” tea. Being in Toronto (and the GTA) we are blessed with numerous Asian supermarkets that all have a large variety and stock of teas. It might not be the top grade, special nor make tea snobs salivate but it’s the general common tea that average people drink (Chinese people that is). Although I did mention Asian supermarkets, I’m only focusing on Chinese supermarkets and teas for this post. So let the photos begin. P.S. this is only from one supermarket







I didn't take a pic but they also carried loose leaf tea for Hong Kong Milk tea, to be specific they had the Marathon Shop mix that won the 2012 International Milk Tea Competition in Hong Kong

The quality of the Sea Dyke stuff has apparently fallen drastically over the years. I bought some of the DHP and Lao Cong Shuixian and I can't believe how bad they are. If you still find then consumable then by all means drink them! I found a can in Singapore (cardboard canister) that was actually really good for the money, so it appears their offerings are somewhat variable. Rolled oolongs seem to be better for the money than Wuyicha at all price levels nowadays.

[jayinhk]

Finally a break from two weeks of extremely cold weather (-16C to -30C) here in Toronto! I decided it was a good idea to take advantage of the thaw to stock up on some much need tea for the next round of cold weather. On my list was Yorkshire tea, got to have my cuppa (aka English Breakfast). But this was only shopping from a Canadian national supermarket chain

There's tea for breakfast and there’s tea for the rest of the day, so naturally that means going to Asian supermarkets for the “rest of the day” tea. Being in Toronto (and the GTA) we are blessed with numerous Asian supermarkets that all have a large variety and stock of teas. It might not be the top grade, special nor make tea snobs salivate but it’s the general common tea that average people drink (Chinese people that is). Although I did mention Asian supermarkets, I’m only focusing on Chinese supermarkets and teas for this post. So let the photos begin. P.S. this is only from one supermarket







I didn't take a pic but they also carried loose leaf tea for Hong Kong Milk tea, to be specific they had the Marathon Shop mix that won the 2012 International Milk Tea Competition in Hong Kong

The quality of the Sea Dyke stuff has apparently fallen drastically over the years. I bought some of the DHP and Lao Cong Shuixian and I can't believe how bad they are. If you still find then consumable then by all means drink them! I found a can in Singapore (cardboard canister) that was actually really good for the money, so it appears their offerings are somewhat variable. Rolled oolongs seem to be better for the money than Wuyicha at all price levels nowadays.

[jayinhk]

The quality of the Sea Dyke stuff has apparently fallen drastically over the years. I bought some of the DHP and Lao Cong Shuixian and I can't believe how bad they are. For the same money, here in HK/China, you can get much more flavorful tea.

If you still find their teas consumable then by all means drink them! I found a can of medium oxidized Sea Dyke rolled oolong in Singapore (cardboard canister) that was actually really good for the money, so it appears their offerings are somewhat variable. Rolled oolongs seem to be better for the money than Wuyicha at all price levels nowadays.

[tieguanyinfan]

The quality of the Sea Dyke stuff has apparently fallen drastically over the years. I bought some of the DHP and Lao Cong Shuixian and I can't believe how bad they are. For the same money, here in HK/China, you can get much more flavorful tea.

If you still find their teas consumable then by all means drink them! I found a can of medium oxidized Sea Dyke rolled oolong in Singapore (cardboard canister) that was actually really good for the money, so it appears their offerings are somewhat variable. Rolled oolongs seem to be better for the money than Wuyicha at all price levels nowadays.

To be honest, I haven't ever had any of the Sea Dyke stuff before. I bought some after reading a blog review on the various Sea Dyke products and thought I'd give it a try. Mainly because I prefer traditional medium-high roasted oolongs over the new light jade oolong/tieguanyin that has flooded the market. My go to though is the Golden Dragon Brand, they've around for sometime as I've always seen them on store shelves. Their Tieguanyin has always been good and I did give some serious thought to getting the three tin varieties of Shuixian.

Speaking of which, does anyone know what the differences are between the three tins of Shuixian? Also has anyone else had Golden Dragon brand tea before or Cheong Hing Tea?

[Zared]

The quality of the Sea Dyke stuff has apparently fallen drastically over the years. I bought some of the DHP and Lao Cong Shuixian and I can't believe how bad they are. For the same money, here in HK/China, you can get much more flavorful tea.

If you still find their teas consumable then by all means drink them! I found a can of medium oxidized Sea Dyke rolled oolong in Singapore (cardboard canister) that was actually really good for the money, so it appears their offerings are somewhat variable. Rolled oolongs seem to be better for the money than Wuyicha at all price levels nowadays.

To be honest, I haven't ever had any of the Sea Dyke stuff before. I bought some after reading a blog review on the various Sea Dyke products and thought I'd give it a try. Mainly because I prefer traditional medium-high roasted oolongs over the new light jade oolong/tieguanyin that has flooded the market. My go to though is the Golden Dragon Brand, they've around for sometime as I've always seen them on store shelves. Their Tieguanyin has always been good and I did give some serious thought to getting the three tin varieties of Shuixian.

Speaking of which, does anyone know what the differences are between the three tins of Shuixian? Also has anyone else had Golden Dragon brand tea before or Cheong Hing Tea?

I tried the tan Shui Xian and it was full of twigs and seriously low grade tea. Not sure how it compares to the other 2 though.

Sea Dyke has definitely gone done hill as Jay said. They're yellow can is pretty crappy. Though I still enjoy some of they're other offerings but prefer them when they're around 5-10yrs old. Batches vary a lot though so it can be hit or miss.