Bad Order From Tao of Tea

[TaiPing Hou Kui]

I recently ordered the following from Tao of Tea:

1)Puer Velour 1 (oz)
2)Toucha 1 (oz)
3) Yixing Brown Gaiwan

*Both of the Pu-Erh's were horrible, though I am new to Pu, I took several peoples advice here and got a Beeng from puershop.com and am thrilled with it. Also, there was a hair in the package of Puer Velour

*The "yixing" gaiwan appeared to be red clay painted brown and the yixing print on the bottom seemed to be fake, I think the entire gaiwan is not a yixing at all but they just marketed it as such. I sent off a letter of complaint.

[Mary R]

The puerh doesn't surprise me. It seems like to get decent stuff, you have to deal with a shop that places a significant focus on puerh.

The gaiwan is likely standard clay coated in a yixing slip. Either that or it's actually red yixing clay coated in a brown yixing slip to keep costs down, yet have a similar aesthetic appeal to a brown piece. I'm sorry you were disappointed in the product, but I'm sure you'll still be able to brew a nice cup in it. The two brown gaiwans I see on the Tao website are both lined in porcelain, so the benefits of the yixing would already be minimized.

[TaiPing Hou Kui]

Tis' true a bout the benefits of the porous clay being minimized, but for aesthetic purposes, I feel I was certainly ripped off. The main problem I have is the dishonesty of the business. I know for a fact there is red clay under there becuase whatever is coated on the outside (paint/slip/etc.) It can chip off with a fingernail scratch at certain areas. If this is the product you have, then say, "For Sale: 1 red yixing clay, coated with brown slip/paint.....etc.", not "For Sale: Brown Yixing Gaiwan with porcelain interior".......The only remotely good thing I got was a sample of Kukicha.

[scruffmcgruff]

I had a similar issue with my Imperial Tea Court yixing cup set-- it appears to be painted over with brown slip/paint/whatever.

[GeoffK]

You should call them and ask to speak to one of their owners. Also if you paid by credit card you can call your credit card company and contest the charge.

[TaiPing Hou Kui]

I sent them a "nastygram" to the customer service dept. last night, so I will give them a day or two to be the bigger person and if that has not happened I will call, and if no result after that, a phonecall to VISA will ensue! I just find it amazing.......we all have the main internet sites that we order from on here (o-cha, dens, etc.), how do these other companies actually make enough money to stay in business? I find it absolutley absurd that there are people out there that would be willing to put up with such mediocre tea and products, and its not like Tao Of Tea is the only company like this, there are more selling bad tea than good tea.

[bearsbearsbears]

{snip}I know for a fact there is red clay under there becuase whatever is coated on the outside (paint/slip/etc.) It can chip off with a fingernail scratch at certain areas. {snip}

This makes me want to go home and scratch all my pots to check their clay! Though none of mine are porcelain inside.

[tenuki]

I found all of these posts funny. Certainly no-one expects to get genuine _anything_ from china off the internet....

[Chip]

I found all of these posts funny. Certainly no-one expects to get genuine _anything_ from china off the internet....

Now that is a scary thought we try not to think about...

And don't assume all the Japanese teas you see listed are Japanese either. The owner of O-Cha posted that Japanese vendors will import Chinese tea to sell abroad. I think of all the truly crappy domestically purchased sencha bought over the years and feel more than a little paranoid.

[ABx]

I'll be interested to hear if you actually get a response from Tao of Tea. I've never once received a response from their customer service any of the times (yes, plural) that I've had problems or complaints. I generally try to stay away from them now. I agree their teas are mostly mediocre, but I don't even buy their tins anymore (which I actually like best).

For the most part they seem to stay in business by selling culture rather than tea. It seems like all their energy goes into making their physical locations match what the American middle class thinks of as "authentic". How else can you sell $3 gaiwans for $20?

Dragon Tea House sells yixing gaiwans for cheap, and mine doesn't appear to be painted. Sensational Teas also has some different (and bigger) ones for around $10, which is still within the realm of reasonable IMO.

[tenuki]

Add to that all the DTD and other pesticides found in Chinese tea [1] and the possiblities of lead and such found in teaware [2] and you could lose some serious sleep.

[1]http://www.organicconsumers.org/Toxic/0 ... safety.cfm
[2]http://www.corpwatch.org/article.php?id=14558

[JT]

I also had a bad experience ordering from Tao of Tea a while ago. All of the tea I received was undrinkable swill. I ordered some of the tea in the double lidded tins and a few bags. When I opened the tins I couldn't even smell the tea, it all smelled like a machine shop, it had a very strong metallic oder. I suspect they didn't bother to clean them before putting the tea in.
I also got their tea tasting set that sucks. The lid doesn't fit right and it had some gold paint on the rim that was flaking off. I will never order from them again.

[Wesli]

Whoever didn't have a bad experience with their first pu-erh is a rare breed. I also have a few of these "fake yixing." I prefer to use them often because they're cheap, so if I break, chip, etc., I lose minimal amounts of $$$.

[tenuki]

I've actually been pleased with my ToT orders. I don't however expect much on the high end from them. I have noticed a deal of 'spottiness' lately, but all of the larger retailers suffer from this.

[Space Samurai]

More and more I am happier with my dealings with small businesses.