Help with tea vendors

[reincarnate]

hello good people!
I'm creating a list of top online loose tea vendors (meaning that they only sell online, and don't really have physical stores) who are trusted, popular and sell good quality tea.
I'm looking for some tips and suggestions, any info appreciated!

The vendors that I'm already considering
Tea Spring
Jing Tea
O-cha
Rishi
Seven Cups

If any of you have bought from these above let me know as well, also if you had a good or bad experience. Thanks!

[Pentox]

Seven cups is good, but they do have physical stores.

O-cha is ok, I think others overrate them.

[Chip]

O-Cha is more than OK, IMHO. They have some of the best gyokuro and sencha I have ever tasted.

Tea Spring has some very good green offerings, some of the best Chinese greens I have ever tasted.

I have had good experiences with Rishi despite a rocky start with them a few years back. They seem to have righted the ship. Their products are offered in pretty many USA outlets, usually stores with a lot of organic and fair trade products.

Any more you are interested in, there are a lot.

[Victoria]

Adagio Teas
Hou De
Jing Tea Shop
TeaCuppa

[Proinsias]

NadaCha is still fairly new but has some great tea and teaware, I don't think I've heard a bad word about the place as yet.

Do ebay stores count?

[cha cha cha]

this is a great question that's asked pretty frequently on these forums

any chance we can compile a list of stores + reviews and then make it a sticky?

[reincarnate]

NadaCha is still fairly new but has some great tea and teaware, I don't think I've heard a bad word about the place as yet.

Do ebay stores count?

Thanks!
No, I'm not taking ebay into consideration

[reincarnate]

Seven cups is good, but they do have physical stores.

O-cha is ok, I think others overrate them.

Right! Seven Cups do! I might consider them anyway, cause they are quite popular... we'll see...

[tsverrir]

One of my favorite sources is teafromtaiwan. Very good service and very good tea.

[hooksie]

No, I'm not taking ebay into consideration

Perhaps you would want to make exceptions, because both Yunnan Sourcing and Dragon Tea House are quite reputable I hear, and you cant really disagree with their prices.

[Intuit]

"this is a great question that's asked pretty frequently on these forums any
chance we can compile a list of stores + reviews and then make it a sticky?"

I suggest you take this up with Chip, forum moderator. TC is hosted by Adagio.

[Pentox]

this is a great question that's asked pretty frequently on these forums

any chance we can compile a list of stores + reviews and then make it a sticky?

This is actually a common question to go with the previous question. There are a few reasons why. One is to encourage discussion and discovery of different vendors. Another is that people often have different criteria of the kinds of vendors they are looking for, different vendors have different specialties.

[Chip]

this is a great question that's asked pretty frequently on these forums

any chance we can compile a list of stores + reviews and then make it a sticky?

This is actually a common question to go with the previous question. There are a few reasons why. One is to encourage discussion and discovery of different vendors. Another is that people often have different criteria of the kinds of vendors they are looking for, different vendors have different specialties.

...true, plus the list is far from static.

It is a tough call. I personally prefer to have my own personal lists and edit and add through discussions such as this as well as my own trial and error. I rank vendors and have lists based upon relative rankings and personal desire to try.

TBH, I do not really want to create a list that is instantly accessible to the entire internet. Members through participation here are able to glean the information in an ever changing market that they need in order to make personal decisions.

It actually drives me a little nuts when a new member makes a first post wanting the sum of our years of knowledge regarding vendors upon demand on their very first day on TeaChat. I don't blame the new member per se. But often they take the info and run never to return.

Just my personal observations from almost 3 years on the forum.

[Chip]

However ... when the "TeaRoom" portion of the forum is "open," I would be more open to its placement there.

[gingkoseto]

It actually drives me a little nuts when a new member makes a first post wanting the sum of our years of knowledge regarding vendors upon demand on their very first day on TeaChat.

Well sometimes switching to tea (from whatever else) takes a change of mindset. Tea is a luxury of time (in terms of the way it's made and fully appreciated). There is rarely instant solution or fast answer when it comes to tea