The Tea Thread

You might try any of these.
http://www.tenren.com/greenteabaga.html

And they should be available in a Chinese grocery store or apothecary and online, as well as some tea stores.
And while not a cheap as liptons or red rose etc they aren't that expensive either.

And if you do drink that much tea already, consider getting the tea in loose form and make a pot which could last for 1-3 days (depending), especially if you like to drink it cold.

JJ

 

Stash >= Tazo > Twinings > Lipton >>>> Tetley

Just remember, green tea is less bitter if brewed at lower temperatures. Using boiling water with proper green tea actually burns the leaves, and ruins them completely from a taste perspective. The bitterness is caused by the antioxidants that are the primary health benefit of green tea, and Japanese greens certainly lean towards grassy flavors. The more shaded while growing and the deeper steamed, the more grassy.

EDIT - Wow @johnjen , the genmaicha bags in your link are probably exactly what he should get. Easy to steep, not picky about temperature, and definitely not grassy.

 

Another tea brand I would recommend is Palais de Thes. My favorite from their brand so far is La Poire, but I know there are cheaper ones too

 

Yeah Ten Ren has quite a variety of really decent teas, and because they have been at this for a while their consistency is quite good.

As for the temperature of the water, yes indeed do NOT use boiling water on just about any tea.
I use water at 180º to 200ºF with very few exceptions.

Water used at higher temps will 'burn' the tea leaves which results in less than optimal taste.
Although some do seem to like this added edge to the taste, but when starting out exploring teas, developing your 'tea palate' provides the experience to know what is truly possible from using different techniques in brewing tea.

JJ

 

Near boiling water to brew tea is fine, just over steeping is bad. Use a smaller tea pot and steep for 30 seconds to 1 minute and serve the whole pot, refill with near boiling hot water only when your ready for another round of tea.

I personally prefer to steam my tea with a steaming tea pot. The best method by far.

 

Every time I have used water that is too hot, the taste gets a 'hard' or burnt edge to it.
And when made in a well seasoned pot, one that does a good job with making that type of tea, this burnt or edgy taste becomes more pronounced.
And the quality and delicacy, that I like, degrades.
But then some really go after that edgyness as a goal to achieve in their tea making.
I know of instances where the pot is stuffed full of tea, boiling water is added and left to steep for minutes.
And served as the way to evaluate that tea for purchase.

So steamed you say?
What form of steamer do you use, and what technique?
I have a bamboo steamer that I used to 'age' some tea I was hoping to bring to life.
No such luck.

JJ

 

My tea pot kind of looks like that and it's really effective. I can brew it over and over again for a long time without the tea getting too weak.

Anyways your point is correct, mainly high temperature and over steeping will oxidize some of the tea leaves which is what we want to avoid doing. My family just traditionally used boiling hot water to brew tea and just steeped it for a few seconds and served it all. Using lower temperature water works as well,.

 

That's pretty clever, I'll look for one of those.

Thanks JJ

 

I may have to check that out. I've got an Ali Shan from Adagio and it's been amazing.

 

I'm a fan of Spirit Tea here in Chicago, really digging Gui Fei and Yorozuyo Gyokuro right now.

http://spirittea.co/buy-oolong-tea/gui-fei-precious-concubine
http://spirittea.co/buy-green-tea/yorozuyo-gyokuro

Also found Den's Tea online while looking for good quality Kukicha recently, the Karigane Houjicha is my favorite night time tea.

http://www.denstea.com/kukicha-karigane-houjicha-850-c-112_707.html

 

Tea temperatures can really vary a lot. Chinese post-fermented tea (hei cha) like Pu-erh, should absolutely be brewed with boiling water. Very delicate greens or whites, OTOH, can require much lower temperatures...I once heard a rule of thumb that if water's too hot to pour over your hand, it's too hot to brew Pi Luo Chun. I used to measure my water temperature with a thermometer, but nowadays I just go by look and feel, though I do tend to prefer robust, southern Chinese teas (mostly Oolongs and Pu-erhs) that aren't as picky about water temperature as a green or white would be.

 

I know nothing of tea, but pu er was recommended. Went to crimsonlotustea and bought some aged pu er (I was told 7-10 years old is a sweet spot). It came in and I'm looking forward to trying it.

Probably will break off a chunk, put in a mesh tea holder thing, pour boiling water over for 3 seconds to wash, then pour some fresh boilng water and steep it for 30seconds. I've read 5 sec steeps, is that legit? I tried that with the faux-pu-er sample they sent and got flavorless colored water that smelled vegetal/marshy, but I would like a little flavor if I'm making a tea known to have some strength to it.

Many thanks!

 

P.S. any recommendations for a good teapot like this? I like how this one looks to be steaming or double-boiling.

 

Pu Erh is a rather potent tea.
As such I'd recommend crumbling a section, so you wind up with pinch fulls of tea.
So depending upon the size of the 'pot', and strength desired, will determine the number of pinches to get what you want.
But know that the 'traditional' making of Pu Erh involved 30 (or more) pours of the same tea 'load' in a proper pot etc.
And most notable was the flavor of the tea improved, considerably after 10-15 pours and continued to improve.
I make it for myself as well and I use very little for a single use in my desk tea container.

 

I tried the aged stuff this morning, did a wash and then a 10s steep. Mild but very nice! Not like rotting leaves at all! Will stick with this chunk for a month and see how it goes. Thanks!

 

Go for more steep time. Even a 2nd longer steep (depending upon how much tea was used) might prove beneficial.
I do a single steep myself, which means I leave the Pu Erh in the container for hours.

JJ

 

Wha-is that legal?



So, 30 steeps on one 15gram chunk means it will last a month or I should drink 30 cups at one time and throw it away or one long steep and I can make a giant pot and have for a week?

Thanks for walking me through this!

 

I've been sourcing my teas from theteatable.com for years, and have been very happy. They ship in vacuum sealed and resealable foil bags, and the selection is magnificent. I've been ordering from these lately, and taking advantage of their free sample program:

http://www.theteatable.com/category/Oolong.html