Please Describe the Taste of Black Tea.

[rajangan]

I

Some serious tea expertise here in the pipe forum. I’d love to hear from all of you where are you by your tea!

I haven't bought tea in a long time. I either stopped enjoying it or stopped lying to myself that it was as good as coffee.

I still have a quarter pound of Temi Estate tea I brought back from India but it's old and has seen better days.

And I've got a bunch of Puerh which will last me forever which I picked up randomly-a local tea shop, San Fran, ordered from Dragon Tea House in Shanghai, etc.

 

[BROBS]

If you work at a grocery store, try some Bigelow Oolong or Twinings Lapsang Souchong. Twinings Prince of Wales is a good Kee Mun or true English Breakfast tea. Some Darjeeling is really good, but some supermarket brands are iffy. Unfortunately, the most common bagged mixed Assams, Ceylons, and Kenyans are usually astringent, metallic, and harsh if you don't add sweetner, milk, ice, or some combination of the above. They tend to make great iced or milk teas, just not so great straight up, unless you're one of those folk that chews on lipton bags between cups.

I love that shit. I must love bad tea. Haha

 

[rushx9]

I love that shit. I must love bad tea. Haha

I didn't say they're bad! Just made to be adulterated? Or downed one after another by teabag chewin' weirdos???

 

[rushx9]

I

I haven't bought tea in a long time. I either stopped enjoying it or stopped lying to myself that it was as good as coffee.

I still have a quarter pound of Temi Estate tea I brought back from India but it's old and has seen better days.

And I've got a bunch of Puerh which will last me forever which I picked up randomly-a local tea shop, San Fran, ordered from Dragon Tea House in Shanghai, etc.

A friend from Nepal just gave me a box of Temi! I've managed to coax a delicious chocolate covered raisin flavor from it occasionally. The slightest range in temperature seems to make the difference between nothing and a flat plain ol supermarket Darjeeling, but that sweet spot is heavenly!

 

[rushx9]

If anyone is looking for good tea, check out Yunnan Sourcing. Both the Chinese and US distributor. If you sign up to their mailing lists, they regularly send out coupons and alerts when types go on special. They carry many teas from both Yunnan and Fujian. Also a great source for Rock Oolong and Silver Needle. I even got a semi fermented Silver Needle once that was caked like puerh and simply amazing!

 

[hairvise]

If anyone is looking for good tea, check out Yunnan Sourcing. Both the Chinese and US distributor. If you sign up to their mailing lists, they regularly send out coupons and alerts when types go on special. They carry many teas from both Yunnan and Fujian. Also a great source for Rock Oolong and Silver Needle. I even got a semi fermented Silver Needle once that was caked like puerh and simply amazing!

Brilliant! That’s where I order from! I appreciate the teas selections that you suggested.

 

[rushx9]

Brilliant! That’s where I order from! I appreciate the teas selections that you suggested.

I mostly buy relatively inexpensive shou cakes from them, but I always throw in some Purple Needle as well. Also, I believe everyone should try Ya Shi Xiang Dan Cong Oolong (King of Duck Shit Aroma) at least once!!! I don't know what they feed the ducks over there, but the tea tastes of apricots and a hint of peach!

 

[anotherbob]

Contrary to common belief, there is more caffeine in all white tea, and some green teas, than in most black teas. The catechins compete for receptors and the higher acidity causes less absorption. Fermentation (really a controlled oxidation) in black teas makes the caffeine more absorbable, and enzymes destroy many of the competing compounds.
Very similar to why perique and some burley seems to have more nicotine. The processing makes it more absorbable, and the high sugar content of VA acts as a buffer.

Kind of reminds me of how they measure nicotine in most tobacco products. It's quite different then how it's absorbed into the body.

 

[anotherbob]

I collect cakes of a special Yunnan red(golden tip black) tea called Drunk On Red. One properly brewed cup can bring on cha zui, but you can continually re-brew if using gong fu method without bringing on bitterness.

yes that stuff is great.

 

[rajangan]

I like the sticky rice puerh. I only had one as a gift. It's flavored with a local herb called Semnostachya menglaensis.

Volatile constituents of Semnostachya menglaensis Tsui - PubMed

Semnostachya menglaensis Tsui (Acanthaceae) is a rare plant indigenous to Mengla in the tropical rainforest of the Xishuangbanna prefecture in the south of Yunnan province, People's Republic of China. When the leaves are crushed, a characteristic smell of basmati rice or pandan leaves develops...

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov