talkin' tie guan yin

Semi-oxidized tea
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StoneLadle
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Sun Mar 20, 2022 10:59 am

maple wrote:
Wed May 26, 2021 9:54 am
wave_code

it's good notice.
It's always different perspective from Tea-Shop away plantation.

In Hongkong/ Singapore and Malaysia, maybe we should asked their tea in "brand" name and blending.
there's a tea merchant in KL named Kean Guan that produces their own baked TGY from maocha imported from China, it's a tasty treat. I try to have a few tins of their stuff on hand, great for a morning cuppa grandpa style and great when done full bore in traditional Teochew fashion with stuffed pot and small cups. Espresso it's like LOL
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Tillerman
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Sun Mar 20, 2022 11:46 am

@StoneLadle did you actually try the tea from Zhen Tea in Ottawa? I have and I completely disagree with your comment. @teaformeplease's description is right on the money.
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StoneLadle
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Sun Mar 20, 2022 12:19 pm

Tillerman wrote:
Sun Mar 20, 2022 11:46 am
StoneLadle did you actually try the tea from Zhen Tea in Ottawa? I have and I completely disagree with your comment. teaformeplease's description is right on the money.
OK i'm cool with that. Why would I buy tea from Ottawa? The spent leaves don't look right to me. Way too green. But it's cool. Really it is. No money for this honey lol
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LeoFox
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Sun Mar 20, 2022 12:43 pm

StoneLadle wrote:
Sun Mar 20, 2022 12:19 pm
Tillerman wrote:
Sun Mar 20, 2022 11:46 am
StoneLadle did you actually try the tea from Zhen Tea in Ottawa? I have and I completely disagree with your comment. teaformeplease's description is right on the money.
OK i'm cool with that. Why would I buy tea from Ottawa? The spent leaves don't look right to me. Way too green. But it's cool. Really it is. No money for this honey lol
This one is better?

https://www.tealifehk.com/products/hong ... yin-oolong
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StoneLadle
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Sun Mar 20, 2022 9:40 pm

LeoFox wrote:
Sun Mar 20, 2022 12:43 pm
StoneLadle wrote:
Sun Mar 20, 2022 12:19 pm
Tillerman wrote:
Sun Mar 20, 2022 11:46 am
StoneLadle did you actually try the tea from Zhen Tea in Ottawa? I have and I completely disagree with your comment. teaformeplease's description is right on the money.
OK i'm cool with that. Why would I buy tea from Ottawa? The spent leaves don't look right to me. Way too green. But it's cool. Really it is. No money for this honey lol
This one is better?

https://www.tealifehk.com/products/hong ... yin-oolong
i wouldn't say it's better, but this is a style i can certainly relate to. i try to have some handy around the place and it's really good done with stuffed pots GFC style or in a bit moderate fashion using Grandpa style.
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StoneLadle
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Sun Mar 20, 2022 11:59 pm

Today is the Festival of the Birth of the Goddess of Mercy, Kuan Yin, after whom this venerated genre of tea is named after. Makes sense to have a few cuppas no? 😉

This morning I had a Grandpa mug of traditional Anhui roasted TGY which I'll refill when I get home later, and will move on to a heavy roasted expression made by the Fukien Tea Co. in Hong Kong. That will be done GFC style in a small pot and w small cups. Spent leaves will go into another Grandpa mug and I'm also excited to try a "Gaoshan TGY" of the lighter roast variety.

Happy Kuan Yin Day everyone!!!
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Bok
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Mon Mar 21, 2022 1:42 am

StoneLadle wrote:
Sun Mar 20, 2022 9:40 pm
LeoFox wrote:
Sun Mar 20, 2022 12:43 pm
StoneLadle wrote:
Sun Mar 20, 2022 12:19 pm


OK i'm cool with that. Why would I buy tea from Ottawa? The spent leaves don't look right to me. Way too green. But it's cool. Really it is. No money for this honey lol
This one is better?

https://www.tealifehk.com/products/hong ... yin-oolong
i wouldn't say it's better, but this is a style i can certainly relate to. i try to have some handy around the place and it's really good done with stuffed pots GFC style or in a bit moderate fashion using Grandpa style.
That is the Fukien Tea Company tea, otherwise known as death-roast :mrgreen:

I think we have to distinguish here between different qualities and styles. The Fukien Tea Co is made of inferior leaf quality and needs a very high roast to mask the defaults of the blend at the origin of it.
Better quality base leaf can afford to go easier on the roast as it would totally mask the character and taste of the leaves. Tea like this will appear brown when dry, but reveal hints of green once it has been brewed a while... I have had very heavily, but skillfully roasted oolongs which all revealed green underneath.

There is a time and place for death roast oolong in any case.

My two cents.
Andrew S
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Mon Mar 21, 2022 3:34 am

This discussion reminds me a little bit about my own tastes in puer.

Someone can tell me all they want about some amazing high-quality young dry-stored ancient-tree raw puer, but I'd still prefer some cheap wet-stored tea instead, just as a matter of style and 'feel'.

Andrew
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StoneLadle
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Mon Mar 21, 2022 4:24 am

Andrew S wrote:
Mon Mar 21, 2022 3:34 am
This discussion reminds me a little bit about my own tastes in puer.

Someone can tell me all they want about some amazing high-quality young dry-stored ancient-tree raw puer, but I'd still prefer some cheap wet-stored tea instead, just as a matter of style and 'feel'.

Andrew
Yeap... I pretty much like TGY in any shape or form just not too green, and it's green I'm good to go with it as a breakfast tea but not past noon lol
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StoneLadle
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Tue Mar 22, 2022 6:13 am

@Bok the Fukien ain't so bad man lol granted it is a working class tea as such, something for the local masses, affordable and of consistent quality. There's a whole genre of teas like that made in Hong Kong and in close proximity to one another. Btw, I've seen some green in their spent leaves, not much, a few slivers maybe lol
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Bok
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Tue Mar 22, 2022 6:29 am

StoneLadle wrote:
Tue Mar 22, 2022 6:13 am
Bok the Fukien ain't so bad man lol granted it is a working class tea as such, something for the local masses, affordable and of consistent quality. There's a whole genre of teas like that made in Hong Kong and in close proximity to one another. Btw, I've seen some green in their spent leaves, not much, a few slivers maybe lol
Agreed, it is what it is. Not a bad kind of tea for many occasions. It’s the equivalent of a British builders cup :) has its place and time after or during a hearty meal.
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Baisao
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Tue Mar 29, 2022 6:46 pm

StoneLadle wrote:
Sun Mar 20, 2022 12:19 pm
Tillerman wrote:
Sun Mar 20, 2022 11:46 am
StoneLadle did you actually try the tea from Zhen Tea in Ottawa? I have and I completely disagree with your comment. teaformeplease's description is right on the money.
OK i'm cool with that. Why would I buy tea from Ottawa? The spent leaves don't look right to me. Way too green. But it's cool. Really it is. No money for this honey lol
I second @Tillerman. Having tried it rather than commenting on photos I can say that it is a rather nice TGY of medium oxidation and roast. The sensation in the throat is nice and minty, the aroma is sophisticated. It’s a little dry on the palate but that is pardonable. I’d appreciate more sweetness or caramelization. It’s certainly no “death roast” but it isn’t “candy apple TGY” either.

What I see before me is amber-colored rather than green and the leaves are very dark green.

In short, it is a solid TGY. I’ve had better and certainly had worse. Most of the better ones were from Taiwan, so there’s that.

I’m somewhat familiar with photography and know that photos are very difficult to use for assessing colors. It’s also possible the vendor’s web developer used the wrong photos.
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