What Black Are You Drinking

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Janice
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Fri Mar 16, 2018 6:09 am

Back on the veranda. What I think of as chai is masala chai.
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Sat Mar 17, 2018 12:41 pm

Janice wrote:
Thu Mar 15, 2018 7:31 am
At home I don’t ordinarily drink black tea but .... when in Rome ..... Actually I’m in India, in Jaipur, so I’m having chai on the front terrace of our hotel. I expected a spiced tea but I’m very happy with the plain black tea steeped with milk that I was served.

The view from my seat:
Ooh I love Jaipur, have family that lives there. It has been ages since I visited, but perhaps the next time I visit India, this December hopefully.

Chai takes on a different meaning in India - it is basically strong black tea with milk and sugar. You'd have to specify masala chai if you wanted spiced tea! Enjoy your time in India!
Janice
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Wed Mar 21, 2018 8:52 pm

I should have realized that in India chai means tea. After that I began ordering masala chai. If I had known about the effect that black tea has on me I could have used it for all-night cream sessions when I was in school - not as useful on vacation.

Anyway, loved Jaipur and Agra but now we’re back in peaceful quiet Thailand.
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Wed Mar 21, 2018 9:01 pm

Janice wrote:
Wed Mar 21, 2018 8:52 pm
I should have realized that in India chai means tea. After that I began ordering masala chai. If I had known about the effect that black tea has on me I could have used it for all-night cream sessions when I was in school - not as useful on vacation.

Anyway, loved Jaipur and Agra but now we’re back in peaceful quiet Thailand.
All-night cream sessions in school? Man... you had a good time in college. I mostly just crammed for exams.
Janice
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Thu Mar 22, 2018 7:25 am

Sometimes autocorrect makes a joke and sometimes an insult. This time it was a joke.
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tealifehk
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Sat Mar 24, 2018 3:14 pm

Been drinking First Flush Darjeeling blacks and oolongs this week, as well as pre-Mingqian greens! Tried a Goomtee STFGOP tonight and WOW. So much going on with this tea. I had an Upper Namring harvested less than two weeks ago and it is significantly cheaper (FTGFOP1). Both are great, but I think I actually prefer the Upper Namring!

gatmcm
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Tue Apr 03, 2018 11:05 am

Recently bought a bit of Japanese black tea at a local store, benifuki strain, been drinking it constantly, seems to make me consistently teadrunk which I welcome :lol:
It tastes like a very smooth Assam with a lot of fruit notes without the sharpness some Indian teas seem to get, was a bit on the fence when buying because the japanese greens at that store aren't great but this was a winner, might pick up a bit more.

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Ethan Kurland
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Wed Apr 04, 2018 6:17 pm

That seems to be a pleasure. I like that particular fruitiness that sometimes comes in Assam. I get a bit of that from Ruby 21 which is a cultivar that is 1/2 Assam but not every session. I do not know why. I do know that in search of the smoothness etc. that you describe, I started using slightly lower temperature & quicker steeping. cheers
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Fri Apr 06, 2018 7:26 pm

Himalayan Orange (HOR) from Jun Chiyabari, Nepal:

As some of you may remember, I have been drinking & praising this tea for years. There were very few days that I did not drink it. However, I just returned to it, after taking a break of several weeks because I was not enjoying it as much as usual.

The situation seems to be that now I am enjoying a mellow experience when I drink & the HOR gives typical darjeeling flavors in a typical way, bold. This HOR is not in-your-face first flush.... but .... Fortunately, quick steeping will give me a mellow cup of tea with plenty of flavor. The first infusion is not truly aromatic but pleasing; the second has the aroma that is so alluring and pleasant; and, a third (which I had stopped making a couple of years ago) is worth drinking. My old friend and I are happily reunited. It holds its rightful place....
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d.manuk
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Sat May 12, 2018 9:07 am

I'm starting off the morning with re-heated pork noodles for breakfast and a session of "Red Lapsang Souchong" from Tongtu village. I usually eat vegan food so this type of heavier meal is a perfect opportunity to drink a darker type of tea which I usually am not in the mood for. The smoke is light on this tea, so that you can still have a very good taste of the red tea material behind it. The tea tastes of citrus and pine and sweet red tea. Very balanced, the flavors all mix together very well its hard to come across an individual tasting note! I'm currently in the mood for a little bit more smoke so it tastes more like campfire haha but that's not what this tea is trying to do.
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Sat May 12, 2018 3:08 pm

I just read my post from more than a month ago about Himalayan Orange (HOR) from Jun Chiyabari, Nepal.

Wow. was I writing badly.

Anyway, to be simple. This tea is always flavorful giving typical Darjeeling experience w/ much less astringency. I have been preferring it less bold lately; so, I have been steeped quickly (less than 30 seconds) for 2 good infusions. Whatever I wrote about aroma, I think it was more about my nose being dried out (as it gets in the winter) and less about the tea. It gives off plenty of aroma for 2 infusions. I have stopped there as two 5 - 6 ounce cups is plenty for me.

I am back to drinking this everyday. Cheers
Ethan Kurland
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Tue May 29, 2018 11:30 pm

I failed to bring enough of some teas for my six-week trip; so, halfway through it, I find myself with three black teas & nothing else:

From Nepal,Himalayan Orange from Jun Chiyabari which fortunately can be more like a white tea with flash brewing or an oolong if steeped just a bit longer; from Taiwan, Camelia Sinensis which is a damn good & dynamic black tea showing much of the best qualities of Taiwan's black tea though it is a medium priced offering, &, Ruby Jade 21 which with its Assam characteristics (including some fruitiness) adds another experience. Without any other teas for variety most days, I am really appreciating what black tea can do (again).

Black tea does not get much attention here. Why? cheers
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joelbct
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Wed May 30, 2018 10:27 pm

tealifehk wrote:
Sat Mar 24, 2018 3:14 pm
Been drinking First Flush Darjeeling blacks and oolongs this week, as well as pre-Mingqian greens! Tried a Goomtee STFGOP tonight and WOW. So much going on with this tea. I had an Upper Namring harvested less than two weeks ago and it is significantly cheaper (FTGFOP1). Both are great, but I think I actually prefer the Upper Namring!
Hello everyone.

I'm all stocked up on Darj with my 2017-unrest-crisis-insurance hoard, but it's excellent news that these 2018 Darjeeling offerings are high quality. I was expecting the worst.

Currently drinking Teaspring's Yunnan Pure Gold. Wow, really really good. Sweet and all kinds of complex, leathery peppery malty notes.

I had kind of given up on Dian Hong "pure gold" after many disappointments, but this is as good as the Yunnan Gold I sometimes encountered 10-15 years ago, which was one of the teas that got me hooked in the first place.

Interestingly the dry leaf appearance here is not all that impressive- as opposed to the many commonly available Dian Hongs that look ever so beautiful, all uniform and gold and perfect, but taste just meh.

But this is the real deal. Not so cheap, $45 US for 200 grams, but I will definitely reorder. This and Teaspring's Xian Zhen Keemun are two black/red teas I can't laud enough, just stellar examples of their respective categories.
Ethan Kurland
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Fri Jun 01, 2018 5:55 am

joelbct wrote:
Wed May 30, 2018 10:27 pm
Currently drinking Teaspring's Yunnan Pure Gold. Wow, really really good. Sweet and all kinds of complex, leathery peppery malty notes.

I had kind of given up on Dian Hong "pure gold" after many disappointments, but this is as good as the Yunnan Gold I sometimes encountered 10-15 years ago,But this is the real deal. Not so cheap, $45 US for 200 grams, but .
but who knows how many years will pass before such great gold tea comes out of Yunnan again? Good to hear such tea is out there. I definitely gave up after disappointment & with getting so pleased with black tea from other parts of the world. Thanks for the post, Joel.
Last edited by Victoria on Sat Apr 13, 2019 2:14 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: Mod edit: corrected quotes
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Victoria
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Fri Jun 01, 2018 4:16 pm

joelbct wrote:
Wed May 30, 2018 10:27 pm
tealifehk wrote:
Sat Mar 24, 2018 3:14 pm
Been drinking First Flush Darjeeling blacks and oolongs this week, as well as pre-Mingqian greens! Tried a Goomtee STFGOP tonight and WOW. So much going on with this tea. I had an Upper Namring harvested less than two weeks ago and it is significantly cheaper (FTGFOP1). Both are great, but I think I actually prefer the Upper Namring!
Hello everyone.

I'm all stocked up on Darj with my 2017-unrest-crisis-insurance hoard, but it's excellent news that these 2018 Darjeeling offerings are high quality. I was expecting the worst.

Currently drinking Teaspring's Yunnan Pure Gold. Wow, really really good. Sweet and all kinds of complex, leathery peppery malty notes.

I had kind of given up on Dian Hong "pure gold" after many disappointments, but this is as good as the Yunnan Gold I sometimes encountered 10-15 years ago, which was one of the teas that got me hooked in the first place.

Interestingly the dry leaf appearance here is not all that impressive- as opposed to the many commonly available Dian Hongs that look ever so beautiful, all uniform and gold and perfect, but taste just meh.

But this is the real deal. Not so cheap, $45 US for 200 grams, but I will definitely reorder. This and Teaspring's Xian Zhen Keemun are two black/red teas I can't laud enough, just stellar examples of their respective categories.
I’ve enjoyed having Singbulli DJ 1/18 SFTGFOP 1 China Supreme, a gift from tea buddy and super steeper Salvador. He shared that Darjeelings this year were better because of the strike last year; “in 2017 they didn't produced 2nd flush and Autumn flush, so the plants had a long time to rest. This years 1st flush is amazing, with record production.”

For those wondering what the initials mean;
DJ: Darjeeling
SFTGFOP: Super fine tippy golden flowery orange pekoe
DJ-01/18: is the first pluck of 2018
Ch- China bush
Supreme is just a distinctive of very good batch
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