Introduce Yourself

[thetealetter]

Hey guys! Happy to be on this forum full of people who love tea as much (and probably more) than me! I'll go with the canned intro questions to get things started.

How long have you been drinking tea?

I'd say I had my first real cup of tea somewhere around 2009 while studying abroad in Beijing but I didn't truly get into tea until a few years later.

What kind of tea do you drink?

I find time to drink a bit of everything but I predominantly drink oolong of all sorts and black tea. I also love a great rock tea or dancong!

How do you prepare your tea?

Green and whites are usually western style, with everything else done gongfu for the most part.

What tea knowledge are you interested in exploring right now?

I'm interested in furthering my "technical" knowledge of tea with regard to cultivar, processing, and so on, as well as my knowledge of various brewing implements and styles.

I'm also big into using tea as a source of mindfulness because I find the process of gongfu tea in particular to be so incredibly meditative.

What factors lead you to delve into the world of tea, and what is keeping you there?

I had a true Da Hong Pao gifted to me from my father-in-law and it blew my world apart. I had never dreamed tea could taste like that!

As for what's keeping me here, it's curiosity and friendship. I've become so enchanted by this little leaf we all love so much and I just want to learn as much about it as I can. An apparent side effect of this quest is the making of new friends I can bond with over a delicious cup of tea!

I also blog about the tea things that interest me over at The Tea Letter (hence the name). Lots of fun stuff planned for this year so give it a look if you're curious!

What is your location?

San Francisco, California.

Excited to be here and can't wait to get to know all of you! If you're in the Bay Area and want to meet up for tea I'm always happy to get to know more tea friends.

[Craig]

Hi everyone! I found this forum by accident and figured I'd see what's going on here.

How long have you been drinking tea?
I've been a coffee enthusiast all my adult life. I experimented with loose tea a few times over the years but never managed to get further than placing random orders from a popular online retailer and then not really enjoying the tea. I started to get serious about tea a couple of months ago.

What kind of tea do you drink?
Oh man.....I'm on a quest to try as many different styles of tea from as many different places as I can. So far, I've found a couple of black teas that I really enjoy and have reordered. Puerhs are very interesting, and I like 'em, but I'm still experimenting with samples to see what I like best. Whites and greens are still kinda iffy for me....I've had a few that I thought were 'okay' but nothing 'great' yet. Oolongs are on my list to explore too.

How do you prepare your tea?
I was originally using one of those plastic ingenuiTEA teapots from Adagio but started using a gawain a couple of weeks ago after I learned about gongfu. I'm intrigued by the grandpa style of brewing and tried that once in a coffee mug and it seemed to work well.

What tea knowledge are you interested in exploring right now?
After weeks of heavy Internet researching I'm just now starting to realize how little I know about tea. I'm super curious by nature so I want to know it all. I guess at this point I'm just looking for a broad baseline knowledge of tea. I'm sure my interests will lead me to gravitate towards specific areas at some point.

What factors lead you to delve into the world of tea, and what is keeping you there?
I love how BIG the world of tea is. I get bored easily and often move from one hobby/interest to the next fairly regularly but tea has so many variables that I know I won't get bored anytime soon!

What is your location?
Mobile, Alabama USA

[Woozl]

Sweet I found the kool kidz

I have been into tea for 15 years.

Favorites are Japanese greens, and high oolong.

I brew and drink from mostly Hagi wares.

I'd like to learn more about matcha.

Location: 200 year old New England colonial.

hello to old and new friends........

Cheers, woozl

[Jo]

Sweet I found the kool kidz

I have been into tea for 15 years.

Favorites are Japanese greens, and high oolong.

I brew and drink from mostly Hagi wares.

I'd like to learn more about matcha.

Location: 200 year old New England colonial.

hello to old and new friends........

Cheers, woozl

Woozl, glad you are here!!! You Def are 1 of the cool kids

[Henk]

Hi all. I'm from the Netherlands but now living in Malaysia. I grew up on Pickwick tea (the Dutch answer to Lipton). For a VERY brief time there was a tea hypelet (late 90's or so) and a shop sprung up where I managed to buy some Lapsang and other loose leaf tea. When I came back for a second time, it had folded already. Back to the bags...
A few years ago, I remembered and, dimly aware that tea should be more common here in Malaysia, I bought my first 'real' teapot (a banko kyusu) at Hojo. At the moment I'm drinking any and all kind of teas (unflavoured and to be honest I haven't come across a yellow tea yet). I drink mostly alone following a simplified gong fu (no messing with filter and pitcher, straight from pot to cup).
I have ordered tea from the usual online suspects (W2T, YS, CWS) a couple of times because I'm a bit hesitant to walk into tea shops while I know doodley squat and speak no Chinese but I'm quite comfortable in Hojo and slowly discovering that working in Kuala Lumpur means I landed in a kind of tea heaven.

[BioHorn]

Hello Tea Peeps! Great to be back! Thank you, dear administrators, for putting the time and effort to bring new life to the old glorious forum!

I have been enjoying tea and how it makes me feel for about 12 years now.

I enjoy all teas, but gravitate towards aged teas.

My tea is usually prepared in tiny teapots, but nearly any method is accepted!

I am interested in exploring tea together with other people over good conversation.

The kind and generous spirit of other tea folk is greatly appreciated and sets a great example.

My home base is NE Ohio.

Woooo!

[mrmopu]

Hello Tea Peeps! Great to be back! Thank you, dear administrators, for putting the time and effort to bring new life to the old glorious forum!

I have been enjoying tea and how it makes me feel for about 12 years now.

I enjoy all teas, but gravitate towards aged teas.

My tea is usually prepared in tiny teapots, but nearly any method is accepted!

I am interested in exploring tea together with other people over good conversation.

The kind and generous spirit of other tea folk is greatly appreciated and sets a great example.

My home base is NE Ohio.

Woooo!

Bout time you showed up. I greatly enjoyed your stuff from the other site.

[RedFox]

Hello everyone.

How long have you been drinking tea?
I've been drinking tea since my childhood (mostly hongcha), but expanded my tea range 10 years ago (oolongs).
And I've made one more step 1 year ago and dip into puerh, yancha and Japanese green tea.

What kind of tea do you drink?
Yancha, oolong, puerh, green, white and red.

How do you prepare your tea?
Gongfu (gaiwan or clay teapot) or Western style depends on my mood and tea.

What tea knowledge are you interested in exploring right now?
Puerh and green tea, especially Japanese green and sheng puerh

What factors lead you to delve into the world of tea, and what is keeping you there?
I like Japanese and Chinese culture, food. And tea gives me chance to stop time and to relax.

What is your location?
UK

[pedant]

Hello Tea Peeps! Great to be back! Thank you, dear administrators, for putting the time and effort to bring new life to the old glorious forum!

I have been enjoying tea and how it makes me feel for about 12 years now.

I enjoy all teas, but gravitate towards aged teas.

My tea is usually prepared in tiny teapots, but nearly any method is accepted!

I am interested in exploring tea together with other people over good conversation.

The kind and generous spirit of other tea folk is greatly appreciated and sets a great example.

My home base is NE Ohio.

Woooo!

Bout time you showed up. I greatly enjoyed your stuff from the other site.

yeah, really. we were waiting for you

[Julian]

How long have you been drinking tea?
About 15 years.

What kind of tea do you drink?
Green, Yellow, Red, Dark (Pu'er and Anhua).

How do you prepare your tea?
I like to prepare all my teas in a nice porcelain gaiwan.

What tea knowledge are you interested in exploring right now?
The relationship between tradition and modernity in tea culture.

What factors lead you to delve into the world of tea, and what is keeping you there?
The main factor is how a cup of tea makes me feel (usually very good).

What is your location?
Switzerland / China (Chongqing).

[Hidden_leaf]

Yo! My name is Rob

How long have you been drinking tea?
6 years

What kind of tea do you drink?
Anything grown wild or with minimal agrochemicals

How do you prepare your tea?
-In a side handle pot with a nice bowl if I'm having a session
-Gong fu with my finest wares if I'm drinking oolong
-In my favorite mug if I'm being casual

What tea knowledge are you interested in exploring right now?
I want to study Sencha Do to learn how to conduct a Sencha based ceremony

What factors lead you to delve into the world of tea, and what is keeping you there?
I got a job at Teavana 6 years back and tasted tea for the first time. When I learned of my company's treachery, I quit my job in search of truly organic teas.
Thousands of years of work have gone into bringing tea to where it is today and I feel a need to introduce others into its world. I love tea.

What is your location?
New Jersey, USA

[ShuShu]

Hi everyone,
I’m here (and on TC) for a while now, but never introduced myself. So here goes.
How long have you been drinking tea?
I have been drinking tea for about 10 years, most of which I have been drinking sencha and occasionally some puerh (sheng mostly). Although I have been drinking a lot of tea (twice a day on average) I didn’t really consider tea to be something “I’m into” or a hobby of mine. Just part of my daily routine. In the last couple of years, I’ve become much more interested in tea knowledge and history and my interest in other teas similarly developed.

What kind of tea do you drink?
I still drink sencha every day and currently drinking mostly Yancha. When the vibe is right I drink Taiwanese oolongs and hongcha.

How do you prepare your tea?
Sencha in a glass teapot. Oolongs in a gaiwan and sometimes in a clay pot. Black tea I usually drink grandpa style.

What tea knowledge are you interested in exploring right now?
Now, I'm mostly interested in knowledge about clay pots, clay, and especially Yixing.

What factors lead you to delve into the world of tea, and what is keeping you there?
I think that it is the richness of the world of tea—the flavors, the colors, the different and distinct experience each tea provides, the history, the geography—that makes it so interesting for me.

What is your location?
New York

Cheers

[oeroe]

How long have you been drinking tea?
Since ~2008.

What kind of tea do you drink?
Mostly pu'er and wulongs, though I'm happy to drink any tea.

How do you prepare your tea?
Mostly with zisha pots or simply in a bowl.

What tea knowledge are you interested in exploring right now?
Right now I'm most curious about vintage pots and yancha, there seem to be many knowledgeable people around here.

What factors lead you to delve into the world of tea, and what is keeping you there?
Tea
Tea is great drink, it feels good in the body. Tea is a great subject for study, every tea has it's own history, characteristics and nature. Tea is also something one can practise, and thus cultivate oneself. Finally, tea connects people to each other and the present moment very effectively.

What is your location?
Finland

[teashirtsau]

How long have you been drinking tea?
I guess since I was able to handle hot liquids at Chinese restaurants – age 7? But I didn't get serious about it until 2004 when I interviewed Stephen Twining for a magazine feature.

What kind of tea do you drink?
Anything camellia. Favourite category is probably oolongs: I like high mountain Taiwanese and aromatic Phoenixes.

How do you prepare your tea?
Depends on the tea. I have a range of teapots, gaiwans, tea bottles, infusers...

What tea knowledge are you interested in exploring right now?
Am trying to untangle the authenticity problem.

What factors lead you to delve into the world of tea, and what is keeping you there?
Tea is a complex and diverse drink and there are so many different ways to explore and enjoy it, so I do. It will take me the rest of my life and I will only ever scratch the surface.

What is your location?
Sydney, Australia

[Lion]

Hi everybody. Some of you might recognize me from Steepster (same name there) or from out in the tea community (Lion is my real name too). I haven't been as active within the community online or otherwise in the past year or so but have been poking around out of nostalgia lately. If you're an old pal from Steepster or elsewhere, give me a wave! Not sure how active I'll be here, but it's always good to know where the good discussion groups are that people are using these days.

Here's my little intro thing.

How long have you been drinking tea?
Casually since whenever. Got more into tea bags in college. Got into loose leaf tea and "the real stuff" in 2013, so it's been 5 years now since I've properly discovered the wide world of tea, and I've been excitedly exploring it ever since.

What kind of tea do you drink?
Mostly camellia teas without additives, aside from some things like floral scented teas. I dabble in herbal and flavored stuff seldomly, and tend to drink it casually and without much thought when I do. White is my favorite type of tea, and I have a pretty soft spot for green, but I pretty much adore them all.

How do you prepare your tea?
Big Gongfu Cha fan here. Usually I brew things in a little 80ml jade porcelain gaiwan when I'm by myself. I recently downsized to a 50ml gaiwan to make solo sessions even less wasteful, but it's in the mail still. Really excited to try the micro-gaiwan when it gets here.

What tea knowledge are you interested in exploring right now?
Good question. I've had a handful of years going nuts over Gongfu Cha related info and Chinese and Taiwanese teas (and Kenya and Nepal and lots of other places popping up that are producing teas in a similar style). In the past year I've become a huge Japanese cuisine enthusiast and cook a lot of Japanese food at home, so I think exploring more Japanese tea is a natural progression for me at this time, but we'll see where the wind takes me I guess.

What factors lead you to delve into the world of tea, and what is keeping you there?
Tea helps me feel connected to nature. It's healthy, complex, subtle, and there are myriad types to enjoy. I love the peaceful and beautiful aesthetic of most tea preparation styles (especially from Asian cultures). It brings enjoyment to my life, is a good way to share space and time with friends, and I know it'll be a solid companion for the rest of my life. Discovering real tea was utterly life-changing for me, as I'm sure many of you here can relate.

What is your location?
Greetings and warm wishes from Kansas City, USA