Introduce Yourself

maitre_tea
Posts: 59
Joined: Wed Aug 19, 2020 11:54 am
Location: Washington, DC

Thu Sep 17, 2020 11:14 am

mbanu wrote:
Wed Sep 16, 2020 11:03 pm
maitre_tea wrote:
Wed Aug 19, 2020 2:09 pm
Hello, I was on teachat under the same handle, but I've been told that this is a more active forum. I've been drinking tea on-and-off for the last 10 years, mostly puerh and aged oolong. I was abroad for the last two years so I haven't been able to drink much tea, but now I have been reunited with my tea collection and teapots. I'm excited to spend more time on this hobby, and pick up more yixing teapots (some of mine got lost in the move sadly)
Did you have a blog under the same name, by any chance?
Yes, and it makes me cringe to think about my writing style in my early/mid 20s.
ArthurHolo
New user
Posts: 3
Joined: Mon Sep 21, 2020 2:33 am

Wed Sep 23, 2020 2:19 am

Hi everyone!

I've been drinking tea for 7-10 years only. I mean here 'normal' tea, not something from those plastic bags. The first tea I tried was milk oolong and since then it's still my favorite one :) I prefer plain green tea or can add honey and lemon sometimes. I think I'm ready to try some unusual tea recipes :lol:
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Bok
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Posts: 5782
Joined: Wed Oct 04, 2017 8:55 am
Location: Taiwan

Wed Sep 23, 2020 3:22 am

ArthurHolo wrote:
Wed Sep 23, 2020 2:19 am
The first tea I tried was milk oolong and since then it's still my favorite one
Welcome!

Oolong with milk, or the so-called milk Oolong from Taiwan (Jinxuan)?
ArthurHolo
New user
Posts: 3
Joined: Mon Sep 21, 2020 2:33 am

Thu Sep 24, 2020 12:15 am

Bok wrote:
Wed Sep 23, 2020 3:22 am
ArthurHolo wrote:
Wed Sep 23, 2020 2:19 am
The first tea I tried was milk oolong and since then it's still my favorite one
Welcome!

Oolong with milk, or the so-called milk Oolong from Taiwan (Jinxuan)?
I tried both but liked only the 2nd one - JinXuan.
pase22
Posts: 26
Joined: Sun Sep 27, 2020 6:16 pm
Location: Montreal

Sun Sep 27, 2020 8:25 pm

Six weeks ago when I found out I had type 2 diabetes and it was bad. As a result radical changes had to be made to my food & beverage consumption habits. Coffee was the first casualty and yes, I cried because Growing up in an Italian family wine and coffee are a basic food group. Anyone growing up in Canada (Montreal) in the late 70's & 80's knows that Red rose and Salada were pretty much the only tea options at the grocery store and my parents would typically buy whatever was cheaper. They kept a box in the cupboard just in case people came over and wanted tea. We did drink occasionally but it wasn't very popular at our house.

It was suggested to me to drink some tea to help regulate blood sugar levels among the many other health benefits. Just as my parents did and still do I kept a box of tea in the cupboard. It had been there probably a few years and the taste definitely reflected that so I ran out to get a new box and that's where the problem started. I picked up a box of red rose without paying that much attention, then something caught my eye. As I payed closer attention and saw so many different options, Twinings had all their teas on sale for $2.99 (box of 20) I figured I'd splurge a little and got Irish breakfast and Earl grey to see if the more expensive stuff was better. I'm embarrassed to admit that I had never had Earl grey until that morning. The Irish breakfast I thought was quite tasty and miles ahead of Red Rose. The Earl grey on the other hand took a few cups to get me on board. I then went a step further and ordered Harney & Sons Royal English breakfast along with a temperature controlled kettle. As per directions, I heat the water to 200 degrees and pour over the tea bag with milk and sweetener (can't have real sugar) already added and steep 5 minutes. I'm ready for the next step so I ordered the Vadham black tea (loose) sampler pack and Harney & sons Irish breakfast ( loose ) along with the necessary equipment for loose tea brewing. Pleas educate me if I'm doing something wrong or out of order.

Sorry about the long winded post!
faj
Posts: 710
Joined: Mon Oct 14, 2019 6:45 am
Location: Quebec

Mon Sep 28, 2020 1:08 pm

pase22 wrote:
Sun Sep 27, 2020 8:25 pm
Anyone growing up in Canada (Montreal) in the late 70's & 80's knows that Red rose and Salada were pretty much the only tea options at the grocery store and my parents would typically buy whatever was cheaper.
Welcome to the forum!

Do you still live in the Montreal area?
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pedant
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Mon Sep 28, 2020 1:20 pm

welcome, @pase22 :mrgreen:

i'm glad you found something that works for you, but i'm curious about why coffee isn't OK anymore but tea is?

i do occasionally enjoy black with milk and a touch of sugar (particularly "builder's" style), but i usually drink tea plain. just infused with plain water.

as you're cutting things from your diet, maybe you'd also enjoy exploring tea in this way. if you use tea of relatively high quality and infuse it lightly enough to avoid excessive bitterness, plain tea can be a pretty tasty experience. i personally just drink it for the flavor and because i find it relaxing.

and if you're feeling adventurous, there are many other styles of tea to explore beyond black tea.
pase22
Posts: 26
Joined: Sun Sep 27, 2020 6:16 pm
Location: Montreal

Tue Sep 29, 2020 12:01 am

pedant wrote:
Mon Sep 28, 2020 1:20 pm
welcome, pase22 :mrgreen:

i'm glad you found something that works for you, but i'm curious about why coffee isn't OK anymore but tea is?

i do occasionally enjoy black with milk and a touch of sugar (particularly "builder's" style), but i usually drink tea plain. just infused with plain water.

as you're cutting things from your diet, maybe you'd also enjoy exploring tea in this way. if you use tea of relatively high quality and infuse it lightly enough to avoid excessive bitterness, plain tea can be a pretty tasty experience. i personally just drink it for the flavor and because i find it relaxing.

and if you're feeling adventurous, there are many other styles of tea to explore beyond black tea.
Coffee has way more caffeine than my body can process which was having negative effects on my health. I can still drink it, but need to limit to one 8 oz cup per day. Tea was suggested for it's multiple health benefits and with a much low caffeine level I can have multiple cups per day. With the wonderful teas I've been enjoying lately ( Vadham black tea sample pack, Harney & Sons royal breakfast ) I'm not missing coffee all that much. I did try green tea and didn't dislike it, but discovered I prefer Black tea. It was however the cheap supermarket brand (Tetley ) so maybe I would enjoy a higher quality Harney & Sons or similar a lot more. I have a lot of black tea to get through though.
pase22
Posts: 26
Joined: Sun Sep 27, 2020 6:16 pm
Location: Montreal

Tue Sep 29, 2020 12:05 am

faj wrote:
Mon Sep 28, 2020 1:08 pm
pase22 wrote:
Sun Sep 27, 2020 8:25 pm
Anyone growing up in Canada (Montreal) in the late 70's & 80's knows that Red rose and Salada were pretty much the only tea options at the grocery store and my parents would typically buy whatever was cheaper.
Welcome to the forum!

Do you still live in the Montreal area?
Yes, I now live on the south shore just across the Jacques Cartier bridge.
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pedant
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Tue Sep 29, 2020 10:45 am

@pase22 & @faj,
i thought the recent discussion here about teabags vs loose leaf was interesting, so i moved it to a relevant, recently active topic for organizational purposes: viewtopic.php?p=29417#p29417

sorry for the trouble
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debunix
Posts: 1812
Joined: Sat Oct 21, 2017 1:27 am
Location: Los Angeles, CA

Tue Sep 29, 2020 10:53 am

pase22 wrote:
Sun Sep 27, 2020 8:25 pm
I'm ready for the next step
I love my handmade or mostly handmade ceramic teapots as much as most members here, but I infuse teas anyway I can when away from my kettles, pots, & cups, including tossing some leaves in a thermos, filling with boiling water, and drinking for hours or a day from the lid of the thermos. I'm also a bitterphobe, and never add milk or sweetener to my teas.

I find most western-style black teas unpalatable whether brewed in a pot or thermos, butI've found some black teas sold a 'yunnan gold' (similar to or the same as 'dianhong', I think), ruby black, and sun-moon lake, which do tolerate even my lazy thermos method if I get things just right.....when you're ready for the next 'next step', however you brew!
gauvinma
New user
Posts: 3
Joined: Tue Sep 29, 2020 9:14 am
Location: Alberta, Canada

Tue Sep 29, 2020 1:18 pm

Victoria wrote:
Fri Dec 01, 2017 7:09 pm
Share something about yourself and your tea experience so far, so that other members will know something about you and where you are coming from.

A few examples of what you might share:
How long have you been drinking tea?
A long time. I guess 30 years or so?

What kind of tea do you drink?
Pretty much just chinese tea, although I do occassionally have mint/cammomile.

How do you prepare your tea?
With hot water and tea leaves?

What tea knowledge are you interested in exploring right now?
I have a package of chinese tea that I LOVE from the Beijing Hotel. I can't quite figure out what kind it is (since I can't read chinese characters) and I'm almost out. I'm trying to figure out what kind it is and how I can get more.

Also, I'm interested in figuring out what kind of plants I can grow that I can make tea out of using fresh herbs.

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

What is your location?
Alberta, Canada
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pedant
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Tue Sep 29, 2020 3:03 pm

welcome, @gauvinma! :mrgreen:
gauvinma wrote:
Tue Sep 29, 2020 1:18 pm
I have a package of chinese tea that I LOVE from the Beijing Hotel. I can't quite figure out what kind it is (since I can't read chinese characters) and I'm almost out. I'm trying to figure out what kind it is and how I can get more.
i was looking at what you tried posting before:
gauvinma wrote: [img]https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/OolCr ... uthuser=0/ [img]

This is one of my favorite teas, and I'm almost out. I have no idea what kind it is so I'm wondering if anyone knows so I can order more!
but that picture doesn't work for me. instead of trying to share it from google (which has authentication issues), can you just upload it here? or try imgur if you want?

and if you can show a picture of the tea itself and not just the container, that might also help.

thanks
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Griselbrand
Posts: 12
Joined: Mon Oct 22, 2018 1:31 pm
Location: Massachusetts

Sun Oct 04, 2020 11:52 am

Hi all!

I joined teachat a few years back and only recently found this successor. It seems like a fantastic resource, and I'm excited to have access to a place for more up-to-date tea discussions.

I started seriously drinking tea about four years ago. My tastes have shifted a bit in that time. I started out by exploring younger sheng puer, and established a small collection of cakes which I'm now storing in stoneware fermentation crocks. I shifted to Japanese green tea for a while, and lately I've been focusing on yancha and Dan cong. I imagine I'll focus on sheng again in the future, and at that point I'll have some nice aged tea!

I'm also very interested in clay teaware of all types. I've collected a few good quality modern pots (jianshui from CLT, Chaozhou from BitterLeaf, banko from HOJO, and a few others). I'm realizing that the collection will not stop there, so I'd like to make sure that I buy less frequently, but high quality.

Finally, thanks to all who were involved in setting up this forum. The wealth of knowledge here is incredible!
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pedant
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Sun Oct 04, 2020 12:26 pm

welcome, @Griselbrand!

nice to see another TCer :mrgreen:
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