Doped Teas - An Open Secret?

[Baisao]

The senses might be more desensitised compared to someone who eats more naturally grown and little processed food. Not smoking, drinking alcohol and meat free also seems to produce a more sensitive palate.

That might also affect a person's ability to 'feel' a tea, but that's another topic altogether, I think...

Ten or fifteen years ago, I'm sure that I would have been underwhelmed by a pure tea from old bushes.

And I'm sure that the usual consumer would ask questions such as, why would I pay more for a tea that smells and tastes less strong.

Now, of course, I'd happily pay more for a tea that tastes more pure, feels better, and has less upfront aroma and flavour. I now value things like how vibrant or fresh a tea tastes, or how long its aftertaste lingers, or how it makes me feel, over things like what kinds of flowers or fruits I can detect in the aroma cup.

I'm sure that I'm in the minority for most tea-drinkers overall, or at least that it can take a while to work out what a person really values and enjoys in a tea.

But perhaps adulterated teas have their place - they may have led me onto this journey (albeit that I recall preferring high mountain tea that tasted 'fresh' over tea that tasted like 'milk', despite what a bricks-and-mortar vendor told me down here...).

Andrew

I completely agree. I recent had someone tell me that my tastes in tea was modest, unassuming. I directed them to observe how the teas made them feel. I think they understood after that.

[belewfripp]

The senses might be more desensitised compared to someone who eats more naturally grown and little processed food. Not smoking, drinking alcohol and meat free also seems to produce a more sensitive palate.

...

Ten or fifteen years ago, I'm sure that I would have been underwhelmed by a pure tea from old bushes.

And I'm sure that the usual consumer would ask questions such as, why would I pay more for a tea that smells and tastes less strong.

Now, of course, I'd happily pay more for a tea that tastes more pure, feels better, and has less upfront aroma and flavour. I now value things like how vibrant or fresh a tea tastes, or how long its aftertaste lingers, or how it makes me feel, over things like what kinds of flowers or fruits I can detect in the aroma cup.

I'm sure that I'm in the minority for most tea-drinkers overall, or at least that it can take a while to work out what a person really values and enjoys in a tea....

I completely agree. I recent had someone tell me that my tastes in tea was modest, unassuming. I directed them to observe how the teas made them feel. I think they understood after that.

Along these lines, I think it's generally true that especially in the U.S., but also increasingly in other parts of the world, the growing size of mass corporate production, as well as the mechanized and dehumanized infrastructure necessary for such production, has necessitated a growing emphasis on artificial flavors, additives and flavor profiles that "hit the consumer over the head", so to speak.

There is a general tendency for people to, at least initially, prefer "sledgehammer" styles of food and beverage, but as giant corporations increasingly seek to improve profit margins and increase efficiency, cheap and/or lab-developed artificial flavor profiles that hit hard, but have no substance to speak of, are more and more common. People have a tendency to adapt to what they know, and as the pace of life keeps getting faster the time needed to slow down and really appreciate things continues to disappear like smoke up an exhaust fan.

All of which is to say - we probably shouldn't be surprised this kind of thing is going on nor that so many consumers enjoy the result.

[debunix]

I have no problem ifsome people want to drink teas that have been flavored, as long as the flavoring is clear and accurately labeled on the packaging. I enjoy the occasional jasmine infusion, and sometimes have added citrus blossoms from my yard or Osmanthus flowers to a tea. But flavoring as deception is bad bad bad in my book.

I did once buy a milk oolong from a shop whose name I now truly cannot remember, that was so strongly flavored with milk and caramel and it seemed like it had been mixed with Dulce de Leche. It was not labeled as being artificially flavored, but it certainly was far beyond anything else I’ve had from shops I trust, and I assumed that it was deliberately flavored. I passed it on to a friend who actually enjoyed it the first time I made some and shared it. I couldn’t stand to drink it again.

[Baisao]

I have no problem ifsome people want to drink teas that have been flavored, as long as the flavoring is clear and accurately labeled on the packaging. I enjoy the occasional jasmine infusion, and sometimes have added citrus blossoms from my yard or Osmanthus flowers to a tea. But flavoring as deception is bad bad bad in my book.

I did once buy a milk oolong from a shop whose name I now truly cannot remember, that was so strongly flavored with milk and caramel and it seemed like it had been mixed with Dulce de Leche. It was not labeled as being artificially flavored, but it certainly was far beyond anything else I’ve had from shops I trust, and I assumed that it was deliberately flavored. I passed it on to a friend who actually enjoyed it the first time I made some and shared it. I couldn’t stand to drink it again.

I chose to use the word “doped” instead of “flavored” to avoid this confusion. Doping is surreptitious, deceptive. Flavoring or scenting implies that the practice has been disclosed to the consumer.

To be clear, I have no problem with anyone drinking anything. I just had Southern iced tea, so I’ll never throw stones at a person’s choice in tea (unless they are bashing other person’s choices in tea).

I do have a problem with doping teas. A high priced yancha should not be sprayed with saline to increase its minerality. Dançong shouldn’t be doped with rose, allspice, peach, and fabric softener fragrances. This practice is deceptive and unhealthy.

[belewfripp]

...
To be clear, I have no problem with anyone drinking anything. I just had Southern iced tea, so I’ll never throw stones at a person’s choice in tea (unless they are bashing other person’s choices in tea).
...

I have zero issue with people consuming what they prefer, regardless of what that may be. There are many things I like that contain artificial this, that and the other thing. I do wonder, though, what my preferences would look like if I lived in a different world or at least within a different sort of economy. It's been demonstrated many times that we (people) have a tendency to prefer that with which we are familiar or have heard of, for no other reason than because we're familiar with it. And large companies with massive distribution and advertising reach are absolutely aware of this and, from my perspective, intentionally manipulate peoples' preferences for no other purpose than because it is more financially beneficial for them, and that I do have a problem with.

[RayClem]

I made the mistake of purchasing Harney and Sons Pomegranate Oolong tea from a local grocery store. Harney and Sons has been around for nearly 4 decades. This specific tea has 359 reviews on the Harney web site, all but a few being 5-star. The tea is supposed to be Tie Guan Yin oolong with natural pomegranate flavoring added. Furthermore, the tea comes in sachets rather than tea bags to allow for expansion of the tea leaves. It is packaged in a nice tin. It sounds like a good purchase. So why do I say purchasing it was a mistake?

Upon opening the tin, I was overwhelmed with what seemed to be a synthetic flavoring. This may have been derived from pomegranates, but it certainly did not convey the aroma of ripe pomegranates. The wonderful aroma of TGY was totally overcome.

I took the sachets out of the tin and allowed them to air out for several hours to let some of the aromatics escape. While this helped, it still did not make for a pleasant tea drinking experience. While others gave this tea a 5-star rating, it would be difficult for me to give it even 2 stars.

To me this is a tea that fits into the "doping" category. I certainly feel like a dope for purchasing it. I suspect the remaining sachets will end up in the trash.

My apologies to anyone who may like this tea; your taste and olfactory senses must be much different than mine.

[pedant]

i just tasted some tea from a bag of dancong that i suspect was sprayed with some flavoring.

i got it several years ago and forgot about it, and the aroma is basically gone now. i would not guess that it is dancong by tasting it. it did used to taste like milan xiang. sort of. it had strong but not quite right flavor.

[Baisao]

i just tasted some tea from a bag of dancong that i suspect was sprayed with some flavoring.

i got it several years ago and forgot about it, and the aroma is basically gone now. i would not guess that it is dancong by tasting it. it did used to taste like milan xiang. sort of. it had strong but not quite right flavor.

The natural aromatics in dancongs should last if stored in a sealed container, which I imagine you did. This sounds like a strong candidate for a doped tea.