What would you tell your novice self about tea

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wave_code
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Mon May 02, 2022 9:40 am

Also would say pay much more attention to water early on. And storage.

Not all old teapots are good, not all newer clays are bad.
Not all old teas are good, not all younger teas are bad.
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Baisao
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Mon May 02, 2022 3:13 pm

1) Don’t be “that guy” who talks like an expert with only a few years of enthusiastic experience under the belt. Shut up and sit with the tea.

2) Understand that there are many well meaning people who will teach you incorrect information, especially about pots.

3) Don’t dismiss a teapot or tea as bad. Maybe it takes experience and technique(s) to make the best of either. This may take many years.

4) Gaiwans, just don’t. They work for other people but I’ll always be the guy with burned fingertips and splashing tea everywhere. Stick to teapots.

5) Pay more attention to how porcelain alters taste

Many good ideas by other members.
Last edited by Baisao on Fri Jun 17, 2022 1:06 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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teasecret
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Mon May 02, 2022 10:27 pm

Loving the repeated focus on water.

What comes to mind otherwise is - don't try a stupid storage experiment - be conservative, keep the puer alive.
Make sure you pay attention to your own opinions and experiences rather than relying on those of others, but listen to others too.
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Maerskian
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Tue May 03, 2022 5:49 am

On my post tried to avoid a little bit the suggested "conversation with my past self" theme so i left some personal preferences out of it... and then read this:
Baisao wrote:
Mon May 02, 2022 3:13 pm
4) Gaiwans, just don’t. They work for other people but I’ll always be the guy with burned fingertips and splashing tea everywhere. Stick to teapots.
Couldn't agree more.

I do keep my five gaiwans around because that's what i use for hongcha and/or small-size samples ( 5-6gr ) i get from time to time but on my particular case i certainly don't feel comfortable with 'em for the aforementioned reasons ( plus... as "popular" as it seems to be... i don't like to spill water nor tea around... not even a drop if possible, for some reason it's on my list of things i dislike while sitting around the table along making noises while eating/drinking, more particularly the "aquatic sounds" range ) .

Teapots are also more friendly for people doing gongfu sessions with what i assume it's "higher than average" amounts of leaf ( 18-20gr on my case ), easier to find 200ml or even 300ml teapots... which in turn are exponentially easier to handle than the largest gaiwan you might find around.

Since i'm at it will mention something that also doesn't exactly follow up the suggested premise but it's connected to some suggestions as well. I myself no longer think of it as i've been doing this for decades ... only applied to all regular/daily meals and now i apply to my tea sessions too which essentially boils down to:

- No potential toxic-level discussions allowed on the table.

Of course "potential toxic-level" is a variable on this one. For me it's anything potentially leading to any discussion, business ( i don't talk business over food/drinks/anything... as hard as it's been to force this ), venting about my/your frustrating day, any kind of debate that could heat up...

Already decided 20-something years ago there's a place for everything and contrary to those scenarios we're bombarded with since we are born never felt like it was a natural combination while having food/tea/etc... right now i'd even say tea-sessions are even more critical and the one time you absolutely need to keep any potential annoyance away from it so you can focus on your tea.

Granted it can be a luxury for some with no option to avoid such circumstances, happy to have such privilege although it takes time to get used to it plus get ready for some uncomfortable situations from time to time ( i'd rather skip any meal / tea session than risk having any of 'em ruined; easy for me to say anyways, i can take a few "days off" with no food/water from time to time effortlessly ) .

EDIT:

Threaded with what i mentioned and other people has mentioned on different conversations ( think there was one about taking notes while having tea and how much it can ruin the experience... or not ) :

- Keep a distraction-free environment ( as much as possible at the very least ) when having tea. Walk away from screens, phones or any other activity that could interfere.
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debunix
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Wed May 04, 2022 10:26 am

(1) don't give up on a particular style of tea until you've tried a "daily drinker" and a "high-quality" version, prepared with the lighter infusion parameters you usually enjoy (less leaf!). I don't be surprised when sometimes what you prefer is the daily drinker version!

(2) get over the green tea fear already (see above), and get some well-prepared matcha, sencha, and gyokuro on that first trip to Japan so you don't miss out on 15 years of matcha enjoyment.

(3) slow down a little on the puerh purchases, you like it but like to drink so much other tea too.

(4) Notwithstanding (3), Buy out Norbu's entire stock of the 2009 Lao Ban Zhang before it's gone, use the credit card, don't be afraid.
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Baisao
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Wed May 04, 2022 12:16 pm

debunix wrote:
Wed May 04, 2022 10:26 am
(1) don't give up on a particular style of tea until you've tried a "daily drinker" and a "high-quality" version, prepared with the lighter infusion parameters you usually enjoy (less leaf!). I don't be surprised when sometimes what you prefer is the daily drinker version!

(2) get over the green tea fear already (see above), and get some well-prepared matcha, sencha, and gyokuro on that first trip to Japan so you don't miss out on 15 years of matcha enjoyment.
Great additions.

I ended up liking lower graded versions of longjing over top graded ones. This came as a complete surprise to me.

And high quality matcha! What a wonderful surprise!
GaoShan
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Wed May 04, 2022 2:12 pm

I'm by no means an expert, but here are some things I'd tell my younger self:

1. You may think a tea is awesome now, but after a few years of drinking that particular style, you may realize it was only average. Other people have different levels of experience, so remember that when looking at their recommendations.

2. Don't buy more green oolong than you can finish in about a year. It may keep fairly well in vacuum packs, but you will always want to buy more next spring and this will become a problem.

3. As I learned on TeaForum, don't have more than one or two packs of green tea or oolong open at a time and try to drink them every day until they're gone. If you dread having to drink a particular tea daily, it's a sign you shouldn't buy it again.

4. Do your research before buying a teapot, especially since gaiwans don't work for you.

5. Buy samples of the best tea you can find, but also look for some middle-grade teas you can afford to drink regularly. Sometimes all you need is work fuel.

6. This hobby may look reasonably affordable, but it can get expensive quickly. You should probably quit while you're ahead, although you won't because you're having too much fun! :)
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Bok
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Wed May 04, 2022 9:18 pm

This is a fun topic, but as I would be telling this to my own previous self it is still only valid to my own preferences and circumstances and learning curve and possibly of little value to others...

On a purely personal level, based on my findings, it goes like this:

Don't worry to miss out on the tea/tea maker everyone is raving about.
Theses turned all out to be fads and in the end not very good tea. Still probably needed to make the experience and waste the money – gotta know the bad to know the good. Lesson: Most people online don't know what they are raving about (true for almost any hobby/niche interest).

> in consequence:
Only trust people's recommendations with whom you had tea and agree with their evaluations in general

Don't spend money on contemporary teapots
(only my personal view!) I wish I had met a few certain people earlier and gotten into it when things where still a lot more affordable.

Be happy with the tea you got access to and can afford
But stay open minded to expand your horizon.
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Benjamin
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Wed May 04, 2022 10:41 pm

1. You don't need that many teapots (I've personally stopped at five).

2. Don't buy things solely because other people rave about it (this includes the shop owner who is brewing it for you - trust your own palate).

3. Don't buy puerh expecting it to age and get better. Just buy older tea if you want that.

4. Give tea your full attention as often as possible. Sometimes we just want a cold brew while working or on a hike, but when possible "monotasking" with tea and no distractions is generally very rewarding.

5. You don't need that many teapots.
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wave_code
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Thu May 05, 2022 7:22 am

Baisao wrote:
Wed May 04, 2022 12:16 pm
I ended up liking lower graded versions of longjing over top graded ones. This came as a complete surprise to me.
Some version of getting over or separating this type of graded thinking I think is also very good early advice. I think it took me a while to really separate numbered grading as categorization of leaf size/picking style vs quality and that these things do not necessarily correlate. And even when they do and the grading is being used to describe the tier of tea rather than leaf grade it still may not result in a tea profile that is to one's taste and its good to develop and trust one's own. I think I would have found a lot of teas I enjoy a lot more much quicker if that had arrived to me sooner.
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Baisao
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Thu May 05, 2022 4:20 pm

Bok wrote:
Wed May 04, 2022 9:18 pm
Don't worry to miss out on the tea/tea maker everyone is raving about.[/b]
Theses turned all out to be fads and in the end not very good tea. Still probably needed to make the experience and waste the money – gotta know the bad to know the good. Lesson: Most people online don't know what they are raving about (true for almost any hobby/niche interest).

> in consequence:
Only trust people's recommendations with whom you had tea and agree with their evaluations in general
I am naturally inclined to be independent so I’ve been lucky to not fall for this too many times. There are many people who don’t know tea and it is hard to evaluate their knowledge/skill through online interactions. There are also a lot of details to know and corridors to follow. I see a lot of people getting on the bandwagon for this and that.

I’ll give something an honest try and if it’s not all that, I’ll pass and be quiet about it online. However, if I feel I’ve missed something then I will openly ask for assistance, usually with context. There’s no shame in having a beginner’s mind.
GreenTandTree
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Thu May 05, 2022 7:08 pm

Buy in grams, not kilograms. If your tea has a brand name, you can do better.
GaoShan
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Thu May 05, 2022 9:23 pm

GreenTandTree wrote:
Thu May 05, 2022 7:08 pm
Buy in grams, not kilograms. If your tea has a brand name, you can do better.
Yep, buying in small amounts is wise, especially if you haven't had the tea before. Early on, I bought 300 g of GABA oolong and still have 150 g of it left. Sampling first is the way to go!
GreenTandTree
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Thu May 05, 2022 10:17 pm

GaoShan wrote:
Thu May 05, 2022 9:23 pm
Yep, buying in small amounts is wise, especially if you haven't had the tea before. Early on, I bought 300 g of GABA oolong and still have 150 g of it left. Sampling first is the way to go!
These days I aim for 25-50g, because samples generally are too small to get to know a tea. So the real discipline is being more selective and choosing fewer teas.
The best teas in my collection often didn't make the best first impressions and took some exploration to appreciate.

But novice me (back in the 80's) just wanted to find a tea I liked and buy enough to never be without; I simply didn't know any better.
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Balthazar
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Fri May 06, 2022 12:52 am

GreenTandTree wrote:
Thu May 05, 2022 10:17 pm
These days I aim for 25-50g, because samples generally are too small to get to know a tea.
This is a definition question of course, but for me 25-50 grams is a range I would consider "sample size" for most types of tea (with the exception of some very fancy oolongs or teas where I use lower ratios that normal). I do think it's good advice to buy neither too little nor too much of the teas one tries in the beginning.
GreenTandTree wrote:
Thu May 05, 2022 7:08 pm
If your tea has a brand name, you can do better.
Sometimes it’s hard to know whether or not your tea really has a brand name. There’s a lot of romanticism connected to the “unbranded”, “small factory” (or even better, family workshop), “artisinal” (sometimes seen as connected to the lack of a brand/factory), etc. But if you don’t know the your vendors’ sources, it really hard to know whether or not these teas truly fit any or all of those descriptions or are just presented like that by the vendor (both because these tags are in vogue and because it makes it impossible for the consumer to compare prices to what the same teas are sold for under their true brand name of e.g. Chinese platforms).

This probably varies among the different tea industries, but brand names even for small productions aren’t at all uncommon. Perhaps a more useful distinction would be between huge brands with a high percentage of total cost spent on advertising and flagship stores, and the smaller ones that are just using the brand name as an identifier.
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