Korean tea vendors

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LeoFox
Posts: 1775
Joined: Tue Sep 01, 2020 4:01 pm
Location: Washington DC

Sat Jan 28, 2023 11:30 am

faj wrote:
Wed Jan 25, 2023 4:01 pm
I am interested. The problem I have is ordering is done without knowing what the shipping cost is going to be (not even a ballpark, it seems), and once you order you cannot cancel if the shipping cost ends up being unreasonable. Is there a way to get a shipping estimate that anyone knows of?
Maybe email them but they are slower and more unresponsive than hojo
faj
Posts: 710
Joined: Mon Oct 14, 2019 6:45 am
Location: Quebec

Sat Jan 28, 2023 11:45 am

LeoFox wrote:
Sat Jan 28, 2023 11:30 am
Maybe email them but they are slower and more unresponsive than hojo
You do not mince words! I may have to try and hope for the best, as I am not expecting there are many members here with experience getting shipments from them to Canada.
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LeoFox
Posts: 1775
Joined: Tue Sep 01, 2020 4:01 pm
Location: Washington DC

Sat Jan 28, 2023 1:17 pm

faj wrote:
Sat Jan 28, 2023 11:45 am
LeoFox wrote:
Sat Jan 28, 2023 11:30 am
Maybe email them but they are slower and more unresponsive than hojo
You do not mince words! I may have to try and hope for the best, as I am not expecting there are many members here with experience getting shipments from them to Canada.
examples:

I asked them last summer if there was any surplus I could purchase. After a few days, I got a reply that there might be a second buy in a months time and to contact them then. I did. No response. Tried again a few weeks later. Nothing


Last week I emailed them asking if I can do multiple orders over time that can be added together in a single shipment. No answer.
GaoShan
Posts: 318
Joined: Tue Apr 06, 2021 12:06 am
Location: Toronto, Canada

Tue Jan 31, 2023 6:49 am

I'm also interested in this, but like faj, I'd like to know a ballpark shipping estimate to Canada. Any Balhyocha recommendations would be appreciated.
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LeoFox
Posts: 1775
Joined: Tue Sep 01, 2020 4:01 pm
Location: Washington DC

Wed Feb 01, 2023 4:07 pm

All right guys - got an answer regarding shipping:
Shipping typically runs between .03 and .07 cents per gram including package weight. Last year it was 0.32c. It is seldom over .05c. Bags without tea weigh between 9g and 15g and onggi jars, tins and boxes also weigh more. We ship teas coming to the USA in one box to save shipping on most orders. Retail shops teas are sent directly to them from Korea unless the weight is small.
Then there is shipment added from us to you usually by priority mail. First class is available but not insured and very seldom used.
Books are shipped media mail.
We ship to non North American countries direct from Korea. We can also ship directly to Canada and Mexico depending on the order. Some teas are bought in bulk and individually bagged in the USA. It is complicated. That is why we can’t figure shipping before we know the order. The producers also change how their teas are packed sometimes.
I hope that helps.
Peace
Arthur
MorningCraneTea.Org
faj
Posts: 710
Joined: Mon Oct 14, 2019 6:45 am
Location: Quebec

Wed Feb 01, 2023 8:18 pm

LeoFox wrote:
Wed Feb 01, 2023 4:07 pm
All right guys - got an answer regarding shipping:
Thanks! Not entirely clear, but at least it gives some idea.
GaoShan
Posts: 318
Joined: Tue Apr 06, 2021 12:06 am
Location: Toronto, Canada

Thu Feb 02, 2023 7:02 am

faj wrote:
Wed Feb 01, 2023 8:18 pm
LeoFox wrote:
Wed Feb 01, 2023 4:07 pm
All right guys - got an answer regarding shipping:
Thanks! Not entirely clear, but at least it gives some idea.
Yeah, that still leaves a lot of ambiguity. I wonder if it would be cheaper to have the products shipped directly from Korea to Canada rather than from the U.S. I'm also still looking for some recommendations.
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debunix
Posts: 1811
Joined: Sat Oct 21, 2017 1:27 am
Location: Los Angeles, CA

Fri Feb 03, 2023 10:12 am

I saw the notice about the latest TeaBuyKorea a few days ago but couldn't reply right away. I can make only limited recommendations because I have bought mostly balhyochas and generally liked all of them, but some I have yet to open from my last (larger than usual) purchase. I will come back to this topic later today or tomorrow with a little more on specific makers/teas I recommend.

Regarding shipping, etc, I think it is really important to remember that this has not been set up as a typical commercial enterprise. It has been a large-scale group buy, so they do not have a large overhead/profit margin to use to cushion against changes in costs due to changes from makers, shippers, etc. So things change as they get the orders prepared. more later.
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debunix
Posts: 1811
Joined: Sat Oct 21, 2017 1:27 am
Location: Los Angeles, CA

Sat Feb 04, 2023 5:45 pm

Here are some of the teas I've enjoyed from Morning Crane's Tea Buy Korea with links to posts where I've written about them:

Dosim Dawan So-Ip-Cha Balhyocha
Dong Cheon Muwi Sejak green
Dosim Dawan Jungjak Tteokeumcha green
Jeong Jae Yeon Jirisan Halmonicha balhyocha
Dosim Dawan So-Ip-Cha Balhyocha
Kim Se Jin SOA Dawan Gogucha green
Dosim Dawan Dea-ip-cha balhyocha

And I started a balhyocha and hwangcha topic here but often post elsewhere about them.

I've also had some lovely sessions with white tea from Lady Hadong.

Basically, apart from one green that sat too long and lost freshness, I've been happy with all the teas I've bought. The one I've bought in largest quantity over time has been Jeong Jae Yeon's balhyocha, because I love it so much.
teasleuth
Vendor
Posts: 9
Joined: Sun Feb 19, 2023 12:25 am
Location: St. Louis, Missouri

Mon Feb 20, 2023 5:38 am

Hi all,
I'm Eric I work with Arthur on morning crane tea's TeaBuy. Yes, Arthur doesn't respond quickly.
It's faster to go through me, ericglass.mct@gmail.com and if I don't have the answer, I'll call Arthur and get back right away.

So, does anyone have any questions? Looks like a ton, I'll go through here and see if I can answer any. ☺
Happy sipping
GaoShan
Posts: 318
Joined: Tue Apr 06, 2021 12:06 am
Location: Toronto, Canada

Fri Apr 14, 2023 4:23 am

Is anyone else having trouble getting a response from this vendor? I emailed Arthur a few days ago and just sent a message to Eric this morning. As usual, I thought I had loads of time, but the April 20 deadline is just around the corner.

ETA: Eric just emailed me. That was fast! :)
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