Introduce Yourself

Cordovan147
New user
Posts: 1
Joined: Mon Nov 25, 2019 6:26 am
Location: Singapore

Mon Dec 02, 2019 1:18 am

Hi new member here, was introduced to this forum by @Youzi from reddit.
  • How long have you been drinking tea?
All my life, but got into Gongfu brewing past year.
  • What kind of tea do you drink?
Mainly Oolong, Dan Cong, Yancha. Then Pu Er ripe and raw. Occasional Green Tea and Japanese Hojicha
  • How do you prepare your tea?
Gongfu style of course.
  • What tea knowledge are you interested in exploring right now?
Tasting & exploring more tea types. Understanding & Learning Teapot types, sizes and their clays, to the type of tea. (More for practical use than collection).
  • What factors lead you to delve into the world of tea, and what is keeping you there?
Been drinking tea since very young since my family always drink tea. They didn't know much about tea though. Was a coffee drinker (still am), but started exploring tea when family members brought a lot of Dan Cong back from a visit to China. Always seems not satisfied with the tastes and they do not brew proper gongfu style (only using quick gongfu brewer), but know nothing about brew time and temperature. Until one day I started exploring and learning. Falling down the bottomless pit I go...
  • What is your location?
Singapore
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pedant
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Location: Chicago
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Mon Dec 02, 2019 1:39 am

welcome to the forum!
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Youzi
Posts: 533
Joined: Tue Sep 24, 2019 1:03 pm
Location: Shaxi, Yunnan, China
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Mon Dec 02, 2019 3:29 pm

Cordovan147 wrote:
Mon Dec 02, 2019 1:18 am
....
Nice to see you here! :D
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Victoria
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Mon Dec 02, 2019 3:51 pm

Welcome to TeaForum @Youzi. Looking forward to hearing from you.
phillipneoh
New user
Posts: 1
Joined: Sat Dec 07, 2019 2:28 am
Location: Penang, Malaysia

Sat Dec 07, 2019 2:40 am

Hi all, newbie here. Looking for a tea forum to expand my knowledge on tea.

How long have you been drinking tea?
Started drinking actively 9 years ago, after visiting Hangzhou China.

What kind of tea do you drink?
You guess it right, green tea from Hangzhou. It's called long jing tea. Was hyped up by the salesperson and bought at a slight premium but no regret, I liked it and should have bought more. Besides, I drink Pu-er too and lately, I get involved in mixing and matching some herbs with a friend.

How do you prepare your tea?
Long jing green tea is one of the easiest tea. It doesn't even need to boil water and I finish all the leaves by chewing too. But it is not the same with Pu-er. I drink it with thermal flask.

What tea knowledge are you interested in exploring right now?
Mixing and matching the right mix for taste and nutrition.

What factors lead you to delve into the world of tea, and what is keeping you there?
To gain more knowledge, experience from the tea lovers here. Perhaps, more friends??

What is your location?
Penang, Malaysia.
TheTeaDrunkard
New user
Posts: 4
Joined: Tue Dec 10, 2019 2:44 am
Location: Toronto

Tue Dec 10, 2019 2:57 am

How long have you been drinking tea?

About a decade!

What kind of tea do you drink?

Loose leaf Chinese and Japanese Tea

How do you prepare your tea?
Depends on the tea.

What tea knowledge are you interested in exploring right now?

Mostly Chinese and Japanese green, but I'm interested in general knowledge

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

My friends who were in the tea industry(one currently not, the other still is). They showed me the best Chinese tea.

What is your location?

I live in Toronto
Frasier
New user
Posts: 1
Joined: Thu Dec 12, 2019 1:03 pm
Location: Ukraine

Thu Dec 12, 2019 1:37 pm

Hi there!
  • How long have you been drinking tea?
About 15 years! :roll:
  • What kind of tea do you drink?
I like old trees sheng puerh, red teas, white teas
  • How do you prepare your tea?
I like gongfu style, sometime Taiwan style tea ceremony
  • What tea knowledge are you interested in exploring right now?
I'm interesting on accent trees teas
P1340629.jpeg
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I'm from Ukraine :)
Last edited by Frasier on Fri Dec 13, 2019 12:37 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Victoria
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Thu Dec 12, 2019 3:27 pm

Welcome to TeaForum @phillipneoh, @TheTeaDrunkard, and @Frasier. Looking forward to hearing from you 🍃.
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firedancer
New user
Posts: 1
Joined: Tue Dec 17, 2019 11:32 pm
Location: Westchester, New York

Tue Dec 17, 2019 11:57 pm

Hi, everyone! I'm a new member and very glad to be amongst you. :)

How long have you been drinking tea?
I've enjoyed tea casually for the past 20 years, but experienced a profound shift around two years ago after discovering Taiwanese oolongs and gongfu brewing.

What kind of tea do you drink?
Oolong is my favorite, with yancha at the top of the list: I'm absolutely in love with the minerality and rich aromas. I also enjoy sheng and shou puerh, aged white teas, and some dancong oolongs. In warmer weather, I gravitate toward lighter Taiwanese oolongs and green teas.

How do you prepare your tea?
I typically brew gongfu style, as I enjoy developing my skills to brew the finest cup of tea possible and creating a sense of ceremony. I also enjoy simple leaves in a bowl when appropriate, and also (the newest method for me) brewing bowl tea in a larger sidehandled pot.

What tea knowledge are you interested in exploring right now?
Right now I'm learning all I can about sidehandle pot brewing and history. I'm also keen to grow my skills (and palate) regarding matcha.

What factors lead you to delve into the world of tea, and what is keeping you there?
At first, it was the incredible aromas, flavors, and sense of ceremony that drew me in. All those factors still keep me deeply rooted in my tea practice, but I'm now happily trying new teas whenever possible, adding to my teaware collection, and immersing myself in the history of this beverage we all hold so dear.

What is your location?
Westchester, New York - just north of NYC

Looking forward to chatting with you!
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Victoria
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Wed Dec 18, 2019 11:29 am

Welcome to TeaForum @firedancer. Many members in the greater NYC area.
Vanenbw
Posts: 176
Joined: Mon Dec 16, 2019 10:14 pm
Location: NJ, USA

Wed Dec 18, 2019 9:03 pm

Hello everyone,

I recently started searching for information on brewing green tea and found Teachat, which had some good information, but didn't seem to be that active any longer. Then I stumbled upon TeaForum.org. I'm here because I love tea, namely green tea. I have been drinking green tea since I was a teenager. My former girlfriend was from Japan, and she turned me onto the loose leaf green tea. I recall her brewing tea once in awhile in a kyusu, but I didn't really know what it was at the time. Mostly we used the Daiso tea bags for our loose leaf green tea. And I used those bags to brew my green tea for many years. It was only in the last few months that I learned they are made with polypropylene plastic. I decided to discard my remaining lot and I purchased my first Kyusu pot.

For the first several weeks I brewed tea in my kyusu the way I also have brewed tea: boiling hot water, poured directly on the tea, and steep the tea for 5 or more minutes. That's right, you heard me correctly. Are any jaws dropping yet? So now I have this kyusu pot and although I'm an old hand at drinking green tea (notice I said drinking, not brewing), I'm getting interested in the traditional way of brewing Japanese green tea. And I want to transition from conventional store-purchased loose-leaf teas, to more premium, organic green teas.

My venture to find a kyusu pot led me to Hibiki-An's website, and I purchased their earthenware Kyusu pot for $38 USD. A pretty good starter's tea pot, but I think it's suitable for anyone who enjoys drinking green tea. I bought my first package of organic green sencha tea from Ocha & Co. I bought my second and third from Hibiki-An, then I returned to Ocha & Co for two more bags of tea. And just last night I purchased my first bag of sae midori organic asamushi sencha from O-cha.com.

I tend to get a little obsessed when I get into something new. Although drinking green tea is not a new experience for me, brewing sencha the traditonal way is, and I wanted to ensure I'm getting the best possible brew I can, so I purchased a gram scale, a thermometer, a yuzamashi, a set of porcelain yunomi, and a sami wooden spoon scoop. I even purchased a small serving tray on Amazon, but I'm looking for something nicer and larger (if you have any suggestions, I'd love to hear it).

I can't say exactly why I ever got into drinking tea. I just loved the experience of sipping the hot, flavorful water, infused with a strong, grassy flavor and slightly bitter notes. Even before I learned about the plastic in Daiso tea bags, I had been eyeing a kyusu pot online. For me, drinking tea is not just a daily thing to do because it's enjoyable. My love for tea goes well beyond that. I feel transported when I drink tea. Worlds open up in my mind. Nature reveals itself. I breathe a little easier. I kid you not . . . everyday I look forward to my cups of tea. When I work, I drink only a cup in the morning (usually organic tea in a bag--purchased from a supermarket--either green tea or genmaicha). In the evening, that's the cup of tea I dream about all day long. I can't wait to finish my dinner and sit down on my couch with a book or my journal, and sip on my cup of tea. It's heaven. I can't understate the pleasure I derive from drinking green tea. In the evening I usually drink loose-leaf green tea, and a larger cup of tea. On the weekends, or on days I work from home, I drink a few cups of tea.

That's pretty much my story. I'm interested in learning more about brewing green tea and having fun experimenting with different brewing methods. I joined the forum so I can share thoughts and stories about drinking green tea with other tea enthusiasts.

I live in northern, NJ, USA.
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Victoria
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Thu Dec 19, 2019 12:34 am

Welcome to TeaForum @Vanenbw. Love your intro. just today a family member asked “why do you drink this stuff!” Ha, you explained it beautifully 🍃.
Vanenbw
Posts: 176
Joined: Mon Dec 16, 2019 10:14 pm
Location: NJ, USA

Thu Dec 19, 2019 7:22 am

Thank you, @Victoria. It's a pleasure to be here.
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debunix
Posts: 1812
Joined: Sat Oct 21, 2017 1:27 am
Location: Los Angeles, CA

Thu Dec 19, 2019 10:33 am

Glad to see the new 'faces' here. Sipping some Yame gyokuro from O-Cha while enjoying the news. I remember being astonished that anyone could like green tea after buying some loose leaf greens from....maybe Rishi?.....and doing the boiling water onto the leaf, steep 5 minutes, and horrified shock at the result. I tried over and over, and finally gave those first greens to the worm bin. It was several years before I was willing to try again, and then only with a lot of handholding in the form of an online tea tasting that led me through it all step by gram by degree by minute infused. And now I'm having a gyokuro morning and loving it.

Wishing our new tea friends fine tea mornings to come, whatever time morning is in your corner of the globe.

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Vanenbw
Posts: 176
Joined: Mon Dec 16, 2019 10:14 pm
Location: NJ, USA

Thu Dec 19, 2019 7:43 pm

It's truly an art form, @debunix. The nice thing about our "modern" society is the ability to connect with other like-minded folks globally. This just would not have been possible twenty-five years ago. I feel like a neophyte, although I've been drinking green tea for much of my life. All of this began for me very recently, just in the last few months. I had been happily sipping my hot, conventional, Japanese tea steeped in Daiso tea bags until I learned that the bags were made with plastic. Then I researched some more and started reading the boxes of the organic tea I purchase from Whole Foods or Trader Joe's, and to my chagrin, I realized I was drinking from plastic bags and bleached paper. Whole Foods 365 organic green tea does not state the the contents of their tea bags, so I wrote to them and received this response:

"The tea bags for our 365 Everyday Value teas are made of unbleached wood pulp that has been heat sealed using no adhesives or glues. We do use a minimal amount of resin well under the FDA's maximum threshold to make our tea bags hold together in hot water. The final product is tested and there is no epichlorohydrin present in the manufactured paper for the bags. "

Okay, so maybe it's not a health threat, but I don't like the sound of it. So that was that. And so I found myself seeking alternate methods of brewing green tea. That's what ultimately led me here. I have found many answers to some of my questions already on the forum and on TeaChat's forum. I still have a lot of questions, likely ones that have already been asked and answered ad nauseam by administrators and old-timers.

I will have to try some of that yame gyokuro soon. Thus far I have only ordered sencha and genmaicha.
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