Tea Outdoor

01/09/2010, posted by Cha in journal

Another month, another tea carnival from the Association of Tea Bloggers.  This month, the carnival is hosted by  Brett at Black Dragon Tea Bar and the topic is Tea Outdoor .

Last week was a week without tea, but spent outdoor. Initially I planned to have a lot of tea outdoor, but I decided to make a (big) pause.  However, sometime the missing element, tea in this case, is obvious when absent.  I have found so many beautiful places for tea and I felt so many times ” Ah, a **** Tea would be so good now” .

I usually have tea outdoor while I am at my parents.  Some teas are better under certain circumstances. For example, I feel that the best time to have a Tie Guan Yin is during summer evenings, near a lot of flowers. Most of the Tie Guan Yin  I tried have a floral taste, so it seems natural for me to surround me with flowers while drinking it.   And,  I can feel that this tea is best during evenings.

The first time I tried Tie Guan Yin outdoor I also learned that Gongfu cha doesn’t need a lot of fancy and rare items. You can brew tea with the tools you have at hand.  I understood that being okay with yourself  is the most important thing. The human element and the environment are key aspects to tea. We can’t always choose the environment, but , it has a deep impact on how the tea is perceived.

The whole Tie Guan Yin experience is better described here .  I just want to say that if you choose your tea well, all the outdoor experiences are memorable.  I feel that the environment has the capacity to enhance the tea. Choose the tea well, and you will stop to admire the surroundings and start to become part of it.

Sheng Puerh, 2003

30/08/2010, posted by Cha in tea

I wonder why my best teas have no provenience information.  I know only the age of this cake, and that is not sure either. What is sure however is that this tea is great. More than great.

It was pretty expensive and I have been told it is a ‘family cake’, meaning that a certain family somewhere in China builds these kind of cakes using local tea trees.  Also, the cake was manufactured using traditional methods. I don’t know if that is true.  And I don’t care. I am glad to have this tea.

This tea actually has a fruity smell as soon as you add water over the leaves.  It’s taste is similar to green apple. But turns sweet after several infusions.  However brewed, it remains transparent and feels ‘alive’ .  I don’t know if this is the correct description (alive), but I can’t find any other relevant word to describe that feeling.

In the main picture the tea was brewed using a yixing teapot.  In the main gallery, with a gaiwan (as you can see). Notice the leaves, they look really really nice.

2006 Guang Lin Fu Shu puerh

20/08/2010, posted by Cha in journal,tea

I didn’t investigated too much on Guang Lin and I never had a cake from this factory before. It does share some characteristics with some shu puerh cakes of a similar age so I will not bother you with details regarding its taste (I actually forgot my impressions, I plan to age the cake , I brewed a sample).

I want to talk about other details.  Lately, I studied water, pouring, heating, teaware  and began experimenting with them. I noticed major improvements on most of the teas, so some things, especially related to softness or their effect could be related to that or my awareness and not to the tea itself. In addition,  by using the cups I recently acquired, practically any shu puerh becomes more attractive in an instant.

At some point I will update this post with more information about that factory. Right now it is not important, I am glad I have the opportunity to appreciate tea.  I feel at peace when I match the tea with my mood and sometimes I wonder If I should write about it at all.  I do hope that this information is useful and will help some people, and at a very least, it’s a form of diary to notice my progress.   But most important, what I would like more, is to receive feedback on whatever I can do better from those that are more experienced than me.  I am always thankful to anybody who reads my blog.

White Dragon Pearls

18/08/2010, posted by Cha in tea

This  tea is one of my favorites at certain times of year. It’s nature is very energetic. The tea is sold as white dragon pearls and it’s listed in the white teas category.

To be honest, I don’t recall of any other white tea like this one and I am not aware on how it is produced and where.  So if you have more information about this tea, please help. I can tell by the taste and color that  it definitely shares some characteristics to some other  white teas I had . In addition, it has a distinct flavor.

This tea needs a lot of energy to be released so  very hot water  helps, and  a pouring style  suited for oolongs. This tea goes up to 6 infusions with no significant drop in taste.

Yunnan Gold

10/08/2010, posted by Cha in tea

Yunnan Gold is one of the most distinctive red teas (Chinese black). You can easily identify it by it’s attractive dry leaves and by the color of the leaf. As I found out, it’s very difficult to have a bad Yunnan Gold, even from merchants that don’t appreciate quality that much. Whenever I see these colors in a hong cha, I think of a good tea.

Yunnan is mainly know for it’s puerh teas, but I think this tea is next in popularity. As a short note, I also had some very interesting green teas from that region, from big leaf varieties. Their taste is certainly distinctive.

In general, you can’t get wrong with teas from these category, because they are easy to brew. Although many vendors describe it as peppery, for me, the main keyword is sweet .  And although it is supposed to be yang in nature (should make you more alert and boost your  energy), the sweetness from these teas have a profound relaxing effect on me. A properly brewed Yunnan Gold  can be felt from the top of your head.

Over the years I have tried many varieties, including some with silver tips. The sweetest liquor was obtained from a ‘buds only’ variety.

The following pictures were made a year ago. I don’t recall the exact source of the tea, but as you can see from the pics, the infusions were very consistent. Taste did not dropped significantly in the first 6 infusions, which is something.

Read more »

Tea Experience

08/08/2010, posted by Cha in journal

I was mentioning at some point the energetic nature of the teas.  In short, I am studying their yin or yang effect.  Besides their effect,   I have also been experimenting with tea setups lately.   I believe that by  combining the tea effect and the tea setup properly,  you get a proper tea experience ( Cha Xi as mentioned on teamasters ) .

In the following pictures, I tried to express the setups by placing some objects in the tea pic to reflect them.  In the third picture I was able to catch the tea setup feeling without the use of additional objects in a separate pic.

Stéphane Erler

02/08/2010, posted by Cha in articles,tea

The Association of Tea Bloggers holds a tea blog carnival, hosted this month by Walker Tea Review .  The  subject is  “A Tea Person” and   my ‘subject’  is  Stéphane Erler, who is one of the advanced tea students that blog in English. He is  what I call a tea person. When it comes  to the Chinese gongfu tea ceremony (Cha Xi), he influenced me the most.

From my point of view,  Stéphane is different from the vast majority of tea bloggers out there.  First of all, he studies under a master,  Teaparker , which has studied tea for a long time . Teaparker has authored a lot of tea related books, and judging by Stéphane’s progress (via blog posts) , he must be a great teacher and a great tea master.

Second,  Stéphane shares what he learns. Many bloggers just talk about the different flavors that they encounter on tea, or how they like or dislike, and occasionally , they share some brewing tips.  What I find different on Stéphane’s blog is that he gives enough information to gradually  increase one’s knowledge in tea. There are some key aspects that can not be learned  just by reading about the ‘final stage’. For example, a lot of people agree that yixing teapots are best for some teas , but not everyone tells that it’s not so easy to brew from start. In fact, starting with a gaiwan (gaibei on his blog) is a very good choice for beginners.   I personally learn a lot from his blog. From all the internet sources out there, his blog influenced  me the most.  I started to read all his posts , starting from 2004,  and I pay attention to the details and experiences he encountered. I redo some of them.  I haven’t finished yet. If you don’t have enough time, Stéphane has grouped some great posts regarding tea here .

Third, his tea setups are impressive. Not impressive in the fancy way, but impressive in the natural way. Every color, teaware and plant feels like it belongs in the tea setup. In fact, just watching one tea setup makes you feel comfortable. I imagine being there would be a rewarding experience.  He determined me to try tea setups that are not based on the classic tea tray. I did not post about it yet (on my English blog) , but I will .  As I told you, I started to read all his posts. His tea setups were not like this in the past, he evolved. He made me understand that you can’t just buy tea ware and display it, there is more to it. The following images are a small reflection of his influence on myself. Of course, I am learning , experimenting, but I think I am on a ‘path’ now, even if my tea setups are clumsy.

These don’t even compare to the tea setups that Stéphane  makes. Here are three random examples from his blog:

An Interview with Stéphane Erler

I wrote Stéphane and asked him if I could interview him. He agreed. Bellow you can find my questions (in bold) , and his answers.

When did your tea interest started?

Shortly after I arrived in Taiwan, 14 years ago, I had several opportunities to drink Oolong with Taiwanese friends. I loved the tea and found the process, small teapot and cups, fascinating.

Can you tell us 2-3 things about TeaParker?

He is a professional journalist with a passion for anything related to tea. In his early fifties, he has already written over 20 books on this subject. He teaches tea students at the Xue Xue Institute in Taipei and in several other venues where he’s a lecturer or guest speaker. What makes him special? He combines a strong academic study of tea with a practical experience of top quality tea. When presented with mystery teas, he can always recognize them and sometimes give a very detailed description of the plantation where the tea grew just by smelling and looking at the leaves.

How important is personal study and how important is to have a tea master?

During my first seven years in Taiwan I was without a master, without Internet and without tea books. My attempts at making Oolong were frustrating. I invested in an expensive teapot, high mountain leaves, mineral water, a wooden tea table… but my tea wasn’t as good as my Taiwanese friends. Then, my wife signed my up in a class with Teaparker. He had written a book for tea beginners. My quick progress motivated me to learn more and to test things by myself. Personal study combined with the direction from a tea master is what works best.

There are many people who can not study under a tea master, do you have any advices for them?

Thanks to the Internet, there is a lot of information about tea now in English on the Internet. There’s a lot that can be learned with a healthy critical attitude. What may be missing is a direction and a systematic approach when you study by yourself. Also, I would advise to start with a gaiwan to study tea in a neutral way.

How is your tea passion seen in Taiwan by the Taiwanese people ?

They are very happy to see that a foreigner likes their tea culture.

How does your western origin influence your tea experience?

Before coming to Taiwan, I took a few wine classes. I think this wine culture has helped and influenced me in my tea learning.

Does your origin reflect in your Cha Xi ?

The Cha Xi is the way I select and set up my tea accessories. Some constraints are technical and shouldn’t differ, but the aesthetics is most probably influenced by my origins.

Is there something that you dislike regarding the current tea bloom?

There are many things that I don’t agree with, but I prefer talking about things I like.

Is there some kind of experiment that you can recommend to beginners, so that they can  improve their awareness on tea?

In our very first class, Teaparker made us taste different waters. Such water blind tastes can be very good exercises to improve the perception of your taste buds.

Finally, do you want to transmit anything to other people that study tea?

There are lots of experiences and teas I would like to share with other tea enthusiasts. You can read about it on my blog: http://teamasters.blogspot.com

I would like to end this post by saying:  Thank You Stéphane.

Canton Tea Co

02/08/2010, posted by Cha in journal

As you may have noticed, I enjoy the teas offered by Canton Tea Co.   They send me samples for time to time, but I have no other benefit from them. I blog only If I enjoy their teas.  It simply happens that they offer great teas and I enjoy all the teas from them. Honestly,  some of the best teas I had are from them. Like this  Pouchong . Most of the the teas mentioned on my blog gained several awards last year, and (what a surprise) the teas from this year gained several awards too.

So (quote):

To celebrate, we’re offering a special Gold Award Taster Pack comprising 10g of each winning tea for only £13.00 .

Their package includes :

• 10g Bai Lin Gong Fu
• 10g Jasmine Pearls
• 10g Ali Shan
• 10g Mi Lan Dan Cong
• 10g Silver Needle
• 10g Vietnamese Puerh
• 10g Meng Ding Huang Ya
• 10g Pouchong

In addition , the guys from Canton offer you  a discount (15%) on any other teas that you may buy by using the code LEAF. This code can not be used on the above offer, but with any other teas.

Hung Shui Oolong, Fall 2009

28/07/2010, posted by Cha in tea

This year I started to learn more about Taiwan‘s oolongs. Not in the ‘reading’ way , but in the brewing way. This Hung Shui oolong is a roasted oolong, and goes in the wow category. I am not sure if it was only the tea itself (I also used a charcoal from Taiwan), but the tea was very very soft .

Without even getting to the taste, this tea is awesome. Softness is the keyword. Perhaps the charcoal and the pouring method had their effect too, but I can’t try anymore. I  had only one sample.  I had 10 infusions , but  I only posted six pics,  because I brewed it in two sessions.  It is sweet and has  a strange combination between an oxidized oolong (like oriental beauty) and a tie guan yin.  It definitely reminds you of autumn.

This Hung Shui is manually picked, medium oxidized and slowly roasted over charcoal. The village where it was produced is called Feng Huang, and it is located near the Ding Dong region in Taiwan. Hung Shui literally translates to ‘red water’ according to babelcarp , and it’s a term that denotes medium oxidized oolong , low roasted.  So this tea would be translated as a medium oxidized oolong , low roasted, from Feng Huang.

This tea has a better description  here .

brewing tea in a bowl

13/07/2010, posted by Cha in tea

I think this is the most basic form of brewing tea. Even if you don’t have   gongfu teaware, you can obtain very nice results using this method.

I knew tea was brewed like this in the old days, but I haven’t tried it until I stumbled upon an article on The Leaf . Brewing tea this way is truly rewarding and the taste you get is different from the one you would obtain using a yixing teapot. For a young sheng puerh , this has become my preferred method.  No bitterness, and a taste that gradually changes.   Brewing this way is also visually rewarding, because the leaves unfold directly in front of you.

I have brewed in this way using different bowls, and no result was the same. The tea bowl in the pictures bellow has the best results. This bowl is made in Japan, and supposedly, it’s much older than me.

P.S. :  I  don’t like to pour the water directly on the leaves. Instead, I slowly pour it on the bowl , using a circular motion.