On Feb 14, 9:27*am, Salsero wrote:
On Feb 13, 2:52*pm, britta wrote:

I'm just wondering about the general preference out there.
...prefer Indian tea to Chinese; ... Tarajulie Assam, ... *And I love spicy chai with hints of cumin.
However China has caught my tongue lately as well, a light Keemun ...

This reminds me of a very productive thread from over a year ago, the
"What's in your cup" thread.

I have never had tea from the Tarajulie estate, but as for tea in
general, what I love most about our favorite quaff is the enormous
variety. *I can't imagine drinking the same kind of tea over and over
for days on end. *I like to start the day with something on the dark
side, Assam, China Black, or Shu move along into lighter things like
Darjeeling, Chinese greens, Sencha, Gaoshan or other light Oo from
Taiwan or Anxi, and finish the day with a gong fu session of Yan Cha,
Sheng, or Dan Cong. * My tea progression through the day is like the
backbone to everything else I do and gives me an enormous sense of
pleasure and continuity. *Sometimes it's just a bother, but most of
the time deciding what to have next brings me away from the little
irritations that seem to clutter our lives and centers me on something
I enjoy and a preparation ritual that distracts from the
distractions. *Deciding on a first flush Darj instead of a Guricha
Sencha is part of directing who I am at the moment and where I am
going in my day.

The downside of doting on variety is that I have an enormous number of
open teas sitting around, each calling out like a precious orphan
demanding its rightful due. *The Fukamushi Sencha (the tea equivalent
of crack cocaine as far as I can tell) is especially heart-wrench:
"Drink me, drink me, I don't have much time!" *That's why I love puerh
so much: it thrives on abandonment, even for years! *"Leave me alone,
I'll be fine ... no, really!"

And then too, prowling for something different can lead me into some
exotic neighborhoods where I might get in over my head, like ordering
my first matcha set the other day. *Six months ago I dismissed matcha
as a novelty for the truly twisted soul. *Mmmm.

So, Britta, I can't imagine being happy drinking the same tea
"morning, noon, and night." *That's the way I drank coffee, paying no
attention, satisfying a need, getting a fix. *As for chai, I usually
avoid flavored tea. *I suppose because I already have such enormous
variety, I don't feel the need to add blueberry or watermelon
flavoring to my cup. *Chai, on the other hand, I have enjoyed, not
very often and never the pre-mixed kind. *For me it is especially good
after an Indian meal.

Salsero,
I agree I like to choose tea based on my mood and time of day. I
usually like something darker with more tannins in the morning, then
move to something lighter as the day goes on.
I love a cup of chai after a meal with a little bit of sugar, never
the premixed powder stuff (ugh).
The tarajulie is my go to tea through the day though; if I want a cup
of tea I know it will satisfy. Right now I am all about Indian tea.