"Dominic T." wrote in message
...
Lew, their prices seem really high. Is the quality worth it? Are the
Chinese teas certified organic or checked for pesticide/heavy metal
residues?

Thanks,
Dean

From what I've seen and heard The Tea Gallery is certainly worth
patronizing. Had it not been for technical difficulties on my last
trip to NYC it was as much of a destination for me as the Statue of
Liberty. I don't even think Lew needed the full disclosure for such a
loved vendor. In fact it would be nice to have names dropped of these
most trusted and favorite vendors more often.

I hate to say it (and it's been hashed and rehashed) but terms and
seals claiming organic tea aren't really worth much more than they
weigh. Pesticides and heavy metals are always a potential worry, in
any tea from Lipton to imperial grades. The only way to be sure is to
have it analyzed personally and even that is overkill.

I have sampled a few teas from TTG and it will be my first stop next
time I'm in NYC for what it's worth.

- Dominic

Well, I respect both of your opinions, so I'll have to schedule a trip up
there. At these prices I definitely have to try before I buy.

"The only way to be sure is to have it analyzed personally and even that is
overkill."
Some vendors actually do their own testing, but only the larger ones (like
Upton) and only a few random teas. When I asked Upton, they said:

"Although nothing is 100%, we do our very best to ensure that our tea is
safe. We work very closely only with vendors who we trust and with whom
we've had longstanding business relations. They provide us with detailed
pesticide reports and organic certificates. We also buy from several brokers
in Europe who have very stringent requirements for importing tea.
Additionally, we do test our teas at random to ensure that they are safe for
consumption and so far, all the teas we've analyzed have not had any
detectable pesticide residues."

Considering the state of the world we live in, I don't think I can expect
much more than that.

Dean