hello friends - some of you may disagree and not like the way i have
projected this - my motive is not to hurt anyone - just sharing some
thoughts :

The Champagne of Tea

Darjeeling is the champagne of Indian tea. On the world market,
without the name Darjeeling, Indian tea would be like French wine
without the prestige of champagne. This wine of wines forms only 3
percent of the total production in France but its prestige-value is
incalculable.

Other countries like Italy, Germany, Portugal and Spain produce just
as good wine as France does. In fact, certain varieties like Morselle
and Riesling from Germany and Chianti from Italy are far better than
their French comparables. And yet, France experiences a unique pride
and enjoys an unusual prestige in the realm of wine. In fact, in the
mind of the average person, especially outside Europe, good wine is
synonymous with French wine.

As with champagne and wine, so with Darjeeling and tea, the mention of
the finest tea anywhere in the world immediately brings to the mind
the sound of the word Darjeeling. The district produces only about ten
million kilograms of tea which is about 1 percent of the total Indian
production. Yet, it is reported that ten times as much tea is sold as
Darjeeling tea both overseas as well as in India. Instances have been
detected when a tea packet purported to have been packed in another
country claimed to contain pure Darjeelings. Such is the charisma of
the word Darjeeling and the temptation to exploit it to realize either
a premium price or a larger sale.

regards
ankit lochan

hello!

i am a bit confused on what is the issue going on about sun drying.

a clarification - in darjeeling - we never sun dry our white teas.

regards
ankit

On Aug 6, 2:39 am, Ankit Lochan wrote:

i have a small request to make - please log on towww.teasetc.com and
try the thurbo white tea -

Hi--

I have always loved reading your posts! Thank you!

Teasetc has two white darjeelings on their site right now. One is
"Darjeeling White," and the notes say it is from Poobong Estate. The
other is "Darjeeling First Flush White Tea," and the notes don't say
where it comes from. Is this second one the Thurbo you were
recommending?

Many thanks,

james-henry

It's probably what you use if you dump a clogged teapot of SowMee down
the sink. SowMee looks like the fall leaves that have dried out in
the sun from my Maple tree.

Jim

toci wrote:
On Aug 4, 10:19 am, Space Cowboy wrote:
Go to Chinatown and
buy some cheap Fujian SowMee. Be sure to have a snake handy
Jim

Snake? Toci

On Aug 5, 11:43 pm, Ankit Lochan wrote:
hello friends - some of you may disagree and not like the way i have
projected this - my motive is not to hurt anyone - just sharing some
thoughts :

The Champagne of Tea

Darjeeling is the champagne of Indian tea. On the world market,
without the name Darjeeling, Indian tea would be like French wine
without the prestige of champagne. This wine of wines forms only 3
percent of the total production in France but its prestige-value is
incalculable.

Other countries like Italy, Germany, Portugal and Spain produce just
as good wine as France does. In fact, certain varieties like Morselle
and Riesling from Germany and Chianti from Italy are far better than
their French comparables. And yet, France experiences a unique pride
and enjoys an unusual prestige in the realm of wine. In fact, in the
mind of the average person, especially outside Europe, good wine is
synonymous with French wine.

As with champagne and wine, so with Darjeeling and tea, the mention of
the finest tea anywhere in the world immediately brings to the mind
the sound of the word Darjeeling. The district produces only about ten
million kilograms of tea which is about 1 percent of the total Indian
production. Yet, it is reported that ten times as much tea is sold as
Darjeeling tea both overseas as well as in India. Instances have been
detected when a tea packet purported to have been packed in another
country claimed to contain pure Darjeelings. Such is the charisma of
the word Darjeeling and the temptation to exploit it to realize either
a premium price or a larger sale.

regards
ankit lochan

Ankit,
So good to hear from you! If anyone should have the scoop on fine
Darjeelings, it would be Lochan family member!
I suppose I started this "sun-drying" thing in a previous posting: the
white tea I enjoyed so much from Imperial Tea Court, "Everyday White",
is fully sundried. Mr. Roy Fong, proprietor, said this was a rare
thing nowadays because most whites are partially roasted. I garnered
this information from him directly since I was participating in a
Spring 2007 Green Tea Tasting which he offered. It's on his web-site,
as well.
Thanks so much for piping in here to share information about the
complexities of good Darjeelings.
Shen

juliantai writes:

[...]
Lewis, I am open to challenge, and learning like everyone else.

Julian, this could be the RFDT motto. I hate it when I allow myself
to use an authoritative tone of voice here.

/Lew
---
Lew Perin /
http://www.panix.com/~perin/babelcarp.html

On 2007-08-06, Lewis Perin wrote:
juliantai writes:
Lewis, I am open to challenge, and learning like everyone else.

Julian, this could be the RFDT motto. I hate it when I allow myself
to use an authoritative tone of voice here.

Definitely!

N., ducking

Natarajan Krishnaswami writes:

On 2007-08-06, Lewis Perin wrote:
juliantai writes:
Lewis, I am open to challenge, and learning like everyone else.

Julian, this could be the RFDT motto. I hate it when I allow myself
to use an authoritative tone of voice here.

Definitely!

N., ducking

But not fast enough: you're under arrest for excessive certitude.

/Lew
---
Lew Perin /
http://www.panix.com/~perin/babelcarp.html
recently updated: bai cha

hi james,

thank you for the kind words!

http://www.teasetc.com/details.asp?prodid=0312

The darjeeling first flush is the one i was refering to - please go
ahead and try that. it hails from the thurbo tea estate.

Something on the Thurbo tea estate for you as Beth has not mentioned
where the tea hails from.

"Thurbo Tea garden, owned and operated by Goodricke Group Limited, is
right in the heart of Mirik. In the hills of Mirik the clouds hang so
low, you can literally reach up and touch them! The lush green hills
and the beautiful earthy smell is only accentuated with the shafts of
sunlight piercing the clouds to create a surreal atmosphere. The
weather is cool during most parts of the year with drizzling rain,
allowing the bushes to grow slowly and produce the muscatel flavor."


regards
ankit lochan
www.xanga.com/lochantea

On Aug 6, 5:48 pm, Shen wrote:
On Aug 5, 11:43 pm, Ankit Lochan wrote:





hello friends - some of you may disagree and not like the way i have
projected this - my motive is not to hurt anyone - just sharing some
thoughts :

The Champagne of Tea

Darjeeling is the champagne of Indian tea. On the world market,
without the name Darjeeling, Indian tea would be like French wine
without the prestige of champagne. This wine of wines forms only 3
percent of the total production in France but its prestige-value is
incalculable.

Other countries like Italy, Germany, Portugal and Spain produce just
as good wine as France does. In fact, certain varieties like Morselle
and Riesling from Germany and Chianti from Italy are far better than
their French comparables. And yet, France experiences a unique pride
and enjoys an unusual prestige in the realm of wine. In fact, in the
mind of the average person, especially outside Europe, good wine is
synonymous with French wine.

As with champagne and wine, so with Darjeeling and tea, the mention of
the finest tea anywhere in the world immediately brings to the mind
the sound of the word Darjeeling. The district produces only about ten
million kilograms of tea which is about 1 percent of the total Indian
production. Yet, it is reported that ten times as much tea is sold as
Darjeeling tea both overseas as well as in India. Instances have been
detected when a tea packet purported to have been packed in another
country claimed to contain pure Darjeelings. Such is the charisma of
the word Darjeeling and the temptation to exploit it to realize either
a premium price or a larger sale.

regards
ankit lochan

Ankit,
So good to hear from you! If anyone should have the scoop on fine
Darjeelings, it would be Lochan family member!
I suppose I started this "sun-drying" thing in a previous posting: the
white tea I enjoyed so much from Imperial Tea Court, "Everyday White",
is fully sundried. Mr. Roy Fong, proprietor, said this was a rare
thing nowadays because most whites are partially roasted. I garnered
this information from him directly since I was participating in a
Spring 2007 Green Tea Tasting which he offered. It's on his web-site,
as well.
Thanks so much for piping in here to share information about the
complexities of good Darjeelings.
Shen- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

hi shen,

you really make me feel on top the world - thank you very much for all
the appreciation - highly grateful to you.

i have tasted some sun dried white tea but i believe that it tends to
taste a bit harsh if it is sundried and i personally prefer more
delicate white teas which are indoor dried.

regards
ankit

Dear Shen,
I found your posting interesting indeed. And Ankit's and Juliantai are
informative as usual.
Here, I would like to share my experience a little.
You see, with the making of Tea, its the "JAT" which matters the most.
I remember making White Teas when small. We would go for a walk in the
plantations, chewing and enjoying the bitter taste of Raw Tea Leaves.
Sudenly you would come across a Bush with Bitterness surpassing the
average. We would tip the Buds off and tenderly dry them in the Sun.
Small quantities indeed, but beleive me, itssomething like the "Nose"
of Fermentation. You dont have a yardstick, but go around checking all
available Clones or Jats, and pick up the one showing the most promise
at that particular time of the year / season. White Teas are NEVER
full ... they leave you asking for more. Its perhaps the most delicate
beverage available.
Regards,
Jayesh Pandya.

On Aug 4, 1:24 am, Shen wrote:
On Aug 3, 12:02 pm, toci wrote:

I've finally come to the conclusion that both the white teas and
Darjeelings are not for me. Ethereal, dainty, light, are all words
that mean- tastes like water. Not that there's anything wrong with
water, but why mix expensive leaves in it? For those who can taste
and rhapsidize over them, you now have more. Toci

Until recently, I would have agreed with you. Whites, particularly,
have always seemed a little insipid to me.
However, during a recent green tea tasting at Imperial Tea Court, I
had the privilege of savouring some "Everyday White". This white,
unlike one-note others, is thick with flavour: sweet, slightly floral,
but robust and toasty. It was sun-dried and, perhaps, that contributed
to the taste complexity. I don't know.
A pretty inexpensive tea, as well -$5.60 an oz.
Occasionally, I'll find a white tea in Oakland Chinatown that I enjoy
and usually freshness can play a very big part in that selection.
There seems to be nothing more dreary than a stale white tea.
Recently, I've had some Darjeelings from Lochan in India that are
superior - rich, full of muscatel, tawny and fruity. The vendor that
Phyll recommended, The Simple Leaf, has some really splendid
Darjeeling-types and Oolongs,too. The "Honeybee" is exceptional.
None of these teas, in the slightest, resemble water.
A suggestion: take a break from the teas you've considered "dainty"
and try some other vendors. I can guarantee that you'll not find
"Everyday White" from ITC ethereal, light or
dainty....................
Shen

On Aug 7, 8:47 am, teapandya wrote:
Dear Shen,
I found your posting interesting indeed. And Ankit's and Juliantai are
informative as usual.
Here, I would like to share my experience a little.
You see, with the making of Tea, its the "JAT" which matters the most.
I remember making White Teas when small. We would go for a walk in the
plantations, chewing and enjoying the bitter taste of Raw Tea Leaves.
Sudenly you would come across a Bush with Bitterness surpassing the
average. We would tip the Buds off and tenderly dry them in the Sun.
Small quantities indeed, but beleive me, itssomething like the "Nose"
of Fermentation. You dont have a yardstick, but go around checking all
available Clones or Jats, and pick up the one showing the most promise
at that particular time of the year / season. White Teas are NEVER
full ... they leave you asking for more. Its perhaps the most delicate
beverage available.
Regards,
Jayesh Pandya.

On Aug 4, 1:24 am, Shen wrote:



On Aug 3, 12:02 pm, toci wrote:

I've finally come to the conclusion that both the white teas and
Darjeelings are not for me. Ethereal, dainty, light, are all words
that mean- tastes like water. Not that there's anything wrong with
water, but why mix expensive leaves in it? For those who can taste
and rhapsidize over them, you now have more. Toci

Until recently, I would have agreed with you. Whites, particularly,
have always seemed a little insipid to me.
However, during a recent green tea tasting at Imperial Tea Court, I
had the privilege of savouring some "Everyday White". This white,
unlike one-note others, is thick with flavour: sweet, slightly floral,
but robust and toasty. It was sun-dried and, perhaps, that contributed
to the taste complexity. I don't know.
A pretty inexpensive tea, as well -$5.60 an oz.
Occasionally, I'll find a white tea in Oakland Chinatown that I enjoy
and usually freshness can play a very big part in that selection.
There seems to be nothing more dreary than a stale white tea.
Recently, I've had some Darjeelings from Lochan in India that are
superior - rich, full of muscatel, tawny and fruity. The vendor that
Phyll recommended, The Simple Leaf, has some really splendid
Darjeeling-types and Oolongs,too. The "Honeybee" is exceptional.
None of these teas, in the slightest, resemble water.
A suggestion: take a break from the teas you've considered "dainty"
and try some other vendors. I can guarantee that you'll not find
"Everyday White" from ITC ethereal, light or
dainty....................
Shen- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Thanks, Jayesh!
How poetic the picking! Your description enhances my appreciation of
these teas!
Shen

On Aug 3, 9:30 pm, "Dominic T." wrote:

I've never
met a "white tea person", who favors them predominantly or specializes
in just them...

Well, I left my cup of african white upstairs and forgot about it and
I reckon it's gone pretty bad by now, but thinking myself very much
the 'white tea person' I think I'll go and drink it anyhow.

And now that we've thought to dump whites together with darjeelings
that can only make me even more the white tea person.

Regards all,

Im Teas