I just spent a wonderful half hour in "In Pursuit of Tea" in Brooklyn.

Sebastian was great, subtly correcting my pronunciation of "gaiwan" and showing
me short movies of tea picking & making in India & China while making me a
couple of cups of the Silver Needle Pu-erh which was, if possible, even better
than Lew's review of it.

I left with some of each of their Pu-erhs.

As I type, I am sampling the Tibetan Mushroom Pu-erh which is great. Not as
subtle or sweet as the silver needle but very flavorful with nice nuances.

Thanks for the recommendation guys!


--Tom
-oo-
""\o~
------------------------------------
"Homo sum, humani nil a me alienum puto."
Terrance

"Tom" wrote in message
...
I just spent a wonderful half hour in "In Pursuit of Tea" in Brooklyn.

Sebastian was great, subtly correcting my pronunciation of "gaiwan" and showing
me short movies of tea picking & making in India & China while making me a
couple of cups of the Silver Needle Pu-erh which was, if possible, even better
than Lew's review of it.

I left with some of each of their Pu-erhs.

As I type, I am sampling the Tibetan Mushroom Pu-erh which is great. Not as
subtle or sweet as the silver needle but very flavorful with nice nuances.

Thanks for the recommendation guys!


--Tom

Sounds great, Tom. I am likely headed that way soon, where is it located? TIA
Karen

In Pursuit of Tea Inc
224 Roebling Street
Brooklyn, NY 11211

Subject: A Great Visit: In Pursuit of Tea
From: "Frayed" cal
Date: 1/5/2004 2:30 PM Eastern Standard Time
Message-id: k.net


"Tom" wrote in message
...
I just spent a wonderful half hour in "In Pursuit of Tea" in Brooklyn.

Sebastian was great, subtly correcting my pronunciation of "gaiwan" and
showing
me short movies of tea picking & making in India & China while making me a
couple of cups of the Silver Needle Pu-erh which was, if possible, even
better
than Lew's review of it.

I left with some of each of their Pu-erhs.

As I type, I am sampling the Tibetan Mushroom Pu-erh which is great. Not
as
subtle or sweet as the silver needle but very flavorful with nice nuances.

Thanks for the recommendation guys!


--Tom

Sounds great, Tom. I am likely headed that way soon, where is it located? TIA
Karen










--Tom
-oo-
""\o~
------------------------------------
"Homo sum, humani nil a me alienum puto."
Terrance

Tom,

I'm glad to hear you had a good time over there. The films are fun, aren't
they? I'm do to visit myself since I'm out of some of my favorites. Did you
try (or buy) the aged Lu An? That's the fermented green that comes in a
bamboo basket topped with big dry leaves. Tastes of earth and beets.
Wonderful. But, the Silver Needles Beencha Pu-erh takes the prize. Nothing
else in its class.

Isn't it gettin' on time for those winter Bao Zhongs to start rollin' in?

I'm almost completely out of Oolong. That is *not* a good thing. BTW, and on
the subject of Oolong, have you tried Big Apple down on Howard Street,
Manhattan? They're pretty cool, they have good stuff, serve formal gungfu --
beware the killer strength though -- and they'll talk with you too, not
unlike the IPOT guys. It's Lew's find. How could it be bad?

Michael



1/5/04


I just spent a wonderful half hour in "In Pursuit of Tea" in Brooklyn.

Sebastian was great, subtly correcting my pronunciation of "gaiwan" and
showing
me short movies of tea picking & making in India & China while making me a
couple of cups of the Silver Needle Pu-erh which was, if possible, even better
than Lew's review of it.

I left with some of each of their Pu-erhs.

As I type, I am sampling the Tibetan Mushroom Pu-erh which is great. Not as
subtle or sweet as the silver needle but very flavorful with nice nuances.

Thanks for the recommendation guys!

Michael Plant writes:

[...visiting IPOT...]
I'm almost completely out of Oolong. That is *not* a good thing. BTW, and on
the subject of Oolong, have you tried Big Apple down on Howard Street,
Manhattan? They're pretty cool, they have good stuff, serve formal gungfu --
beware the killer strength though -- and they'll talk with you too, not
unlike the IPOT guys.

Let me add that what Michael undoubtedly means by "formal" is that you
get gongfu tea service with all the tools and accessories. The
atmosphere is far from formal, though: it's loose and relaxed.
They'll let you do the brewing yourself if you prefer.

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

"Michael Plant" wrote in message
...

Isn't it gettin' on time for those winter Bao Zhongs to start rollin' in?

Michael,

Perhaps you buy your Oolongs from B&M shops, but if you do use internet
sources, which ones do you think have the best selection and quality?

Thanks,
Dean

Sounds awesome.

Where is it?

Subject: A Great Visit: In Pursuit of Tea
From: Lewis Perin
Date: 1/6/2004 11:05 AM Eastern Standard Time
Message-id:

Michael Plant writes:

[...visiting IPOT...]
I'm almost completely out of Oolong. That is *not* a good thing. BTW, and
on
the subject of Oolong, have you tried Big Apple down on Howard Street,
Manhattan? They're pretty cool, they have good stuff, serve formal gungfu
--
beware the killer strength though -- and they'll talk with you too, not
unlike the IPOT guys.

Let me add that what Michael undoubtedly means by "formal" is that you
get gongfu tea service with all the tools and accessories. The
atmosphere is far from formal, though: it's loose and relaxed.
They'll let you do the brewing yourself if you prefer.

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








--Tom
-oo-
""\o~
------------------------------------
"Homo sum, humani nil a me alienum puto."
Terrance

1/6/04


Sounds awesome.

Where is it?

Subject: A Great Visit: In Pursuit of Tea
From: Lewis Perin
Date: 1/6/2004 11:05 AM Eastern Standard Time
Message-id:

Michael Plant writes:

[...visiting IPOT...]
I'm almost completely out of Oolong. That is *not* a good thing. BTW, and
on
the subject of Oolong, have you tried Big Apple down on Howard Street,
Manhattan? They're pretty cool, they have good stuff, serve formal gungfu
--
beware the killer strength though -- and they'll talk with you too, not
unlike the IPOT guys.

Let me add that what Michael undoubtedly means by "formal" is that you
get gongfu tea service with all the tools and accessories. The
atmosphere is far from formal, though: it's loose and relaxed.
They'll let you do the brewing yourself if you prefer.

/Lew

Tom,

First, Lew is of course quite right about formality at Big Apple. I was
referring to the fact that they use gungfu set ups and run the entire
routine of heat-ups, rinses, washes, and steeps. The atmosphere is indeed
informal, though.

Big Apple is on Howard Street on the North side between Broadway and
Lafayette, closer to the latter. You walk up some steps, if I recall. Their
sign features "internet," I think. They have a couple computers, and it
costs something like six dollars an hour to connect. Not so bad. Lew will
have to chime in with a more specific address.

Michael

Dean /6/04

"Michael Plant" wrote in message
...

Isn't it gettin' on time for those winter Bao Zhongs to start rollin' in?

Michael,

Perhaps you buy your Oolongs from B&M shops, but if you do use internet
sources, which ones do you think have the best selection and quality?

Thanks,
Dean


Dean,

I'm at something of a lose here myself -- wish Laylage were around; she
knows -- but it seems Brian of ShanShui down in Washington DC is a major
player. For me these are finicky teas, not in the brewing but in the
finding. Sometimes they're great and just right, sometimes too "viscous,"
sometimes too thin. It's the melon flower flavor and aroma that hook me. The
year before last, IPOT offered a really great one. Last year's IMHO was not
as fine. I'm just an amateur, though; the mood of the moment weighs in
heavily. (All the above about Bao Zhong.)

More generally, Oolong-wise, I get off on the IPOT Monkey Picked Competition
Ti Guan Yin, although I've been out of it for quite awhile. Some remarkable
ones I've tasted from Taiwan Tea. I had an aged dark Oolong and a Li Shan
from The Oolong Tea Store in New Jersey that I liked a lot. Also, I've
enjoyed those I've had from ITC, but I don't enjoy their prices. I tend away
from the flowery light green Oolongs and more toward the complex ones with a
(slight) resiny, steely, and or woody overlay. The truth? I usually like
the one I'm drinking at the moment best.

B&M? Took me a couple minutes. Bread&Mortar, Bread&Roses, Bread&Tea. Got it
now. I buy teas from The Big Apple (Something) in NYC on Howard Street
between Broadway and Lafayette, a gungfu tea place with internet.I've been
known to buy at Ten Ren's shop, but less and less, since they're too big now
for my tastes, having bragged to me about their hundreds of locations in
China, PR of, that is.

Best,
Michael

"Brick," I meant "Brick," not "Bread," Brick.

"Michael Plant" wrote in message
...
Dean /6/04


"Michael Plant" wrote in message
...

Isn't it gettin' on time for those winter Bao Zhongs to start rollin'
in?

Michael,

Perhaps you buy your Oolongs from B&M shops, but if you do use internet
sources, which ones do you think have the best selection and quality?

Thanks,
Dean


Dean,

I'm at something of a lose here myself -- wish Laylage were around; she
knows -- but it seems Brian of ShanShui down in Washington DC is a major
player. For me these are finicky teas, not in the brewing but in the
finding. Sometimes they're great and just right, sometimes too "viscous,"
sometimes too thin. It's the melon flower flavor and aroma that hook me.
The
year before last, IPOT offered a really great one. Last year's IMHO was
not
as fine. I'm just an amateur, though; the mood of the moment weighs in
heavily. (All the above about Bao Zhong.)

More generally, Oolong-wise, I get off on the IPOT Monkey Picked
Competition
Ti Guan Yin, although I've been out of it for quite awhile. Some
remarkable
ones I've tasted from Taiwan Tea. I had an aged dark Oolong and a Li Shan
from The Oolong Tea Store in New Jersey that I liked a lot. Also, I've
enjoyed those I've had from ITC, but I don't enjoy their prices. I tend
away
from the flowery light green Oolongs and more toward the complex ones with
a
(slight) resiny, steely, and or woody overlay. The truth? I usually like
the one I'm drinking at the moment best.

B&M? Took me a couple minutes. Bread&Mortar, Bread&Roses, Bread&Tea. Got
it
now. I buy teas from The Big Apple (Something) in NYC on Howard Street
between Broadway and Lafayette, a gungfu tea place with internet.I've been
known to buy at Ten Ren's shop, but less and less, since they're too big
now
for my tastes, having bragged to me about their hundreds of locations in
China, PR of, that is.

Thanks for your thoughts. I'm still exploring Chinese Oolongs, trying to
better understand their character. I live in the Philadelphia area, there
is only one real tea store in Phila that I'm aware of and its hours don't
correspond to mine very well. Most of my explorations are by necessity done
through online vendors, which prompted my original note.

My usual tea of choice is Darjeeling, and thanks to another thread I now
think of Darjeeling as Indian oolong. I've had the Gopaldhara WT-8 from
Specialteas and thought it extraordinary - the only Darjeeling from which
I've ever been able to get good multiple infusions, probably because of the
bold leaf style. If this is the wave of the Darjeeling future, I for one am
all for it!

Regards,
Dean

Michael Plant writes:

1/6/04


Sounds awesome.

Where is it?
[...]
[...]
Big Apple is on Howard Street on the North side between Broadway and
Lafayette, closer to the latter. You walk up some steps, if I recall. Their
sign features "internet," I think. They have a couple computers, and it
costs something like six dollars an hour to connect. Not so bad. Lew will
have to chime in with a more specific address.

What I find engraved on the inside of my eyelids is 22D Howard St.
It's not far north of Canal St.

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

"Dean Macinskas" writes:

Thanks for your thoughts. I'm still exploring Chinese Oolongs,
trying to better understand their character. I live in the
Philadelphia area, there is only one real tea store in Phila that
I'm aware of and its hours don't correspond to mine very well. Most
of my explorations are by necessity done through online vendors,
which prompted my original note.

The House of Teas has a web site.

Some of the Chinese stores have teas. I've been doing a cross
comparision between a Specialteas sample Tung Ting and a Tung Ting I
bought in the Hong Kong grocery on Rising Sun and Adams. The
Specialteas Tung Ting is better but the cheaper Tung Ting is certainly
drinkable. We've had some threads in the past about Chinese store
teas. The consensus seems to have been that they varied.


My usual tea of choice is Darjeeling, and thanks to another thread I
now think of Darjeeling as Indian oolong. I've had the Gopaldhara
WT-8 from Specialteas and thought it extraordinary - the only
Darjeeling from which I've ever been able to get good multiple
infusions, probably because of the bold leaf style. If this is the
wave of the Darjeeling future, I for one am all for it!


I placed an order by web with Specialteas on Sunday and it arrived
today. I believe they have an out and out Darjeeling oolong -- search
for all oolongs.

--
Rebecca Ore
http://mysite.verizon.net/rebecca.ore

"Rebecca Ore" wrote in message
...
"Dean Macinskas" writes:

Thanks for your thoughts. I'm still exploring Chinese Oolongs,
trying to better understand their character. I live in the
Philadelphia area, there is only one real tea store in Phila that
I'm aware of and its hours don't correspond to mine very well. Most
of my explorations are by necessity done through online vendors,
which prompted my original note.

The House of Teas has a web site.


True, but that reduces them to an internet site g. The last time I
stopped at HoT ( a Monday morning, ~9:30 am) they were closed. I cannot
find their hours on the site; I guess I'll have to call them.

Their prices seem high, at least compared to the internet sites I frequent,
but I suppose something has to pay the rent.

Some of the Chinese stores have teas. I've been doing a cross
comparision between a Specialteas sample Tung Ting and a Tung Ting I
bought in the Hong Kong grocery on Rising Sun and Adams. The
Specialteas Tung Ting is better but the cheaper Tung Ting is certainly
drinkable. We've had some threads in the past about Chinese store
teas. The consensus seems to have been that they varied.

I took a walk through the Oriental market tea section at Wing Phat plaza on
Washington a month or so ago. A huge selection, but as most of it is
labeled in Chinese, choosing some would be the equivalent of buying a bottle
of wine because one liked the label. The prices certainly seemed low, but I
suspect one gets what one pays for. Mostly bagged tea, as I recall. I
guess "supermarket" tea is pretty much the same the world over.


My usual tea of choice is Darjeeling, and thanks to another thread I
now think of Darjeeling as Indian oolong. I've had the Gopaldhara
WT-8 from Specialteas and thought it extraordinary - the only
Darjeeling from which I've ever been able to get good multiple
infusions, probably because of the bold leaf style. If this is the
wave of the Darjeeling future, I for one am all for it!


I placed an order by web with Specialteas on Sunday and it arrived
today. I believe they have an out and out Darjeeling oolong -- search
for all oolongs.

A long time ago I tried Specialteas Poobong Black Musk Oolong (#191), and
was distinctly underwhelmed. But my tastes have evolved somewhat since
then, so perhaps I should try it (or some others) again.

--
Rebecca Ore
http://mysite.verizon.net/rebecca.ore

"Michael Plant" wrote in message
...
Dean /6/04


"Michael Plant" wrote in message
...

Isn't it gettin' on time for those winter Bao Zhongs to start rollin'
in?

Michael,

Imperial Tea Court is advertising a "Imperial Wen Shan Bao Zhong", but the
price is stunning: $70 for 4 ounces!

Regards,
Dean