In article >, Michael Plant wrote:
> I've also had some Oolongs with an inordinate amount of stem . It's curious
> that some of these stemmy Oolongs have been more delightful than those more
> carefully pruned or plucked. I've been told that sometimes the stems are
> left because they have a positive effect on the taste and aroma of the tea.

The iron Guan Yin KING from funalliance.com has a lot of stem. Out of
curiosity, I plucked off a couple of these stem and nibbled on them.
Yum! Who'd've thought wood could be so tasty? This was one of the
most delightful (to steal your word) TGYs I've had in a long time (on
the greener side), so at the VERY least, the presence of the stem
isn't enough to ruin it, and I'd certainly believe it improves the
taste/aroma.


N.