Hi all,

Before I start, I'd like to say that I'm new to this community, so I
apologize if I breach any rules of etiquette here. I've been searching
for this information using Google Groups and it looks like people can
get touchy when discussion turns commercial. I'm only looking for
information. Also, this post may be a little long winded, but I'm not
sure what information is or isn't important, so I'm erring on the side
of inclusion. Thanks for your patience with a tea novice.

I started drinking good tea a couple of years ago, and late last June,
started ordering from Upton. In particular, I ordered a Risheehat
First Flush that I liked very much. The aroma was very strong at this
point, and probably for the next month or two. I stored the tea in
Upton's tin, put in a cool dark place. By October, however, the aroma
of the tea became less pronounced, and the flavor less complex.

Now, in early February, I ordered a bunch of first and second flush
samples from Upton. I'm pretty happy with some of the second flushes,
but the first flushes seem to have lost potency just as my Risheehat
did. I thought this might be the quality of the tea; luckily, I'd
ordered the Risheehat again as a check. Sure enough, it tasted and
smelled like it did after a few months with me last time. I'm not sure
what to make of this, since the tea itself is around a year old at
this point.

So here are my questions:

1. Is this shelf life the best I can expect, or is there something I
can do to improve my storage? A few months seems a bit short to me.
2. Is this level of freshness what I can expect from all vendors, or
does Upton have a freshness issue?

I really loved the tea when it was fresh (or at least fresher), so I
was thinking of buying all my Darjeeling tea this year direct from
India.

3. Would this get me fresher and/or better tea than careful selection
from Upton or another (please recommend) US vendor?
4. If so, can anyone recommend and talk about their experience with a
particular site or distributor? I've seen Thunderbolt Tea, Tea
Emporium, and Lochan's sites. All of them look nice enough, but I'd
like to get some consumer opinions. I do know that their proprietors
(as well as Upton's) occasionally show up here; their input is very
welcome even if I'll take it with a grain of salt.

I'd also be interested in similar information for Assams or Nilgiris
if anyone has it. I have family in Bangalore so if anyone knows a good
Nilgiri, even if it's only sold locally, I'd appreciate the tip.

Thanks so much for your help!

Omkar

Forgot to add - I standardized my brewing procedure so the multiple
Risheehat tastings should be comparable.

Omkar

On Mar 20, 7:27 pm, Omkar > wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> Before I start, I'd like to say that I'm new to this community, so I
> apologize if I breach any rules of etiquette here. I've been searching
> for this information using Google Groups and it looks like people can
> get touchy when discussion turns commercial. I'm only looking for
> information. Also, this post may be a little long winded, but I'm not
> sure what information is or isn't important, so I'm erring on the side
> of inclusion. Thanks for your patience with a tea novice.
>
> I started drinking good tea a couple of years ago, and late last June,
> started ordering from Upton. In particular, I ordered a Risheehat
> First Flush that I liked very much. The aroma was very strong at this
> point, and probably for the next month or two. I stored the tea in
> Upton's tin, put in a cool dark place. By October, however, the aroma
> of the tea became less pronounced, and the flavor less complex.
>
> Now, in early February, I ordered a bunch of first and second flush
> samples from Upton. I'm pretty happy with some of the second flushes,
> but the first flushes seem to have lost potency just as my Risheehat
> did. I thought this might be the quality of the tea; luckily, I'd
> ordered the Risheehat again as a check. Sure enough, it tasted and
> smelled like it did after a few months with me last time. I'm not sure
> what to make of this, since the tea itself is around a year old at
> this point.
>
> So here are my questions:
>
> 1. Is this shelf life the best I can expect, or is there something I
> can do to improve my storage? A few months seems a bit short to me.
> 2. Is this level of freshness what I can expect from all vendors, or
> does Upton have a freshness issue?
>
> I really loved the tea when it was fresh (or at least fresher), so I
> was thinking of buying all my Darjeeling tea this year direct from
> India.
>
> 3. Would this get me fresher and/or better tea than careful selection
> from Upton or another (please recommend) US vendor?
> 4. If so, can anyone recommend and talk about their experience with a
> particular site or distributor? I've seen Thunderbolt Tea, Tea
> Emporium, and Lochan's sites. All of them look nice enough, but I'd
> like to get some consumer opinions. I do know that their proprietors
> (as well as Upton's) occasionally show up here; their input is very
> welcome even if I'll take it with a grain of salt.
>
> I'd also be interested in similar information for Assams or Nilgiris
> if anyone has it. I have family in Bangalore so if anyone knows a good
> Nilgiri, even if it's only sold locally, I'd appreciate the tip.
>
> Thanks so much for your help!
>
> Omkar

Omkar > writes:

> [...]
> Now, in early February, I ordered a bunch of first and second flush
> samples from Upton. I'm pretty happy with some of the second flushes,
> but the first flushes seem to have lost potency just as my Risheehat
> did. I thought this might be the quality of the tea; luckily, I'd
> ordered the Risheehat again as a check. Sure enough, it tasted and
> smelled like it did after a few months with me last time. I'm not sure
> what to make of this, since the tea itself is around a year old at
> this point.

A lot of people believe that second flushes, like many black teas,
need several months storage before they reach their peak. I've never
heard anyone say this about first flushes.

> So here are my questions:
>
> 1. Is this shelf life the best I can expect, or is there something I
> can do to improve my storage? A few months seems a bit short to me.

How about storing the tea in an airtight container with a desiccant?

> [...]
> I'd also be interested in similar information for Assams or Nilgiris
> if anyone has it. I have family in Bangalore so if anyone knows a good
> Nilgiri, even if it's only sold locally, I'd appreciate the tip.

I've never been to Bangalore, but I was in various cities in Tamil
Nadu a month or so ago. I was amazed by how hard it was to find
Nilgiri tea for sale, even generic blends, let alone single estate
teas.

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

On Mar 20, 9:27*pm, Omkar > wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> Before I start, I'd like to say that I'm new to this community, so I
> apologize if I breach any rules of etiquette here. I've been searching
> for this information using Google Groups and it looks like people can
> get touchy when discussion turns commercial. I'm only looking for
> information. Also, this post may be a little long winded, but I'm not
> sure what information is or isn't important, so I'm erring on the side
> of inclusion. Thanks for your patience with a tea novice.
>
> I started drinking good tea a couple of years ago, and late last June,
> started ordering from Upton. In particular, I ordered a Risheehat
> First Flush that I liked very much. The aroma was very strong at this
> point, and probably for the next month or two. I stored the tea in
> Upton's tin, put in a cool dark place. By October, however, the aroma
> of the tea became less pronounced, and the flavor less complex.
>
> Now, in early February, I ordered a bunch of first and second flush
> samples from Upton. I'm pretty happy with some of the second flushes,
> but the first flushes seem to have lost potency just as my Risheehat
> did. I thought this might be the quality of the tea; luckily, I'd
> ordered the Risheehat again as a check. Sure enough, it tasted and
> smelled like it did after a few months with me last time. I'm not sure
> what to make of this, since the tea itself is around a year old at
> this point.
>
> So here are my questions:
>
> 1. Is this shelf life the best I can expect, or is there something I
> can do to improve my storage? A few months seems a bit short to me.
> 2. Is this level of freshness what I can expect from all vendors, or
> does Upton have a freshness issue?
>
> I really loved the tea when it was fresh (or at least fresher), so I
> was thinking of buying all my Darjeeling tea this year direct from
> India.
>
> 3. Would this get me fresher and/or better tea than careful selection
> from Upton or another (please recommend) US vendor?
> 4. If so, can anyone recommend and talk about their experience with a
> particular site or distributor? I've seen Thunderbolt Tea, Tea
> Emporium, and Lochan's sites. All of them look nice enough, but I'd
> like to get some consumer opinions. I do know that their proprietors
> (as well as Upton's) occasionally show up here; their input is very
> welcome even if I'll take it with a grain of salt.
>
> I'd also be interested in similar information for Assams or Nilgiris
> if anyone has it. I have family in Bangalore so if anyone knows a good
> Nilgiri, even if it's only sold locally, I'd appreciate the tip.
>
> Thanks so much for your help!
>
> Omkar

About six months ago, I gave my personal 5 stars to two Nilgiris from
Upton-TN68 and TN96. The Assams and Ceylons I liked are now sold
out. I keep my teas in their original envelope, then sealed with a
clip, then put in a small metal cannister. That seems to work for
me. Toci

On Mar 21, 11:00 am, toci > wrote:
> On Mar 20, 9:27 pm, Omkar > wrote:
>
>
>
> > Hi all,
>
> > Before I start, I'd like to say that I'm new to this community, so I
> > apologize if I breach any rules of etiquette here. I've been searching
> > for this information using Google Groups and it looks like people can
> > get touchy when discussion turns commercial. I'm only looking for
> > information. Also, this post may be a little long winded, but I'm not
> > sure what information is or isn't important, so I'm erring on the side
> > of inclusion. Thanks for your patience with a tea novice.
>
> > I started drinking good tea a couple of years ago, and late last June,
> > started ordering from Upton. In particular, I ordered a Risheehat
> > First Flush that I liked very much. The aroma was very strong at this
> > point, and probably for the next month or two. I stored the tea in
> > Upton's tin, put in a cool dark place. By October, however, the aroma
> > of the tea became less pronounced, and the flavor less complex.
>
> > Now, in early February, I ordered a bunch of first and second flush
> > samples from Upton. I'm pretty happy with some of the second flushes,
> > but the first flushes seem to have lost potency just as my Risheehat
> > did. I thought this might be the quality of the tea; luckily, I'd
> > ordered the Risheehat again as a check. Sure enough, it tasted and
> > smelled like it did after a few months with me last time. I'm not sure
> > what to make of this, since the tea itself is around a year old at
> > this point.
>
> > So here are my questions:
>
> > 1. Is this shelf life the best I can expect, or is there something I
> > can do to improve my storage? A few months seems a bit short to me.
> > 2. Is this level of freshness what I can expect from all vendors, or
> > does Upton have a freshness issue?
>
> > I really loved the tea when it was fresh (or at least fresher), so I
> > was thinking of buying all my Darjeeling tea this year direct from
> > India.
>
> > 3. Would this get me fresher and/or better tea than careful selection
> > from Upton or another (please recommend) US vendor?
> > 4. If so, can anyone recommend and talk about their experience with a
> > particular site or distributor? I've seen Thunderbolt Tea, Tea
> > Emporium, and Lochan's sites. All of them look nice enough, but I'd
> > like to get some consumer opinions. I do know that their proprietors
> > (as well as Upton's) occasionally show up here; their input is very
> > welcome even if I'll take it with a grain of salt.
>
> > I'd also be interested in similar information for Assams or Nilgiris
> > if anyone has it. I have family in Bangalore so if anyone knows a good
> > Nilgiri, even if it's only sold locally, I'd appreciate the tip.
>
> > Thanks so much for your help!
>
> > Omkar
>
> About six months ago, I gave my personal 5 stars to two Nilgiris from
> Upton-TN68 and TN96. The Assams and Ceylons I liked are now sold
> out. I keep my teas in their original envelope, then sealed with a
> clip, then put in a small metal cannister. That seems to work for
> me. Toci

Thanks for the tips. I think I'm going to change how I store my tea,
but also buy this years Darjeelings direct from India. Does anyone
have experience with Tea Emporium, Thunderbolt, or Lochan?

BTW - I also really liked TN68. It really is a great tea, isn't it? I
liked the TA90 Assam (Nahorhabi) quite a lot; I found it pretty
similar to how Upton described it (not my experience for all teas in
the samples that I'm working through).

On Mar 24, 10:51*am, Omkar > wrote:
> On Mar 21, 11:00 am, toci > wrote:
>
>
>
> > On Mar 20, 9:27 pm, Omkar > wrote:
>
> > > Hi all,
>
> > > Before I start, I'd like to say that I'm new to this community, so I
> > > apologize if I breach any rules of etiquette here. I've been searching
> > > for this information using Google Groups and it looks like people can
> > > get touchy when discussion turns commercial. I'm only looking for
> > > information. Also, this post may be a little long winded, but I'm not
> > > sure what information is or isn't important, so I'm erring on the side
> > > of inclusion. Thanks for your patience with a tea novice.
>
> > > I started drinking good tea a couple of years ago, and late last June,
> > > started ordering from Upton. In particular, I ordered a Risheehat
> > > First Flush that I liked very much. The aroma was very strong at this
> > > point, and probably for the next month or two. I stored the tea in
> > > Upton's tin, put in a cool dark place. By October, however, the aroma
> > > of the tea became less pronounced, and the flavor less complex.
>
> > > Now, in early February, I ordered a bunch of first and second flush
> > > samples from Upton. I'm pretty happy with some of the second flushes,
> > > but the first flushes seem to have lost potency just as my Risheehat
> > > did. I thought this might be the quality of the tea; luckily, I'd
> > > ordered the Risheehat again as a check. Sure enough, it tasted and
> > > smelled like it did after a few months with me last time. I'm not sure
> > > what to make of this, since the tea itself is around a year old at
> > > this point.
>
> > > So here are my questions:
>
> > > 1. Is this shelf life the best I can expect, or is there something I
> > > can do to improve my storage? A few months seems a bit short to me.
> > > 2. Is this level of freshness what I can expect from all vendors, or
> > > does Upton have a freshness issue?
>
> > > I really loved the tea when it was fresh (or at least fresher), so I
> > > was thinking of buying all my Darjeeling tea this year direct from
> > > India.
>
> > > 3. Would this get me fresher and/or better tea than careful selection
> > > from Upton or another (please recommend) US vendor?
> > > 4. If so, can anyone recommend and talk about their experience with a
> > > particular site or distributor? I've seen Thunderbolt Tea, Tea
> > > Emporium, and Lochan's sites. All of them look nice enough, but I'd
> > > like to get some consumer opinions. I do know that their proprietors
> > > (as well as Upton's) occasionally show up here; their input is very
> > > welcome even if I'll take it with a grain of salt.
>
> > > I'd also be interested in similar information for Assams or Nilgiris
> > > if anyone has it. I have family in Bangalore so if anyone knows a good
> > > Nilgiri, even if it's only sold locally, I'd appreciate the tip.
>
> > > Thanks so much for your help!
>
> > > Omkar
>
> > About six months ago, I gave my personal 5 stars to two Nilgiris from
> > Upton-TN68 and TN96. *The Assams and Ceylons I liked are now sold
> > out. *I keep my teas in their original envelope, then sealed with a
> > clip, then put in a small metal cannister. *That seems to work for
> > me. * * Toci
>
> Thanks for the tips. I think I'm going to change how I store my tea,
> but also buy this years Darjeelings direct from India. Does anyone
> have experience with Tea Emporium, Thunderbolt, or Lochan?
>
> BTW - I also really liked TN68. It really is a great tea, isn't it? I
> liked the TA90 Assam (Nahorhabi) quite a lot; I found it pretty
> similar to how Upton described it (not my experience for all teas in
> the samples that I'm working through).

Ordered from Tea Emporium. Will let you all know how it turns out in a
week or two.

Omkar

On Mar 21, 6:57*pm, Lewis Perin > wrote:
> Omkar > writes:
> > [...]
> > Now, in early February, I ordered a bunch of first and second flush
> > samples from Upton. I'm pretty happy with some of the second flushes,
> > but the first flushes seem to have lost potency just as my Risheehat
> > did. I thought this might be the quality of the tea; luckily, I'd
> > ordered the Risheehat again as a check. Sure enough, it tasted and
> > smelled like it did after a few months with me last time. I'm not sure
> > what to make of this, since the tea itself is around a year old at
> > this point.
>
> A lot of people believe that second flushes, like many black teas,
> need several months storage before they reach their peak. *I've never
> heard anyone say this about first flushes.
>
> > So here are my questions:
>
> > 1. Is this shelf life the best I can expect, or is there something I
> > can do to improve my storage? A few months seems a bit short to me.
>
> How about storing the tea in an airtight container with a desiccant?
>
> > [...]
> > I'd also be interested in similar information for Assams or Nilgiris
> > if anyone has it. I have family in Bangalore so if anyone knows a good
> > Nilgiri, even if it's only sold locally, I'd appreciate the tip.
>
> I've never been to Bangalore, but I was in various cities in Tamil
> Nadu a month or so ago. *I was amazed by how hard it was to find
> Nilgiri tea for sale, even generic blends, let alone single estate
> teas.
>
> /Lew
> ---
> Lew Perin /

Dear friends,

There is a lot of confusion regarding the expiry date of Tea.

Take this case :- Estates in India mark there bulk package as "best
before one year from the date of manufacture", these packages are then
exported to UK, after being sold in the auction 2 months from date of
mfg. Tea lands in Uk when 3 months Old, and may be offered as early as
when 4 months old to 15 months old (awaiting the next seasons tea of
similar quality before exhausting the stock), with a marking on the
pack "Best before 12 months from the date of packing" !!
Take another case :- Some countries have markings of "Best Before One/
Two and even Three years" available in the market.
And yet another case :- In some countries Tea is included in the "list
of food products exempted from declaring expiry date".
Icing on the cake :- How about Pu'reh? Old is Gold. The older it gets,
the more premium it commands.
My personal experience :- I have some "Golden Tips" from Langharjan
which are nearly 15 years old. Its now gone flat (I suspect its due to
improper storage. We have moved house thrice, and things have not been
very orderly), but I hang on to it now just for its sheer looks. Its
pure gold!

Proffesionaly speaking, over a period of time, Tea becomes weak in the
following order:-
First to go is the "Character", followed by "Flavour", followed by
"Briskness", "Strength" and then "Colour".

For all practical purpose, store in an air tight container,
prefferably Stainless Steel or good quality Tin or Alluminium, away
from moisture and odours. If you need to sun at all, sun with the lid
open.

Nigel? Pl. do give your inputs.

Tea Cheers!
Jayesh S Pandya.