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I'm going to go ahead and agree with the past few posts. I usually only sweeten the middlin' to lower grade teas that I have. I'm a fan of trying different sorts of honeys and I usually use the tea more as a conveyance for the honey than anything else so I don't want to 'waste' a good quality or expensive tea for that purpose unless it's a one-off experiment just to see how it tastes sweetened. And in regards to whether the more expensive tea is worth the cost in it really depends, I think. There's certainly a big difference between grocery store fannings/dust tea bags and everyday loose leaf, but once you start getting into the really high grades it takes a pretty well-developed palate to be able to tell much of a difference, like with most things. Maybe you could see if the place with the more expensive tea would give you a sample for cheaper? Like half an ounce or something? It'd suck to spend $30~ on 4oz of a tea and find out you're not a big fan of it. Though $35ish for 4oz isn't too bad if you break it down to cost per cup. If you get about 55-60 cups from that 4oz, it's only about 60 cents a cup or so (not counting multiple steepings if it's a tea suited to it, which would technically cut that cost at least in half if you do it everytime you make tea). If you get tea at restaurants/cafes a lot, it's a pretty big savings comparatively.
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Jan 5, 2013 00:05
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I'm actually of the opinion that a lot of teas stand to improve with a touch of sweetening. The trick is to put in just enough to where it doesn't actually taste sweet but brings out a lot of the flavor notes that would be muted otherwise. It's like salt in cooking.
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Jan 5, 2013 09:33
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Another sencha drinker here. I'm in the Midwest so the only place nearby is the dreaded Teavana in the mall, but I got 6oz of "Jade Reserve" sencha for $27. It smells absolutely amazing, and the container will keep it for 6 months or so. They say steep teas like this at 170F for 45 seconds and don't stir, but I find 60-90 seconds with gentle stirring for the last 20 or so does best. This brews light yellow-green and has a subtle, very slightly mouthfilling texture with an oddly cooling after-feel. Just a little grassy, not floral, and doesn't taste hardly anything like it smells (maybe I'm not using enough?). Someone upstream mentioned multiple steepings; this type is perfect for it. I can get at least two, usually three, and the second one is even better than the first  The leaves come out kind of needle-y, but open into something that looks like beautiful, jade green spinach tips after an infusion.Tea is a mysterious thing. It's so simple to infuse, but so complicated chemically, and the various types and methods are years' worth of study themselves. Drinking it in free time reminds me to be grateful for what I have, and the health benefits don't hurt either. Would love to pour all the world a cup; to make tea for someone is from the heart, and maybe people would fight less if they felt less alone in the world.
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Jan 6, 2013 10:02
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Yeah, that second steeping is just fantastic. I don't think I could go back to cheaper chinese greens now after having had sencha every day for the past month... (getting 3-4 delicious infusions now by the way, thanks thread!)
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Jan 6, 2013 13:55
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There's some pretty high-end Chinese greens too which, honestly, I prefer to Japanese ones. Try a nice Yunnan, Longjing (sometimes called dragon well), or Chunmee some time. E: also, if you like lighter greener tees, you should try some of the lightest Taiwanese oolongs which kind of blur the line between green and oolong. Beware though, good Formosa oolong can be an expensive addiction indeed.
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Jan 6, 2013 20:37
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I'm quite confused sometimes about the times people are steeping things. I usually go between 2 to 3 minutes, with gunpowders and Darjeeling green getting 2:45 and sencha and lighter greens getting only about 2:15. I do that at 175, which I can now accurately get thanks to a new teakettle that does temperature. Am I ruining tea left and right? I've always gone by a sort of 1-2 minute white, 2-3 minute green, 2-4 minute oolong, and 5 minute black loose algorithm, with consideration for manufacturer instructions, but I tend to use pretty small amounts (1.5 tsp for a 22oz pot). It's always come out in what I consider well, but I'd hate to imagine I'm Doing It Wrong and missing a whole world of awesome taste sensations. What's the story here?
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Jan 6, 2013 20:55
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The right length of time is the one that makes it taste better to you. Period. The asterisk here is that the shorter the steep time, the more steeps you can get out of it. You're extracting less compounds per steep so there's more leftover for subsequent ones. Since you're extracting less compounds you generally want a smaller volume of water to concentrate the subtle flavor. Hence, in Gongfu tea ceremony the individual cups of tea from each steep tend to be very very small and the amount of leaves used comparatively large. This kind of method is fun if you have a lot of time. If it's the morning and you just want a nice cup of tea to start your day then find the times that work best for 1-2 steeps.
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Jan 6, 2013 21:18
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So I actually ended up getting one* of Teavana's Yixing teapots with two matching cups for Christmas. It's the Blue Cherry Blossom one, and actually pretty adorable and I'd say worth the cost (even though it was a gift), which was surprising to me given Teavana's tendency to price gouge. The only problem I sort of have with it is that it came with two 1 oz (or so) samples of the Mate Samurai Chai mixed with some other Oolong Chai that Teavana makes. While it's pretty tasty, I found that I kept getting pretty bad stomach aches after drinking the tea. At first I was worried that it was some weird effect from the teapot until I tried a plain oolong I got a while ago from Upton in it and was just fine. First time I've ever gotten a stomachache from a tea, and I've got a pretty strong stomach overall. At any rate, it's done nothing but enhance my desire to avoid the majority of Teavana's stuff. *Actually 2 sets since the first one came with a badly broken cup and the Amazon seller she got it from sent another full set (cups and pot) without asking for the original one back 
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Jan 7, 2013 02:18
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All right, tea friends, I'm coming to you with an inquiry! I've been looking into royal milk tea recently, but the few recipes I've found tend to vary insanely with which type of tea should be used -- one gives me Earl Grey (I was thinking Upton's Earl Grey Creme Vanilla blend might work, but I didn't know if it'd be too sweet), one gives me English Breakfast, and the recipe that one's adapted from calls for a mix of teas that just feels like too much effort for me.  So I ask, which one would be the best fit for what I'm looking for?And on that note, I found this as well; I'm kind of leery about it, does anyone more knowledgable than me have any opinions? (I don't have much to say about the rest of the teas they have at that site, but I did raise an eyebrow at the Traditional Medicinals ones they have -- those are easily found at my supermarket if I wanted them.)
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Jan 7, 2013 19:13
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I'll admit I've never heard of that style of tea before, but I would say just use whatever tea you think would be good or tasty. I'd probably do it with a strong Earl Gray, but that's just my personal preference. The thing with tea, or any sort of recipe is that you really need to experiment to see what works best for you. Just experiment until you like what comes out I'd probably skip getting the prepackaged tea powder stuff. I've never had very good luck with those sorts of things, they always come out reminding me of watery instant hot cocoa. Granted, that is from a Japanese company so it might be different/better that what I've experienced.
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Jan 8, 2013 17:04
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Miss Kalle posted:All right, tea friends, I'm coming to you with an inquiry! I've been looking into royal milk tea recently, but the few recipes I've found tend to vary insanely with which type of tea should be used -- one gives me Earl Grey (I was thinking Upton's Earl Grey Creme Vanilla blend might work, but I didn't know if it'd be too sweet), one gives me English Breakfast, and the recipe that one's adapted from calls for a mix of teas that just feels like too much effort for me. For the actual tea you can likely use anything you would drink with milk normally. Probably something like darjeeling is common.
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Jan 8, 2013 23:39
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I'd give the Earl Grey Creme Vanilla a shot. I'm not exactly sure just what Royal Milk Tea is, but I really like having it with some whole milk. It shouldn't be particularly sweeter than any other tea, just flavored.
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Jan 9, 2013 00:59
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Thanks for the input! I think I'll stick to the Earl Grey-based recipe and try it with the Creme Vanilla~ I'l let everyone know how it turns out! (and yeah, royal milk tea is basically a Japanese thing, made together with milk and sugar. Again, the basic definition doesn't specify what type, leaving me to flounder with the details!) DurianGray posted:I'd probably skip getting the prepackaged tea powder stuff. I've never had very good luck with those sorts of things, they always come out reminding me of watery instant hot cocoa. Granted, that is from a Japanese company so it might be different/better that what I've experienced. Yeah, part of the reason why I was kind of 'eehhh' about the prepackaged was because of the whole 'powdered milk included' bit -- I've never really been a fan of the stuff, and hopefully a second opinion would have helped me decide whether it was worth it or not.  I think I'll steer clear of it for the time being.
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Jan 9, 2013 01:17
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Thank you, thread! I've rediscovered tea! The information in the OP was great and helped me realize that I'd been oversteeping. Tea has gone from being kind of good to being wonderful, and that was just from the cheap loose leaf at the local supermarket. Today, I received my first order from Upton, where I was thrilled to find six varieties of lapsang shouchong. I had it in a tea shop ages ago and loved it but never found a decent supply of it until now. I'm sipping a lovely campfire in a cup as I type this. I also got sampler packs for green tea, oolong, and Earl Grey (four tins each). I didn't really look at them carefully when I ordered, so I was surprised when the Earl Greys turned out to have some additional flavors like vanilla and chocolate. Chocolate tea sounded like it wouldn't be very good, so it was the first thing I tried out of the pack just to find out how embarrassed I should be for myself, but it turned out to be really great. The chocolate was a lot more subtle than I thought it would be from the smell, and I got three delicious steepings out of the tea. I was really surprised! Anyhow, I love Upton. They shipped fast, and those $1-2 sample bags come with a bit more tea than I thought they would.
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Jan 9, 2013 03:11
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Anyone in the Toronto area, the Toronto Tea Festival is coming up February 2nd. I just found out about it today, and signed up to volunteer. I have a feeling I'm going to end up spending a lot of money there. 
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Jan 9, 2013 03:28
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Upton is pretty great. I've been craving the Earl Grey Creme Vanilla ever since I got it in a sampler last year so I just ordered a kilo of it yesterday along with their British Blend sampler.
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Jan 9, 2013 17:23
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For the first time in my life, I finally got my hands on a brick of Pu-Erh, and I'm simply in love. Granted the smell it can make during steeping (sort of like dirt/rotten fish) can take a bit getting used to, the taste is rich and earthy without any astringency and the colour is a deep brown/red.
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Jan 9, 2013 17:29
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I want to make chai. Does someone have a recipe they count on?
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Jan 11, 2013 20:21
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This used to be my go-to Chai recipe, though now I sort of wing it depending on what I feel like (different stuff can easily work its way in, like allspice or saffron or rose petals...). A few things to note: I'm pretty sure the "bay leaves" are Indian bay leaves, which have a very different flavor from typical laurel ones. They can be substituted for some cassia buds or otherwise extra cinnamon if you don't have any. Star anise is fine if you don't have fennel/anise seed, one large strong one or a couple smaller ones. The black pepper makes it stronger/earthier, leave it out if you want a smoother drink. If you're not serving this to multiple people, add the milk/honey individually so that you can leave the masala chai out and reheat it later. Also, I like it better with half Darjeeling and half Assam, but really any strong-but-not-too-bitter black tea can do. If you can find Chinese wintermelon sugar (I think it's like a block meant to be boiled whole to make some sort of drink?), it's incredible in place of the honey. Maybe not remotely traditional, but it just works. Condensed milk instead of milk+honey is another nice variation. Culinary Bears fucked around with this message at 20:50 on Jan 12, 2013 |
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Jan 12, 2013 01:46
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Thanks a bunch. Trying this today.
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Jan 12, 2013 20:27
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Whoops, I just realized I messed up my sentence structure up there. It's the Indian bay leaves that can be substituted for cinnamony stuff, not the fennel/anise. (Edited that post) Also different regions have different preferences for how milky/creamy it is. Some use half and half, some brew in half water half milk, or some just in straight up milk (I guess maybe with more tea/spices). I'd make this one and add milk to taste and then see if you're interested in a full milk brew or something.
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Jan 12, 2013 20:49
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I was wondering about the milk thing. An Indian woman made me dinner once and I was pretty sure she jus had all the stuff steeping in milk on the stove. Thanks again. Edit: But for the bay leaf do I use a regular bay leaf or an indian one? edit2: i dont have an indian one.
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Jan 12, 2013 21:08
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Indian bay leaf can be substituted for a bit of cassia bud, and if you don't have that either you could up the cinnamon a little bit or leave it alone. I've made it with regular bay leaves before I knew what Indian ones were, and it didn't mess it up or anything (it just tastes better with the Indian ones), so it's up to you really. Personally I find (regular) laurel bay leaves + black pepper give it a certain chicken stock vibe that I don't particularly care for, so I'll usually leave them out; but it's not bad, just savory. There's no set recipe for what exactly a chai masala is since it various a ton by region, some will even throw in licorice or caraway or tamarind etc. But I quite like anything that's got chinnamon, cardamom, fresh ginger, clove, and a bit of anise as the main players. Oh yeah, if you're making the full 7 cups and aren't serving them all, get the tea leaves out somehow - they'll go bitter if they're steeping in your pot all day. I usually just pour it into some big pitcher or bowl through a fine sieve. I guess you could have your tea leaves (and/or spices) in cheesecloth bags or something, but - and maybe this is just placebo on my part - the flavors seem to infuse a bit better when everything can just float freely. I usually double the recipe and drink it over a couple days because it just goes down so easily. Which is why I don't make it too milk heavy. But I'll try a small batch in milk sometime soon. Culinary Bears fucked around with this message at 21:35 on Jan 12, 2013 |
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Jan 12, 2013 21:24
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This was always my go-to masala chai recipe: 6 cups water 1.5 cups milk generous pinch of saffron stick of cinnamon 18 cloves 24 cardamoms 28 peppercorns 1 star anise small knob of fresh ginger 3 tbsp assam tea 4 tbsp jaggery or raw sugar/whatever to taste Put the water on to boil. Roughly crush the cinnamon, cloves, cardamoms, and peppercorns in a mortar and pestle, and microplane the ginger. Lightly crush the saffron and put it in the milk. Put the other crushed spices, ginger, and star anise in the boiling water, reduce heat, and boil/simmer for about 10 minutes. Add the milk, bring to a boil, and add the jaggery. Boil for a couple of minutes, then add the tea, stir, and remove from the heat. Cover for a few minutes. Strain through a tea strainer to drink.        
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Jan 13, 2013 02:53
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Bonus photo of this morning's Kaboku sencha from Ippodo.
Bob_McBob fucked around with this message at 02:57 on Jan 13, 2013 |
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Jan 13, 2013 02:54
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Just got some Pu Ehr to try. I actually rather like it, but it's got a pretty powerful smell... my roommate says it smells like "dirt... with a hint of cheap ramen noodles", while another of my friends claimed she smelled "fish bait". It's not bitter at all, and it makes multiple cups very well, which I rather like. I've been brewing it at 205F for 4-5 minutes. Is the caffeine content of this stuff about the same as normal black tea or more/less?
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Jan 14, 2013 02:07
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Alright goons. My girlfriend really likes tea. Her birthday is coming up pretty soon and I'd like to get her a new tea kettle (hers is metal and beat up looking) and a few cool teas. This comes with the caveat that I'm not sure what kind of tea she likes. I know I've had a cup or two of floral-y stuff but that's about it. I checked out that adagio site and I saw a sharp looking glass kettle and several Harry Potter themed blends of teas. (She loves Harry Potter) Would this be something cool for a tea drinker? I seriously know next to nothing about tea. Hell, I just learned like 10 minutes ago that I've been microwaving my water like an idiot any time I DID get a weird hair to make a thing of tea. Any help would be appreciated!
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Jan 14, 2013 04:22
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Kettle or pot? These are two separate things usually. The kettle is only for boiling water, and so it's okay if it's metal and beat up looking. It doesn't usually have tea in it and is mainly just for making water hot and then pouring it into the teapot. The tea pot is where the steeping happens. Glass tea kettles are very cool because they let you see the bubbles so you can roughly gauge temperature. Is she a very traditional person? If she prefers winging it and watching, a glass tea kettle would make a very cool gift. If you think she would prefer the convenience of modern technology, there are electric teakettles that can heat water to a desire temperature and maintain that temperature, with a variety of other features sometimes. These are also a very cool thing. As for Harry Potter themed teas, that sounds ace. Even if the teas are terrible, there is enjoyment to be had in just trying them out, so if they're themed that's pretty cool. This is a good idea.
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Jan 14, 2013 04:29
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Awesome! That was sort of my thinking as well tea-wise I just wanted to make sure I wasn't walking into something dumb that someone that did know anything about tea would avoid. The one she has whistles so I might have to just flat out ask her. THanks for all the help!
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Jan 14, 2013 05:05
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Those blends look great and should be a good gift although it looks like a lot of the HP ones are out of stock. An electric kettle with temperature control would be a good upgrade but you may not want to spend that much. I think this Cusiniart model has been recommended by a few folks in this thread. I'm still using the old steel kettle at home on the stove and a non-temp control electric kettle at work though. On the other hand some people collect tea pots like others collect shoes, so a nifty glass pot might be a good idea.
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Jan 14, 2013 05:05
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Just chiming in on the themed teas: if someone got me some teas themed along something I like, I'd be totally thrilled even if they weren't anything I'd normally drink. Like Paramemetic said, it's fun just trying things out and it's pretty cool when two hobbies are linked like that. Unless rooibos is involved. I don't care what fandom the tea comes from, if someone gives me rooibos I'm going to be pissed.
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Jan 14, 2013 06:28
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I appreciate the help and input! I went with 7 different Harry Potter Teas. I get the impression her teapot may have some sentimental value. If I find out later it doesn't then hey, gift ideas next time! After looking over everything I'm actually going to have to bug her into letting me try some of these. They sound tasty.
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Jan 14, 2013 07:25
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Like rooibos is some laid back tea ( its not really tea). You can steep that poo poo forever. It owns. Some people like that stuff.
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Jan 14, 2013 07:43
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Slaapaav posted:Like rooibos is some laid back tea ( its not really tea). You can steep that poo poo forever. It owns. I tried rooibos over the weekend and I really like it. I had to use a bit more per cup and let it steep a while longer to get something good, but once I got it strong enough it was pretty yummy and it was not possible for me to oversteep it. I'm sure it's not to everyone's taste but for me it's a nice caffeine-free alternative for night time, and a lot tastier than any herbal tea I've ever tried. The rooibos I bought was mostly tiny little pieces that tended to escape the strainer. Is that typical or did I just get a cheap batch of leaf fragments? It's not a huge deal since you can't really taste them like tea leaves but it would make for a more aesthetically pleasing cup if they stayed put.
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Jan 14, 2013 14:17
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That's the same with the rooibos I got from adagio as well, quite a bit got through the strainer. It's not bad but I was having trouble making a strong enough cup, guess I'll steep longer and just use more.
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Jan 14, 2013 15:11
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I steep for at least 15 minutes. You can steep it on the stove for like an hour if you want to have it strong and still hot.
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Jan 14, 2013 15:27
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Goddamn posted:Indian bay leaf can be substituted for a bit of cassia bud, and if you don't have that either you could up the cinnamon a little bit or leave it alone. I've made it with regular bay leaves before I knew what Indian ones were, and it didn't mess it up or anything (it just tastes better with the Indian ones), so it's up to you really. Personally I find (regular) laurel bay leaves + black pepper give it a certain chicken stock vibe that I don't particularly care for, so I'll usually leave them out; but it's not bad, just savory. There's no set recipe for what exactly a chai masala is since it various a ton by region, some will even throw in licorice or caraway or tamarind etc. But I quite like anything that's got chinnamon, cardamom, fresh ginger, clove, and a bit of anise as the main players. Trip report: I followed the recipe pretty much exactly other than leaving out the bay leaf. The flavor was good, just not as strong as I liked. I was really afraid that much anise seed would overwhelm it, but it didn't. I think next time I will use more clove, ginger and peppercorn. I may try breaking the spices up better as well. It pretty much tasted how I wanted it to taste, but it seemed weak. The tea flavor was definitely at the forefront, but I think my problem is some of the commercial chai I've had were much more spice heavy. But this was the perfect intro recipe for me, and now I can customize it to my tastes. Thanks again! fake edit: I assume I can do this with rooibos as well. I've roibos chai before and loved it, although I think it also had vanilla in it. Maybe just snip a couple of vanilla bean pieces in with the rest of the stuff?
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Jan 14, 2013 15:38
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hope and vaseline posted:That's the same with the rooibos I got from adagio as well, quite a bit got through the strainer. It's not bad but I was having trouble making a strong enough cup, guess I'll steep longer and just use more. I had good luck with 1.5 tsp per cup and about 10 minutes of steeping, starting with boiling hot water. I've read that in South Africa people just leave it and/or honeybush simmering on the stove all day because it smells nice.
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Jan 14, 2013 15:57
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I like rooibos, but I will say that I've gotten in from a few different places (including Adagio) and there are always little bits that get through the metal strainer I use. If it really bugs you, I'd say throw down a couple bucks and get some paper filters like these http://www.adagio.com/teaware/paper_filters.html?SID=f2e2bed24b6945132e87d40054df6404 or something similar. You might even be able to find them at a local grocery or tea store if you have one. They're also really great if you just want to make a single cup and not a full pot, or if you're like me and only have enough time to fill a thermos with hot water before you have to leave for work, but have enough time to let the tea steep while at work. I've also taken a few with me and some re purposed sample size tins of tea when I know I'm going to be travelling somewhere that there won't be teapots.
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Jan 14, 2013 17:34
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I have 4 varieties of flavoured rooibos and usually I'm all meh about them. But I'm sick and I like tea with lemon when I feel lovely. Conveniently I have a lemon rooibos! Squeeze one or two lemon wedges and add a dash of honey, and good god is that some delicious tea. Its converted me to rooibos.
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Jan 14, 2013 22:40
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