Sad to see it go...

I am starting to worry that a visit from me is the kiss of death for a tea shop.
Over the past two years I have found my way to numerous shops, both cafe-style and loose leaf vendors. I have loved seeing the diversity of offerings and styles and the passion of the owners. What I have noticed of late is the closure of some of those that I thought of most fondly. Is my taste so out of touch with that of the buying public? OK, probably. I am a confirmed tea obsessive and most people aren't. But these places have felt comfortable and warm and have offered an excellent product. Several of them have even earned the love of my husband, a confirmed coffee drinker, who appreciates a well-planned, independently owned store of any kind.
It is for these reasons that I was crushed to find that one of my favorite spots, one I've raved about for a few years, has closed its doors. Licorice & Sloe of Newburyport is no more. Tea from Licorice & Sloe was the VERY FIRST I ever reviewed here on Tea Pages. They had a tea menu that was unrivaled and I always appreciated that they took the time to do a bit of education, by listing the tea by provenance. It wasn't enough to say "oolong." The menu was divided by China oolongs, Taiwanese oolongs, Nilgiri oolongs....They are also one of the few teashops I've seen that offered a yellow tea.
A combination of factors led to their closure last September - primarily the economy. Meg and her husband, Bil, had developed an amazing spot that did suffer a bit from its location on a side street.
If this had been a one time thing, I would have been sad, but wouldn't have been troubled by the bigger picture. That is, that FIVE of the teashops I've reviewed over the past two years have gone the way of the dodo. It's a troubling moment of realization. I will continue to explore, seeking those special places, and hoping that we see more teashops opening rather than closing.
Here are links to the five teashops that I am officially saying goodbye to today:

• Massachusetts - Lowell - Cafe Aiello (closed 2008. Reopened with new owners, but only selling Two Leaves & a Bud teabags, versus the old Aiello's loose leaf from Zoka)
  
• Massachusetts - Newburyport - Licorice and Sloe (closed Sept. 2008)
  
• Massachusetts - Salem - New Civilitea (closed Dec. 2008)
• Massachusetts - Westford - Java Mama (closed 2008 - OK, not one of my favorites, but a closure nonetheless)
  
• New Hampshire - Nashua - Herbata (closed 2008. Was selling online still, but site is now closed.)

Adieu.

Four new OOOOOOOlongs

I've been on another oolong kick, thanks to the good people at Aura Teas. I received a wonderful little bundle containing four oolongs and a Golden Monkey. I love getting mail these days. :)

I thought I'd share my experiences with the four lovely oolongs. And they were lovely.

Being from Aura Teas, three of the four are Formosa (Taiwanese) oolongs. We'll look at a Formosa Lugu Jinxuan, an Alishan, and a Shanlinxi. I will also review a Wuyi oolong (from China). In an effort toward gaining a better understanding of the region, I am providing a map of Taiwan with the origins of the three teas identified with color coded tags:
Formosa Lugu Jinxuan Oolong (Taiwan)
Formosa Alishan Oolong (Taiwan)
Formosa Shanlinxi High Mountain Oolong (Taiwan)
Organic Wuyi Oolong (Upper left - China)


Formosa Lugu Jinxuan Oolong (Golden Lily)
This tea hails from the the township of Lugu, in the southwestern part of Taiwan's Nantou County.

The dry leaf roll is what's known as "half ball" or "Dong Ding" style. It was dark, nearly black, mixed with olive and gold notes. The scent was like hay and swiss chard - very green. This makes sense as this is a lightly oxidized oolong.

The liquor brewed to a yellow with a slight apricot tinge. The aroma was sweet and honey-like.

The flavor was much more intense and deep than I had anticipated. It reminded me a bit of orange. It was buttery and the flavor was very long lasting. Aura describes it as having a creamy flavor and I thought this was a good representation of my experience as well.

Brewing: I actually did three steeps of this tea. I used 1 tsp per 6 ounces of water and the water was at just under boiling - about 200 degrees (F). My first steep was about 1 minute. The second steep was just under a minute. The last steep was about 30 seconds.


Formosa Alishan Oolong
This tea comes from Alishan township in the Chiayi County, central Taiwan. This is another lightly oxidized oolong but it is also lightly roasted.

The Alishan is another Dong Ding style rolled tea, like the Lugu, but the colors were much more consistent - nearly uniformly dark, chocolate brown. The aroma was striking - sweet yet peppery.

The liquor of the brewed tea was a strong yellow gold. The scent of this tea was sweet, like gardenias and other floral blossoms. The taste was lemony. It felt rich enough to chew. Amazing. I did three steeps and it felt like a crime. I should have milked this one until it was completely gone, but my time ran out. Aura says that you should be able to get 5 - 9 steeps from this gorgeous tea.

Brewing: I actually did the same three steeps as I did with the Lugu. I used 1 tsp per 6 ounces of water and the water was at just under boiling - about 200 degrees (F). My first steep was about 1 minute. The second steep was just under a minute. The last steep was about 30 seconds.


Formosa Shanlinxi High Mountain Oolong
This tea comes from the same county as Lugu, but from the township of Junshan which is a bit further north. This is more oxidized oolong.

The Shanlinxi is the third Dong Ding style rolled tea in this batch, like the Lugu and Alishan. The roll seemed slightly looser than the others though. The color of the dry leaf was similar to the Alishan. The scent was fruity and floral - like tulips, kiwi, and berries.

This tea brewed to a rich golden color. The scent of this tea was lighter, more sugary and floral. After the Alishan I was surprised with how light and delicate this tea seemed. It was a very pleasant and even tea, though not as striking as the first two.

Brewing: I used 1 tsp per 6 ounces of water and the water was at just under boiling - about 200 degrees (F). My first steep was about 1 1/2 minutes. The second steep was just under a minute. The last steep was about 1 minute.


Organic Wuyi Oolong
This tea comes from Fujian County, China from the Wuyi Mountains. This is the most oxidized oolong, very close to a black tea.

This tea had long twisted leaves. They were thick and broad with a lazy twist, like a meandering river. The scent was very earthy and deep.

The liquor was a peachy brown and the scent was very smoky. Some describe it as a roasted and nutty scent and flavor. What struck me was how much this tea reminded me of pu'erh on first sip. It was that smoky, earthy flavor that seems to typical of that type of tea. It wasn't as heavy tasting though and as I sipped it seemed smoother but just as full flavored. This Wuyi was very different from others I've tried and I loved every sip.

Brewing: I used 1 tsp per 6 ounces of water and the water was at just under boiling - about 200 degrees (F). My first steep was about 1 minute. The second steep was just under a minute. I only did two steeps here, but Aura states that this tea is good for three.

Grumpy at Jimmy Fallon

I understand that not everyone loves tea...or even likes it. I'm actually okay with that. I think they are seriously misguided, but I accept it. What I don't accept is random attacks on my love.
Last night I (completely foolishly) stayed up late and flipped on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. Now, I happen to like Jimmy Fallon. He always amused me on SNL - his utter lack of composure, self-deprecating humor, goofy smiles, fantastic musical covers....I want to like him on Late Night. But, then, he committed the ultimate error. He mocked tea.
He was reporting on the new green tea-flavored Coca Cola that has been released in Japan. Then it happened. He said that green tea tasted like it had cigarette butts in it...That he HATED green tea. Grumble. Then I was grumpy. I actually turned off the TV.
Why do we do this? Tea has been consumed by countless cultures throughout the world for thousands of years. Yet, we find it so easy to dismiss as an eccentricity. We have a long way to go as a tea-drinking culture.
Besides, I reserve that crack about the cigarette butts for Moxie.

Book Review - Tea

OK, this book won't win an award for most imaginative title, but it is a great little text. "Tea: More than 80 Delicious Recipes" by Sarina Jacobson is full of appetizing recipes, complemented by artful photographs by Danya Weiner. (Thank you to Sterling Publishers for this book.)

This book, published in April by Sterling Publishers, opens with a general introduction to tea. I thought it was quite well done and much more comprehensive than I would have expected. There is information about tea types, storage, and brewing. There were a few factual errors I noted, including the use of the word "fermented" rather than "oxidized" in some of the tea type discussions. (As we have discussed here ad nauseum, some use the terms interchangeably, but they are very different. I am a stickler on this one.) I have gotten over hoping to see "yellow tea" included in tea types but I do generally expect to see "pu'erh."

The next five sections were "Teatime in...." chapters: England, China, Japan, India, and Russia. For each there is a one page summary of some of the tea traditions of that country (again faced with a stunning photograph by Ms. Weiner.) Then there is an explanation of how to prepare tea typical to that region and an assortment of recipes for teatime. I found myself drooling over the smoked salmon with ginger butter tea sandwich (England), the coconut rice squares (Japan), the curried corn patties (India), and the creamy rice pudding (also India.)

Three chapters followed with tea drinkers - "Tea Coolers," "Tea Comforters," and "Tisanes." "Tea Coolers" are various versions of iced drinks - classic and sweet tea, along with jasmine tea, a spiced tea, and even a Thai iced tea (the one I will want to try soon!) I wanted to note here that there is a recipe for "sun tea." I ask that you use caution here. There has been a lot of discussion about the safety of sun tea and I would advise that you do some reading first. "Tea Comforters" are some great cool weather drinks - from chocolate chai to tea nog to milky vanilla tea. The "Tisanes"section had its expected herbal recipes. I was surprised to see the first was a "citrus blend" that actually included black tea, but I think it was included because it was designed to be a Vitamin C boost, a more "medicinal" purpose than the other tea drinks.

The final sections are "Cooking with Tea" and "Hosting a Tea Party." It was nice to see some recipes that caught me by surprise. Something like "tea-smoked" fish or chicken isn't necessarily innovative, but the potato chamomile soup was really unique. I'm also anxious to try the Jasmine and Citrus Pound Cake.

Another great little tea cookbook. I am certain that at least one of these recipes will make the menu list for this year's Blog-iversary Dinner! And no doubt a number of them will be tested in the coming months. I'll be sure to give you an update. Let me know if you try any also!

More on those "tea bugs"

This is a short follow-up on my previous post on green leaf cicadas. I received a very nice message from Kirsten Kristensen at Tea4U. She just had the opportunity to do a Tea Study Tour in Taiwan (lucky!) As part of her trip, they traveled to the Taiwan Tea Research Extension Station and learned more about the cicada. She was kind enough to share a photograph with us!

You will see the very tiny "leaf hoppers" circled in red on the photo at left. She said they were very difficult to photograph as they really are amazing hoppers!

My great thanks to Ms. Kristensen.

If you want to learn more about her trip, you can check out Tea4U's Facebook page. There are some amazing photos of Ms. Kristensen's trip - from picking tea to processing it to making her own tuo cha!

Two Teas - An Indian and a Hawaiian!

First - as promised - the poppet. :) (That's for you, Stacey.)

I'm back from the weekend's wedding festivities. My cousin looked beautiful and it was five days of time with family. I have eleven cousins on that side of the family, most with spouses or partners, and nearly everyone made it up to Maine for the big day. It was amazing to see everyone and rehash all our childhood memories. (And to create some new "childish" memories.)

Now, it's time to get back to business. Some friends and I have been developing a pseudo writing group to help keep each other motivated. I promised that I'd do a couple posts a week at minimum so now I have even more people keeping me accountable. I really love doing the blog and I'm so appreciative that so many of you take the time to write.

I have recently added some new "operating rules" to the blog. They can be found via the "About Us" section at the top of the blog. These are promises that I am making to you as my readers. I have re-printed them here for your convenience:

• Tea Pages will always be a site dedicated to providing fun, educational, and (hopefully) interesting information about the world of tea.
• I will do my best to provide unbiased opinions. Readers should always remember that these are simply my opinions. They are no more or less valid than your own opinions.
• I am also a freelance writer so I will occasionally do work for tea companies. I will not review any tea from those companies during my period of employment. For companies with whom I have "click through"/affiliate agreements on my website, I promise to continue to give unbiased opinions that you can trust are solely mine.
• I promise to disclose when I receive a tea, book, or product as a free sample.
• I commit to donating a percentage of proceeds from "click-throughs"/affiliate/donations to charity each year.
• I promise to respond promptly to any concerns you may have about my reviews, the blog, or any perceived bias.
• I promise to do this as long as I love what I do.
  

NOW, WHAT ABOUT THE TEA? I know. Let's get back to what you all came here for.

Darjeeling Okayti 1st Flush FTGFOP1 - Tea Source

First, let's dispense with the acronym: FTGFOP1. It represents Finest Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe 1. The "Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe" part suggests that this tea is a whole leaf tea composed of large golden tips. The Finest means that it is a particularly high quality plucking of this type of tea. The 1 is an additional designation indicating a slightly better grade than other teas of the same type.

First Flush means that this tea was collected during the first harvest of the season. This particular tea hails from the Okayti Estate in the Darjeeling region of India. In general I think you will find 1st flush teas to be a bit lighter with more green tones than 2nd flush.

The dry leaf was absolutely gorgeous. The color mix was striking - chocolate browns, emerald, and golden tips. It smelled very springy and fresh to me, slightly reminiscent of asparagus.

I brewed 1 tsp of this tea for 3 minutes. The liquor had a bit of a peach tone to it. The scent was peachy, with another note of broccoli.

I was struck by how long lasting the flavor of this tea was. I picked up the flavor of apricot. It was a buttery tea, with a rich full-bodied mouthfeel.

This was an excellent 1st flush Darjeeling.


Kilinoe Green - Narien Tea

I have been positively ecstatic about this tea. It really feels like a watershed moment for me. Hawaii has now become the second location in the country that is growing tea for commercial sale. Tea has been being grown on the island for several years now. (The source of this tea, Big Island Tea, planted their crop in January 2002.) There are, I believe, four tea producers in Hawaii right now, but this is the first Hawaiian tea that will be sold on the US mainland. (I will certainly do a post with further exploration of the Hawaiian tea industry in the future.)

This tea is organically grown on the "volcanic slopes of Mauna Loa," according to Narien's website. The Chinese methods of harvesting, rolling, and firing by hand are used.

Now, on to the specifics of this tea. The dry leaf is very long and curly. It does not have a particularly tight twist. There actually didn't seem to be very much uniformity of the leaf form. I was also surprised to find the leaf very springy, not crisp. I didn't feel like I'd seen that in a tea before.

The scent was sweet and fruity - a bit like nectarines.

The liquor was a very pale yellow and the scent was extraordinarily subtle. Surprisingly subtle.

The flavor was striking. Although prepared in the Chinese style, the flavor reminded me more of Japanese greens like Fukamushi. I detected flavor like broccoli.

I was really taken by this tea. I'm not sure if it's the story, the provenance, or the tea itself that I like. At any rate, my interest in supporting this new growing area will certainly lead me to place another order.