First Flush Darjeeling from Dobra

I have very little experience with Darjeeling so I wanted to share my thoughts on the First Flush Darjeeling that I bought on my visit to Dobra in Greenville. This one is from the Hilton Estate. Since I have such little experience with Darjeeling or Indian teas in general, I asked my friend Geoffrey, better … Continue reading First Flush Darjeeling from Dobra →

I Visited Dobra Tea in Greenville

I recently went to visit some family in Greenville, SC, so I had to make a trip to Dobra while I was there. This was indeed my first ever visit to a tea house and I was so excited to go. This Dobra location just opened in February 2020 and had to close down in … Continue reading I Visited Dobra Tea in Greenville →

Comparing Two Kinds of Jin Jun Mei

You may have picked up by now that I am a huge fan of Fujian Black teas. And the king of Fujian black teas is none other than Jin Jun Mei. Jin Jun Mei is picked only once a year and consists entirely of buds and is the highest grade of black tea (not sure … Continue reading Comparing Two Kinds of Jin Jun Mei →

Very Expensive Vs Moderately Priced Longjing

Hello friends, I have had this post on my radar for a while and finally got around to it. I had a sample pack of Harney and Sons Mejiawu Lung Ching with a sticker shock price of $650 / lb. and wanted to compare it to a more moderately priced but still very high quality … Continue reading Very Expensive Vs Moderately Priced Longjing →

Two Kinds of Dayuling

I recently won a giveaway on Instagram from Spiritwood Tea and included in that giveaway was some Dayuling tea. I have to say I did not know about Dayuling before receiving these teas. There are three main regions in Taiwan for tea - Alishan, Li Shan, and Dayuling. Dayuling tea is grown at an elevation … Continue reading Two Kinds of Dayuling →

Tea and Quarantine and Oriental Beauty

This post will be a little bit random and a little bit unusual for me. I will start by telling you that my job is considered essential services and I am still getting paid, and for that I am very blessed and grateful. I've been unsure about how to handle the blog during a time … Continue reading Tea and Quarantine and Oriental Beauty →

Comparing The Effect of Different Sized Brewing Vessels

I've been brewing tea with my tiny gaiwan lately and I have noticed a pattern. The tea seems to taste better than I remember it tasting in my slightly larger gaiwans. As it turns out, I just happen to have a much larger gaiwan that is the same material as my tiny one, which naturally … Continue reading Comparing The Effect of Different Sized Brewing Vessels →

My First Guest Post

I was recently asked to submit a guest post for the blog Not Just A Cuppa as part of their 365 day tea challenge. I was honored to be asked to contribute and I had to step up my photo game a little bit because they have very nice pictures on their posts! I went … Continue reading My First Guest Post →

Shincha

What is shincha? Teapedia.org defines it as: Shincha, literally "new tea" is the first harvest (first flush) of a Japanese green tea. It is basically the same as Ichibancha, "first tea" and is distinguished by its fresh flavor and sweetness. The term "Ichibancha" will emphasize the difference to Nibancha (second tea) and Sanbancha (third tea). … Continue reading Shincha →

Ruby 18 Comparison Tasting

I recently had my first ever Ruby 18 black tea and so the natural next step is to do a comparison tasting. I ordered a sample from Mei Leaf recently as well as a sample from Harney and Sons with this very comparison in mind. I didn't realize until halfway through that I have never … Continue reading Ruby 18 Comparison Tasting →