Raw Puerh Adventure and Jingmai LOVE

Puerh brewing in a tea maker.

My buddies, Glen and Lamu, over at Crimson Lotus Tea sent me a couple of puerh samples to try … after I ordered and paid for them. This happened in January 2017. Unintentionally, the tea had over a year and a half to acclimate to the varied Texas climate.

After all these years as a tea blogger, this was my first experience with puerh of any kind. The sample in question, 2016 Spring “Jingmai LOVE,” came from the Jingmai Mountains in China’s Yunnan region. It is a raw puerh. Continue reading “Raw Puerh Adventure and Jingmai LOVE”

Gong Fu Style and Young Hyson Imperial Organic Green Tea

Small Chinese Tea CupsToday marks my first attempt at gong fu (Chinese tea ceremony). I bought a cheap gong fu travel set on Amazon.com that included a gaiwan (teapot), a pitcher, a strainer and five tea cups — all in the tiniest form you could possibly imagine. No tray or pets come with this set.

I celebrated the inaugural occasion with Young Hyson Imperial Organic, a Chinese green tea from Upton Tea Imports. I also ordered a pu-erh sample from Crimson Lotus Tea but figured that to be too ambitious and involved for a first-time gong fu-er (and pu-erh-er). Continue reading “Gong Fu Style and Young Hyson Imperial Organic Green Tea”