Holsome tea is an awesome tea shop. It carries many varieties of tea. The highlights for me are competition grade Long Jing, Oolong and Pouchong as well as excellent Pi Lo Chun. If you are looking to try something new, just learning about tea or want one of the above mentioned styles of tea, this is probably one of the better places to come--it is the best place I have been too, but I still have many places to go to. The tea shop also has Traditional Chinese Medicine and other herbs in a very calming space with an interesting sculpture hanging by some yixing pots (sorry, no pictures of this, but you can find some on their Web site).
Back to the tea:
The owner, Dr. Shu has direct connections to many of the tea growing regions that he acquires his tea from. This is most evident for his high grade Pi Lo Chun; the Pi Lo Chun is only picked on the first day of day picking. The only way Dr. Shu can ensure that it is so, and not just picked in the first few days is because his relative oversees the picking and shipping of the tea. For the high grades of High Mountain Oolong and Pouchong, Dr. Shu picks his favorite region for the tea and orders directly from the growers. (I do not know the story for the Long Jings, but I assume it is similar and that he also ensures that they come from the Dragon Well, or Lake) In upcoming posts I will look at a Competition grade Pouchong and a High Mountain style Oolong--though not competition grade.
If you are ever traveling through or near Princeton, NJ, I highly recommend stopping in.
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Yunan Bo-Nay
Today I am finishing Yunan Bo-Nay (acquired from Holsome Teas in Princeton, NJ). The tea is from Yunan Province (as the name may suggest) and the tea is also a pu-erh, or aged tea (Bo-Nay is one of many synonyms for pu-erh). The dry leaf has a spicy aroma along with the earthy smell of many pu's.
The liquor of the tea seen here is after the first 2 minutes of steeping, I kept the leaves in the pot and by the end the tea I poured out was black and almost syrupy. The first cup was very pleasant, it was light and warmed my stomach and my body with a mild sweet and earthy taste. I am now on the last cup and the tea has grown astringent and it creates a numbing sensation in my mouth after I drink it.
The liquor of the tea seen here is after the first 2 minutes of steeping, I kept the leaves in the pot and by the end the tea I poured out was black and almost syrupy. The first cup was very pleasant, it was light and warmed my stomach and my body with a mild sweet and earthy taste. I am now on the last cup and the tea has grown astringent and it creates a numbing sensation in my mouth after I drink it.
Monday, January 19, 2009
Chiran Kanayamidon
Today I am drinking Chiran Kanayamidon (which I procured from Twisted Branch Tea Bazaar). Chiran refers to the place where the tea is from--Chiran is now part of Kagoshima Prefecture, which is in the South of Japan. The area is also home to the kamikaze museum. The meaning of Kanayamidon is still being researched at this time. Like so many of my recently purchased teas, I have been drinking this almost exclusively and I am on my last steaping.
The tea leaf is dark green and has the characteristic look of many Japanases teas--namely the fine cut nature of the leaf. The liquor of the tea is an emerald green and the taste of this tea is slightly vegetal with much less astringency than most other Japanese Teas.
Above are the spent leaves, again one can see how the leaves are cut to pieces.
The tea leaf is dark green and has the characteristic look of many Japanases teas--namely the fine cut nature of the leaf. The liquor of the tea is an emerald green and the taste of this tea is slightly vegetal with much less astringency than most other Japanese Teas.
Above are the spent leaves, again one can see how the leaves are cut to pieces.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Twisted Branch Tea Bazaar
I visit Twisted Branch Tea Bazaar almost every time I travel West (for example: Nashville, or hiking in the Blue Ridge). It is located on the downtown mall in Charlottesville, Virginia, and it is one of the few tea shops that stays open after dinner. Their selection of tea is on the smaller side, but they do carry some of the most interesting teas in Virginia. Highlights include a selection of Japanese Green Tea that goes beyond Sencha and Matcha and rotates frequently. They also have a decent collection pu-erhs, blacks, greens and white teas. Below are some photographs from the tea shop at night, when the scene changes a little from enjoying tea to more of a hookah bar and music venue.
Above is a view of their "shoeless" sitting area for enjoying tea. The seating is not for lounging but for contemplation and tea enjoyment.
The mirror wall.
The counter with tea tins in the background.
While there I enjoyed a pot of Gyokuro and left with a cup of pi lo chun to go.
Above is a view of their "shoeless" sitting area for enjoying tea. The seating is not for lounging but for contemplation and tea enjoyment.
The mirror wall.
The counter with tea tins in the background.
While there I enjoyed a pot of Gyokuro and left with a cup of pi lo chun to go.
Friday, January 9, 2009
More tea travels
For the holidays I traveled to Nashville, stopping briefly in the Asheville and Knoxville. I used google and teamap to help me scout locations before my trip. I found three possible tea locations in Asheville, one in Knoxville and one in Nashville. All of the places I found on google and teamap were a disappointment. Two of the locations did not carry tea-just stuff, most of which was not related to tea--one place was no longer, one place served high tea but did not have a wide selection of tea and was more concerned with the art of Victorian High Tea than tea the drink.
I found the most interesting tea shop that I have been to in Nashville--and this one I found by word of mouth. The shop was mostly a kitchen wares store with a corner in the back piled high with tea bags--large bags full of loose leaf tea (see picture). I talked with the owner about tea and I tried to get him to show me some tea so that I could decide what I wanted to purchase--at this point I was in need of tea replenishment. At first he was reluctant to show me any teas--it was as though I first had to prove I possessed great knowledge of tea by telling him what I was interested. I could not just say that I wanted green tea, I also had to tell him the type of tea I wanted (gyokuro, sencha, dragonwell, etc) as well as the location I wanted the tea to be from. Once we got past this step and I started to decide on some teas, he warmed up to me (and, I suppose, me to him). I was still, however, skeptical of the way he stored his tea; in a disorganized fashion in plastic bags. It was also hard to decide on teas because the smell of plastic overwhelmed the smell of the tea. After smelling numerous teas, I decided on a Dragonwell from a freshly opened bag and a Tung Ting Oolong. I also received four sample teas when I purchased the Dragonwell and Oolong, the one I am most looking forward to is called "witch's brew" and is a long leaf pu-erh.
This store was a welcome find--and the only one of the two places worth writing about--after being disappointed in Asheville and Knoxville. I do, however want to share the rest of my tea adventures in Asheville and Knoxville.
Asheville is a cool city with lots of good coffee shops, it however lacks a shop dedicated to Tea--in the sense that a shop carries a wide variety of tea and its primary concern is tea, the actual brew. Below is a photograph of the one place there that billed itself as a tea room and actually served tea (there are at least two other "tea rooms" in Asheville, one sells clothes, the other jewelry and other assorted house gifts).
I do not have a photograph of the tea shop in Knoxville because I called them beforehand and asked them what tea they carried. The answer, "ummm... I don't know..., Earl Grey and Constant Comment." This sentence along with the fact that it was called Applecake Tea Room is why I decided to skip this establishment.
The last tea shop I visited was in Charlottesville on my return from Nashville. I have been here many times, and it deserves its own seperate post.
Tea shop in Asheville
bags of tea piled high in Nashville
I found the most interesting tea shop that I have been to in Nashville--and this one I found by word of mouth. The shop was mostly a kitchen wares store with a corner in the back piled high with tea bags--large bags full of loose leaf tea (see picture). I talked with the owner about tea and I tried to get him to show me some tea so that I could decide what I wanted to purchase--at this point I was in need of tea replenishment. At first he was reluctant to show me any teas--it was as though I first had to prove I possessed great knowledge of tea by telling him what I was interested. I could not just say that I wanted green tea, I also had to tell him the type of tea I wanted (gyokuro, sencha, dragonwell, etc) as well as the location I wanted the tea to be from. Once we got past this step and I started to decide on some teas, he warmed up to me (and, I suppose, me to him). I was still, however, skeptical of the way he stored his tea; in a disorganized fashion in plastic bags. It was also hard to decide on teas because the smell of plastic overwhelmed the smell of the tea. After smelling numerous teas, I decided on a Dragonwell from a freshly opened bag and a Tung Ting Oolong. I also received four sample teas when I purchased the Dragonwell and Oolong, the one I am most looking forward to is called "witch's brew" and is a long leaf pu-erh.
This store was a welcome find--and the only one of the two places worth writing about--after being disappointed in Asheville and Knoxville. I do, however want to share the rest of my tea adventures in Asheville and Knoxville.
Asheville is a cool city with lots of good coffee shops, it however lacks a shop dedicated to Tea--in the sense that a shop carries a wide variety of tea and its primary concern is tea, the actual brew. Below is a photograph of the one place there that billed itself as a tea room and actually served tea (there are at least two other "tea rooms" in Asheville, one sells clothes, the other jewelry and other assorted house gifts).
I do not have a photograph of the tea shop in Knoxville because I called them beforehand and asked them what tea they carried. The answer, "ummm... I don't know..., Earl Grey and Constant Comment." This sentence along with the fact that it was called Applecake Tea Room is why I decided to skip this establishment.
The last tea shop I visited was in Charlottesville on my return from Nashville. I have been here many times, and it deserves its own seperate post.
Tea shop in Asheville
bags of tea piled high in Nashville
Friday, December 12, 2008
Third picked wild green tea
The third picking of the green tea from Mt. Jilee, Korea has been my go-to tea since Thanksgiving. The unfortunate side-effect of this is that I am down to my last brew of the leaves which means it is time for some photos and a brief overview of the tea. The photographs below show the dried leaves, the color of the steeped tea and the leaves after three steepings. The tea has a much more bite to it than the color of the liquor would suggest and it finishes with a sweet and nutty flavor. The advantage of this tea over its first-picked cousin is that the third picking maintains its flavor longer (whereas the first picking looses a lot of its appeal the older that it gets).
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Franchia, NYC
Franchia is the tea house I visit the most in NYC, simply because it is very near to Grand Central, my usual arrival point. Franchia also serves a range of Korean vegetarian fare that is prepared very well. The tea selection is not large, but the tea it does have is excellent. The highlight of the tea menu is the selection of Korean tea, particularly the wild green tea--of which they have a first, second and third picking. The tea is from Mt. Jilee, Korea and each picking is very unique. The first picking has the subtlest and purest taste, while the third picking is stronger and not as pure (because it was picked later). Each picking is visibly different: the first picking has more buds and is downy (maybe fuzzy would be a better descriptor) while the third is darker and not downy. This is also the only tea shop that I know sells Korean tea. The interior of the tea house is also very calming and interesting (see photos).
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