TeaDB

Tag: Yunnan Sourcing

  • “Yiwu” Raw Pu’erh [May 2015 Tea Drinking Report]

    “Yiwu” Raw Pu’erh [May 2015 Tea Drinking Report]

    Big shoutouts to Carolyn, Richard, Dignitea and several vendors for providing teas and others like Shah8 for their recommendations! A brief disclaimer: This report should be taken as my own personal journey into tea and not as the ultimate, definitive anything.

    WTF Part 1!? These reports have been getting progressively longer. Rather than do something sensible, (a) get an editor to reduce flab and misspellings or (b) allow my mom or girlfriend to chuck out samples/stage an intervention… I stuck my middle finger out and indulged.. That’s right! This report is even longer than the previous one and will be released in two installments. The first will cover the young tea and the second will consume the Yiwu with some age (somewhat arbitrary set as 8 years). (more…)

  • Yunnan Sourcing’s 2010 Youle — TeaDB James InBetweenIsode Episode #32

    A still going strong raw pu’erh from Yunnan Sourcing.

  • 2012 Yiwu Purple (YS) & 2012 Cangyan Gufeng (W2T) — TeaDB James InBetweenIsode Episode #31

    Comparison of two cheaper teas supposedly from Yiwu. The Cangyan Gufeng is mistakenly referred to as being from 2013.

  • 2004 Nanjian Phoenix Aroma via Yunnan Sourcing [Episode 107]

    A nice, semi-aged raw pu’erh from Yunnan Sourcing. There is a clean humidity in the tea.

  • Yancha (Wuyi Oolongs) [March 2015 Tea Drinking Report]

    Yancha (Wuyi Oolongs) [March 2015 Tea Drinking Report]

    Big shoutouts to Brian, Carolyn, and Richard (+vendors) for providing several of the teas for this month and allowing the content to be what it is! I hope you like long-form content, because this tea of the month report is truly massive.

    In the month of March 2015, the tea of the month was Yancha. During this month, I had Yancha at least once a day (unless totally unfeasible). I’ll still consume other teas, but the primary focus is understanding and building a palate for a specific type/genre/region of tea through repetition. This is the most personal blogging type style of post for TeaDB, and the goal is to stretch my palate as well as give recommendations to interested parties. (more…)

  • Raw Pu’erh Oddities. Feat: Small Leaf, Purple Leaf, Purple Bud, etc.

    Pu’erh is a very elusive term, that carries many definitions and radically different taste profiles depending on who you ask. While for the most part, pu’erh is produced with Camellia Sinensis v. Assamica, the big leaf varietal; the term itself is attached with the geography (Yunnan) and the processing, not necessarily the leaf varietal. As pu’erh has picked up steam and demand has spiked, there’s been a few interesting oddities that are cultivated and marketed. Many of these are naturally growing and some haven’t been produced as pu’erh until recently (causing heavy scrutiny into the aging potential). (more…)

  • Yunnan Sourcing’s Tieluohan — TeaDB James InBetweenIsode Episode #23

    In inbetweenisode #23, James continues his series on Wuyi Oolongs this time with a guest star, Meet. The tea is one that James has been slowly sipping away on for over a year, Yunnan Sourcing’s Tieluohan.

    http://yunnansourcing.com/en/wuyimountainrockoolongs/2526-tie-luo-han-iron-arhat-premium-wu-yi-shan-rock-oolong-tea.html

  • Cutting Out the Middleman (And is it Worth It?)

    Cutting Out the Middleman (And is it Worth It?)

    As westerners we are in a land far from the production of our beloved Yunnanese pu’erh and from the huge tea markets of China. This seemingly locks us into a constant struggle to eliminate as many middlemen and meddling hands as possible between us and our teas. The western market for pu’erh is far smaller and physically further from the source, giving east Asian vendors little incentive to accommodate us. It’s no surprise that there is a western premium that most of us pay to get our teas. However, unlike oolong or green teas, pu’erh is also sold with very commonly label. For mass-marketed teas like Dayi or Xiaguan it is very easy to find the Chinese prices for the tea using Donghe or Taobao. It is also possible for the willing and resourceful to buy directly from the Chinese market (via Taobao). This article examines this and several of the different tea types and approximates the markups. (more…)

  • Peripheral Teaware — TeaDB James InBetweenIsode Episode #21

    Musings on some teaware that James uses that you may or may not find useful!

  • Wuliang/Ailao Raw Pu’erh [February 2015 Tea Drinking Report]

    Wuliang/Ailao Raw Pu’erh [February 2015 Tea Drinking Report]

    Big shoutouts to Carolyn & Brian (a different Brian from last month) for providing several of the teas for this month and allowing the content to be what it is! I hope you like long-form content, because this tea of the month report is truly massive.

    In the month of February 2015, the tea of the month was Wuliang/Ailao Pu’erh. During this month, I had Wuliang/Ailao Pu’erh at least once a day (unless totally unfeasible). I’ll still consume other teas, but the primary focus is understanding and building a palate for a specific type/genre/region of tea through repetition. This is the most personal blogging type style of post for TeaDB, and the goal is to stretch my palate as well as give recommendations to interested parties. (more…)