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What I’m wondering is very often I only have time and/or bladder space for 3-5 steepings at a time and I hate to waste the leaves potential. Is there a good way to save the leaves for more steepings later in the day?
I do this now by putting the leaves/gaiwan in the fridge, then when I get home from work I give them a quick re-rinse with hot water and continue steeping. It seems to work alright, but I’m wondering if you have any better tricks.
Thanks so much
Hi Nate,
The way you save the leaves depends on how long you want to keep them. For just a few hours, or later in the day, leaving the leaves covered and in the brewing vessel is best. You are on the right track rinsing the leaves with hot water before you start brewing again. This step is necessary to rinse away moisture in the leaves that had been “steeping” while you were away. Yixing teapots can keep leaves overnight with no trouble. Since tea is naturally antifungal and anti microbial, I avoid the refrigerator, where temperature and other smells may affect the tea. I have never had trouble leaving tea at room temperature and rinsing at boiling.
Just be careful at the peak of summer, as humidity can occasionally cause mold after 2-3 days. Also be careful with blended tea that have fruit, etc. The sugars make it unsafe to leave out overnight. IN that case, stick with the refrigerator.
Where do you recommend buying teapots and tea accessories? All we have locally is Teavana. Do you plan to sell teapots and accessories in the future? Thanks
Hi Jackie,
Finding teapots and accessories is something I have wanted to do for quite a while. I recently decided that the best way to do so in a way that goes along with my values is to reach out to local artists here in Minneapolis and start a conversation about tea art objects. I am hoping to work with a few potters and woodworkers, commissioning tea wares to sell on the site. Probably in a month or so, that will come to fruition.
In the mean time, I often send people to my friend Garret, who owns Mandala Teas. He finds some very affordable and functional pieces- both yixing and gaiwans.
Hello David,
Could you please keep us posted on the progress of the tea art project? I’m willing to go hunt for a yixing or a gaiwan here in the Chinese market (Dubai, UAE), but I’m expecting average quality fast-living-consumerist oriented pottery at best. Once you get your tea art going, I’m surely getting myself one!
Thanks,
H.Q.
Thanks! I will keep working on this project. The China trip sort of put it on the sidelines, but it is definitely something I will do as time allows. I believe in having less, and enjoying it more. Paying more and buying less for high quality anything makes everyday experiences with every day objects more meaningful.
I just received an oz of Stone-Pressed 2004 Yiwu Wild Arbor Sheng. I like it a lot. Since it is a small quantity, can I just keep it in the ziplock bag it came in and if so, for how long is it ok to do this, or should I put it in a box in a low humidity area. This is the 1st raw puerh I have bought, and I read that for larger quantities that are going to be kept for aging purposes they should not be stored in airtight containers and should have air flow in an odor free area.
Hi Donna,
The pouch that the Yiwu come in will work just fine for short term storage. If you plan on drinking the tea within the next four months, the aging process is not a big concern. If yo plan to age for a year or more, you can just crack the bag open a little bit by not sealing it all the way and that will be plenty of airflow for the pu’er.
You are right about larger quantity long term storage. At home I store bricks of sheng wrapped in rice paper in big cardboard boxes. Eventually I plan to store them stacked in ceramic jars since ceramic has less scent than paper, but pu’er isn’t really as finicky as people try to scare you into thinking it is. Most important is to have fun, and keep notes on how the flavors are changing over time.
If I want to store steeped leaves a week or more….plastic bag? Bag retains moisture. Leave leaves in Pyrex pitcher? Good tea. Thx.
Hi Jack,
Genrally I wouldn’t recommend storing steeped leaves longer than a day. If they have moisture in them, they will continue steeping the whole time they are out, and oxidizing. This will alter the flavor quite noticeably.
If you do store them longer than a day or two, I would spread the leaves out on a plate and let them fully dry again. Dry leaves have less of a chance of going moldy, etc. Then you just steep them back up like new leaves.
I have been drinking pu erh teas now for a couple of years, and I usually drink only one serving of it a day. Since you can get roughly 6-8 definitively good steepings out of the same leaves, I have been using the same leaves for about a week before tossing them. I use a small, single serving yixing pot both to brew, and to store the leaves. I always pull the tea out of the fridge 2-4 hours before I’m ready to steep, and I have never had a problem with the tea going bad, or getting moldy, as people fear. The fact that it is immersed in boiling hot water each time ensures that well protected against anything harmful. The taste has never been altered by this practice, so I feel safe in saying that, as long as you are using boiling or near boiling water for you pu erh teas and storing them in a yixing pot, mug, or container, then you should have not problem. I also store some other types of brewed tea leaves in the refrigerator in small, BPA free containers that I have dedicated exclusively to those teas, and, depending on the type of tea, can get 2-4 more steepings out of them, again, without any changes in taste or problems with mold. I am VERY picky concerning food safety and cleanliness, and any hint of a problem would send me tossing tea leaves out, regardless of anything else. The main thing is to use common sense, and check the tea leaves carefully before use. Your own native climate can also affect the mold issue, so keep that in mind. Hope this helps alleviate worry and help you get the most you can out of those precious leafy gems of goodness!
Just to clarify my saying that I only get 6-8 brewings out of my single serving size yixing pot of pu-erh is because I drink about 10 oz at a time, and I like it on the strong side. My little pot is about 5 oz. so I do a double brew each time I drink this tea. This truly shows just how far this wonderful type of tea can go!
As a starting point, how many grams of tea do you recommend for 6oz of water?
Steeping in short infusions and repeating steeping 5-15 times, I would recommend 3.5 grams of tea. This is a base line. In China, 7g is more common, and I personally use about 4.5, but the more tea you put in, the faster you have to pour off the water to prevent a bitter brew. The reward is a richer and more potent tea. Try 3.5 and see how you like it.
Which of the black teas do you recommend for iced tea?
Hi Carol,
I really think the Laoshan Black is exquisite. The iced version is so chocolatey and sweet. Very rewarding indeed. For a more classic iced tea, the Zhu Rong works great, and is strong enough to stand up to any sweetness or lemon.
For a fun experiment, you can try infusing the Laoshan black in cold milk overnight in the refrigerator. The next day you get the best “chocolate milk” ever.
Hi David,
In several of the brewing notes, you refer to how much leaf to use in a “medium gaiwan or yixing pot,” which is great! But how big is “medium”? I’ve been guessing 5 or 6oz, and using slightly less leaf in my pots that hold 3.5 and 4.5oz water, but I’d love to be sure…
Thanks!
Hi Olivia,
Five ounces is just exactly an average size. A five ounce pot is best with about 3.5 g of tea for Chinese style brewing. Sorry for the less-than-clear notes, and thanks for asking.
Hello-
Is your tea available for purchase at your store or only by mail? If the former, what are your store hours? Thank you.
Dear Theresa,
We are devoted fully to sourcing in China and order fulfillment, and don’t yet have the resources to do a storefront justice. It means more time to find rare and unique teas, but is unfortunate for Minneapolis. Local shipping is generally overnight. If you ordered on Wednesday morning your tea would be packed and sent out for Thursday or Friday at the latest delivery.
However, the summer you can actually visit us at the NE Minneapolis Farmers Market or the Linden Hills Farmers Market to try the teas and buy directly. We are also working to get tea available at local coffeeshops and co-ops. If you want to see our tea at your go-to place, by all means tell the managers about us and we will work to set them up with our product.
I’m considering giving a bag of your chocolate phoenix chai as a gift, but first I wanted to check on something. Are there any allergens associated with the cocoa nibs used in this product? I know that they themselves are nut-free, but on rare occasions in the past I’ve run across brands which state that they are processed on the same equipment that processes peanuts, and I’d like to make sure that I won’t accidentally induce anaphylaxis in the person I give this tasty tea to. Thanks!
Hi Ryan,
The caco we use is light roasted Peruvian cacao imported by Mountain Rose Spice Co for us. They do also package nut and seed products, and I cannot get a guarantee from them that the cacao is packed in a separate facility altogether. Knowing the ethics and practices of Mountain Rose, I would assume that they do make the effort, and I will try to get a more clear and definitive answer, but in the mean time, I would be on the safe side.
Hello,
I just have a quick question regarding allergens. I have a severe nut allergy, and as quite a few of your teas do not have full ingredient listings, I was just wondering if any of your products contain nuts. I don’t think they do, but I’d rather be on the safe side.
Thanks for your time!
Hi Lena,
None of our teas use any nut products whatsoever. I grew up with a lot of friends with severe nut allergies and don’t want to shut them out of trying my blends. Check my response above to Ryan though- we source our herbs from a variety of importers and do not have a nut-free processing guarantee from them. Given both questions here, I am going to try to see if I can find out more specifically how careful they are at their facilities.
Thanks for the question!
Hey Verdant Tea! I was wondering where I could get a tea tray like your walnut tray. It is so classy looking!
Thanks so much! Unfortunately I don’t know of any US vendors selling those boards currently. The shipping is so unwieldy that it makes them pretty pricey. You might try ebay, but there is no telling how reputable the vendor might be. I plan to bring a few in next year for a new teahouse project. I will certainly let everyone know if I get any to sell.
Would you please explain how one might have 25-30 steepings (in a 5 oz zixing pot, say,) as suggested for some teas? How many sittings, or how many hours? I am assuming small Chinese cups, but still….If I could get this mileage I would be happy. Xie xie.
Hi Jack,
When I brew Gongfu style in a 5oz pot and want to take the tea out to 25 steepings I will use closer to 7g of tea and do immediate steeping for the first 10 infusions, and then add a few seconds for each infusion after that to taste. Twenty five steepings represents about an hour and a half of tea drinking with 1oz cups. (25 oz consumed per person). When I am by myself I pour the extra of each steeping over an yixing pot to help season it. That lets me get a lot more steepings. Otherwise, inviting over 4 people takes care of the extra tea. bukeqi
My first Verdant Tea order consisted, unsurprisingly, of Laoshan Black. The tea really impressed me. I’m not much of a black tea drinker but this might change that! I’m curious, however: is chocolate actually involved in the making of the tea?
Hi Connor,
Glad to hear that you have enjoyed the Laoshan Black. There is absolutely no chocolate involved in the making of the tea. That chocolatey flavor is 100% the result of the unique conditions of Laoshan Village and the care that Mr. and Mrs He put into picking and processing.
I believe David has mentioned on one of his YouTube videos knowing someone who is making tea boards. Is there public information available about those in terms of whether they are for sale, the pricing, &c?
Now that I have a proper yixing (and hope to get more), I need to be more conscious of the mess I’m making and would love to have a true tea board to brew my tea upon but wouldn’t even know where to begin to try to get one.
Hi Jim,
The experiments have gone really slowly with locally made walnut tea boards, but our prototype is almost done. Just looking for the right hardware for drainage. If it works, I would love to get more made. No timetable yet though…
Well please know that there’s a market waiting! As I turn more and more friends onto loose left tea, we all run into the problem of water management in the work place and a tea board would help all of us with that.
Please define a cup of water. 6 or 8 oz?
8oz to a cup. However, most teas do quite well with more tea for less water (the 6oz cup) and shorter brew times. I do use 8oz though for practical purposes here.
Hey David really excited to talk to you and buy some tea from you real soon. My question is I found a site where they had a gaiwan complete set and a gong fu set. I’m probably going to get the gong fu because its very pretty and procelian. Here’s the thing that confused me about the gaiwan set though, its looks more like a teapot than the traditional looking teacup with lid and saucer. Here’s the link. http://beautifultaiwantea.com/tea-wares/attachment/img_1460/ (note: this is not advertisement at all just reference.). So I guess my question is are there different gaiwan styles?
Hi Katie,
The gaiwan you link to is great for beginners because it is a lot hard to burn your hands using it. Technically, a gaiwan is a bowl on a saucer with a lid, and there is only one real shape that those tend to be. The adapted teapot / gaiwan hybrid is a modern convenience. Don’t let technicalities bother you though- just get what is easiest and most pleasant to use.
Hello Dave!
I’ve been reading a bit about Verdant from a friend’s tweets and today I decided it’s time to check what it’s all about, and what do you know! I think I’m hooked already!
I’ve just made my first order, a selection of 6 fine teas! And I’m already counting the days till I get them delivered! And now I’ve noticed the Rewards Program, and I would really wish to be a part of it, but it seems to require a Facebook account, which I don’t have!
Is it possible to use my Verdant Tea account (My email) or a Twitter account or some other alternative? And if so, would I still be applicable for my first 1,000 points from my first purchase?
All the love from the sandy land,
Dubai, UAE
H.Q.
I hope you get your teas very soon! I really hope that we can get Facebook alternative linked to the rewards program. Since we didn’t develop the code ourselves, we have less control, but we have asked the developers to work on other login methods. Possibly in the coming months.
Where can I find those double walled glass teacups I see featured in some of your product’s pictures?
I am not sure who has such small double-walled glass cups, but Finum manufactures larger 5oz cups that you could check out. I got mine from a friend in China.
If you’re still looking for some, you can find them easily on eBay… Just search for “double walled tea cup”.
What temperature is recommended for green teas when consumed from drinking glass (Chinese style). I would assume 140-150f? Higher could make the tea bitter? What are your thoughts? I enjoy the taste of tea best when I let it cool down. Thanks.
Good question.
Since glass lets the water cool very quickly, I usually use 180 degree water (sometimes hotter for Laoshan tea). I pour along the edge of the glass and introduce the leaves slowly. The water cools quickly and fine tea doesn’t tend to go bitter very easily.
What are your recommendations for brewing tea at the office, in terms of types of tea and methods?
I would either put tea right in your cup and keep topping it off with hot water, or use a brew basket. The leaves should sink to the bottom of the cup. A Finum brew basket is nice to control steep times and resteep leaves. If you only have hot water from a water cooler, use green tea and white tea because the water isn’t quite hot enough for black and oolong. If you have hard water or off tasting water, go for something stronger like Laoshan Black since it can stand up to just about anything.
Do you have gift cards?
Not yet. I really want gift cards, but for now we have an awesome gift set, and two different subscription programs that make great gifts.
Do you have any recommendations for water filters?
What tea is grown in the USA, and where?
How would you recommend brewing your Bilochun? There are no brewing directions currently listed on the website.
Sorry about that. The bilochun can be brewed like the Laoshan Green, except that it will yield more steepings.
Will a new batch of shui xian be harvest anytime soon?
I am looking into new Wuyi oolongs this month and may have a new one in by the new year. Should be very good.
Hello! Do you sell the Holy Basil Blend anywhere in Minneapolis?
Thanks!
Hi Lisa,
The Yoga Center of Minneapolis usually stocks the Holy Basil Spa Blend, or our Ginger Sage Spa blend, along with some other popular favorites. They have the tea at both Minneapolis and St. Louis Park locations.
Thanks, David — I’ll check out the Yoga Center! Do you ever do any local tea tastings?
Nice to notice your website and comments on steepser. Hope you are doing well there. I’m just wondering how americans feel the various quality of tea. Do they care so much about fresh or the slightly favor difference between each level of tea ? Meanwhile , have you ever considered sell artifical tea ball or herbal tea, which seems more attractive to foreigners
Hi, just out of curiosity would I be able to apply the $25 dollar coupon on my tea of the month reserve payment this January? If not, its fine. I’m sure I will be using that 25 dollars on another order of tea at some point.
Is there somewhere on the site where you recommend if certain teas can handle sugar, cream, lemon? I’m new to alot of these teas. Grew up drinking liptons with cream and sugar;O)
Hello,
I am very interested in joining your tea club, but I am concerned about the lack of environmental regulation in China with possible pesticide residues and other contaminants in the tea you import. Is there any mechanism in place (i.e. testing or import regulations) to insure these teas are safe to drink? Thanks
Also wondering about this. Are there some of your teas where pesticides are not used and others where they are? Also wondering if you still answer questions on this board as it looks like there are many that have gone unanswered in recent months.
I’m looking at the ‘Tea of the Month Club’ membership page and I’m a little confused. What’s the difference between ‘Regular Recurring’ and ’3 Month Membership’? Is the former a one-off month of tea club, or does it continue until one decides to cancel?
Cheers
Hi there! I finally got around to trying the Minnesota Wild Rice herbal “tea” you included with a recent Tea of the Month club and greatly enjoyed it. I’m sad to see it isn’t available on your site to purchase more. Do you have any plans to get something like that in stock or do you know a place that may have something similar? Thank!
Hey Verdant Team,
I’ve been watching a LOT of tea videos on YouTube trying to study the art of tea brewing: the movements, the precision, the concentration. I’ve found this video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGP5bzGtoE4&list=LLKesPg_l7kzT8RnWou35iBA
and was wondering why the gentleman is pointing to the spout of the yixing pot. When brewing with a yixing, is it good to see the bubble peek out of the spout? I’ve heard seeing bubbles is a good sign. Should special attention be paid to the end of the spout?
Thanks for your time. I’m a devoted fan and tell everyone I know that your tea and the farmers you source from changed my life. I’ll be ordering soon!
Ryan C.
will you be getting any more zhu rong yunnan black in or have you discontinued it? if you will be getting more in when do you expect it in? and if not what is the closest tea you have to it? thank you so much!
Will you be restocking the Diyi Cornfields Shu in the future? I tried it recently and would love to stock up.
Last year I tried Golden Fleece and it was my favorite tea ever. I understand it’s no longer available, but could someone recommend a currently available tea that might taste sort of, kind of like Golden Fleece? Thank you.
Hi, I am new to to the art of tea. I wanted to host a tasting so I could share the experience of tasting teas I have never tried before with friends. Could you recommend a collection of your teas to taste and the order one would try them in. I would like to cover the spectrum of teas from green, to oolong and black, etc.I would love your input. Thank you! Sue
I notice in your videos that you are using a Zojirushi water boiler. it appears to be the CD-WBC40 model. I’m thinking of purchasing that model. Would you share a bit of your experience with the product and what you think of it?
Thank you
Hi Verdant!
I love your approach to pu-ers and the offerings you stock. It seems that they can turn over quite frequently, which results in the selection being removed from the website. Since you offer such great info on each tea (taste, origin notes and brewing methods), I often like to go back to the tea’s page for refreshers. Is there any way you can keep the tea info available to purchasers, even after you’ve sold out?
Thanks!
I just received my first Reserve Tea Club offering. I’m excited to explore the world of unique teas. I’d like to purchase the tea brewers and cups that would allow me to brew and serve the teas in the way you describe them. But I don’t know anything about this. Could you tell me where I might find some tea brewing utensils so that I could treat these teas like they deserve to be treated? Thanks.
Gary Heine
David,
First off, let me say that your instructional videos and articles have been great for starting to understand the many nuances of tea brewing and culture. I have been referring back often, so thank you. I’m just starting to get into pu’ehrs and I’m having a little trouble understanding the difference between Sheng and Shu as they often both look to come in cakes. Any help making the distinctions would be greatly appreciated and I apologise if this is discussed somewhere on the site.
Thanks again,
Chris
Maybe the better question is the difference between Shou and Shu. Are they the same?
Hello Chris,
Thank you for your kind words! It’s always great to hear that the videos and articles are being enjoyed; sharing knowledge and our love for tea is as important as sharing the tea itself.
Shou and Shu are actually the same kind of tea. Both refer to pu’er whose fermentation process is intentionally accelerated with the addition of moisture to the aging environment. As a result, English speakers sometimes referred to this tea as cooked or ripe. The difference in spelling is due to regional dialect differences. The correct Mandarin is transliterated “shu,” but some regions pronounce the word “shou.”
Sheng is the original pu’er.. basically: raw tea leaves pressed into cakes and allowed to age naturally over many years. Most sheng that you see these days has a much greener taste. Shou pu’er is a newer innovation where the effect of very very old sheng is replicated in newly picked tea, simply by aging the tea in a more humid environment. This turns the tea dark and generally makes the flavor sweeter, smoother, and more musty.
Both kinds of pu’er can be aged, but sheng pu’er offers the most dramatic return on investment, as it changes from a raw, green tasting to something dark, complex and musty over many years.
I just bought the Laotian Green Tea and am wondering why it’s brown when I make it.
Hi Sam-
The Laoshan Green tea will brew up green if prepared according to our recommended steeping instructions ( http://verdanttea.com/teas/laoshan-green/#brewing ), though if over-brewed (longer than 2 to 3 minutes), it may produce a very dark yellow-green cup.
Tea utensils and brewing equipment can add unexpected colors to your tea if they still have residues left over from another brewing session. You might also notice a darker color in your steeped tea if the leaves have been sitting out for more than a few minutes in between brewing sessions. In between steepings, the green tea will oxidize, just like an apple turns brown once the fruit is exposed to the air.
Very hard water can affect your brew, too. Hard water is not as good at extracting the leaves’ contents, including the elements that turn the tea leaves and tea water green.
If you’re trying the Laoshan Green in the Laoshan Genmaicha, the cup will have a dark yellow (brown) shade due to the roasted Jasmine Rice and Minnesota Wild Rice. Laoshan Black tea leaves look very similar to Laoshan Green, since both a curled teas from the same farm. Laoshan Black will brew up a warm orange color.
I like a variety of teas, both straight and blended. I try to avoid teas with added flavorings however, whether they are natural or artificial. Do any of your teas contain added flavors?
Hi Amy,
None of our teas contain added flavorings. Our main collection is made entirely of traditional Chinese teas, so everything you taste is the result of careful growing, magnificent land, and the miraculous processing of master craftsmen. Even our Yunnan White Jasmine is scented in the traditional manner: jasmine blossoms are scattered around the tea while drying for several nights in a row, then removed in the morning to be replaced by fresh blossoms.
Our tea blends are created by blending those same traditional teas with organic herbs, spices, dried flowers or organic whole vanilla bean. We never use artificial flavorings. The goal is to let the teas speak for themselves, not cover up and mask their beauty with heavy handed, unnatural flavors. Instead, the blended ingredients highlight natural flavor notes or serve as a counterpoint.
If you’d like to read more in-depth about the philosophy behind our blended teas, you can check out this article:
http://verdanttea.com/what-is-unflavored-tea-anyway/
Best wishes,
Lily Duckler
Do any of your teas contain added flavors, including natural and artificial flavors?
Hi Amy,
I think I may have answered this question in part above, but to clarify:
Our main collection is made of traditional Chinese teas. These teas taste just as the farmers and tea masters who grew and processed the teas intended, and their rich and complex taste reflect the quality of their land and the skill of those who created the teas.
Our blended teas contain no additional natural or artificial flavorings. We use 100% organic herbs spices and flowers in our blends to make sure that they are on par with the amazing teas sourced from our friends’ small family farms. Our carefully formulated blends draw their inspiration directly from the high end teas that we use as the bases of each offering. We blend to bring out the unique, natural taste of the tea itself, and never hide the tea under heavy, unnatural man-made flavorings.
All of our blended teas can be found in the Tea Blends sections of our website.
http://verdanttea.com/shop/blends/
Take care!
Lily Duckler
The time differences between “Gongfu” and “Western” brewing seem remarkably huge: minutes vs. seconds. It seems to me, without experience of the Gongfu method, that these varied timings would create vastly differing results. What’s up with that?
Hello, Within the last year or so I have really started to enjoy tea. I was wondering if there is anyway to train my palate so that I can detect subtle nuances and things like that, that doesn’t involve drinking immense amounts of different tea as I am only 16 and have limited funds.
Greetings,
I had a few questions regarding steeping, as well as the ‘correct’ ratio of tea to use per 8 oz. of water. I have read on several tea websites that, because some tea leaves are much larger than others, a teaspoon can be a clumsy and inaccurate way to measure (I have indeed found this to be the case!) and a better way is to use a digital food scale to measure out around 3 grams of tea per 8 oz. of water for the Western brewing method. I am wondering if you would second this recommendation, or if this varies from tea to tea? I am using a tea pitcher which uses a built in mesh filter and gasket system. I completely submerge the tea in the correct temperature water and once steeping is complete, simply place the pitcher on top of my cup and it drains into the cup.
I find this method to be so much better than using a tea ball which I had been doing prior to this, but am wondering about recommendations for doing multiple infusions with the White Jasmine tea. I see that your site recommends 175 degrees for 2 minutes, or until most of the leaves have sunk to the bottom of the vessel. I’m finding at 2 minutes, that the majority of the leaves are still floating atop the water. Should I stop the steeping at 2 minutes, or steep until the leaves sink? Also, how much time should I add for each subsequent infusion, using the pitcher brewing method?
Thank you in advance for any advice and recommendations!
Can you comment on whether pesticides or chemical fertilizers are used in your teas?
I stumbled upon your YouTube video about seasoning a pot. Was googling the subject, actually. Introduced to tea by a friend, bought my first pot on eBay. Here is my question. My 200 ml pot cost 16 usd. That is cheap. Does it mean it is not good? Should I invest in “developing” it, like you say in the video, or buy a better pot? In general the info on pot buying would be great
I will be in Xiamen for two weeks and have been watching your blog after seeing notes of your recent visit here. Can you recommend any specific tea shops or the dim sum restaurant you spoke so highly of?
Thanks,
David-
You are ahead of your time and I would like to encourage you on your journey and thank you for sharing your wisdom and tea with me. I have been to every basement in Philadelphia Chinatown looking for a traditional Gaiwan this past Mother’s Day weekend and have spoken to dozens of business owners often times through a translator and we could not find one single functional Gaiwan anywhere. I lamented this rapid change in both design and production and noticed the stores had several new age plastic innovations which were mass produced and full of paint, plastic and metal which I would not use on silver needle, green tea or oolongs. I very happy to find your site and quickly place an order on your wonderful tea ware, but I had to explain my experience so you will know that there is nowhere else that it is even offered anymore forget about the artistry of the craft, one cannot even find a functional replica. I look forward to seeing a Verdant store front in Philadelphia in the met decade and I can’t imagine how many other people had similar experiences. I never would have thought that an American man in the Midwest would have access to the best tea wares in China, but thanks again David for sharing and now it is imperative that you do well or perhaps the next generation of drinker will think Styrofoam cups are authentic. Interestingly enough when I was able to explain what I was looking for, many of the older women understood and said, “that is the old way”, here look, “we have the new ones like Starbucks” Thank you sir!
James
Is there somewhere on the website where we can see past tea club selections? It would be helpful for reorders!