291832 Sun Feb 09 13:31:05 -0800 2003 11 27 General Chowhounding Topics 0 1590314 Consumer Reports has an article on green tea in this issue, ranking 3 as 'very good,' but finding none that were 'excellent' out of the two dozen or so they tested. The 'very good' ones included two Tazo and TenRen's Dragon Well. I went to one speciality grocery store and couldn't find any of the rated brands, but a dozen or so others. So, the question for green tea hounds: do you agree with CRs recommendations? What is/are the best green teas? I have access to a large number of oriental shops and grocery stores and may even find a speciality tea merchant somewhere in those neighborhoods, tho I didn't find any in the Yellow Pages. I will probably be able to find just about any brand that is available and will prefer to buy locally and in person for the time being, while I experiment. Thanks. Sun Feb 09 13:31:05 -0800 2003 0 hermitt4d 1 1590318 I recently found Stassen Pure Jasmine Green Tea. It is the only tea I really care for. Its fragrance is heavenly. And, it is a bargain - 100 tea bags, 5.28 ounces for $4.00. I found it at a local Chinese grocery store. The packaging is distinctive and professional - green and white stripes with 3 jasmine blossoms on the cover. I hope you can find it near you and enjoy it as much as I am. Here is the manufacturer's website: http://www.stassengroup.com/inpages/ex_green_tea.htm Sun Feb 09 16:15:41 -0800 2003 1590314 0 elise h 1 1590319 I didn't read the article. From what you are saying, it sounds like they were rating brands of green tea in bags. If you want the best tea, forget bags. Brew from leaves. The cheapest loose tea is better than the best you can get in bags, and the best green tea is still pretty cheap, when you get right down to it. To read up on any subject regarding tea, go to the website below. They have more green teas there than you could ever drink. You're ready for the best. Link: http://www.uptontea.com/ Image: http://www.uptontea.com/shopcart/images/categories/Teas-Green.gif Sun Feb 09 16:26:09 -0800 2003 1590314 0 ironmom 2 1590322 Agree re. loose vs. green tea. It's better and also cheaper, cup for cup. Upton Teas' selection is huge, however I have found that they sell anything from so-so to very good teas. I yet have to be swept off of my feet by anything they carry - but as I said, some of their teas are indeed very good. Other good tea merchants are www.specialteas.com, www.plymouthtea.com, and if you want a small but superb selection (easier to choose from), www.truetea.com. Sun Feb 09 16:51:06 -0800 2003 1590319 0 Katerina 3 1590344 When we moved here from Japan in 1962 my mother had her sisters send her lots of different foods that could not be found here. Over the years, pretty much everything has been imported - but the one item that she still had sent over was her sencha. Like the best German wines which are from the Badener region, the best Japanese green teas just don't get sent over here. The local Japanese stores in the Boston area don't carry anything near the quality - although the supermarket in Edgewater, NJ may now do so(used to be Yoahan - I forget the new name). I have found one at Upton Tea that is very, very good. It's Gyokuro - about $23 for a 125 gm packet. I've learned to live with lesser stuff for the day to day, but I keep the Gyokuro around - I have a "fix" at least once a week. There is nothing like a great sencha. It's meant to be very mild, but it can be brewed dark without any bitterness. It's so flavorful - the essence of green tea - I think of all tea, actually, although when you think of the really robust teas, the blacks and oolongs certainly have more flavor. But you taste the finishes in those teas. Green is pure. Sun Feb 09 19:58:06 -0800 2003 1590322 0 applehome 4 1590364 Just like wine, tea is very much a matter of personal taste...and a lot of people might disagree with your assessment of Baden as the source for the best in German wine by the way. I also heard a lot of comments about folks finding green tea too bitter. Perhaps they are brewing it for too long, or at too high a temperature. We brew five cups at a time, but we only boil four cups of water and add the fifth before we pour this over the leaves. This brings the temperature down to about 180. R. Mon Feb 10 08:25:31 -0800 2003 1590344 0 Ramon 2 1590408 I love Upton Tea' s selection and service. I've tried many of their green teas, from China, Japan, Tawian and India. I found that their green tea sampler is an excellent way for a novice to figure out what region's tea or style of tea might suit them best. Don't be afraid to spend a little more to get the better quality stuff, a little loose tea goes a long way. Mon Feb 10 13:49:54 -0800 2003 1590319 0 cjtst11 1 1590324 I've found the Tazo green teas to be very bitter. I prefer almost any Japanese or Korean brand (like Yama moto yama). But I agree that loose tea is best. If you like the convenience of bags--go to an asian market and buy the Japanese bags--they come in packages of 100 and you just put the loose tea in them. Sun Feb 09 17:01:09 -0800 2003 1590314 0 butterfly 1 1590360 Thanks for the posts. The top rated Tazo China Green Tips Varietal was a loose leaf tea, estimated at .35 per cup. The 2nd rated TenRen Dragon Well was apparently in bags, .12 per cup (never clearly stated but the packaging pictured looked like tea bags). The 3rd rated Tazo China Green Tips Varietal was tea bags, .21 per cup. Two loose leaf Sencha teas led off the 'good' category, TenRen and Simpson and Vail. Yama mama moto was one of the brands I have already found, also I remember the names Qing and Uncle Lee's. We appear to have a TenRen shop here in New Chinatown; I'll be checking them out. I tried to get into green tea many, many years ago, but never found one I liked. Hope I do better this time. Mon Feb 10 07:27:21 -0800 2003 1590314 0 hermitt4d 2 1590375 also check out matcha from tenren, quite decent Mon Feb 10 11:02:31 -0800 2003 1590360 0 SG 1 1590367 Don't ignore Chinese green tea. It has a greater variety of tastes (imho) than Japanese. I find Foojoy a reliable brand for a large range of teas (loose leaf, please). Try their Lung Ching or Bai Mudan or Huang Mountain. They should be at any large Asian market. Mon Feb 10 09:18:25 -0800 2003 1590314 0 e.d. 1 1590495 Green tea is really an awfully broad category... there are many subdivisions within it, and many different tastes and styles of tea. There are grassy green teas (some yummy, some not), floral green teas, nutty green teas, etc... The stuff I've found packaged in teabags isn't particularly good, so I'd advise steering clear. As to "brands", you can't rely on them for anything tasty or good. Tea is an agricultural product that varies in quality based on any number of varibles. This mitigates strongly against the commoditization of good tea. You're almost always better off finding a few trusted tea brokers who vary their sources, and try what they're offering. Back when Adagio tea did their Tea Horizons program, they would send along 5 one oz samples every month... I got to know a huge number of wonderfully different greens that way... I'd also suggest looking at Upton's selection, and Specialteas. Ten Ren is really an Oolong specialist, and their green teas haven't done much for me at all... Their Oolongs, on the other hand, can be really really yummy. So is their Pouchong, which is half-way between a green and an Oolong, if you're not wedded to the concept of purely green tea. Health studies seem to indicate that all varieties of tea are healthful, if that is the motivation. As to good green recommendations, my favorite styles are off the beaten path, but I think they're great-- Japanese kokeicha is nutty and pleasant, and Chinese Li Zi Xiang, which has lovely deep floral notes, but can be tricky to brew without getting some bitterness. Tue Feb 11 09:51:33 -0800 2003 1590314 0 Chris Holst