293458 Fri Jul 11 21:33:27 -0700 2003 20 27 General Chowhounding Topics 0 1605874 Any tea experts out there? I often hear that drinking black tea is good for you, but get confused as to whether that includes the Orange Pekoe, Earl Grey, etc. varieties, or is it something else? Please enlighten me. Thank you in advance. Fri Jul 11 21:33:27 -0700 2003 0 Gulfboy 1 1605881 Tea comes in three categories: black, green, and white. Herbal doesn't count. Orange Pekoe, Earl Grey, Darjeeling, English, Irish, etc. are black teas. They're different varieties of plants, some aged differently. Earl Grey has Bergamot (I think its Bergamot) flowers added to it. Other varieties may have other ingredients added, but those are the ones I'm most familiar with, and the ones I almost always have in the house. Green teas are teas that haven't been aged. The leaves are still green when they're ready for use. I believe they're always refered to as "Green Tea." I don't know much about Green tea because I don't like it. I know almost nothing about white tea, except that it's the most rare form of tea. Fri Jul 11 22:11:16 -0700 2003 1605874 0 JBG 2 1605885 Actually, there are four types of tea not including herbal OR scented teas like jasmine: green, red, black and white. The familiar oolong is considered a "red" tea, somewhere between "green" and "black" teas. They're not different plants, just different in the way they are processed. Varietals differ primarily in growing location. Green tea, IMHO, is the only drinkable tea. Fri Jul 11 23:44:34 -0700 2003 1605881 0 Gary Soup 3 1605980 Red Tea is the Chinese name for what we call black tea. G. Sun Jul 13 17:51:52 -0700 2003 1605885 0 gargano 3 1606087 "Green tea, IMHO, is the only drinkable tea." The question of black vs. green is always divisive - few people like both, and of course there are hardliners who only drink tea the "authentic" way - i.e., gong-fu style, chanoyu style, etc. I'm not a member of that club, even though I enjoy a proper tea ceremony. I drink some green teas (usually Japanese) and a few oolongs, but I adore strong, complex black teas from China. Yes I do add a touch of milk sometimes, something a Chinese person would never do (they don't really drink black tea anyway - it's all for export, unless it's puerh), but you know what? It tastes great, sometimes better than without it. Try them all and see what you like best, and don't be intimidated by it. It's not nuclear science. Mon Jul 14 18:49:09 -0700 2003 1605885 0 Katerina 4 1606238 I've had my share of black teas and wulong teas, but longjing tea is the apex of tea, period. Putting milk in tea is an abomination. It's for people who like flavored milk, not for tea drinkers. Wed Jul 16 01:55:39 -0700 2003 1606087 0 Gary Soup 5 1606724 What kind of a tea is longjing -- black, green ...? Mon Jul 21 18:22:54 -0700 2003 1606238 0 Bill 2 1605983 White tea is tea produced only under certain stressful weather conditions. It has the same benefits (at a higher rate) as green tea, without the grassy flavor that many green teas have. Good white tea has a floral and honey like aroma and taste. I like all the teas at Harneys & Sons, a tea merchant in antiqueland, CT. They have a nice website and catalogue, and it's an old-fashioned sort of family business with good selection, explanations of different types of tea, and very high quality, if not super low prices. Their Palm Court blend is great black tea, and their Chai bland, "Indian Spice," is the best commercially available, IMHO. Their Mutan White is cheaper than other whites, and a nice place to start. Sun Jul 13 18:36:02 -0700 2003 1605881 0 Erika 1 1605887 I think that black tea is supposed to benefit the cardiovascular system, and green tea is considered to have anti-carcinogenic properties. Fri Jul 11 23:49:13 -0700 2003 1605874 0 Gary Soup 1 1605919 what i think is cool is that all these kinds of tea (except herb tea) are all from the exact same plant. the different varieties just have to do with the geography and the mode of processing. personally these days i'm into making a highly spiced chai with a light colored, organic chinese-type black tea that i got at whole foods. it has a slightly smoky taste. Sat Jul 12 11:59:04 -0700 2003 1605874 0 epicure-us 1 1605928 My tea expert is currently away, but Itoen's website offers a trove of information about types of tea, benefits, how to prepare, etc. Itoen is one of, if not the largest, tea companies in Japan. Link: http://www.itoen.com/teainfo/index.cgi Sat Jul 12 15:17:21 -0700 2003 1605874 0 Peter Cuce 2 1605966 Thank you for the link to this website. It makes me wish (for a moment or two) that I lived in NYC so I could visit the store and the Kai restaurant. Sun Jul 13 09:50:51 -0700 2003 1605928 0 Paul H 3 1605968 Glad you liked it. The store is very beautiful, it has an amazing aesthetic. My tea expert tells me that their green teas are much better than their black teas, so if you want to order some online, stick with those. One of my favorites is the Kaiseki Hojicha, a roasted green tea that has a delicious, almost sweet flavor and so little caffeine that it's suitable for pre-bedtime drinking. I'm not sure how the restaurant is, but I hope to visit it sometime. I do know that Yoko Ono eats there almost every day, if that means anything. Mao posted about it around a year ago if you want to try and dig it up. Sun Jul 13 12:22:08 -0700 2003 1605966 0 Peter Cuce 1 1605976 An English tea company called Whittards of Chelsea (www.whittard.com) makes a variety of flavored teas. One of my favorites is the Mango Indica: a black tea flavored with bits of mango. It is utterly delicious. I find that it is most enjoyable as a once-in-awhile tea, because if you drink it all-day, everyday, you get too accustomed to it. It's rather like eating an exotic cake everyday for breakfast, it will lose it's ability to surprise your tastebuds if you indulge too often. Sun Jul 13 13:39:35 -0700 2003 1605874 0 La Dolce Vita 1 1605981 Check out Upton tea imports in Massachusetts. They have a website, and also have generally knowledgeable people that answer their phones. We depend on their Yunnan TGFOP (ZY51...their code) on a daily basis and haven't gotten tired of it for several years. It's bold and tannic, but it has an enchanting aroma that keeps drawing you in. Leftovers also make fantastic iced tea, diluted half and half with good water (either spring or filtered please). G. Sun Jul 13 17:57:11 -0700 2003 1605874 0 gargano 2 1606007 If you go to the Upton Tea site you will find some great articles. They define all the regions, the grades, and the finishes (white, green, black, and oolong are the main finishes - whites and greens are dried quickly while the rest are fermented in various stages. There are other specific finishes, such as Pu-Erh which is fermented for a long time - even up to 60 years - developing the earthy, almost moldy taste). They explain all the SFTGFOP1 stuff (Super Fine Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe Grade 1). eg- Orange Pekoe doesn't refer to a variety or flavor, just a basic leaf size. Just go to the site below and click on the Information tab. Link: http://www.uptontea.com/ Sun Jul 13 23:33:42 -0700 2003 1605981 0 applehome 1 1606032 If you want a real tea treat, order from Grace Tea Company. Link: http://www.gracetea.com/bateau.htm Mon Jul 14 10:40:23 -0700 2003 1605874 0 Karl S. 1 1606064 ALL teas from the camellia sinensis plant (black, green, white, oolong, and flavored/scented varieties of those; NOT herbal/tisanes, rooibos, mate, etc) contain lots of bioflavonoids and polyphenols, very potent antioxidants - all are very good for you. Similar to the benificial compounds in red wine, dark berries, leafy dark greens, tomatoes, etc. it's also thought that the benefits of drinking tea are more available in tea freshly brewed with hot water, not bottled iced tea (I'm guessing that fewer of the good compounds are extracted into the water during a cold-brewing process). I think it's still debatable which type of tea (green, black, white) is best for you. I also recommend Upton tea! Very good prices and fresh product. The Yunnan is indeed quite good. Mon Jul 14 15:41:09 -0700 2003 1605874 0 SC 1 1606072 I third Upton Teas. For a less overwhelmingly large selection, try www.truetea.com. I also regularly buy from www.specialteas.com, www.plymouthtea.com, and every now and then I splurge on stuff from the Imperial Tea Court, www.imperialtea.com. I too adore an excellent Yunnan. A superb Yunnan has made me cry once - just couldn't help it. (It never happened to me again, with food or drink. Maybe it was just PMS... ?) And finally, there are also yellow teas... more info via link (caution - long read, but with pictures!). If you want to get into tea, find yourself a tearoom where they really know how to prepare tea, and are knowledgeable about it. Preferably an Asian-style one, so long as it's not just a design statement; as much as I love the English tea tradition, I feel that the more austere Asian tearoom focuses on the transcendental qualities of tea rather than on the coziness/comfort appeal - and I'm not talking about philosophy, just about the ecstasy of a pure taste and the flood of associations it can trigger if you're ready. After having tasted superbly prepared high quality tea, you will be hooked. I have been for 13 years and it's a permanent source of pleasure. Link: http://www.tea.cz/gtr/unsecrets.php?sec=yellow Mon Jul 14 16:41:14 -0700 2003 1605874 0 Katerina 2 1606075 A concise explanation of types of tea: Link: http://www.specialteas.com/cgi-bin/SoftCart.exe/mystore/abouttea.html?L+scstore+etul8103+1058238707 Mon Jul 14 16:49:27 -0700 2003 1606072 0 Katerina 1 1606083 I'd just like to add one small note to the discussion. When I started drinking tea, it was black tea because my only experiences with green teas were some thin, grassy tasting beverages that I didn't much like. It was several years later that I finally tried good Chinese green teas and realized that green tea can be brewed into a really flavorful and satisfying drink. You may end up preferring black teas, but let me urge you to try some good green ones as well. And of course, the best way (imho) to brew any tea is with loose leaves not bags. ed Mon Jul 14 18:00:33 -0700 2003 1605874 0 e.d.