Chinese, except from the Darj, and you might find them different from the Japanese ones (Sencha) that you have tried. Japanese greens tend, for me, to be more spinach-y and steamed vegetable-y than Chinese. I think Chinese greens are more butter-y and sometimes also more floral in flavour and you might get along with those better. Dragonwell is also Chinese, but personally I find they have a very distinctive sort of flavour profileGood to know. As for Steepster, it looks like a goldmine of information. I created an account, and found and followed you as Angrboda :-) They don't have a lot of TeaSource reviews--which doesn't surprise me given it seems a small company that my friend found by word of mouth. I've been reluctant so far to look beyond Adagio and TeaSource because those are vouched for by a friend--I didn't want to order from a place I knew only because I googled them. TeaSource also seems to have really reasonable prices compared to Adagio or others I've browsed while still seeming (I'm a neophyte yet) high-quality. But I'll
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So I have a serious love of vegetal tasting teas, it kinda makes me sad that you're thinking of tossing out the dragonwell and sencha!
Ha! It makes me sad as well. That would be about 10 dollars of tea tossed. But I find it nearly undrinkable And I don't blame TeaSource--just not my cuppa indeed. So grassy is the same as vegetal? Thanks for the takes on the teas, that's very helpful. And for your suggestion of emailing TeaSource themselves. Nothing like the source eh?
Would you be adverse to trying bottled teas? Ito En has a great selection of all natural green teas. The Lemon Grass,Jasmine,or Hoji is by the far the best!
I would definitely second libitina's suggestion of genmaicha. Though technically it's a "flavoured" tea, I almost feel as though it's in its own category between unflavoured and flavoured tea, ahaha. It's hard to explain, but it doesn't really taste as though you are drinking a flavoured tea.
You might also enjoy something like a Pai Mu Tan white tea.
Unfortunately I can't offer you more suggestions than that as I am not familiar with the particular teas from that site! I'm also just getting into exploring the plainer teas myself :)
A friend of mine--the one who turned me on to teas adores genmaicha, so it's definitely on my list to try someday. I think the bottom line I'm getting from this post and the one I made on Steepster is this
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Give kukicha a try! It's a green tea made mostly of stems rather than leaves, so it's a little atypical, but it's flavorful and not spinachy, as I remember it.
Someone upthread mentioned pi lo chun, but I found it to be pretty finicky--lovely if prepared just right, terrible if anything at all is off. You might want to put that at the bottom of the list, till you've gone through some other greens and have a good idea of the territory.
Finally, try out the nearest Asian grocery before you spend a load of money at the online tea shops. There's usually a decent selection at affordable prices so you can find a nice everyday drinking tea without breaking the bank to experiment. I know the tea world looks upon supermarket tea with suspicion, if not outright scorn, but Asian supermarket tea is a few steps above American supermarket tea, and sometimes even better than the stuff online tea shops are shipping out.
I know the tea world looks upon supermarket tea with suspicion, if not outright scorn, but Asian supermarket tea is a few steps above American supermarket tea, and sometimes even better than the stuff online tea shops are shipping out.
The first loose leaf tea in our household even before my friend gifted me with so many teas was a tea that given the package was probably an Asian supermarket tea. We didn't know what to do with it, until my friend gifted me not just with teas, but an infuser and instructions. We think it was an oolong. Think, because all the wrappings were in Chinese characters! That actually is what makes me dubious about trying out any that way. Would I even know what I was trying?
And actually, after this post and another on Steepster, I think it's just that Green qua Green tea is not my thing. It's meant to be grassy and vegetal (unless roasted like hojicha or flavored
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All that aside, you can get the same benefits of green tea from white tea, so don't fret too much if you can't make yourself like it. :)
This is true. And I do love the White Peony. For that matter, I loved a sample of TeaSources Green Pomegranate, which is sencha with pomegranate and rose. The additions cut that vegetal taste I dislike so much. But my aunt who I enjoy sharing these with doesn't like flavored teas so...
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Ha! It makes me sad as well. That would be about 10 dollars of tea tossed. But I find it nearly undrinkable And I don't blame TeaSource--just not my cuppa indeed. So grassy is the same as vegetal? Thanks for the takes on the teas, that's very helpful. And for your suggestion of emailing TeaSource themselves. Nothing like the source eh?
Reply
The Lemon Grass,Jasmine,or Hoji is by the far the best!
Reply
Reply
You might also enjoy something like a Pai Mu Tan white tea.
Unfortunately I can't offer you more suggestions than that as I am not familiar with the particular teas from that site! I'm also just getting into exploring the plainer teas myself :)
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Someone upthread mentioned pi lo chun, but I found it to be pretty finicky--lovely if prepared just right, terrible if anything at all is off. You might want to put that at the bottom of the list, till you've gone through some other greens and have a good idea of the territory.
Finally, try out the nearest Asian grocery before you spend a load of money at the online tea shops. There's usually a decent selection at affordable prices so you can find a nice everyday drinking tea without breaking the bank to experiment. I know the tea world looks upon supermarket tea with suspicion, if not outright scorn, but Asian supermarket tea is a few steps above American supermarket tea, and sometimes even better than the stuff online tea shops are shipping out.
Reply
I know the tea world looks upon supermarket tea with suspicion, if not outright scorn, but Asian supermarket tea is a few steps above American supermarket tea, and sometimes even better than the stuff online tea shops are shipping out.
The first loose leaf tea in our household even before my friend gifted me with so many teas was a tea that given the package was probably an Asian supermarket tea. We didn't know what to do with it, until my friend gifted me not just with teas, but an infuser and instructions. We think it was an oolong. Think, because all the wrappings were in Chinese characters! That actually is what makes me dubious about trying out any that way. Would I even know what I was trying?
And actually, after this post and another on Steepster, I think it's just that Green qua Green tea is not my thing. It's meant to be grassy and vegetal (unless roasted like hojicha or flavored ( ... )
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All that aside, you can get the same benefits of green tea from white tea, so don't fret too much if you can't make yourself like it. :)
This is true. And I do love the White Peony. For that matter, I loved a sample of TeaSources Green Pomegranate, which is sencha with pomegranate and rose. The additions cut that vegetal taste I dislike so much. But my aunt who I enjoy sharing these with doesn't like flavored teas so...
Reply
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