Richard Kilgore

Today I picked up a package of Thai preserved mustard greens at a small Asian (Vietnamese, Thai, Philippine) market here. Initially the idea was to use them as a simple side, so I asked some of the employees if I needed to cook them since another similar package indicated it had to be cooked. They asked what I was going to do with it, and said to use it as a side to just rinse it with water. Their answer suggested their are a number of other uses for the preserved mustard greens hot or in other preparations or dishes. Would appreciate it if anyone can tell me what kinds of things to do with them.

I have found that at least some black teas improve with age. A year or two after production they seem to be at their peak. Has anyone else found this? Anyone have an idea of why?

This Tea Tasting & Discussion, featuring Chinese and Taiwanese green teas, has three sets of free samples available to eGullet Society members who have either 50 or more posts anywhere in the eG Forums or 10 or more posts in the Coffee & Tea Forum. These are easy to brew whole leaf green teas. (Please read up topic for details.) Of the three sets of green teas originally available, there are now only two not spoken for. If you are interested, please PM me.

After midnight tonight the free tea samples for this TT&D will be available to all eGullet Society members who have at least 50 posts anywhere in the forums or who have at least 10 posts in the Coffee & Tea forum. To be more accurate, one green tea is Chinese and one is Taiwanese. Tic. Toc.

The last hour or so, three infusions of the Organic Magokoro Shincha from yuuki-cha.com. Very nice delicate Japanese green, brewed at .75g/ounce of water, 154f. Should provide at least one more pleasant infusion.

Thanks to Dan at yuuki-cha.com for providing these first-of-season 2010 shinchas for this Tea Tasting & Discussion. And thanks to baroness and Wholemeal Crank for participating in the tasting and discussion. There are two new TT&Ds going now in this Coffee & Tea forum, one for teas for iced tea and one for Chinese green teas. Two more TT&Ds are right around the corner, so if you subscribe to the Coffee & Tea forum, you'll be among the first to know.

Brewing a smooth, elegant red/black tea from China: a Fujian Bai Liu Gongfu from jingteashop.com. Brewed in a larger Yixing with a ratio of 2.5 g/6 ounces water. What teas are you drinking in your part of the eGullet world - UK, Europe, Middle East, Asia, SE Asia, India, Australia, Canada, Mexico, Central, South America, US?

I have (above) edited in links to maps showing the location of the two villages where the two Chinese green teas featured in this Tea Tasting & Discussion were grown. Please check them out. The preference period for members who have never participated in a TT&D to receive the free tea samples ends midnight Thursday. If you are interested, please review the above posts and PM me.

Slow tea day so far. This morning's Hime hikari Japanese black tea from yuuki-cha...smooth. A Japanese green tea soon. Over the weekend, brewing the Chinese green teas and the teas for iced tea in the two current Tea Tasting & Discussions, as well as Japanese shinchas. What teas are you all drinking in your part of the world?

It should be cool enough to grill comfortably here in Texas sometime in the next month. Some people grill weenies. Me? I'm a grilling weenie.

I have tried two of the three teas and think that if you use half the 10 g pack, using the above times and temps, you would get a better result. The original parameters produced a tea that is a little too astringent for my taste, though it improved after a time as the ice continued to melt. This approach may, of course, turn out to be too strong or too weak for your taste. You can divide each sample in half and make two separate brewings, using the first to guide you on the second as to whether to use more or less water, or increase or decrease the timing. Apologies for any confusion or inconvenience.

baroness sent me an email letting me know that these tea:water ratios seem a little strong. I have been brewing and agree with her. Stay tuned and I'll provide an updated brewing suggestions later tonight or in the morning.

Three free sets of these Chinese green teas are available to members. Preference will be given to eGullet Society members who have never received tea samples and participated in a Tea Tasting & Discussion, and who have at least 50 posts anywhere in the eG Forums in the past year. This preference will last one week, until midnight September 23, 2010. If that sounds like you, please PM me ASAP. Members who have received free samples in the past for Tea Tasting & Discussions, and members who have at least 10 posts in the Coffee & Tea forum, may PM me their interest at any time and will be put on a "waiting list" until the preference period has passed.

There is one member on the "waiting list", but preference is still given to members who have never received free teas and participated in a Tea Tasting & Discussion. Please review the above posts for details and PM me if you are interested.

Started out drinking the Yunnan Golden Tips red/black tea from The Cultured Cup. A commendable Yunnan red that I managed to make barely drinkable by getting distracted and brewing it way - too - long. Next, I'll continue brewing the Wuyi Oolong from Norbu Tea that I started yesterday; should be one or two more infusions left in it. Please note that in the new Chinese Green Tea TT&D topic I have added links to interesting maps that show the location of the villages where the two teas come from. So, what teas are you all drinking today in your part of the world?

I have known Greg Glancy at Norbu Tea for several years -- a presentation he once gave about a trip through the tea markets and farms of China and Tibet fed my growing interest in learning more about fine teas. Since then he has become a tea friend and we drink tea together and trade teas and tea stories from time to time, as well as indulging in Chinese, Korean or Vietnamese food occasionally. Greg has been a long time supporter of these Tea Tasting & Discussions. He and I spent a few tea drinking sessions selecting these Cinese green teas for this TT&D. If you are interested in receiving a set of the free Chinese green tea samples for this Tea Tasting & Discussion, please review the above posts and then shoot a PM to me. eGullet Society members with 50 posts anywhere in the eG Forums in the past year, or 10 in the Coffee & Tea forum, now have priority until September 23, 2010.

Just now sipping the rich Shui Jin Gui 2009 Wu Yi Oolong from Norbu Tea. Brewed 2 g/ounce of water in a small (90 ml) Yixing.

A Nepal Chiyabari Estate black tea from The Cultured Cup in my cup this morning. I have come to like this a great deal. Quite a bit of iced tea - it's about 100f heat index here today. A green tea and an Oolong to come. How about you all? What teas for you today?

Slow tea day so far. The American Breakfast Tea (essentially an Irish breakfast tea, composed of Indonesian and Indian black teas) from The Cultured Cup. That's it. Maybe a hojicha this evening. Hope you all had a good day for tea. What ones have you all been drinking in your part of the world?

Due to success brewing the Pai Mu Tan from the recent White Tea TT&D in a Yixing teapot, today I brewed the Silver Needles (both from The Cultured Cup). Very interesting. The teapot clay really deepens and smooths the flavor. Worth experimenting if you have a spare, unused Yixing. I doubt all Yixing clays will have a simialr effect, but I'll be curious to read about it if anyone else tries this. I'll post a little more in the White & Yellow Tea topic after trying a few more Bai Mu Tans and Silver Needles.

The two green tea samples (10g each) will go to each of up to three eGullet Society members who will begin brewing, tasting, posting and discussing the teas within one week of receiving the samples. These teas may be brewed 1) "western style" using a small teapot or infuser cup, 2) with a Chinese gaiwan, or 3) in a glass. Please, avoid tea balls like the plague. Brewing suggestions are in the two posts above and in the Tea Steeping Guide at norbutea.com. Preference will be given to eGullet Society members who have never received tea samples and participated in a Tea Tasting & Discussion, and who have at least 50 posts anywhere in the eG Forums in the past year. This preference will last one week, until midnight September 23, 2010. If that sounds like you, please PM me ASAP. Others who have at least 10 posts in the Coffee & Tea forum, may PM me their interest at any time. If you have any questions at all, please feel free to post them here or PM me.

The second Chinese green tea in this Tea Tasting & Discussion is the Jin Xuan - Winter 2009, also from norbutea.com. Text and images used by permission of norbutea.com. Link to map on norbutea.com. The next post will provide additional information and guidelines for this TT&D.

eGullet Society member Greg Glancy at norbutea.com is contributing samples of two Chinese green teas for this Tea Tasting & Discussion (TT&D). Sets of the samples will go to up to three eG members active in the forums: if you have at least 50 posts anywhere in the eG Forums in the past 12 months, or if you have at least 10 posts in the Coffee & Tea Forum and are interested in receiving the free samples and participating in this TT&D, please read on (this post and the two following soon) and then PM me. Grocery store green teas are usually generic (unidentified and mass produced on a large scale) and anywhere from ho-hum to yek! Bottled green teas are typically beyond yek and well into yuk. Some people make a face and drink them just because they are supposed to be "good for you". Have heart! Here are two quality loose leaf Chinese green teas, very different from one another, if you would like to forgo yek and yuk and explore the real thing. First, the 2010 Jade Dragon - Yunnan Green Tea from NorbuTea.com. Text and image used with permission by norbutea.com. Link to map on norbutea.com. The next post will describe the second Chinese green tea for this TT&D, and the third one will provide additional important information. Stay tuned!

Feel free, of course, to adjust the above suggestions if you have an iced-tea brewing method that works well for you. Also, depending on how warm the water is when you add ice, you may want to add a little water to taste.

For the last few mornings, including today, the wonderful Nilgiri Glendale Estate, Handmade has been in my cup. Afternoons, the Magokuro, Saemidori and Kabusecha shinchas. Saturday, I did an extended tasting session of Oolong,red, and puerh teas with a tea friend...bzzzz. So what's in your tea cup today on your side of the globe, tea drinkers?