Richard Kilgore

This morning it was the Assam Panitola Estate, Whole Leaf from TeaSource.com again. A couple of iced teas off and on during the day and with meals...a blend I do of two Mariage Frères teas from TheCulturedCup.com for one and a generic decafe bagged grocery store black tea (pick a store, any store) for the other. And the Kagoshima Sencha Yutaka Midori from o-cha.com , three infusions in a Banko kyusu. A very nice Japanese green tea. I have brewed and enjoyed similar senchas in past years in a mug with infuser, as well as in a western style teapot, but I think the Banko's clay may add something to the final result.

Thanks for the detailed report, Yajna Patni. I think the timing suggestions for the tea are 4 - 6 minutes, rather than 8, but given your preferences that may seem a bit weak to you. However, it would explain why you found some astringency and why your second infusion washed out. I like your multi-tasker cozy...I usually grab a dish towel and wrap up the pot.

Only two free samples left.

The three free samples are now available to all. Please see the first post and PM me if you are interested.

Thanks for the comparison tasting notes and the great photos, baroness. I'll have to put Tea Source's Glendale Estate, FOP on my next order.

This afternoon did a gong fu session with a loose pu-erh from Wing Hop Fung that Wholemeal Crank sent me. More on that later in the Pu-erh topic after another brewing. Also had some Barley Tea iced. How about you?

What are you all doing for iced tea this summer? For me it's been everything from decafe no name grocery store tea bags to barley tea (mugicha) to to Korean roasted corn tea to Mariage Frères Marco Polo from The Cultured Cup to a fresh 2009 tgy from norbutea.com to Hibiscus tea.

Just a reminder, preference will be given until midnight (EDST) tonight to those who did not participate in the last two tastings. If you are interested in a free tea sample, please PM me after reviewing the first post.

In my cup this morning - the Nilgiri Glendale Estate Handmade from Tea Source we are discussing in the Tea Tasting Discussion here.

Late brewing of "Diamond Grade" Spring Harvest 2009 Tie Guan Yin from Anxi county in Fujian province. From Greg Glancy at Norbutea.com. I think I have posted up-topic about it, but at any rate this is an exquisite TGY, still fresh and aromatic after a week or two of opening the vacuum sealed bag.

Wholemeal Crank and I are exchanging a few samples of Pu-erh and I'll work through hers over the next week and post more in detail in the Pu-erh topic. First I tried a mini-tuo cha from Rishi that I was dubious about, having found most minis somewhere in the not-so-good to "eewww!" range. Brewed it gong fu style, the 3 gram shu (ripe or cooked) mini to about 80 - 90 ml of water with a series of 5 - 10 second infusions after two 20 second rinses and a 30 second rest. This is the first mini I have ever liked. I also did a comparison between the effect of the neutral gaiwan and a Yixing that I have now dedicated to shu pu-erh. But more about that later in the pu-erh topic.

Today a 2007 Menhai Lao Cha Tou (Old Tea Nuggets), the last of a sample from Norbutea.com. Iced Mugacha, barley water for iced tea. How about you all? What kind of tea are you drinking today?

It is really interesting, the rather ancient use of barley and other grains to make tea in many cultures around the world. And eG member Tony Bolton mentioned to me that Robinson's Barley Water is the official drink of Wimbeldon.

Okay, I'll jump in. I think the biggest change for me has been exploring Japanese green teas more this year, and brewing them in Japanese kyusu tea pots. I have been drinking some very good sencha and kukicha from The Cultured Cup for several years, brewing them in a western teapot or in a cup with infuser basket, and have just started to explore brewing in kyusus and the diversity of Japanese teas with teas from The Cultured Cup, yuuki-cha.com and o-cha.com.

Just bumping this up to ask if anyone has the digital version of the Bradley and what you think of it.

Browsing at the deli meat counter the other day I noticed they have a selection of several capers in bulk. Sampled them. Some in sherry, salted ones and large devina capers that were crunchy delicious. All better than any jarred ones I have had. Anyone tried these?

I think one of the things I like about tea is one of the things I like about other interests of mine. Like cooking and fly fishing, you can approach tea in a basic, simple manner and get a great deal of satisfaction out of it. All three also have enough depth, richness and complexity that you can spend a lifetime expanding your knowledge and skill and not know everything there is to know and not do everything there is to do.

Started out the day enjoying an Assam Panitola Estate, Whole Leaf from TeaSource.com. The one baroness mentioned in the recent Assam Tea Tasting Discussion. This evening had a longish tea session with Greg Glancy at Norbutea.com brewing a couple of shu pu-erhs and an aged Wu Yi Oolong (can't remember the cultivar).

The Cultured Cup is providing 10 mg samples for another Tea Tasting Discussion. This time a tea blend they have developed for iced tea. Their Yin Yang blend incudes Japanese green tea, Chinese black tea, orange, pineapple, safflower & strawberries. The Cultured Cup has provided four samples of 10 grams each, and I will mail three of them to the eG Society members participating in this tasting. While the tasting is open to all members who have posted at least ten substantive posts in the Coffee and Tea forum, preference will be given until midnight (EDST) Friday, August 14th to those who have not yet participated in any of the last two tastings. As always, everyone is welcome and encouraged to participate in the discussion. So, please PM me now for details if you would like to receive one of the the free samples and participate in the tasting and discussion. As I have mentioned in other topics, I have known Kyle Stewart, co-owner of The Cultured Cup, for some time now, having bought tea from his shop for many years, at least 10 years I believe it is. And for the past three years or so Kyle has been instrumental to my tea education through the T-Bar Club at The Cultured Cup. Kyle attended the World Tea Expo in Las Vegas recently and completed his three years of training with the Speciality Tea Institute to become the first certified tea specialist in Texas. I have had many pleasant times with Kyle and his staff, trading teas and sharing new tea discoveries. More than just a tea merchant I happen to buy tea from, Kyle is a culinary friend as well as a tea friend - the wonderful tea pairings at Sharon Hage's York Street restaurant and a shared interest in Asian food.

Only one free sample left. PM me if you are interested.

The three free samples are now available to all members, including those who participated in the last two Tea Tasting Discussions. If you are interested, please review the first post and send me a PM.

I also wanted to mention that you did well selecting a simple shape Yixing. The fancier ones are interesting but typically made of the lower grade Yixing clays. The complex designs are more likely to break by the time they come out of the kiln and potters do not want to sacrifice the scarce quality clays that are valued for tea making. The fancy designs are usually meant for display, although any number of tea merchants sell them anyway.

Afternoon brewing of a Kagoshima Sencha Yutaka Midori, a fukamushi (deep-steamed) sencha from o-cha.com in Japan. Ran through multiple infusions twice in order to learn how to brew and pour out of my new kyusu, which has a ball-shaped ceramic filter, without clogging it. I'll post more about this later in the Japanese Green Tea topic after a little more experience with the tea and the pot. Later an aged ripe tea of Menghai, a 2000 Longhe Tea Factory pu-erh, a sample in my last order from Yunnan Sourcing. Gong fu style in a Yixing tea pot. I am enjoying exploring these older ripe pu-erh teas. Also more later - in the Pu-erh topic. So, what teas are you all drinking in your part of the world?

Wow! You guys are really hard on yourselves. Remember gong fu means "with skill". Would you expect yourself to do kung fu fighting, or say, skillful grilling and smoking, or pastry and baking without doing it a lot and frequently and experimenting with the various parameters involved, including those that are most commonly used by those who have been doing it for many years? But with all those skills you can do something pleasurable at the beginning, too. It's not for everyone, of course. Nothing is. Fortunately, everyone can choose their own culinary obsession.

You got it! I always tilt the lid just before I am ready to pour...except the times I get distracted or forget, in which case I fumble around a bit. You're on your way.