It's All About Tea

In Japan, gyokuro is synonymous with the best tea. It is the tea that is reserved for special occasions or for serving guests. While sencha is enjoyed daily at home or in numerous Japanese eateries, gyokuro is undoubtedly more prized. One thing is true — while almost every single person in Japan has tried sencha (even if just from vending machines), gyokuro is more of a tea for enthusiasts or connoisseurs. (Read more)

There are two schools: one that says no to boiled water, and one that says that boiled water is totally fine. So some carefully watch (or listen) to our tea kettles, waiting for the perfect time to cut the flame off. It's true, every tea type has the ideal temperature that allows the tea leaves to open up to us in all their beauty. The perfect aroma, perfect taste – balanced brew. It is crucial to learn this.

However, during the Tang Dynasty (618 ~ 907), tea was brewed very differently from what we are used to today. People boiled tea! (Read more)

Smoky Lapsang Souchong (Zhengshan Xiaozhong) is an acquired taste, much like a ripe pu-erh is. Some people love its deep campfire notes and the warm, comforting feeling the tea provides. Others find these roasted notes too strong and may have unwanted associations with food when drinking the tea. Luckily, for the latter, there is Non-smoky Lapsang Souchong. (Read more)

Learning the sophisticated art of gong fu cha, we begin to understand the subtleties involved. First, we learn that tea is alive. And only by treating tea properly, preparing it the way it deserves, we are granted an impeccable, sweet, and aromatic brew.

Then we learn about teaware. We understand how to take care of the teaware — with care and never using dish soap. Gently drying after each use. We also learn that teaware is alive, particularly the clay from which the teaware is made.

A Yixing teapot is not just about the clay's porosity, the way it looks, the name, or even the way it makes your tea taste. It is all about the way you take care of it. If not correctly taken care of, a Yixing teapot is just about as useful as a run-of-the-mill ceramic teapot. (Read more)

Every tea enthusiast has probably come across this scenario. We are always interested in trying many different types of tea — we order tea from various tea shops, bring tea back from holidays, and even receive tea as gifts from caring friends who are aware of our love for this magical drink.

And then one fine day, somewhere in our tea cupboard's depths, we might discover a tea that got accidentally forgotten. Or perhaps it wasn't brewed in a timely matter. Well, it might be hard to keep track of every tea we have. But has the tea already gone bad? (Read more)