Does anybody know about tea?

[Taurus]

One more point to add in reference to making the perfect pot...make sure you warm the pot before making the tea (usually by pouring a little boiling water into it while boiling the second batch to brew the tea).

Stephen

[luk-cha]

http://www.leafshop.co.uk/store/

these are some the best tea's available outside of China

[uppercase]

Try Gschwendner Tea for excellent tea. They are all about the finest quality.

http://www.teagschwendner.com/US/en/Shop_Start.TG

[luk-cha]

Try Gschwendner Tea for excellent tea. They are all about the finest quality.

http://www.teagschwendner.com/US/en/Shop_Start.TG

UC good link i for 1 am greatful for the link

[Cufflink79]

I'm looking for tea. I mean good British tea and preferably available online. Furthermore, I'm rather uneducated on how to properly brew the stuff. I've only ever used tea bags. I've done some preliminary searching via Google, but haven't come up with too much. Does anyone have any advice?

Dear NicolausN:

If you're ever heading east on I-40 to Albuquerque you should stop by this place.

http://www.stjamestearoom.com/

Best Regards,

Cufflink79

[whittaker]

Greys Teas (link) have kept me supplied with teas for several years now and I recommend them unreservedly. The Chinese white teas are exceptional.

[NicolausN]

Cufflink79:

Coincidentally, I will be travelling east on I-40 through Albuquerque in June. I'll have to convince my wife to make a stop at this place!

[arch]

BEWARE: the order of pouring (milk first or tea first )seems to be a class indicator in the United Kingdom (cf. John Betjeman et al.).

So what does this say about someone like me who puts the milk in after the tea?

This really does depend on whether you have the milk in a jug and or are pouring it straight from the bottle. For example, if you a you are being served tea in a formal tea service, then you might be middle class and using a full tea service. However, let us be realistic. On a day to day basis most tea drinkers (by which I mean most Briitish people) know the quantity of milk they and their friends require and pour it into the cup (or mug) accordingly and more importantly, first. Speaking as an Englishman, to be honest, I have never met anyone in the UK who is that hung up about the whole thing. As long as it tastes good!
Some of the best cups of tea can be a strong 'builders brew' drunk offered on a construction site on a cold morning. It seems curious to read of the ins and outs of a ritual that has been with us since the day we were born. I cannot remember when I first drunk tea, but I know I didn't drink coffee until I was at least 12 years of age. To be honest, if one is looking purely at the ceremony of tea making, then the scurge of recent developments is that marvel of convenience, the tea bag.

[tteplitzmd]

Does anyone know if this is still in business? Tthere were two locations in Hong Kong. Circa 1980, price was calculated with an abacus. The finest "Select Keemun" I've had.

[storeynicholas]

Thanks for the addition of Pu Erh - never consciously drunk it but will keep my eyes skinned.
NJS

[dopey]

I have been very happy with the teas purchased from Berry Bros. & Rudd, the wine merchants. I don't recall how I first came by them for tea, but whenever in London, I made sure to get some and was always happy with the quality. I assume they get it from somewhere else, but it has always been good, so I haven't felt the need to investigate further.

[luk-cha]

Thanks for the addition of Pu Erh - never consciously drunk it but will keep my eyes skinned.
NJS

look for the aged stuff, over 10 years is best but any older are even better!

[manton]

I am partial to Russian tea (Kusmi) when I make a whole pot, otherwise bags of Twinings are fine.

[lancepryor]

In the USA, I have ordered from plymouthtea.com, and I find their teas to be quite good and reasonably priced. I am a fan of Assam teas, and they have an extensive selection.

In the past, I have also order from Old Town Tea & Spice in Alexandria, Virginia, and they have good prices and will ship, though they have no website.

[couch]

I've also had excellent teas and service from Upton, and for a new explorer, their willingness to send sealed foil-packed samples of any of their loose teas for $1-$3 each is a real recommendation. They also have a very extensive selection, particularly of individual estate Assams and Darjeelings, and a great deal of supporting information. That said, their inexpensive "breakfast" blends have been a comparative disappointment to me. In my experience the best-balanced and most reliable pre-blended tea (mid-price) has been Fortnum's Royal Blend (mostly longish BOP Assam with a dash of Ceylon for brightness). I've had some delightful surprises from local suppliers in Philadelphia, as I suppose one would anywhere there's a passion for tea.

Nothing to add that hasn't been covered about preparation and service, except to say that while a fine porcelain pot is indeed the best, a clean and well-seasoned silver pot is perfectly good and will impart less metallic taste than stainless steel. I'm attached to an austere little Edwardian 2-cup pot (1890 London hallmarks, acquired from a dowager at a church jumble sale here) when taking tea alone, so I keep it in good trim. It's a bit of ceremony like dressing for oneself at home.

I have fond memories of escaping from the most disgusting cold downpour (in June) two years ago into the splendor of Betty's Cafe Tea Rooms in York. Definitely worth a stop if you're in town:

http://www.bettys.co.uk/cafe.asp?storyi ... 483E980%7D

They are affiliated with and serve Taylor's of Harrogate tea along with their own toothsome pastries and other fare. The tea is quite good; not as good as Claridge's, which so far has my vote for best afternoon tea in London, but somehow just right in context.