“Every kind of tea is marked by a distinctive property. Green Tea is as energetic as the youth; Oolong is as reserved and mature as a middle age man; black tea represents maternal love, while Pu-Erh is an incarnation of a old wise man with a lot of stories. – The China Tea Book
The preceding whimsical quote tries to illuminate the varying characters of tea that can emerge from a single species of plant, Camellia sinensis. Even more captivating is that each kind of tea can have great variation within its own category. For instance, wide is the space between Dragon Well Green from the Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province in China and a Gyokuro Green Tea from Japan. Just as Japanese and Chinese cuisine differ, so does their respective teas.
I like the way the author of the quote begins with Green, generally the less processed of teas and ends with the complex Pu-Erh variety. Somewhere in the middle is the often overlooked Oolong. If I was forced to pick a favorite, it would be difficult, I would lean toward this variety. For the most part, it is challenging to find this tea being offered. Sometimes in authentic Chinese food restaurants you’ll get to experience this slightly oxidized underdog of tea although usually of not the best quality. This variety can be both woodsy in flavor or even have light floral bouquets — some are even blended with ginseng. Another noteworthy dimension is that not only the flavor profiles change with area of origin and processing methods but so does the price. Our Wuyi Mountain Reserve from Fujian Province is almost half the price of our Formosa Oolong from the Pei Pu region of Taiwan. There are many factors that contribute to price. Generally, the most prized command higher prices.
Do you have a favorite tea? If not, this might take some soul searching. For instance, are you a down to earth person that might like simplicity of Green? Or are you more complicated, in which case you might favor Oolong or Pu-Erh? We think the tea reflects your present state, mood, and personality. In essence, you may never choose your favorite, your tea may choose you. Either way, when you find it you might just feel the comfort of a weary traveler returning home.
*We hope you like our playful thoughts on tea and thank you so very much for taking the time to read this post. Future posts will cover such topics as: how to properly store Pu-Erh tea and how to identify authentic Pu-Erh tea. Please subscribe to our blog to keep in touch as we circumnavigate the diverse world of tea. It is our mission at Tea Vue to find the finest teas from around the world and make them available to you. Until next time, take care!