INTRODUCTION TO CHINESE TEA

Chinese tea is a boundless sea of choice, which you should step into persistently, but still carefully, in order to taste each of the types of drink and draw the right conclusions about it. We offer you a step-by-step "immersion" in this topic. Following our recommendations, you will be able to discover the taste qualities of different types of Chinese tea from the first attempt. It is recommended to try them exactly in the order recommended by us.

Red Chinese Tea

Dive into Chinese tea should start with red tea. The two most familiar tastes are Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong and Dian Hong Maofeng. Be sure to try them first.

Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong is a red tea that grows in the Wishan Mountain Range of Fujian Province. With caramel honey notes in the aroma and slightly bread. soft vanilla, but tart taste and astringent aftertaste.

The second type of red Chinese tea is Dian Hong Maofeng. It has a very subtle sweet berry aroma and bread taste. This tea is thick, rich, and voluminous.

A classic representative of red tea.

You should know three key features of red Chinese tea:

This tea is understandable and familiar to many of us, it tastes like those teas that many people brew in tea bags, but at the same time exceeds consumer expectations;
Red tea is more voluminous, much more interesting, and tastier than the usual black tea;
a very important point — we brew red tea as we are used to, and the taste will definitely not disappoint you.

Brewing red tea is quite simple. First, you need to warm up the dishes. To brew red tea, use fresh boiling water. Welding is better not to regret it. It is not so important how exactly you are used to brew tea. Do it as it is convenient, in accordance with the current circumstances. Red teas are almost impossible to spoil. They have a warming effect, that is, they go perfectly in cold, rainy weather when it's cold outside and you don't want to leave the house anywhere.

Green Chinese Tea

Green Chinese tea is always fresh tea. It's not something that's served in restaurants or brewed every day at home or at work. If you have not tried this tea before, then start exploring Maofeng "Fleecy Peaks". It is distinguished by its floral aroma, herbal taste, and slightly sweet aftertaste.

Three nuances that you should pay attention to when choosing green tea:

choosing a fresh harvest tea;
brew green tea with slightly cooled water of about 180°F, and then it will not be bitter;
Be careful with green tea in the evening: it is rich in caffeine, and has a noticeable tonic effect;
It helps you wake up quickly and is ideal for those who want to cheer up.
Most green teas have a mild and moderately tart taste. These drinks are perfect for breakfast.

If you want to try all the variety of Chinese tea at once, then we offer you a ready-made set. 

The set comes with 6 types of tea. Each tea is a bestseller in the top-quality segment of our collection. An ideal option for a first date or when you want something different, but always delicious. 

Get to know our collection, try new items, or make a friend an invigorating tea gift. By buying a set you save 20% and have free delivery.

The set comes with 6 types of tea

South Fujian Oolongs

After green tea, it is recommended to take a step towards Chinese oolong and try Tie Guan Yin. Translated, it means " Iron Bodhisattva of Mercy." Light oolong from the south of Fujian Province is characterized by a fresh, bright aroma of lilac, delicate linden, and a sweet aftertaste. Tie Guan Yin is perfect for beginners: it is almost impossible to spoil it.

One nuance that you should know when using such tea is not green tea or milk oolong, which is often made from low-quality raw materials, adding flavorings and other far-from-useful components to the leaf. Tie Guan Yin is a natural oolong without flavorings, colorants, or flavor enhancers.

 

Tie Guan Yin is a large tea leaf, rolled into a dense ball.

Wishan Oolong Tea

The next step towards the "dark side" of Oolong is Wishan. The most important representative of this species is oolong Da Hong Pao or "Big Red Robe". We have already released a large number of videos dedicated to Wishan Oolong and, in particular, Da Hong Pao. You can read this information to help you make the right choice. Da Hong Pao has a very bright aroma of nuts and caramel. When brewed, the aroma literally spreads to the entire room. Bright rich taste stimulates your taste buds, tones up, and lifts your mood. This tea is considered one of the most expensive in the world, the price of which at auctions can reach several hundred thousand dollars per 2 LB.

When choosing Da Hong Pao, pay attention to the integrity of the sheet: it should be large and whole. In addition, pay attention to the degree of roasting. Da Hong Pao shouldn't be too deep-fried. The smell of coals, burnt paper, or burnt wood is unacceptable. An unobtrusive aroma of nuts or leather is allowed.

 

Tea ceremony with Da Hong Pao.

Shu Pu-erh

After green, light, and dark oolong, you should start learning about Shu Pu-erh. This is the second most popular tea after red, in the hearts of our team. It has a very bright, dense taste, gives a thick black color to the infusion and significantly invigorates. It is for this combination that many people love Shu Pu-erh. It gives vigor and concentration and promotes active mental and physical activity.

Work, study, creativity — no matter what you do, this type of tea will definitely not disappoint you. Young Shu Pu-erh can be as good as aged: the quality depends on raw materials and many other factors.

To debunk the common myth about Shu Pu-erh, once again it is worth repeating: this tea is not buried in the ground. Young leaves have delicate floral notes when brewed. Over time, the taste and smell become richer. Shu Pu-erh tea eventually acquires pronounced woody, nutty, prune notes with an unobtrusive aftertaste of dead leaves. Therefore, if you do not have experience in choosing and applying, carefully study the reviews or ask the sellers what the taste of a particular pu-erh pancake is.

Also, pay attention to the size of the sheet. The smallest leaf gives a very bright and quite rich taste, but it does not withstand a large number of spills, it is brewed very quickly. The large size of the leaf gives a softer, balanced, and rounded taste, but it will also brew longer and withstand a slightly significant amount of spills. The presence of golden tea buds in the pancake is also important: they are the ones that take the longest to brew.

A clear difference between Shu Pu-erh and Sheng Pu-erh.

Sheng Pu-erh

And the final step in our acquaintance is Sheng Pu-erh. The first thing you need to know about is not Shu Pu-erh, but a separate type of tea that changes framewise over time. Young and fresh Sheng Pu-erh is somewhat similar to the green tea we are all used to. It is bright, toning, and refreshing, with a delicate sweet aftertaste. After some time (usually several years) the taste changes very much, and the soft herbiness is replaced by dried fruits, spices, and notes of tart buckwheat honey.
To discover and understand the true and unfathomable nature of Sheng Pu-erh, be sure to try both a young and aged leaf. Then you can clearly see the difference.

We suggested that you take the first steps with us to start your acquaintance with Chinese tea. It is very diverse, so feel free to experiment, try, and look for new taste experiences. Leave at least 1-2 hours between each of them, so as not to get confused in the variety of shades.
Enjoy your tea parties!