TEA HOUSE IN MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA

百年老欉佛手

百年老欉佛手

Fou Shou from eco-friendly tea estate in Yong Chuen, Fijian. Trees are older than 100 years, growing in the wild nature
The dried leaves give a rich woody with the touch of floral aroma.

The 1st infusion was a total surprise by its profound astringent taste that immediately stimulated the sour reaction on both side glands and brought a very strong and everlasting sweetness on the tip of tongue.
The taste of 2nd infusion was even more stronger. We added on some water ⋯⋯to dilute the astringent taste, but the after taste stayed strong and long.

Changed strategy started from the 3rd infusion, to shorten the infusion time to matter of second. It helped to reduce the astringent taste, but there was no effect to weaken the after taste. Now could sense the sweetness not only on the tip of tongue, but also sense it only lips.

Followed the infusion method, can trace the memorized aroma from the dried leaves. The taste and aroma of started to tell the 2nd part of story with total different tones and notes.

After 6 infusions, we decided to have a bit of home made moon cake and cookies. The mild astringent emerged nicely with sweet desserts.

We finally decided to close the tasting, because the time is late. We were amazed by the after taste of this extraordinary memory today.

長於福建永春山中一處荒野中的百年老欉佛手. 茶樹齡已逾百年, 周遭被密密的樹叢包圍. 

在溫熱的茶碗中, 茶散發出一股濃濃的木香與遠處的優雅花香. 

第一道的茶香與口感給了我們一個很大的驚喜. 一反通常第一道中茶香通常是漸漸甦醒, 口感由淡雅漸漸轉升, 而這款茶的第一道沖泡的茶香與口感就有如一個迎面直拳, 直擊舌根與兩側, 在想法子分析那一股似苦卻又甘的口感的時候, 很快兩側腮腺因受刺激生津的速度與力道而給品者直接帶來另一層驚喜. 然而就在驚喜尚未落下來之前, 那內斂的澀感立刻轉成甘甜傳送到舌尖. 

一如所臆, 第二道口感比第一道更明顯與強烈. 在初淺品茗一杯後, 我加入一些熱水來稀釋第二道的茶湯, 就算是稀釋之後, 那一股澀後生甘的口感依然強烈, 

有鑒於此茶力道很強, 所以自第三道後改變沖泡戰略, 把沖泡的時間縮到數秒. 澀後而生甘的口感不再侷限在舌尖, 甚至唇上亦有感. 在更改沖泡戰略後, 第四道的茶香跟乾茶開始類似. 跟前兩道比較, 第四道好像是一本書中的第二章, 給品者另一種風情與驚喜. 

在品過六泡後, 我們決定停下來享受前幾日自己做的五仁月餅與麥片餅乾. 嘴中尚存的微澀完全溶入甜點. 
當大家心滿意足地互道晚安時, 我們在感受到那持續的茶香澀甘與回憶時期待下一回合.

source: Mei Lan Hsiao, Belgium Chinese Tea Culture Association"

THE BEST TEA

The Chinese have a wise saying: “The best teas are grown in high mountains,” and of course this is true. At high elevations, the air is cool and crisp and misty clouds constantly curl around the high peaks, protecting tea plants from glaring sunlight and washing humidity over the leaves. In the ambient cold temperatures, new leaf buds form slowly and develop higher levels of essential oils and amino acids such as L-theanine, and more L-theanine means sweeter teas. and we The Gopaldhara Tea Estate is one of the highest plantations in Darjeeling region. that stretches from 3500 ft to 7000 ft. Established in 1881 since then we have been making exquisite teas for our worldwide clientele. *_* 
<<>>Come let's brew the perfect cup from the Garden and continue to talk about happy things.<<>> smile emoticon

PU-ERH BRIEF INTRODUCTION

Pu-erh tea is made from Yunnan large-leaf varietal of Camellia Sinensis.

It is typically processed into compressed cakes, bricks and tuos. Pu-erh is particularly special because it can be aged for decades or longer, always changing and (in most cases) developing more depth and texture. 

Raw Pu-erh （生茶) is the traditional form of Pu-erh, and is sun-dried and compressed. Ripe Pu-erh (熟茶) is fermented during a 40-50 day period under-going a mellowing process that changes the tea into something dark red-brown in color.

TEA ART KUNGFU (VIDEO)

GOPALDHARA WONDER TEA

Gopaldhara Wonder Tea WT-36/13. A stronger oxidized AV2. 

Especially for someone who enjoys a stronger cup. A more rounded robust cup.

TEA BREWING

COME AND HAVE THE HIGH QUALITY BREW TEA HERE

TEA SERVING

TAKE TIME TO SAVOUR YOUR TEA.

STAY CALM AND COOL WHILE HAVING YOUR TEA TIME.

TEA COMPRESSING PROCESS - VIDEO

TEA SET

ZHAOPING'S ANNUAL TEA OUTPUT REACHED 7,030 TONS

Tea Buddies, Visitors and Readers,

Do you know what is the annual tea output in Zhaoping Country of Guangsi Zhuang Autonomous Region ? Make a guess before you read further on this article.

Farmers pick summer tea in a tea plantation in Zhaoping County, southwest China, about 200 km south of Guilin on the Hongshichong River. With annual tea production of  7,030 tonnes of tea leaves and value of 705 million yuan. With this weight, there is no surprise for me to note that tea processing is a pillar industries in Zhaoping. On Feb 20, 2013, the farmers in Zhaoping, as photo above, were busy harvesting in some 6,600 hectares of tea plantation.

I have not visited this lovely city and its tea plantation before despite I have made several trips to other parts of China.

I was made to understand that this lovely city is not so popular amongst tourisms because it is not mentioned in the current guide book, but is totally unspoiled. A relatively easy day trip from here is Huangyao. Other sites include a beautiful tea plantation, a peaceful boat ride down the Gui River and a pleasant walk through the small river village of Shang An. The surrounding country-side is exquisite, with beautiful mountains and crystal clear rivers. Go and discover yourself and don't forget to tell us more about its tea in term of its uniqueness and characteristics..

The people were very friendly and quite happy to welcome tourists.  This is in line with the city's motto of "Green Zhaoping - ecological Zhaoping - modern Zhaoping" 

With this, we wish success to its green project for a betterment of tomorrow.

Before we end, you are encouraged to record down on your diary and remember to make a trip there.

Have a fruitful day everyday,

James Oh

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Skype me at james.oh18

HO YAN HOR PART II

HO YAN HOR PART 2

Very happy Day, dear tea buddies

This year's durian season in Malaysia was blessed with abundance of durians as it is marked by the mushrooming of many stalls and trucks selling durians all over the place.

For the past couple of weeks, we had daily heavy rainfall and certain low areas were hit by flash flood. With this type of season, the durian eaters will have their happy time enjoying the king of the fruits with a relative lower price than the past couple of years.

The durian season will normally be with the weather of its typical season of being very hot and dry as durians would ripen whenever the weather is so hot like this.

During times like this, it is very common to find people down with illnesses such as sore throats and dry coughs, not to mention some headaches as well as sore gums or toothaches which are caused by the growing heatiness in their bodies. With the consumption of durian, which is very heaty in nature coupled with binging of leftover New Year cookies, and too much fried or roasted foodstuff, our bodies are easily susceptible to the compounded heatiness. 

As usual, whenever I experience heatiness like this, I would reach for a bag of herbal tea called Ho Yan Hor which I had posted in my preceding post at the link below:-

http://teaartblog.blogspot.com/2012/12/ho-yan-hor-berbal-tea.html

A popular and effective tea that has been around for many decades.  When I was a kid, there was this van that would come to our neighbourhood once a month at night to promote and sell Ho Yan Hor tea packets, and it would have its loudspeakers blaring away in my neighbourhood.

I was made to understand that for those who are 40 years and above, their bodies cannot withstand the effects of herbal teas or remedies that are too cooling, but we can take Ho Yan Ho as it is mild, safe and effective to bring down our body’s overly heatiness. 

For those of you that are experiencing heatiness due to either weather or wahtsoever reason, do try a cup of Ho Yan Hor tea and find out yourself whether it will sooth you or not. Even coughs arising from heatiness can be relieved with this tea.  Let us know your experience. If you like, you may get a box of Ho Yan Hor at home and drink it on a weekly basis to balance the heatiness in our bodies. 

Append below please find a brief history and product information obtained from its company -

Applications: *
Helps to relieve heat, nausea, indigestion, and waning appetite. Use for the Common Cold, fever and flu. Also known to relieve headaches, hangovers, stomach flus and overall stress and burnout.

Trusted Tea for Generations…

The streets were no longer deserted when evenings came. People no longer had to be terrified of men in army suits. World War II had come to an end.

In the midst of the unsettled post-war period, while people were busy restoring buildings and businesses, houses and homes, this man in his 30`s, preferred to enjoy the tranquility which was taken away from his homeland when he came back to Malaya in 1941.

Having graduated from China`s Canton Wah Lam National Physicians School in 1941, he was then one of the very few young chaps who received tertiary education. Still young and not having the faintest idea about his next step in life after the war, he obliged to the request of a friend to bring into creation a blend of herbal tea for folks in town who were deprived of the wonders of Western medicines as a remedy for common ailments.

With his passion for herbs and the knowledge acquired, he embarked on a journey of discovery leading to a concoction of 24 kinds of herbs. Till today, Ho Yan Hor Herbal Tea has remained a masterpiece of extraction. The meticulous extraction process of the 24 selected kinds of herbs bares every leaf of its nutritional and therapeutic assets! A class of its own, this novel process is repeated several times to ensure thorough extraction. The extract is then absorbed onto tea leaves, dried and packed into sachet tea bags for consumers` convenience. When taken, this all-natural extract enables immediate absorption of its goodness into the body. Today, the 60-year-old Ho Yan Hor Herbal Tea remains a favourite among many and it is much sought after to relieve body heatiness, nausea, indigestion, and waning appetite.

Over a lapse of more than half a century, Dr. Ho Kai-Cheong`s humble herbal tea stall has grown to a modern manufacturing plant with WHO GMP status. Modernization has not deterred the house of Ho Yan Hor from bringing its ancient goodness to consumers of the 21st century. From formulation to processing, these have been carefully preserved over the decades. The modern manufacturing plant has not short-changed consumers of its invaluable goodness, but only adding to it hygiene and health.

More than a health heritage, Ho Yan Hor Herbal Tea is truly an illustration of `when east meets west`. This aged-old concoction has managed to strike equilibrium between alternative medicines and mainstream medical approaches. With every cup of tea, come not only nutritional and therapeutic values, but heritage and history! 

Hope you find it useful and helpful.

James Oh

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HO YAN HOR BERBAL TEA

HO YAN HOR HERBAL TEA

Dear Tea Buddies,

Today, I am going to share you a herbal tea from Ho Yan Hor.

This product was embarked by its Founder, Dr Ho Kai Cheong, who began his journey of discovery to a concoction of 24 kinds of herbs. It brings ancient secrets of good health to the modern consumers. It all started with a passion for herbs and knowledge acquired from China's Canton Wah Lam National Physicians School in 1941.

Directions for Tea Bag

Brew one teabag in a teapot or large cup of hot water for about 2 minutes. However, for those who prefer stronger brew, you can opt to brew longer than 2 minutes. You may add sugar, a slice of lemon or sour plum according to your taste, liking and preference.

Net weight of each teabag is 6 grams.

Hovid's Ho Yan Hor Herbal Tea Series

HO YAN HOR HERBAL TEA

A natural herbal tea in new hygienic foil packing. With the exquisite concoction of 24 selected quality herbs, Ho Yan Hor® helps reduce heatiness, sore throat, cold & indigestions.

HO YAN HOR NIGHT TEA

Ho Yan Hor® Night Tea is specially designated for the suitability of tea drinking in the evening. Folium Mori, commonly known as Mulberry leaves, is the main ingredient. The tea helps to relieve body heatiness, sore throat and common cold, giving one a soothing and relaxing effect.

HO YAN HOR GOLD TEA

Ho Yan Hor® Gold Tea is with extra herbs that gives a smooth taste. The uniqueness of this brewed herbal tea from the tea bag is that it does not taste bitter and tannic. This natural remedy helps to relieve body heatiness, sore throat, influenza, aids indigestion and quench thirst.

It is a product manufactured by Hovid Bhd and it has been certified as Halal product.

I have tasted this product numerous times and it has its uniqueness in term of taste and I find it has nutrient value. As such, I would like to recommend this product for those who especially like to venture into new products to enrich their lives.

Please do let us know should you come across any tea which is new to this blog. We believe prosperity is through diversity. 

James Oh

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MAKE TEA NOT WAR

To know why we say tea is not a drink, please click the link below:-

http://teaartblog.blogspot.com/2009/09/tea-bridge-path-to-healthy-life.html

SEXY LIFE WITH TEA - PART 2

SEXY LIFE WITH TEA – 2

Hope you enjoy reading the part 1, which has been posted at the link below:-

In part 2, we hope that these new teas, can spice up your life especially those who have not with the previous teas in my earlier posts. You may check the above photo for the tea below:-.

Similarly, I am going to kick off with my local teas :-

1.     Ahmad Tea – Strawberry Black tea

I can’t recall how I got it in the first place.  I only have the above few packs left and had tried some of them before.

It comes with tea bag. It is a refreshing blend of exclusive black tea with strawberry flavor.

2.     Ahmad Tea – Blackcurrant

The only different from the above is that it enhanced with blackcurrant flavor.

3.     Ahmad Tea – Peach & Passion

This comes with peach and passion favour.

4.     Bittergourd Tea

This is produced by Cao Nguyen Tea Co Ltd, Vietnam.  It uses 100% small bittergourd that are found only in high lands. It is processed using old traditional tea making process.

5.     Jasmine Green Tea by Ten Ren Tea Co. Ltd

Similar to the rest, use one bag per cup by just pouring freshly boiled water over the tea bag and brew it for 3 minutes or to its desired strength of your favour.

6.     Premium American Ginseng Root Tea

As its name suggests, it contains premium American Ginseng favour and I truly enjoy drinking it. Ha..so smoothing.

Your feedback is always welcome here, both good and bad.

That’s about all this time. 

WINTER TEA

WINTER TEA

Hi! Tea buddies,

Do any of you know about the above "winter tea"? I would 

appreciate if you could share more about this tea.

I have not tried this type of tea before, but I was made to 

understand that if you ask any Taiwanese which is the best 

seasonal crop to consider to get the best tea, he will most likely say 

“winter tea, of course!“ 

The reason is that the cooler temperature and slow growth tend to 

produce the most fragrant and smooth liqueur, as its name reflects. 

Can someone tells us any other reason, if applicable?

One of such tea you can get is Longfengxia High Mountain Oolong tea, from the high mountain terroir of Shanlinxi. The steeped tea has a bright yellow hue, a faintly fresh and floral aroma, a pleasant fresh and floral flavour with sweet undertones, and a faintly sweet after taste. 

Kindly provide your feedback in the comment column provided 

below. Any gift of tea samples, magazines or books are always 

welcome here.

Thanks and stay tuned for more exciting updates.

James Oh

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WHAT IS IN TEA?

LIFE IS SO WONDERFUL, EVERYTHING HAS MORE THAN WHAT IS IN ITS SURFACE.

ONCE YOU GO DEEPER, YOU WILL DISCOVER MORE THAN WHAT ON ITS SURFACE.

TO ME, WHATEVER TEA IS IT.

IN TEA, I ALWAYS FIND THERE IS PEACE AND CALM.

HOW ABOUT YOU, MAY I KNOW WHAT YOU FIND WHAT IS IN TEA.

PLEASE SHARE THROUGH THE COMMENT COLUMN PROVIDED BELOW.

TEA IS WISDOM

DO YOU AGREE? LET US HEAR YOUR VIEW BY USING THE COMMENT COLUMN PROVIDED BELOW:-

SEXY LIFE WITH TEA - PART 1

SEX LIFE WITH TEA - PART 1

Is your life so wonderful and sexy? If not, you may follow my footstep to spice up your life with so…many types of tea as shown in the above photo.

I shall take you through one by one. Be patient.

How about kicking off with my local tea :-

1.     Misai Kuching , Organic Herbal Tea

I can’t recall how I got it in the first place.  I only have one last tea bag and have no clue whether I have tried it before.

This tea bag contains 3 grams. It is very convenient and easy to brew. Just steep the tea sachet in hot water for 5 minutes. Just like other teas, it is best consumed when hot and unsweetened.

2.     Jasmine Premium Tea

This sumptuous Chinese green tea infused with night-blooming Jasmine produces a lingering floral fragrance and sublime taste.

Note: it has a life span of 2 years from the date of the production year. This packet is dated 2007 and I am not sure whether it is still in production or not.

3.     Eamomile Premium Tea – dark brown packet

This is a  selected Egyptian variety with high oil content. It is a traditional European favourite has distinguishing soothing fragrance and calming properties.

It is just like Jasmine Premium Tea, which comes with life span of two years from the date of production. This was produced in 2007 and I am also not sure whether it is still in production or not.

Here, I need some help from you guys especially those who have tried the above products to share with us your experience with the above teas and other information you are aware of.

In return, I will tell more information of other teas which are shown in the above photo. So, stay tune.

James Oh

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TEA LEAVES AND SEEDS