Once again, I attended tea tasting organized by Teatrade.sk in the same teahouse as before. This time, the tasting took place inside the teahouse, instead of its garden, as the weather outside was extremely hot and sunny, so we preferred the cool air which, thanks to this teahouse being located in old, historical house with thick walls was still present inside, even without air conditioner.
This time, the theme was Darjeeling and Nepal teas from 2010 First, Second and 2009 Autumnal Flush.
We drank these teas:
Nepal Kuwapani FF SFTGFOP 1,
BIO Darjeeling Tukdah FF FTGFOP 1,
2 lots of Darjeeling Jungpana FF FTGFOP.
Darjeeling Goomtee FF FTGFOP 1,
Darjeeling Goomte SF FTGFOP 1,
Dajeeling Goomtee AF FTGFOP 1 2009.
Darjeeling Jungpana SF FTGFOP 1 a
Nepal Jun Chiabary AF SFTGFOP 1 2009.
Then came the pleasant surprise - 2010 Saejak Hadong Nokcha.
And it really is as pleasant as i imagined it to be.
Korean green tea and home-made Matcha cookies, what a combination!
Next tasting - of Marukyu Koyamaen Matchas - is going to take place on 24 June in the same teahouse.
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All photos were taken by main organizer, not me, as I haven't took any photos this time.
these shots are just marvelous. I was going to ask you if u can speak Chinese, or Japanese since you're passionate tea lover.
ReplyDeleteHappy Sunday!
The autumnal flush teas are my favorite when it comes to darjeeling. I can enjoy a first and second flush, but the flavors of the autumnal pull me in.
ReplyDeleteGreat post!
Do you normally drink many indian and nepalese teas?
Michal,
ReplyDeleteWas going to give you a bit of background information on the generic Hadong green tea packaging pictured here but the comment turned into a post all its own! Will post in detail about this topic within the next week or two.
In short- was going to mention that this is the generic green tea packaging for saejak Hadong green tea and that it indicates a smaller production.
Thanks for the inspiration.
By the way, How did you like the Indian and Nepalese tea this year?
Peace
Dani,
ReplyDeletethat's probably because I'm not the one who took them, haha :D About your question - no, I unfortunately do not speak any Asian language, except for some basic Japanese and Chinese words and phrases. Happy Sunday to you, too!
William,
Thanks! When it comes to teas from Himalayas, my favorite is the First Flush, which is the most flowery and mild and somehow "greener" if you know what I mean - that's partly because I generally prefer green teas and light oolongs. I normally do not drink a lot of Indian and Nepalese teas for the same reason, though I can't say I dislike them - it's just that there are bigger favorites of mine in the world of tea. ;)
Matt,
I think you already mentioned that in some post on your blog, because that's exactly what we were talking about with Teatrade.sk owners yesterday - I mentioned that this "Hadong Green Tea" isn't one big tea brand, but actually more smaller producers, because I remembered that thanks to your blog.
Here, I used sentence "And it really is as pleasant as i imagined it to be", because this actual tea was brought by shop owners of Darjeeling.cz from their recent trip to Korea and was recommended to me by Petr Novák and Ho Go in this post: http://poemtea.blogspot.com/2010/06/another-tea-degustation.html
So I knew the tea and was expecting it to taste, smell and look... somehow like this and it hadn't disappointed me at all. ;)
I'm looking forward to your post, then!
First flush of Indian and Nepalese teas this year was very flowery and with quite a vivid tone of citrus-like aroma, and that's exactly what I like on these teas, so I really enjoyed it. Have you already tried this year's tea from Himalayas?
Oh, no, Michael that is not true. I know you take wonderful photos too.
ReplyDeleteIt would be a great to learn an Asian language. It's a whole new world. You've already met a part of it.
Thanks for sharing your experience with us.
Have a good night!
The tea party sounds like it was a lot of fun and such nice teas to taste with friends! Here in Bangkok, we have a tea party every Sunday evening at one of the tea shops here. This week, one of the group returned from Prague and bought several Darjeeling and Nepali teas which he shared with us. Beside the Goomtee FF from Darjeeling.cz that I had gotten from Daniel in Korea, I had only tasted a few other FF of this season. So far, I would have to say that I was quite pleased with the sheer variety and quality of this year's harvest and haven't had a bad Darjeeling yet. The 2 Nepali teas were also very good and the first I had ever tasted. One was called Shangrilla.
ReplyDeleteGlad you enjoyed the Hadong. I've yet to taste it.
Ho Go,
ReplyDeletethose tea parties you have in Bangkok seem very nice, too! I think it always is great when tea lovers meet and drink tea together; it's a completely different experience than drinking tea alone.
Though I don't drink a lot of Darjeeling and Nepali teas as I mentioned before, I also felt good about this year's harvest quality and enjoyed these teas a lot.
I really recommend this Hadong green tea from Daniel, it really is a special tea worth trying.