I recently got a sample of a good darjeeling and am now craving it... I have been trying to find a US seller of high quality darjeeling, but have been really striking out. Can anyone point me in the right direction?
Thanks!
Thanks!
Darjeeling
- Thread starter Drybonz
- Start date
Upton Tea Imports occasionally has some exceptional Darjeelings. The last one I tried (TD54 Thurbo Est FTGFOP1 Tippy Cl.) was in a sampler pack and reminded me of a nice Taiwanese Oolong, though far too green for my tastes. It's also a perfect time to try them out.
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- #3
Fantastic! Thank you! They don't have any of the autumnal flush that I was looking for, but maybe I can find one that has a bit of that musky, dark flavor.
Thanks again for the tip. If anyone else knows a good one, feel free to jump in.
Thanks again for the tip. If anyone else knows a good one, feel free to jump in.
Have you checked their Darjeeling section?
Is this what you're looking for: TD07: Arya Est. SFTGFOP1 Ch. 2nd Flush (DJ-54) Organic
or: oops! i copied that one twice, but there are others on that page
I've been quite pleased with them, though there used to be another company that's no longer in business that I much preferred. For one thing, they gave a lot more details on each tea, including exactly when it was picked, packed, etc.
Is this what you're looking for: TD07: Arya Est. SFTGFOP1 Ch. 2nd Flush (DJ-54) Organic
or: oops! i copied that one twice, but there are others on that page
I've been quite pleased with them, though there used to be another company that's no longer in business that I much preferred. For one thing, they gave a lot more details on each tea, including exactly when it was picked, packed, etc.
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- Thread starter
- #5
I went with the Puttabong 2nd flush for now.
Sounds good.
I'm going to wait out the two weeks for a first flush and also pick up a Ceylon or two for a redder sweet tea.
I'm going to wait out the two weeks for a first flush and also pick up a Ceylon or two for a redder sweet tea.
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- #7
Let me know if you find a good first flush.
Just picked up 2oz of 2nd Flush Darjeeling from a local tea house. Can't wait to try it tonight.
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- #9
Let us know what it is and how you like it.
I got the Puttabong I mentioned, above, today. Can't really recommend it. Not much flavor or aroma, but very bitter. I tried a second time with less infusion time, but not much luck. I'll try again tomorrow.
So, tonight is my second cup of this 2nd Flush Darjeeling that I picked up at a local tea room.
Last night I was not impressed, but I had a feeling it was my technique. I poured from a full boil into a pre heated china cup. 1 teaspoon of tea to roughly 4 oz of boiling water. I let it steep 4.5 minutes. The tea was very bitter and generally unpleasant.
Today I repeated the process with a few small changes. I poured boiling water into the same china cup. I let it sit 1 minute and then shot it with an IR Temp gun. The reading was 181F. I then dropped in my infuser and let it sit 3 minutes. Night and day. Two completely different cups of tea. Tonight's cup was very flavorful but quite smooth. I loved it.
A little less heat with a shorter steep worked for me.
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- #11
Thanks for sharing your notes. Do you happen to know what estate the tea was, or was it just a blend? I have a feeling the tea I tried a couple nights ago also suffered from over-infusion, but I got side-tracked last night on an Assam they sent as a sample, which was actually pretty decent.
I like Darjeelings at 180-190F for 1.5 to 2 minutes, rarely longer, though I might push it to 200F. It's also interesting to try them gong-fu style, or several short infusions. Not sure it'll work out well for the fully oxidized, smoky ones, but it's worth a try. It's also worth going down to 160-170F and lengthening the time, then try the opposite to about 204F. Boiling water's probably too hot for any Darjeeling.
I do like their season's pick blends. Nicely priced, too. They usually end up as iced tea because those 1/4 lb bags are too big for anything else.
I do like their season's pick blends. Nicely priced, too. They usually end up as iced tea because those 1/4 lb bags are too big for anything else.
No. This is the description from their menu:
"Organic Darjeeling 2nd Flush Muscatel: (9R-C) Known as Second Flush. This tea is made with the new growth tips of the tea plant a few months after the first harvest, possessing a fully ripened Muscat grape and wild flower notes."
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- #15
Yes, it works fine, actually. I did infusions in my Gaiwan with a very musky Singbulli Autumn flush a couple of weeks ago.
This most recent batch that I mentioned I was having trouble with I did end up steeping at 170, as you said, and not long at all. It must have been a very delicate tea.
My current line of thought is that while some teas can tolerate boiling water, none of them benefit from it. Therefore I never use it anymore.
This 2nd Flush seems to be very good at 180 degrees steeped for two minutes in a bone china cup.
Mmmmm. So good.
Mmmmm. So good.
Good advice! The only reason to use boiling water is with something like shu ("ripe" puerh) or other teas where you're concerned about mold.
You really can't give temperature advice for a region. Darjeeling produces all kinds of tea from white to smokey black. Many of them (from any region, really) are black when dry, but quite green when wet. Very deceptive. Brings to mind the rule about tossing away the first cup.
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