Someone just asked in a Reddit group (r/tea, the main one) about what others see as the main types someone should get to. This is close to asking for a personal version of the top 10 classic Chinese teas, just without the Chinese origin limitation, and not exactly in that form.
What are some teas that you think a tea head should/must drink before they die? What are some teas you couldn’t live without? All time favourites?
My response
This question reflects a perspective on teas one would have before trying a lot of them. There probably isn't a list that would work for everyone, some 10 best teas listing, coupled with the results of a couple of other 10 best teas listings.
It's interesting to explore teas but it doesn't work so well in a checklist form. You wouldn't really know if the examples that you were trying were type-typical or of relatively high quality, so you'd end up chasing variations for all of it. Any list wouldn't be identical to the next list. Personal preference would factor in. Exploring teas works well as an organic pursuit, heading in different directions, better than looking up and trying 20 accepted good teas.
I've tried most of the teas mentioned here, although only a few yellow teas, so who knows what I tried in that style range. One didn't ring a bell at all, citron grafted Buddha hand: https://cultivatetea.com/products/yongchun-buddha-s-hand-first-day-harvest-2019
That's tea plant stems grafted onto a different plant type, selling for $50 for 4 grams. No thanks.
I can list some that I would see as favorites and basics, more so than my own top 10 or top 20:
Wuyi Yancha / Da Hong Pao: there's a lot to this range, but to me exploring Rou Gui, Shui Xian, and one of the original DHP plant types are a good start, Qi Dan or Bei Dou. When someone claims Ma Tou Yan version is better, from the Horsehead Rock in the nature preserve area, you can set that aside. Sure tea from a high demand area, that is suitable for the plant type, would get plenty of attention in terms of favorable growing, harvesting, and processing, but those ideal and traditional location stories are myths based on some core of truth.
Dan Cong: an amazing range of oolong, with strong fruity and floral aspects, versus a range grounded in mineral tone that is more diverse for Wuyi Yancha.
Longjing: really a good place to start, a very classic Chinese green tea, and one that I actually like quite a bit, but it can be tricky chasing more ideal versions. When you do find a real one it's amazing; the experience of smelling the bag being opened is more intense than tasting one a quality level down. This curator vendor is a good option for buying amazing and type-typical examples of many of these: https://www.tridentcafe.com/green
Glancing through that vendor's selection it looks like maybe 30 types are really distinctive and valued, and some others are interesting exceptions. It's actually like that.
Nepal white tea: amazingly bright, fresh, floral and fruity. Of course that applies more to better versions.
Darjeeling: this is an area, not a tea type. A good number of type variations come from this area, in part separated by flushes, harvest seasons, but also by styles. Good versions are on par with teas from anywhere else, combining complexity, diversity in style, novel flavors, and great balance.
Taiwanese teas: there's a whole list from this country, not as long as from China, but it's a bit much repeating it all here. High mountain rolled oolongs stand out, in a lighter form or more oxidized and roasted. Oriental Beauty oolong can be great. That works as start but adding 3 or 4 more would be more complete. A new set would relate to regions, and oolongs, and another one of those would be Red Jade black tea and another the bug bitten black tea version, which I think has different names.
Fuding white teas: I actually don't love these; I'm including them for completeness. I like better versions of Yunnan Moonlight White better, but plenty of people love Bai Mu Dan, silver needle, even Shou Mei, even though to some extent it could be seen as less promising than the other two.
pu'er: this is where I am now, and it is its own world of teas. I've been drinking mostly pu'er for about 6 or 7 years and I'm just getting started, in spite of trying at least a couple of hundred versions so far, and owning a good bit of this and that. It doesn't work to summarize what it is in terms of young / new versions versus aged, in relation to both broad and narrow production areas, tied to different styles and quality levels, related to variations or exceptions (eg. purple leaf material, huang pian), and of course sheng and shou, the latter being wet-pile processed to emulate aging effect, more or less.
Chinese black teas: there are many. I love Dian Hong, Yunnan versions, but whenever you try a really good example of another kind it re-writes your understanding of that type and range. Jin Jun Mei are novel enough to mention separately, but sorting through a range of those and figuring out what is probably "real" is tough. Even though it's flavored teas people should try smoked Lapsang Souchong early in their exploration, and then a better unsmoked version later on.
other Chinese green teas: I've only tried a few that really made me question green tea being my least favorite category, like Mao Feng and Mao Jian.
Japanese green teas: about time, right? Again it's not a personal favorite. It's really worth trying out a few good sencha and gyokuro to see where you stand on preference for this range.
yellow teas: nah, you can pass on that. It's hype, related to that being a main older traditional style and category. I've only tried a few and didn't like them, even factoring in novelty. Skip all gaba processed teas too; they're awful, and mostly just taste sour.
hei cha: these never make these kinds of lists, I guess for a reason. They're on the basic side, nothing flashy or spectacular, a bit earthy, sometimes edgy, sometimes with odd flavors or a touch of smoke. To be a long term tea enthusiast and never try any of them would seem odd. Liu Bao is so basic that's a good place to start, but that range varies. To me Fu brick teas can be interesting and pleasant; I just reviewed a couple of novel versions with golden flowers, an unusual case of fungus input (in the tea in the ancient world blog).
So what about Vietnamese teas, or Ceylon and Assam, Korean teas, and so on? Georgia (the country) has a novel new tea production tradition going, built on top of an old tradition. I suppose trying a little from here and there would make sense. I was more focused on main specific types range here, centered on what I happen to like, with exceptions that were noted.
What did I leave out?
It doesn't work to make this kind of list complete, even if you keep typing and typing. There's always something else out there, that's classic and wonderful in its own way. I'll mention a few that I skipped.
Anxi Tie Guan Yin: for some this should be on a top 10 list, but to me the modern, light, bright green, brewing to bright yellow style is pleasant in its own way but not great. The older style, that is more oxidized and roasted, can be great. Since it's almost all new style now it's definitely on the top 10 list of things to try but not as pleasant as another 20 on this list.
flavored teas: no jasmine green or white tea, no lotus green, Earl Grey, or jasmine black (a personal favorite). Sure, trying all those is worth it. Leaving them out wasn't about snubbing or putting down flavored teas, I just don't see them as classic in the same way.
masala chai: too novel and well-accepted to even put in the flavored teas category; this is definitely worth trying a few versions of, even getting into making your own batches of it. You would only know what I mean once you try an above average version.
Thai teas: I've been living in Thailand; how can I omit all the teas from here, and from Laos and Myanmar? Or even Indonesia, which makes some pretty good teas now. Are they inferior? Not really. Some style overlap or are borrowed from other places (sheng pu'er, Taiwanese oolongs, black teas range). Not much comes to mind that's completely different, so skipping everything from these three countries doesn't cost you much for new experiences. Eventually trying a few from these places would make sense, to see for yourself. Thailand does make that one orange colored, artificially flavored tea; it's a different thing, but it's nice.
ya bao: a white tea made from tea buds, harvested at a different time than silver needle. These are fine, and some people love them, but they seem a bit like drinking a tisane too. If you love them they are a must-try, and if they seem so-so not worth it, and you'd have to try them to know.
falap / bamboo sheng: there is a set of bamboo-stuffed, roasted or smoked sheng pu'er variations that are really pleasant and interesting (not clearly a sheng pu'er variation according to everyone; that's my own interpretation). This would make my top 30 list of teas to try.
other Japanese teas: hojicha, their versions of plant stem based teas and black teas, and whatever else, especially a really odd fermented tea version. Sure, these would make my list of top 50 teas to try.
It must keep going from there but that's enough. I've not been swept away enough by teas from other areas to include them, but some can be quite good: from Hawaii, the other US, Russia, wherever else.
I've not went far with describing a range of aged teas; people love to try really old versions of different things, which pretty much changes them into something else. OK, people could dabble in that.
If you set out to try 40 or 50 versions of great teas, on a list, to me that's not as pleasant as exploring as you go, following promising directions based on sampling less than ideal quality versions of lots of teas. It takes forever, but that's a positive thing. It's probably best to cover the few most promising ranges early, because maybe you'll tire of exploration. Getting stuck on a narrow range would almost seem a shame, any subsection.
People should probably put off pu'er exploration early on because that can happen with that type. Oolongs and black teas are nice, mixing in some white and green range.
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a Chinatown market store, kind of unrelated, but Blogger can use it as a thumbnail |
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