The year 2019 in 12 pictures

I'm going to ask you (again) to vote here for the best pictures of 2019. The goal is to select which 2 photographs will become my next tea postcards and gifts for your order. Your vote will also let me better understand what kind of pictures you like best and what I should focus on in the future. And that's also why I've asked you to vote for your preferred article of the 2010s: to find out what kind of topics you wish to read on my blog.

December. Funky Dancong Shuixian from Taiwan

November. Winter 2019 Alishan Oolong

October. Bring the past alive

September. Happy Moon Festival

August. 2 Chaxi de bord de mer

July. Beach Chaxi of Summer 2019

June. Summer brewing. Tea in a bowl

May. Un cours de thé chinois dans l'esprit de la dynastie Sung

April. Où est la version francophone de tea-masters?

March. With a tea friend by the lotus pond.

February. 2 puerh best buys

January. Tea postcards 2019

The top 10 articles of the 2010s

A decade is approaching its term. A full decade of tea blogging! And here are the top 10 articles of the decade.
2010: From Earth to clay with David Louveau
2011: Formosa Oolong Tea: the international brand event
2012: How to appreciate a teapot
2013: The most sought after 4 numbers in puerh: 7542
2014: From jasmine flowers to jasmine tea
2015: Da Yu Ling, sorrow and joy
2016: The making of Bai Wen Red Tea
2017: The purest form of gastronomy is Tea
2018: Dong Ding Finesse
2019: Dong Ding Dong Ding Dong Ding

You may vote for the article you prefer on Facebook. Simply comment with the year you prefer.

Another Advent Chaxi

This Chabu isn't a Christmas theme, but the red borders and the flowers suggest a festive spirit in a time of darkness...
And the reason I chose these black, brown and red colors, is to harmonize them with the color and spirit of this excellent Taiwanese Oolong: the 2019 summer Oriental Beauty tradition from Hsin Chu!

Make no mistake, this is the Oolong that requires the most skill and luck to make. It's no wonder then that the first prized OB sell at a higher price than the first prized Dong Ding Oolong! Both these Oolongs require a good amount of oxidation and careful roasting. (OB requires more oxidation than a Dong Ding Oolong, of course, which means it takes longer to produce). But OB also needs luck and the cooperation of small green crickets (jassids) that bite the tea buds, triggering a chemical response from the plant. This is what gives a very bright honey note to the tea.

So, this is a tea that sees its quality vary greatly. And while top quality sells at a high premium, it's increasingly difficult to find good quality at a reasonable price. Well, this 2019 OB tradition manages the quality and reasonable price. The honey notes from the jassid bites are most obvious in the first brews. They unfold along very ripe and fruity fragrances, while the taste is sweet with a lingering aftertaste that gathers on the middle of the tongue. The flavors mix well with Christmas cookies like Spekulatius! It feels cozy and comfortable. The brew shines like golden sunlight.. 

Note: Why do the best OBs come from Hsin Chu? (and not from Wenshan or China?)

1. The fact that OB was invented there is just part of the explanation. Farmers in Hsin Chu have become focused on OB, while farmers in Wenshan are masters of Baozhong. Each process requires skills and experience...
2. Because farmers in Hsin Chu are focused on OB, they are planting the cultivar that is the best fit for OB: Qingxin DaPang. (In Wenshan, only very few farmers have planted Qingxin DaPang).
3. I'm still giving away free samples of overseas OB (for OB orders in excess of 30 USD), so that you can compare Hsin Chu OB and OB grown outside Taiwan and taste the difference!

Puerh gushu de Lancang du printemps 2019

2 mois se sont déjà écoulés depuis cette dégustation de puerh avec Benoit à la maison Lin de Banciao. Mais mieux vaut tard que jamais: ce puerh gushu de Lancang de ce printemps vaut un petit retour en arrière.

 Ses feuilles en vrac sont très grandes, solides et dégagent une odeur sauvage et fleurie très pure.

Dans les jardins de la maison Lin, j'aime préparer le jeune puerh à la manière Ming d'un thé vert: infusion dans une grande théière zisha et versé dans des grandes coupes en céladon de Michel François. Cela donne un thé plein de contraste: léger mais puissant, jeune, mais tirant sa force d'un arbre plusieurs fois centenaire, pur, mais avec des saveurs qui évoluent en bouche.

Ce miracle n'en est pas un, mais provient de la qualité des feuilles. Gushu, vieux théier, est l'explication la plus succinte. Cette explication est si connue qu'un grand nombre de puerhs sont vendus sous l'appelation 'gushu', alors qu'ils proviennent de plantations de 30 ans ou moins.

L'éducation du dégustateur de puerh consiste donc à savoir faire la différence entre ces 2 types d'origines des feuilles. Cette éducation est primordiale de nos jours, car la PAG (la Prime Au Gushu) est de plus en plus grande. Ainsi, si 10 gr de ce Gushu de Lancang coûtent 19.5 USD, 100 gr de ce Tuo Cha de Xiaguan de 2004 ne coûte que 10 USD! C'est presque une différence de 1 pour 20! Bref, c'est comme la différence entre une bouteille à 10 USD et une à 195 USD! Mais l'avantage du thé, c'est qu'on n'a pas besoin d'une grande quantité de feuilles pour une belle dégustation!

Pour le prix de 2 cafés, un fan de thé peut se payer de feuilles d'un des thés les plus recherchés de Chine! Ce n'est donc pas étonnant que le prix des gushu puerh continue d'augmenter chaque année.

Et si vous ne trouvez pas ce Chaxi assez mignon, j'ajoute cette photo d'une Taiwanaise, probablement retraitée, qui se fait photographier en qipao avec une pose midinette! Son costume traditionnel convient si bien à l'endroit!

L'important c'est une attitude positive et optimiste!

Funky Dancong Shuixian from Taiwan

This Shuixian Dancong from Wenshan, in the north part of Taiwan, is unlike any other Baozhong or Taiwanese Oolong. It was made in the manner of Phoenix Dancong, using the same cultivar, but grown and processed in Taiwan. 

And it is a very powerful tea! The main reason for its quality and power are the young leaves. They are all very tender and I can only advise to use a small amount and to brew this Oolong lightly. 

 The result is truly astonishing, crisp and a little astringent with very funky, fruity notes that are typical of Dancong Oolong.

The special flavors are the inspiration for my pictures. Was it luck or this amazing December light? These pictures really capture the Advent spirit!... I don't have much to add.

 Below, we can see just how tender and lightly oxidized the single leaves are. So beautiful!

 The tea world is amazing! There are always new flavors to discover, new teas to try. And there's a tea for every mood. And I'm glad that I can give you access to all these wonderful Oolongs, red teas, aged puerhs... that I'm enjoying!

Couleurs de Noël et Oolong exceptionnel

On s'approche du solstice d'hiver et lorsqu'il y a du soleil, ses rayons ont un éclat particulier. L'astre du jour peine à s'élever dans le ciel et éclaire de biais mon Chaxi. On se croirait à la montagne avec cette fraicheur ensoleillée.

 Quoi de tel que d'en profiter pour déguster un Oolong de très haute montagne, de FuShou Shan, infusé dans une magnifique Yixing zhuni à peau de poire.

 Et c'est l'occasion d'utiliser ces anciennes coupes fines et colorées. Elles s'accordent si bien avec l'ambiance bariolée de ce Chaxi!

 Cette lumière intense, mais fraiche, sèche, sans les lourdeurs de l'été tropical, est la source d'inspiration de ce Chaxi de Noël. Entourée d'ombre, elle annonce une bonne nouvelle et l'espoir.

Cette lumière généreuse se réflète et se propage, se transforme et se sublimine. Cela me fait penser à ce Podcast sur France Culture: Qui était Jésus? Armande Abécassis nous dit que même le texte de la bible n'est pas saint, car il est sujet à interprétation. Par nature, rien de ce qui existe sur terre n'est divin, saint. Mais là où l'homme peut trouver de la sainteté c'est dans sa relation (avec Dieu).

Ainsi, ces images de célébration de Noël ne vous toucherons pas si vous n'avez pas une relation particulière avec la fête de la naissance de Jésus. En soi, ce Chaxi n'a pas plus d'importance ou de signification qu'un autre Chaxi. Ce qui le rend particulier, c'est effectivement la relation qu'on entretient avec Noël.

Rien de ce qu'on trouve sur terre n'est d'essence divine, mais parfois on est quand même bouche bée quand une oeuvre d'art nous émeut ou qu'on déguste un Oolong délicieux! 

Cet Oolong taquine les étoiles et m'élève au-delà des tracasseries du quotidien. C'est juste un excellent thé. Il n'a rien de divin. Mais c'est dans ce que j'en fais que je retrouve l'esprit naïf et enfantin de Noël.

 Donnez un sens joyeux à vos Chaxi durant l'Avent!

A charming tea story

Evening starts early in winter. As the day goes from cold and grey to dark, we long for the warmth of  a cup of tea and a Christmas cookie! These long winter nights were traditionally spent telling stories around the fire in the chimney. We may still feel this quiet atmosphere when we light a few candles. This would be a perfect time to read my short story "Emperor Fei's Dream of Tea". Here is the feedback I received about it from Marian in NYC a couple of days ago:

"What a charming story! It is laced with so many picturesque and delightful images, and that you were able to seamlessly integrate such a quantity and variety of information about tea is a testimony to your skill as a storyteller. I started to read the story before I left for a class this evening and the first thing I did when I got home was to resume reading it. Both the images and story line are so appealing- I wanted to indulge my imagination as soon as I stepped inside the door! You are a wonderful writer and I hope you will continue to explore that outlet."

Thank you for your feedback, Marian. It warms my heart to know that you've enjoyed my tale.

In case you're new to my blog, let me remind you that you receive a free copy of this short story if you place a 90 USD (or more) order on tea-masters.com. To see all the benefits you receive when you place an order on my eBoutique click here.

The holy grail of tea

Nobody believes in miracles anymore. As aged puerh is getting rare and increasingly expensive, who could have imagined that a puerh from the 1950s would still be lying around in an antique shop in Taiwan? As the famous red label (hong yin) or green label (lu yin) cakes from the 1950s sell for over 100,000 USD per cake in auctions in Hong Kong and Beijing, who could have predicted that similarly old leaves could still be had at a large discount? Ten years ago, when I selected it, I already felt that I struck gold with this 1966 loose gushu puerh. I didn't think it possible to find an even older puerh 10 years later. And yet, the impossible has happened! My Christmas came early! Here are some leaves of 1950s gushu puerh and I could even get enough to make them available in my selection:

1950s puerh

The question you may be wondering is how do we know the age of these leaves? Aged loose leaves should point to the cultural revolution (1966 to 1976) when the work in the factories was greatly disturbed, not to the 1950s! Indeed, and that's why this other batch of leaves I also acquired is estimated as from the 1970s. However, if we closely look at these leaves, we can notice that they are flattened, because they were once pressed into cakes! So, these are leaves that came off old cakes and were collected by the tea vendors that were purchasing and storing them in Hong Kong before 1997. In those times, it was their habit to dust of the old cakes of the leaves that had come naturally with time. That's the main reason why, at auctions, these red and green label cakes from the 1950s weigh about 310-340 gr instead of 357 gr.

The other way to ascertain the age is to compare this tea to the loose gushu from 1966 or those from the 70s. The taste considerably is rounder, calmer. And the aftertaste feels more refined and warmer. This is consistent with the way puerh ages according to my experience.

Using my gold plated silver teapot enables me not use all the (expensive) leaves I have photographed above. I must have only used half. And thanks to the high extraction rate of this teapot, this was already enough to produce wonderful brews! That's another reason why aged puerh becomes so precious. The scents turn to ginseng, old wood, incense and the taste is so soft, long and pleasing that it feels more akin to a spiritual encounter.

The record prices set by 60 to 90 years old puerh may seem crazy to non puerh drinkers. But if you're a serious sheng lover then you may understand that aged puerh is simply the ultimate tea experience, the holy grail of tea. No other tea ages so well, no other tea is so powerful, no other tea is surrounded by such interest! And no other tea seems so unattainable (100,000 USD for a cake)! But this changes if you can purchase just two or 3 grams and if you're a group of 3 to 6 people! Then, this luxury becomes as affordable as a ticket to a show on Broadway or a top bottle of wine. It's not something you enjoy often, but at least you can say that you know the feeling!

For me, it feels like Christmas! A perfect tea, old but still feeling young, so naturally sweet that you don't want to eat anything with it, because it's light tinkling is so enjoyable and goes on and on!

The spent leaves of the 1950s gushu puerh

As I often say, the tea experience isn't about quantity, but quality. Why? Because you can only brew a few grams of tea at a time! And on a special occasion it's just fitting to enjoy a tea that defies time!