The sunny weather forecast convinced me to organize my NYC tea meeting outdoors. The Bryant Park would be a great place to have tea and connect with nature in this big city. And my Chabu, a Japanese obi, is such a good fit with the tulips! The light is fantastic and it feels so much more free and unbound than indoors.
The key to a successful Chaxi is preparation, so I come early and found a nice bench, long before lunch break, when the park gets crowded. I make a simple setup and decorate the Chabu with 3 x 3 postcards (which I will give away to the participants after the meeting is over).
It's not possible to make fire in the park, unfortunately. And since I don't have all my equipment with me, I decide to brew the only way that was practical here: with my thermos. This is far from ideal and I understand that it lacks the magic of witnessing the brewing process. So, I rely less on the process than on the tea in the thermos. Since the leaves remain inside, the trick is to choose them wisely for their endurance and their lack of defects when they get overbrewed (here, I use my 2006 wild Lincang puerh). And the second trick is not to use too many leaves, so that it won't get too strong.
I also brought water to share with everybody, so that we would first get our throats wet and clean before tasting the tea. The idea is to drink water (for thirst) and then taste tea (for its flavors).
Another little 'trick' I have when inviting people to have tea outdoors (when I'm not in Taiwan and don't have access to all my wares) is to ask everybody to bring his own cup! It's one of the most overlooked piece of tea ware. While all eyes are on the teapot and the kettle, few pay much attention to the cup... But a cup has on tea the same effect than a glass on wine. Shape, material, color, thickness... all will impact the flavors of the tea.
From the cup, you can tell how much a tea drinker pays attention to details. And details are very important in tea! This also leads to this interesting experiment: I pour my puerh in each cup and we can all see how color and transparency were different in each cup.
We also smell that the tea felt stronger or sweeter in certain cups and lighter in others. In theory, cracked glaze would rather be smell absorbent, but if the cup has been used a lot and has absorbed a lot of flavors, then it could actually smell stronger. This probably explains why R's cup was so fragrant! (But then it's best to always use it for the same type of tea, like a clay teapot).
We talked about architecture, facial recognition, cups, Chinese translations while enjoying the long-lasting aftertaste of my puerh. It was a real pleasure meeting my NYC tea friends on such a short notice! Thank you so much for coming!
And 2 big thanks to 2 fellow tea bloggers:
1. Sara from Tea Happiness. It's a wonderful name for a blog! Actually, if you wonder what the calligraphy on my site means, one possible translation is "Tea Happiness"!
PS: I took this fun picture before the start of the meeting:
See how this fly was fooled by the bright color of the postcard! It looks so real! (Did you know that you get a free tea postcard if you place an order on my online tea boutique! By the way, I have recently changed the 25 gr sample you get for free with any tea order of more than 60 USD: now it's this Sijichun Oolong from Zhushan. And if you purchase for more than 200 USD, then I'll upgrade the sample with 25 gr of this Oriental Beauty!)
In 3 weeks, I will be on my way to Europe, so the best is to place your spring order before June 24th!
3 étoiles au guide Michelin, quatrième du classement des 50 meilleurs restaurants du monde, premier aux USA pour le Business Week, 'Eleven Madison Park' fut l'une de mes destinations gustatives à New York le mois dernier avec Teaparker. L'ambiance dans cette grande salle est très différente de Per Se (où nous étions allés l'an passé). C'est un peu plus lumineux (mais pas assez pour faire de bonnes photos au diner) et c'est plus vivant, plus bruyant. L'ambiance est moins romantique et plus décontractée, tout en restant très élégante.
Mais c'est surtout pour le plaisir des papilles que nous sommes venus! Le menu est long et nous dégustons chaque 'plat' par petites bouchées, comme nous dégusterions un grand thé, en petites gorgées.
Tout fut bon et certains plats furent divins (ces oeufs Benedict au caviar, l'asperge aux truffes...). L'utilisation de produits nobles permet effectivement de réaliser des merveilles. C'est comme pour le thé: quand les feuilles sont exceptionnelles, il est plus facile d'arriver à un bon résultat. Mais pour être à la pointe de la gastronomie, ce restaurant ne se contente pas d'employer des aliments fins. Il utilise aussi des légumes communs comme ce radis (voir la photo en haut) ou des carottes. Mais, primo, ils seront très frais (comme des bourgeons) et, secundo, on les présente de manière très esthétique et/ou de manière innovante (comme ces carottes 'tartare' broyées comme du boeuf cru!)
La présentation compte pour beaucoup, mais l'important c'est quand même que le plat soit très bon au départ.
De cette belle et longue expérience gastronomique, je remarque de nombreux points communs avec la pratique du Chaxi pour le thé. Je profite d'un rayon de soleil pour vous remontrer ma préparation d'un Oolong de Da Yu Ling.
Fraicheur et qualité exceptionnelle des feuilles. Préparé avec soin et professionalisme. Et servi de manière harmonieuse et plaisante. Le feeling de cet Oolong arrive au niveau d'un tel restaurant 3 étoiles. Et c'est 0 calories!
D'ailleurs, le point faible du 11 Madison Park, c'est leurs thés et leur
eau trop chlorée. Il est d'ailleurs possible de commander du thé
là-bas, mais pas plus d'un thé par table. Leur autre problème vient de
leur poteries. Trop épaisses et grossières, elles absorbent trop les
saveurs. (Nous leur avons donné ce feedback). Bref, même en amenant nos
propres feuilles, le résultat fut bien inférieur à ce qu'on peut goûter
chez soi.
Le thé reste donc encore une boisson très peu connue de la grande gastronomie. Or, on peut y retrouver des sensations similaires de plénitude gustative. Les chefs jouent sur les alliances de saveurs, de couleurs et de textures. Pour le thé, le jeu consiste à préparer un seul ingrédient (le thé) de la meilleure manière possible.
Et arriver ainsi à la pureté et au sublime.
Boire mieux chez soi que dans un '3 étoiles'!
Note: ma sélection des Oolongs de haute montagne du printemps 2015 est complète. Pour profiter de leur fraicheur cet été, je vous recommande de passer commande (bien) avant le 25 juin, avant que je ne parte 1 mois en Europe. Actuellement, j'offre 25 gr de Si Ji Chun Oolong de 2014 pour toute commande de 60 USD ou plus. Et la livraison est offerte au-delà de 100 USD!
The locations of Oolong plantations on Taiwan's highest tea mountain, Da Yu Ling, are known by the number of kilometers on the Road #8. Here, for example, we have the sign for the 103 K(ilometer) mark. And I remember clearly taking some wonderful shots of the nearby plantation some 4 years ago very early in the morning.
I shall never forget the density and luminosity of the morning blue sky. It felt like NYC! Big tea bushes, tall white trees. Everything feels bigger, brighter and more energetic in Da Yu Ling!
This week, I drove back to 103K with all these memories in my head.
The sky was still blue, but the tea trees are gone,
they are gone, uprooted. (Partis, disparus, y'a plus!)
The leases on these lands expired and the government took them back. The primary reason for this action is to prevent erosion. That's why trees have been planted instead.
This didn't come as a surprise. I had received a warning by tea farmers in Alishan. They told me that Da Yu Ling plantations are being closed and that this impacts the volume (less) and price (higher) of Oolong from this famous tea mountain. I had to see it by myself to really believe somebody would do such a thing. It's a very strange experience: my brain kept on bringing up images of the majestic tea bushes in my mind, but I couldn't match them with what my eyes were seeing.
This uprooting of tea trees isn't just limited to the 103K location. It also took place at 104K.
And around 101K we can also see the uprooted lines of trees from a distance:
The good news is there are still a few remaining plantations on Da Yu Ling. There, the leases have not expired, yet, or they are outside the area to protect.
The access to these high plantations remains very difficult and tiring. So, to get to the one near 100K, you need to use a little train on a monorail!
Who wants a ride?
The view from a Da Yu Ling Oolong plantation is magnificent and not something you forget easily!
How long can we still enjoy Oolong from Da Yu Ling? Who knows? So let's drink it while we still have the opportunity! That's why, this spring, I selected 3 different lots from Da Yu Ling:
Cultivar: qingxin (ruanzhi) Oolong
Harvested by hand on May 12th, 2015.
Elevation: 2500 meters!
The color theme for my Chaxi is sky blue! The leaves touch the sky and we're almost in heaven! This is how it feels hiking in the plantation and how it should feel drinking this tea.
As you can see, I don't use many leaves, but I do use my silver teapot, which helps get more out of the leaves (thanks to its heat conductivity).
The cups are my light celadon singing cups. Today, I'm using the big model. 3 cups are a good fit for the 20 cl teapot.
The tea feels pure, energetic, sweet...
Simply perfect.
The fine energy of spring on Da Yu Ling.
So good that cups are emptied before I have time to take my shot!
In late spring in Taiwan, a common weather pattern is sunshine in the morning and clouds in the afternoon. So, this Tuesday, I got up at 3:30 AM to drive to Lishan in order to take these pictures of Taiwan's highest tea plantations! Alone on the small mountain road, it feels like a privilege to experience the beauty of these amazing landscapes. "The world belongs to those who get up early" is a popular saying in France and it never felt more true for me!
It's a feeling of something new, like the very first sip from the newest tea you have just received. It's fresh and crisp, full of energy. Just like my early morning touring of Lishan plantations.
Turning tea passion into a blog and later into a new career, I always thought I had chosen a peaceful and calm activity. Driving on mountain roads can be a little bit dangerous, but not when you are well rested. Drinking tea is good for your health! However, that day I found out that tea can also extremely dangerous. This is what I encountered while walking in the tea mountain:
Always wear trousers and good shoes! And look where you're walking! This snake didn't prevent me from visiting more plantations that morning, but I decided to have tea under this safe pavilion after my lunch.
I found this nice spot on top of Fushou Shan, which is also the top of Lishan. From there, I had a nice view on the Oolong plantations and on the nearby mountains.
So, I decided to brew some leaves I had taken with me: this winter's Da Yu Ling Oolong! I was wondering how this 2000 m + Oolong tastes at 2500 meters altitude. It would be different than at my place, because the water would boil at a lower temperature at this elevation (91.6 degrees Celcius only)!
Being outdoors also contributed that I use more leaves than usual. As expected, the tea felt very different. Softer and lighter. It also cooled down much faster.
The connection with the mountain and the air was perfect! I called it the 'trinitea' of Taiwan high mountain Oolong: a view of Lishan, on top of Fushou Shan and tasting Da Yu Ling!
My Chaxi:
- green color Chabu for spring,
- a simple porcelain gaiwan that is easy to carry and neutral in taste,
- classic qingbai cups that add a green touch to the brew,
- pewter Cha Tuo for a touch of elegance,
- a black glazed bowl by Michel François. It hides the waste water with grace, like a dark mountain.
Experiencing how different this tea tasted here, I knew I had to be very careful when tasting Oolongs in Lishan. It's easier to judge when you don't drastically change your testing environment. But it's still an unforgettable tea experience!
So, I didn't select any Lishan Oolong while I was on Lishan. But I did select one that I tested back at my place. I compared it to other spring Oolongs and liked it a lot. You can read more about its sweet aftertaste here. (It's only 1 week old and it could be in your cup in one more week thanks to EMS!...)
Here is a short video to share what it feels to be in a (just harvested) Oolong plantation on top of Lishan:
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