Mostly green, sometimes white, never black. Jasmine and rose are the only additives I can stand, but prefer straight up, no sugar, no cream. I am so sensitive about green tea that it is the item I am most likely to send back in a restaurant. It is with almost religious intensity that I enjoy an excellent green tea.
- My favorite right now is a the 2009 Fukamushi Sen Cha from the Shizuoka province. O-Cha has some, but it’s pretty expensive. I have been buying mine at a very reasonable $12.99 for a 100g bag at Han Ah Reum in Manhattan. I’ve also liked Fukumushi Konacha “Okuraen” (I have no idea why “Okuraen” is in quotes, but it’s written that way on the distributor’s label – the rest of the package is all in Japanese).
The Fukamushi Sen Cha I bought looked just like the bag on the left, but had purple on it as well.
- Organic Matcha “Kaoru Supreme” I found O-Cha to be quick, efficient and the tea was very fresh. I also bought my matcha whisk from them, but I wish I just picked up a cheap one in Chinatown or something. It was a waste to order the whisk from Japan, but it was the same order as the matcha.
- There are some bigger brand green teas that I find very good are Harney & Sons, Mighty Leaf, In Pursuit of Tea (their Mu Jian is one of the few Chinese green teas I like) and Mitoku Macrobiotic (in NYC, I buy this at Lifethyme). Eden Organic loose Sen Cha (don’t know why I don’t like their bagged teas at all) is actually not bad in a pinch, either.
I usually don’t even drink tea when I’m out, because it usually sucks. There are a few places where I will actually get a tea, and here are some of them:
- Simple Kitchen – Serendipitea (I’ve tried the green, as well as the white rose and like them both)
- Irving Farm – I think they use Harney and Sons (but they use the paper bags, not the sachets – the sachets are much better)
- Hundred Acres – I think they use In Pursuit of Tea
- Bourbon Coffee – On 14th Street between 5/6 – it’s a coffee place, but their teas are nice.
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