Loose Leaf Tea Vendors?

[Amir]

Hello,

I am enjoying my dive into the deep end of the pool with loose leaf teas, including black (red actually) and Oolongs, from mostly China.

But, I am also drawn to Oolongs - the bridge between Black and Green teas (from my previous life years ago, drinking them with a woman from China while having Dim Sum).

Henrietta, the Rare Tea lady, has a lovely personality, and she drew me in to sample hand crafted Chinese Keemun, Lost Malawi - and I threw in an Earl Grey.

About Rare Tea | Loose Leaf Tea | Rare Tea Company USA

Founded in 2004 by Henrietta Lovell, Rare Tea Company sources and supplies the world's best loose leaf teas, direct from farmers and their tea gardens.

rareteacompany.us

I also could not resist Chinese Tieguanyin with a name like 'Iron Goddess' Oolong, and Da Hong Pao Oolong, aka 'Big Red Robe.'

Henrietta's breathless presentation of making Oolong with a Gaiwan nailed it:

How to Make Oolong with a Gaiwan | Rare Tea Company USA

Learn how to make oolong tea with a Gaiwan, from the perfect leaf to water ratio, water temperature and multiple infusions. Expertly experiment with Rare Tea.

rareteacompany.us

I also bought Tie Guan Yin 'Iron Goddess,' 'Mi Lan Xiang' Honey Flower Dan Cong, Bai Lin Gong Fu 'Golden Monkey' Black, and Qimen aka Keemun Black teas from Yunnan Sourcing.

Yunnan Sourcing - The Ultimate Source for Yunnan Pu-erh Tea

Since 2004, we have been in the business of sourcing Yunnan Pu-erh Tea, Chinese Green Tea, Black Tea, Oolong Tea, White Tea, Hei Cha, Teawares, Clay Teapots, and much more! We also offer wholesale pricing in addition to our already competitive retail pricing!

yunnansourcing.com

Do you have preferred vendors for loose leaf tea?

 

[abies]

This depends a bit where you are in the world. Take this all as my personal impression:

We've been buying from TeaSource for a long time, first in person and then online when we moved away. They have a good selection and pretty good prices overall I think. If you're looking for something very specific you can probably find a deeper selection in a given category elsewhere but for a general purpose tea vendor in the US they're pretty good.

We've also bought a lot from Upton Tea and Harney and Sons, especially the former. Upton also has a good selection and some really fantastic value teas, although I think over time the quality of the tea has kind of gone down slightly. I still happily buy from them though. Harney and Sons I think has excellent tea, although the prices are sometimes a bit steep. I've noticed their prices fluctuate and sometimes are extremely good for what you're getting and other times overpriced.

The past couple of years I've been into Japanese greens. Yunomi is an excellent marketplace for that, and I've had great experiences with Hibiki-An as well (also TeaSource).

There's a lot of various vendors I've bought from over the years, and I don't remember all of the names. Some I've bought directly from farms, and there are many other vendors I've had excellent experiences with, but the ones above are the ones I've returned to, especially TeaSource.

Oolongs can be a little tricky in my experience to find a wide selection of, especially lightly oxidized oolongs. TeaSource sometimes has an excellent selection of oolongs, including oolongs from India and Africa, although I've noticed over the decades that the number of offerings of oolongs seems to wax and wane with time in cycles.

 

[Toothpick]

I been buying from Harney & Sons for over a year. They have a big selection of not just black teas but white, green, herbal, medicated, etc etc etc.

Shop for Black Tea | The Place to Buy Tea - Harney & Sons Fine Teas

Find black tea blends, flavored teas, decaf black tea, and black tea from countries such as China, India, and Africa. Available as loose, sachets, or tea bags.

www.harney.com

My current selection from them. I’ve just about tried everything they offer.

 

[Chef455]

I live in the USA and highly recommend Adagio Teas. I'm usually a Rooibos drinker, but I have tried a couple of their Oolongs and White teas and several of their black teas as well.

They have over 20 Oolong teas available and they sell great sample packs of all varieties that come in bags.

 

[malocchio]

I've been satisfied with ARBOR teas . Fair trade and organic teas.

 

[garyg]

Thanks for the tip on Arbor Tea Malocchio - they are almost local, but not close enough to get their free in-town shipping. I've ordered from Adagio a couple times but despite charging handsomely for shipping they suffer from the usual New Jersey postal problems every time.

 

[gmrv4]

I have been both ordering from and visiting The Spice Merchant in Wichita Kansas for a long while and find their teas excellent and fairly priced. They have been there for over 40 years.

The Spice Merchant – Coffee, tea, spices and specialty gifts

 

[tejolot3]

I buy my loose leaf tea from a local store here in Wichita called The Spice Merchant (photo). Oh, hey, look, I'm not the only one.

But, I am also drawn to Oolongs

One of my two "must always have on hand" teas is Black Pearl Oolong. There's this wonderful something about its flavor that reminds me of coniferous trees—without actually tasting piney in any way at all. Just lovely.

 

[Ad Astra]

I like "white 2 tea." The marketing's a bit hip, but the teas are really .... interesting.


AA