Best time of year to buy green, white &c tea?

[Doc4]

Okay, I know to buy Beaujolais Nouveau in November, not October. But when should I buy green, white, oolong &c teas, so as to get the freshest product?

[grasshopper]

Okay, I know to buy Beaujolais Nouveau in November, not October. But when should I buy green, white, oolong &c teas, so as to get the freshest product?

For green teas, right now is a great time to buy--IF the vendor's description specifies 2012. Regards, ~geraldo

[Proinsias]

If freshness is the goal, for whites and greens, buy now and drink now. The new harvests are appearing just now. Shincha is currently available and is about as fresh as you can get, on the other hand gyokuro tends to be aged for several months before being ready for consumption so the freshest gyokuro appears much later in the year.

There is an argument for not stocking up on shincha for all year round consumption, it's not made for longterm storage. Much of the first harvests are lightly processed, put into cold storage and taken out in batches throughout the year before final processing into a finished sencha.

Oolongs vary quite a bit, I tend towards the greener the oolong the fresher I want it as a rough rule. With something like a heavily roasted yancha it's often better after a year or two once the roast has died down a little.

If freshness is of paramount importance and you want to drink greens and whites all year round, I'd put more faith in a steady supply from reputable vendors as opposed to buying a years worth of tea in one go and trying to keep it fresh with your own storage methods.

[Doc4]

If freshness is of paramount importance and you want to drink greens and whites all year round, I'd put more faith in a steady supply from reputable vendors as opposed to buying a years worth of tea in one go and trying to keep it fresh with your own storage methods.

I wasn't thinking of a year-round supply, but of drinking them "when they are in season" ... old concept, I know, but I don't mind. I can spend most of the year with pu-erh &c, anyhow.

But do "good suppliers" provide "as good as fresh" supplies all year long?

[jwhite]

In season as mentioned earlier is around nowish. Sealed pouches by good vendors seem to last a good while and they go to the expense of maintaining good storage conditions for their stock, so buying small quantities as you need them is a good way to go. I do find the teas bought at peak of season do seem to be not quite as good at the end of the year as they are at the beginning, but they are a long way from being bad. Of course it could be my own palate's expectations as the seasons change, and I've been used to buying small quantities in season of more perishable teas for immediate consumption and my tea routine changes as the seasons do. Not a half bad way to mark passage through the year really.

[ChrisD]

What are some good, reputable, vendors that currently have 2012 greens/whites in stock and are reasonably priced ?

[Proinsias]

I wasn't thinking of a year-round supply, but of drinking them "when they are in season" ... old concept, I know, but I don't mind. I can spend most of the year with pu-erh &c, anyhow.

But do "good suppliers" provide "as good as fresh" supplies all year long?

Ippodo as far as I know aim for all year round consistency. They don't label their teas by harvest or year and blend for consistency which is apparently a more traditional approach, they've been in business for 300 years or so. Their green tea offerings are up there with the best of them all year round.

If you're drinking seasonally then you've got the early harvests like shincha and pre ming Chinese teas around now, later you've got the sencha harvests, as we approach autumn & winter fresh harvests of oolong appear and the gyokuro picked in spring has reached maturity.

ChrisD:
Teaspring have a good selection and all are available in 25gram packs which is nice. Jingteashop is also a good bet, their everyday greens are usually excellent value too. For shincha I like O-Cha