A Few Ways to Select a Tea

Select a tea by category, region, taste or TCM character

At TeaHong.com, we try to put ourselves in our customers’ shoes. Different people have different priorities. Each sees the world differently. Naturally when it comes to selecting a tea, your criteria may not be the same as that of any other tea drinkers. That is why we group our tea products in different ways so you can see them in the context that is closest to how you think when selecting a tea.

Selection by
Tea Category

Selection by
Tea Region

Selection by
Taste Preference

Selection by
TCM Character

Our Tea Master’s personal favourites

Before doing your own selections, you may also want to check out what our Tea Master’s very own favourites here.

Or refer to his best loved oolongs here:

by random order

Selection by Tea Category

The most common way to group different varieties of tea is by the category of processing method with which they are produced. Some call it Tea Classification, others Tea Categorisation. We think the later label is semantically more accurate.

Many connoisseurs and tea specialists organise their collections with this concept.

The above chart shows the five main categories: Green, Black, White, Pu’er ( Post-Fermentation ) and Oolong teas. Click the pie chart to browse the category of tea, click on your choice and enjoy the browse!

Need more info about a category before seeing the products? Here are some articles:

Our tea regions

Fenghuang / Phoenix

Tea farmer withering tea leaves in the afternoon sun

Huangshan/ Anhui

Tea picking on the hill side terrace

Minnan-Mindong, Fujian

Wang's peak farm

Nepal, the Himalayas

Tea Regions of TeaHomg.com: Nepal / Himalayas

Taiwan

Master Li talks about ant problem in his wild Red Jade tea field

Wuyi-shan

A tea field in Wuyi

Yunnan

Thick linen are being put on piles of tealeaves for post-fermentation in Yunnan

Zhejiang

Tea Hong: Finest Hand-roasted Green tea: Longjing Spring Equinox

Selection by Taste

Teas are like raw gems. The true taste of each awaits the revelation made possible by the way you make it. Your personal need matters. It may change according to mood, time of the day, and occasions.

tasting

Tasting is the ultimate way to learn about a tea

Experience and explore

Begin by tasting a few selections using various infusion styles to gain more specialist understanding of the finesses and differences. Relate this with your personal preferences and you will gradually carve out a direction in building your own repertoire of tea. This will be your very own line that best suits your taste and your needs. With repeated usage your senses and perceptions will deepen. This will empower you with the connoisseur skill to easily master yet more varieties to continue to gain levels in the vast world of tea.

Selection by TCM Characters

This is for those who understand the needs of answering the voice of the body. A well customised and balanced collection not only helps to maximise tea’s health benefits, but also tea’s gastronomic qualities. At Tea Hong, we categorise our collection by traditional Chinese medicinal character.

Check out trending best sellers

If all these other ways of thinking about how to select a tea are not for you, perhaps you can see what other people are buying. These are some of what’s trending now:

Information on a tea page

Detail information on each tea page includes a description, taste profile, infusion tips and a few properties described with icons. This article gives a general orientation in case you want to prepare yourself before browsing.

Customer Reviews

Yet another way to get an idea is to see how other customers see our products. Read a few random reviews they have posted in this site, and click on the link to go to the product page:

  • Tieguanyin Traditional, bouquet oolong

    There is an old Hong Kong saying, “Ng4 paa3 fo3 bei2 fo3, zi2 paa3 ng4 sik1 fo3 — 唔怕貨比貨,只怕唔識貨” — meaning, “(we) fear not of (you) comparing our products with those of others, (we) fear only of ignorance of quality.” The city of Hong Kong began as a trading port in the 19th century. It very soon became a key hub for goods from China, Southeast Asia and around the world. After the taking over of China by the Communists in 1949, the British colony’s trading role became even more important. Competition amongst sellers was keen. This saying was widely used amongst purveyors of top quality products to alert buyers to watch out carefully for inferior quality hidden under a similar appearance or name, or even false claims. Although it had long since became a cliché and forgotten in recent decades, I find the market condition no less confusing, at least in the area of tea.

    I am happy that besides knowing your Phoenix oolongs, you also understand a genuine tieguanyin. I hope more people do.

    Nowadays, partly due to the indulgence in the overuse of fertilisers, many productions of even authentic tea bushes lack the intricacies of a traditional tieguanyin. Not to mention lowly crossed clones and sloppiness in processing. Respectable farmers and producers are, therefore, precious finds.

    Leo Kwan
  • GABA Orange Extra, de-oxygenised oxidation Taiwan oolong

    Brief (few seconds) steeps in 90 Celcius water.
    Liquor is a clear golden brown in visual.
    Taste is of a sweet smoke in aroma with a sweet spice aftertaste.
    If you let it cool down a bit, the sweet aftertaste is more pronounced.
    A slight dryness to the mouthfeel.
    Empty cup leaves an aromatic sweet smell of burnt sugar.
    Wet leaves are brown-black in tone, giving off a dark baked bread aroma.
    This tea withstands so many steeps, and I think bold enough in flavour to be made into iced tea.

    rudi hermawan
  • Wenshan Paochong, light style Taiwan oolong

    Brief (15 seconds) steeps in 90 Celcius water.
    Liquor is a clear pale yellow in visual.
    Taste is very light with a floral green aftertaste.
    No astringency nor bitterness.
    Wet leaves are freshly green and large.
    One needs to steep this at a longer timing to get a more pronounced aroma and taste.

    rudi hermawan
  • Tieguanyin Traditional, bouquet oolong

    There is an old Hong Kong saying, “Ng4 paa3 fo3 bei2 fo3, zi2 paa3 ng4 sik1 fo3 — 唔怕貨比貨,只怕唔識貨” — meaning, “(we) fear not of (you) comparing our products with those of others, (we) fear only of ignorance of quality.” The city of Hong Kong began as a trading port in the 19th century. It very soon became a key hub for goods from China, Southeast Asia and around the world. After the taking over of China by the Communists in 1949, the British colony’s trading role became even more important. Competition amongst sellers was keen. This saying was widely used amongst purveyors of top quality products to alert buyers to watch out carefully for inferior quality hidden under a similar appearance or name, or even false claims. Although it had long since became a cliché and forgotten in recent decades, I find the market condition no less confusing, at least in the area of tea.

    I am happy that besides knowing your Phoenix oolongs, you also understand a genuine tieguanyin. I hope more people do.

    Nowadays, partly due to the indulgence in the overuse of fertilisers, many productions of even authentic tea bushes lack the intricacies of a traditional tieguanyin. Not to mention lowly crossed clones and sloppiness in processing. Respectable farmers and producers are, therefore, precious finds.

    Leo Kwan