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
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:
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.
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.
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:
Shenshan Laoshu 2012, matured Pu’er shengcha cha bing
Yummy. This is good sheng at a great price. I enjoy the complex evolution of flavors and the way it captures the essence of what makes Lincang such a famous region. It opens up with some powerful, cooling notes of menthol & camphor, with plenty of fresh-cut tobacco and earthy nuances peeking through, in every layer.
The huigan builds slowly and lasts forever. It really comes out in the second half of the session. Along the way, I get delicious notes of rum-soaked raisins, steamed sticky rice, and lotus leaves. Eventually; and especially in the final steep, the rum-soaked raisins gradually pivot into something more reminiscent of whisky-glazed apricots and apples caramelized in maple syrup.
This maple syrup-like sweetness really clings to the throat, and I enjoy how smooth it is and how long that sweetness lasts for. Towards the end of the session, the earthy notes of fresh-cut tobacco transform into something more reminiscent of tropical hardwood, but the flavor profile maintains an earthy quality all the way through. There’s very little smokiness overall.
The finish is exceptionally bright, clean, and crisp, with well-defined textures and sensations, from the strength of the mouthfeel to the sensation in the throat, and the long-lasting cooling sensation that seems to exude from between the teeth and the gums.
Definitely worth picking up a cake of this if you’re looking for a good sheng that hits the spot but doesn’t break the bank.
NNGABA Orange Extra, de-oxygenised oxidation Taiwan oolong
What a refreshing point you have made! Making tea using a longer duration rather than those popular practice of a few seconds. When I first experienced old style gongfu tea-making in Chaozhou decades ago, this old man moved very fast with his equipment and water, talked fast too (I hardly made out 50% of what he said ), yet he sat there patiently while waiting for tea to brew in his small teapot. I still remember the sensation of the full-flavoured liquor to this day. By the way, the upcoming batch of GABA is going to be a lot more wonderful than this one. — Leo Kwan
Tea Hong
Honey Orchid Supreme, classic Phoenix dancong oolong
Your wonderful writing
@Karen, I have to tell you how amused I am reading all these nicely written reviews you so kindly shared on this site. “I now mourn all the years I wasted drinking ‘shadow-of-tea-powder’ that comes in a typical western tea bag” What wonderful art of the word!
Oh yes, indeed, this Honey Orchid Supreme is a tea that many of my tea importer clients want “samples” for their own enjoyment, but quite rarely dare to sell by themselves!