On Mar 12, 10:30*am, "Melinda" > wrote:
> "Nigel" > wrote in message
>
> ...
> Some good sense there, Dominic.
>
> My retail company Nothing But Tea Ltd based in the UK sells around the
> world (34 countries to date) and our second biggest market is the USA
> from which I have noticed over the past five years increasing clamour
> for teas that are "earliest", "youngest", "first", "this season's".
> Many of the teas we sell are better for some aging - our hand made
> Georgian teas are an example, where given the choice of a range of age
> from our stock, I prefer drinking ones at least two years old - but
> impossible to sell a 2005 season Georgian into the US, already we are
> being asked for 2008 season samples - unobtainable until June.
>
> Nigel at Teacraft
>
> This also brings up another point for me... I've seen some places selling
> older (meaning last years or year before last's) red teas, and so I am torn
> between what I thought was "conventional wisdom" of the fresher the tea the
> better, or this "aging" issue. I know the oolongs are aged, the puerh is
> aged, I guess some of the reds are too. I don't think anyone could age a
> green sucessfully though, but who knows, I could be proved wrong some time..
> I do wonder what an aged Yinzhen would taste like, were one to be able to
> keep it unfaded...sort of an older honey taste I imagine.
>
> Also there are those countries that may have no dormant period...Kenyan or
> African teas? Nigel, do some of the African tea bushes produce all year
> around?
>
> Melinda

This wasn't done on purpose, but I found some old sencha (I think it
was old when I bought it.) It had turned from the grassy taste I
originally wanted to a lovely flowery aroma and taste- slightly clover
like. I can imagine somebody doing that on purpose. Toci