FoodBanter.com - View Single Post

11/23/04

[Mydnight on lying merchants, etc. snipped]

> I really had no idea what wulong tasted like until I got some while I
> was in China, even though I had drank wulong before in the USA.
> And, even then, the variety of tastes can be confusing when it comes
> to exactly what type it is. Most tea masters can't discern between a
> regular wulong and some types of tie guan yin.

We have a shop here in New York City (Big Apple Tea House) where they sell
"Wulong" which is not Ti Guan Yin, and several Ti Guan Yins, which they
claim are *not* Wulongs. So, having thought that "Wulong" is the name given
to teas in the partially oxydized catagory, I resurrect the question, What
is Wulong? I should mention too that lately their stock seems to have
fallen. Previously, their Wulongs, whatever they might be, were absolutely
delicious.
>
> What in the devil is gunpowder tea anyway?

Gunpowder is a hyped green tea of low and generic quality, sometimes
somewhat smokey, but nearly always boring, and seldom complex. If you find
an expensive version, that adds insult to injury. My friends tell me to
always add "IMHO" when I rant like this.

Michael