>Online tea vendors are a dime a dozen. It's a competitive market. If
>they've been in business longer than a year they're probably okay. My
>only advice is buy locally or on Ebay with a positive feedback rating
>of higher than 20. That way I have the new sellers to myself who are
>giving the stuff away like some dragon (large) and phoenix (small)
>white tea pearls. There is no such thing as mediocre tea. It all
>depends on your tastebuds. Your wallet can't make it taste any better.
>RFDT is THE Record of Tea because Google never forgets. Anything else
>is a server waiting to disappear. If you can't say it here you're
>someone with a special interest elsewhere.

>Jim

It's precisely BECAUSE there are so many vendors that refering to the
experience of others can be useful.

OK, as a matter of definition, something is mediocre ONLY in regard to
certain qualities which are valued. Of course it's subjective.

In almost every post directed to me, you suggest that I believe that
expensive teas are inherently better than cheaper ones. To my
knowledge, I've never said this. One of the points I have been able to
discern from you many rants is that you think most good tea can be
purchased in Asian markets (aka Chinatown). I don't know if you know
anything about Minneapolis, but there are indeed many Asian markets, at
which I shop all the time, and I do indeed buy tea from them regularly,
including CNNP cooked beengs and Xia Guan raw tuos. And yes, they are
good. And, believe it or not, I have gotten a lot of stuff off of ebay,
and it wasn't the most expensive stuff either.

To second Mike, who the hell are you to decide what is allowed in here
and what isn't? Do you ever take a moment to reflect on what you're
saying? Do you honestly think this forum is the be all and end all for
all tea info, and that NO other resource is of any use? What's it to
you, anyway, if someone posts a link or two, especially if other people
find those useful?

In all respect, you make very little sense. If you have a clear
critique of what I or Mike or anyone else says, I encourage you to post
it. If I'm full of it, tell me. But I just can't make any sense out of
this.

Nico