One of my wifes inlaws brought me a PouChong from Taiwan. It was
better than anything from the shelf. Teavana does carry some good
teas. I keep finding some great tea bargains in the discount bin at
my local tea shoppe. SF Chinatown has gone off the deep end for
expensive teas perse. I did find some very good shelf teas. The
monthly Puer tea tastings stopped after about a year. In the past few
days I discovered Georgian Old Lady. I stopped by the tea shoppe
riding the bicycle as the rest of the country has winter. Like
Teavana I recognize what I havent seen before. Then I remembered I
got an email saying several Georgian teas were tasted picking GOL for
the shelf. I looked at the dry long black thin leaf and hoped it was
something special. It is the most balanced tea Ive tasted. The wet
leaf is the top two leaves on stem. It is aromatic with nose mouth
throat stimulation. It reminds me of a cross between Assam and Java.
I put some in a cup and still have drinkable taste after ten
infusions. There is no bitterness, no astrigency. It keeps on giving
and giving. My bladder gives up before the tea. I cant think of any
tea criteria where this tea doesnt hold up. This is the only black
tea that I would consider the only tea for the rest of my life.

Jim

PS Benjamin Carp mentioned the only reason coffee become more popular
in the US after the Revolution was the availability of cheap coffee
and sugar from Jamaica.