Cass, upton tea importers. They have a great selection, sell samples, and better prices than most places.
Just tryin' a little spicy talk.
Tara ,'Get It Done'
Spike's Bitches 48: I Say, We Go Out There, and Kick a Little Demon Ass.
[NAFDA] Spike-centric discussion. Lusty, lewd (only occasionally crude), risqué (and frisqué), bawdy (Oh, lawdy!), flirty ('cuz we're purty), raunchy talk inside. Caveat lector.
sj - Oct 30, 2013 6:52:29 pm PDT #5870 of 30002
"There are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as afternoon tea."
Cass - Oct 30, 2013 7:25:21 pm PDT #5871 of 30002
Bob's learned to live with tragedy, but he knows that this tragedy is one that won't ever leave him or get better.
Awesome. I want to find a workable gap between 'well, I have tea but even I know it's not very good tea' and 'my ex aunt in law brought me a tin from China after a bunch of people did tastings.' Samples that I can buy are perfect for that.
eta: About to buy so many samples. Several of their sampler packs and then a couple of samples of teas I know I generally like. Their catalog is ... dense. Thus prepackaged sampler packs seem like a very good way to start. Um, eighteen teas in total. I need a new notebook just to remember what I want to finally buy. In 2015 when I run out of tea. Thanks, sj.
Burrell - Oct 31, 2013 5:38:40 am PDT #5872 of 30002
Why did Darth Vader cross the road? To get to the Dark Side!
Dang, Vortex gives good gift!
Cass, I have found that one trick to tea is knowing what kind of tea you like as then it's easier to try something unfamiliar knowing you'll probably like it. I think of ita drinking jasmine tea, and I like a good oolong. I've tried quite a few now and there's some I like better but even the ones that aren't quite as delicious are very nummy to drink.
sj - Oct 31, 2013 5:57:45 am PDT #5873 of 30002
"There are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as afternoon tea."
Happy to help, Cass. I hope you enjoy the samples you ordered.
Cass, I have found that one trick to tea is knowing what kind of tea you like as then it's easier to try something unfamiliar knowing you'll probably like it. I think of ita drinking jasmine tea, and I like a good oolong. I've tried quite a few now and there's some I like better but even the ones that aren't quite as delicious are very nummy to drink.
This is good advice. Upton especially has so many different choices for every type of tea. I'm currently in search of the perfect assam. Although sometimes it is also nice to try something completely different with the samples. I'm currently drinking Monkey tea, which is not an assam, but really has the malty flavor I was looking for.
§ ita § - Oct 31, 2013 6:36:49 am PDT #5874 of 30002
Well not canonically, no, but this is transformative fiction.
I think of ita drinking jasmine tea, and I like a good oolong.
Yup. I test places with jasmine and mango infusions--Upton has good prices, but so far Teavana and Adagio have better flavours. Teavana is expensive and annoying, but I could drink their jasmine tea forever. Lupicia is more expensive, and that certainly doesn't apply to my palate, so no point me spending dosh on them.
Burrell - Oct 31, 2013 7:33:44 am PDT #5875 of 30002
Why did Darth Vader cross the road? To get to the Dark Side!
ita, there is a local place called the Conservatory of Coffee and Tea. It's on Washington Bl in Culver City. Has lots of teas you can sniff or try and then buy in bulk, and their prices are very reasonable.
§ ita § - Oct 31, 2013 8:08:31 am PDT #5876 of 30002
Well not canonically, no, but this is transformative fiction.
ita, there is a local place called the Conservatory of Coffee and Tea. It's on Washington Bl in Culver City
I think I tried going there a few months ago, and they closed the doors at 5:55 in my face. I've been nursing a pointless grudge since then...
However, I am good with tea for the next little while, thanks to very nice Buffistas and an Adagio gift certificate. Once I burn through that, I will head out there.
Burrell - Oct 31, 2013 8:12:07 am PDT #5877 of 30002
Why did Darth Vader cross the road? To get to the Dark Side!
They don't have wifi, which means I don't go there when I need to grade. I wonder how much custom they scare off with little things like that.
§ ita § - Oct 31, 2013 8:48:55 am PDT #5878 of 30002
Well not canonically, no, but this is transformative fiction.
I wonder how much custom they scare off with little things like that.
They're pretty small, right? Maybe they need the rapid turnover of seats? I'm still surprised they closed at six on a weekday. It's like they don't want my money!
It did look much more my speed than Bird Pick. That place (at least the branch I went to) totally overwhelmed me with the twee, and I had a hard time finding what they actually were selling. Reading the labels behind the Teavana employee felt much simpler. The fact that the tea I bought at Tea Pick turned out to be a migraine trigger contributes to my subconscious aversion. And I can't even remember what kind it was! I hope I still have the label--I should update my migraine trigger Evernote doc.
Burrell - Oct 31, 2013 8:52:12 am PDT #5879 of 30002
Why did Darth Vader cross the road? To get to the Dark Side!
They're pretty small, right? Maybe they need the rapid turnover of seats? I'm still surprised they closed at six on a weekday. It's like they don't want my money!
Yep, all that. I always wonder with shops like that if they are really just a big tax write off and their whole raison d'etre is to indulge someone's hobby and lose money in the process.