Here is the long awaited third installment of my interview with Ed Eisler of Jing Tea. Sorry for the delay, but between a family wedding, moving house, and some interesting personal circumstances (all good!) I’ve been a bit busy!
In this part of the interview, Ed and I discussed his favorite teas:
Lainie Petersen: What is your favourite tea? Or type of tea?
Ed Eisler: It’s hard to say. This sounds terrible, but a friend of mine always explains his love of tea by saying: “If I was an emperor I would have many concubines and enjoy different favourites depending on my mood.”
He also says that his favourite teas are like concubines to him.
I think it really depends on your mood and how you’re feeling and the time of year
right now, I am enjoying the freshest and best Dragon Well, anji bai cha, silver needle- basically green and white teas as its spring but for most of the year I drink a lot of oolong tea and puerh.
So mainly, I drink Dragon Well, tieguanyin, and a few different puerh teas
Lainie Petersen: People seem to have strong reactions to Puerh.
Ed Eisler: Well, sadly, most people dont get to drink good puerh
Lainie Petersen: Very true, they get something more akin to paint thinner, and then drink it anyway because they think it slimming. But they haven’t been able to try a puerh that actually tastes good, which is a shame.
Ed Eisler: Puerh is a massive subject. I have been very lucky having some amazing puerh tea friends. one of whom has one of the best collections in China. It means I have had the chance to taste some of the best vintages in history and educate my taste.
Lainie Petersen: And that really is the only way to do it, I’ve found. You don’t know what the good stuff is until you have tasted it. Much like wine.
Ed Eisler: Storage is one of the main factors. Very often, puerh storage conditions are humid and without good air circulation. This means the tea ages quickly but gets musty. Puerh tea shouldn’t taste musty.
Lainie Petersen: I’ve tasted that mustyness.
Ed Eisler: You need warm and humid storage but with excellent ventilation. if you go to a good puerh tea warehouse, it smells amazing. [It has a] rich, warm, heady aroma. A little bit like inside cigar humidor.
In the next installment, Ed and I discuss online tea sales and the tea industry itself!
_64.gif)
