Tuesday 28 June 2011

finally a cup of first flush



I wrote a while back about Flugtee and the way some German tea shops market the freshest Darjeeling. Here's what I said back then: 'flown tea' nine months too late.

I write about teashops when I travel. Love to find obscure, out-of-the-way places to either drink tea or purchase it. But I don't spend much time talking about the tea establishments in my immediate surroundings. Now that I'm getting to know more German tea fanatics/teabloggers, I feel I should mention the places I go for tea.

That's where the Flugtee comes in. I passed the Tee Gallerie the other day and saw a sign in the window announcing the freshest, right-off-the-plane selection of first flush. I was too curious not to go in and have a look.

The teaseller, Thomas Olmesdahl, is always very helpful, but as soon as I mentioned what I was there for, he couldn't hide his enthusiasm. He showed me quite a selection of wonderfully fragrant teas. One smelled of flowers and another of asparagus. Might not sound so great, but I've been pondering the scent of the asparagus-smelling tea since then. I really might have to break down and go get it.

What I did get was a Darjeeling Singell, which I'll talk about more in a later post, but suffice it to say that this is unquestionably a step above the Darjeeling that's been sitting on shelves since last year. The leaves smell like they've just been plucked (I guess that's the point of spending more for this stuff) and there's no question that this tea can be infused a second time.

Like I say, I'm going to get at least one other first flush tea and make a taste comparison. This isn't the last you'll hear of this 'flown tea'.

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