Saturday, July 16, 2005
Oolong Tea, Picked Especially for Vous...by Monkeys
"Monkey Picked"*
I apologize for the fuzzy picture, but my hand was unsteady after drinking two pots of fabuleaux tea this afternoon.
It was tieguanyin oolong tea at the Imperial Tea Court at the Ferry Building in San Francisco. My server brought out the dry tea in a celadon porcelen tasting cup, and presented it to my nose for approval before rinsing it in a quick splash of hot water. Yes, rinsing. I'm not sure why, but your finer Chinese teas are rinsed in a 30 second bath of hot water. At home, we pour this off in the sink, but the staff at the Imperial Tea Court has conveniently two-tiered metal serving trays, which allow them to pour the first rinse off into little holes on the tray. The wee cup was perched in a delicate saucer and had a lid to both keep the tea warm, and keep you from drinking the whole leaves. My server demonstrated to me how one holds all three pieces without spilling, dropping, dribbling, choking on leaves or otherwise humiliating one's self.
The decor in the place is a little tacky, and before I was served, I was afraid that I had overestimated the committment of the Ferry Building to provide quality AND tourist diversions. But the staff there is genuine, kind and helpful. Shrimp dumplings were also nice, and paired fantastically with the tea I chose. The red bean buns are not recommended, however.
And the tea? Served to me and the giggling pre-teens at the table next to me alike, with, can I say, imperial formality and respect for good taste. The water was piping hot, and refreshed as needed, everything impecably clean. At first I thought $5 for a cup of tea was, um, steep, but I got two pots of supremely flavorful oolong out of it over two hours of alternate reading and people watching. (Apparently half of SF is pregnant, btw.) Tieguanyin to go is $14 per ounce, and so worth it. I've never had such a complex, long finishing tea. It's a dark roasted oolong from Fujian, not at all bitter or tannic, but crisp and balanced. Oolong tea is not fermented as long as black tea, but of course, more than green tea, which is often not fermented much at all. So it is an "inbetween", but has more complexity than either of its siblings. The tasting notes say it has a peachiness and a chocolate nose, but I really didn't get much peach. It is fruity, but not in any annoying way you can identify. I had intended to stop in for a quick cup before heading over to the oyster bar, but I was so taken in by the richness of the tea, I couldn't leave it. Two hours later, I headed home feeling truly rejuvinated.
*My server gave me the "idiotic tourist" chuckle when I asked (in jest! I am actually not a moron) if it was really picked by monkeys. Apparently, that is a legend and the tea is, in fact, picked by human beings.
# posted by Comida Evangelista : 9:19 PM
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