Basic Knowledge

SALE + FREE SHIPPING OVER $99

Blog 172: Black Tea Cannot Be Made with Boiling Temperature Water!?

Once in a while, we come across this theory: black tea cannot be infused with boiling temperature water because leaves can get burned and...

3 comments

Blog 171: Why Do We Package Tea in Small Bags?

Valley Brook Tea

Blog 171: Why Do We Package Tea in Small Bags?

Our customers would know that almost all of our tea products are packaged in a smaller bag size. For oolong tea, one bag is about 7g to...

2 comments

Blog 168: Why Do Some Black Teas Taste Sour?

Valley Brook Tea

Blog 168: Why Do Some Black Teas Taste Sour?

We’ve reopened! If you’ve purchased our eGift Cards, don’t forget to redeem them at our Dupont tea store! Both indoor and patio seating...

2 comments

Blog 167: Is It Normal That Oolong Tea Soup Looks “Red”?

Valley Brook Tea

Blog 167: Is It Normal That Oolong Tea Soup Looks “Red”?

In case you haven’t noticed, most tea categories are named after colors. The most famous ones are green tea, black tea, and white tea....

1 comment

Valley Brook Tea

Blog 164: The Meaningful Taste

In Mr. Yu Lu’s The Classic of Tea/茶经, he used the word “Juan Yong/隽永” to describe the taste of the first boiling of the tea soup. In...

0 comments

Valley Brook Tea

Blog 163: Scented “Tea Piece”

Hi Tea Lovers, Yes, we’re still temporarily closed due to DC’s COVID-19 stay-at-home order, which just got extended to June 8th, 2020....

0 comments

Blog 162: The Development of Black Tea’s Aromas

Valley Brook Tea

Blog 162: The Development of Black Tea’s Aromas

The aroma is a crucial quality criterion. This is why tea makers always say that “with aromas, a flower becomes alive; with aromas, a tea...

2 comments

Blog 160: The Quality Formation of Traditional White Tea (Part I)

Valley Brook Tea

Blog 160: The Quality Formation of Traditional White Tea (Part I)

First of all, I’d like to thank everyone who’s been following this blog and our Dupont Circle tea store. We’re now open at 2101 P St NW,...

1 comment

Blog 158: A New Chapter - Our First Tea Store in DC

Valley Brook Tea

Blog 158: A New Chapter - Our First Tea Store in DC

Today marks a new chapter for Valley Brook Tea. Our first DC tea store located at 2101 P St NW officially started its construction. If...

0 comments

Valley Brook Tea

Blog 157: “Eating” Tea!?

On classic Chinese tea books, many authors refer “tea-drinking” as “eating tea/吃茶”. This expression is still occasionally used today. By...

0 comments

Blog 156: Different Origins of White Tea’s Unique Tastes

Valley Brook Tea

Blog 156: Different Origins of White Tea’s Unique Tastes

A white tea’s taste can be quite versatile depending on the variety, the age, and the growing environment. Typically, a good white tea...

0 comments

Blog 155: How Many Infusions Can You Get Out of A Good Tea?

Valley Brook Tea

Blog 155: How Many Infusions Can You Get Out of A Good Tea?

Today is China’s mid-autumn festival. We wish you and your family a perfect life just like the roundest moon on mid-autumn day....

0 comments

Blog 154: Wuyi Oolong: “White Foam” Means Good Quality??

Valley Brook Tea

Blog 154: Wuyi Oolong: “White Foam” Means Good Quality??

What’s the ultimate definition of a good Wuyi oolong? We’ll never get a perfect answer for an open-ended question like this. For example,...

0 comments

Valley Brook Tea

Blog 153: Wuyi Oolong’s “Toad’s Back”

Experienced tea drinkers would know that infused Wuyi oolong leaves often have many “bubble-like” humps. This phenomenon is more visible...

0 comments

Blog 152: Aged White Tea’s “Herbal Medicine” Aroma

Valley Brook Tea

Blog 152: Aged White Tea’s “Herbal Medicine” Aroma

If you study Chinese herbal medicine, you’d notice that a lot medicines have very poetic names. For example, “Arum” in Chinese is...

0 comments

Valley Brook Tea

Blog 151: Enzymes and The Taste of Tea

To be fair, tea-making is perfected by time. Tea-making has a history of over thousands of years, and many tea-making techniques were...

1 comment

Valley Brook Tea

Blog 150: Tea Table Manners

Sometimes, we get questions from our customers about tea table manners. Many tea drinkers want to learn more tea-related manners so that...

0 comments

Blog 149: The Optimum Tea Soup Temperature

Valley Brook Tea

Blog 149: The Optimum Tea Soup Temperature

A few days ago, I had some tea with a couple friends. One of my friends, let’s call him H, said that he’s always a little afraid of hot...

0 comments

Blog 148: More Common Mistakes (and tips) in Daily Tea-Drinking

Valley Brook Tea

Blog 148: More Common Mistakes (and tips) in Daily Tea-Drinking

In our previous tea blogs, we’ve talked about many common mistakes in tea-drinking. Since there’re so many details to cover, we’d like to...

3 comments

Blog 147: Tea Tastes Wrong? It’s Probably Your Water

Valley Brook Tea

Blog 147: Tea Tastes Wrong? It’s Probably Your Water

Recently, we encountered an interesting incident. One of our long-time client in Maryland called us and complained that all her black tea...

0 comments

SALE + FREE SHIPPING OVER $99

Info

Wholesale Inquiries

Media Inquiries

Privacy Policy

Customer Care

My Account

Customer Service

Shipping

About Us

Blog

Contact Us