Don you should write a book. There's too much delicious information scattered on different videos that would be nice to have on a book shelf as a reference.
also please reas food of the gods - it has very good information on coffee/sugar and other plant based ‘drugs’’s effects on society. the plants are farming us. and so are the animals and fungi. thx don 🙏🏽
@@Mech3ngineer mostly from Don on this channel honestly. He just touches on these things in so many ways throughout his other videos that it's good to hear them kind of packaged up and conveyed in new ways and in one consolidated location.
23:30 Also diversity such as trees helps give birds a better hold in the area and reduces the need for pesticides as the birds naturally control the pests.
Well, I can't believe this course is free ! That was amazing, Don. Highly informative, as always. It's not often that I take the time to type a comment, but i watch religiously every one of your videos. Through your passion, your hard work and your kindness, you've made me a true tea lover. I've never really had a passion before, so i'm sincerely grateful for that. Thank you, I'm looking forward the next courses with great enthusiasm !
I was also very surprised by the generosity of this people, not charging for this interesting course on tea consumption, and its Proustian effects. Kind regards. 🇲🇽
It's so cool to make someone who doesn't know much about tea ask the questions because it makes you explain things from a different angle sometimes or explain things you wouldn't think are worth explaining.
Found my new hyperfocus. I only ever drank cheap “tea” bags, herb infusions and stuff and i am already obsessed but apparently there is soo much more to it and i am very excited to try actual high quality tea.
I want to give a shout out to Holta. It takes a lot of humility and courage to be willing to ask the “dumb questions” and play an audience stand in. Her willingness to engage with the subject matter with focus and interest despite being a novice? That’s really awesome. Thank you so much for doing this for us.
I thought I knew a lot about tea, after having tasted hundreds of teas over the last several years but I still learned so much! I didn’t realize the depth to which stress and controlled, harnessed stress affects the plant and the final outcomes of the tea! Thank you for sharing your knowledge with us. I love that there’s always more to learn about tea. Constantly opening me up to new dimensions and perspectives. Incredible!
I love the fact that environmental stressors and hardships can ultimately produce a higher quality, more flavorful tea. I've been drinking loose leaf tea for 10+ years, and this is a fact that I had forgotten or overlooked. Thanks for the great crash course reminder!
Oh my gosh! Simply amazing. Don, you are a genius, so well caused, so fresh so passionate about the explanation. It'sa bless to learn from you. Definitely, you must write a book with all this information. Thank you so much for this.
I'm very thankful for ALL of your videos😊 I first got into tea by trying to get away from drinking too much coffee and I startet reading and reseaching. Since then it was the beginning of a long jourey I didn't expect because tea for me is just so much more than a drink. It became more of a way of life and your videos definitely helped me leand so much about it in a very happy, entertaining and at the same time educational way. I'm going through very ruff times right now and tea just helps me see that there can be so much beautyful things in life... Thank you so much❤
I already love this new series and its lively format! So informative and entertaining. Can't wait to see the next installment. - Also: Hi Holta and thank you for joining to ask questions! Most of them would have been mine, too! 😁 Hope to see you again next time! 👋
As a tea lover and someone who started my tea journey with you, but strayed away for a couple years...lovely video. This brought me back to my roots. Also having this guest really made it super enjoyable. Love the energy!!
The amount of deep, important, clearly communicated information of this video is immense! This video puts you into close intermediate level in 52 mins. I learned so much. Thank you!
I LOVED this video! So fun to learn along with Holta. Thank you for your fun, approachable, but not-dumbed-down way of explaining the big world of tea. Appreciate your work so much!
What an interesting, entertaining and instructive Series this is, Don! Thanks a lot for all your efforts, passion and love for tea and teaching us in the best way I have ever been teached about tea! All you guys in front and behind the camera are awsome! Warm and best wishes from Germany :-)
Amazing. Thanks so much for making this series. I've been enjoying tea for many years and thought I knew a fair amount but I've never heard or read anything near this level of detail. Looking forward to watching all the episodes.
The biggest barrier for me when it comes to getting deep into tea is the cost; it seems to get even decent quality tea leaves, you need to shell out quite a lot upfront. I know the old adage is that you get what you pay for and quality is worth the price, but I wish it were more accessible to folks that don't have a ton of disposable income to go around!
I agree, but one thing you might consider is choosing varieties (many oolongs) where the tea should be used multiple times, so a small amount of tea can be used for multiple pots.
That was so enjoyable and i thank you both for putting this out. I find that learning more about tea really enhances my appreciation and enjoyment. Looking forward to your future videos.
I have learned a lot about wine and now tea is my next field of study. This is very helpful! Thank you for sharing. On a side note: Holta reminds me a bit of Neve Campbell
Love this video. At one point you were talking about when the best time to smell the tea is. One was "smell the dry leaf when it's warm". Could you elaborate? When is the leaf dry and warm? Is that only during processing before it gets to us consumers?
If you heat up the teaware with hot water and then pour the water away completely and add your leaves you can smell the warm dry leaf. Obviously you need to then brew the tea as it will be very slightly wet and cannot be stored afterwards.
Teaines, caffeines: Gyokuro and some Sencha green teas have more, though Gyokuro Kukicha (stem tea) and Sencha Genmaicha (rice flavored teas) have less caffeines. Note also that green teas capture the caffeines better than coffee, so it might be or feel lighter thou even more caffeine contained. Therefore green tea has a good balance. Green tea rich in caffeines like Korean Sencha or Japanese Gyokuro or even Matcha are considered morning teas. Whereas stem teas and rice flavored teas considered to be for late afternoon or evening or night teas. The richness of caffeine in green tea depends on water temperature as well. Less or no caffeine is iced brewd, cold brewd or brewd below 80°C and the higher the water temperature from 80°C on to medicine (100°C boiling water brewd) the more caffeine your tea containes together with the bitterness. In my opinion coffee contains caffeine because it's loose and green tea containes teaine because it's not loose, it's captured and therefore well balanced. Note that caffeine and teaine is the same though. Have your peace. 🙏🏼🍵
I haven’t even gotten the opportunity it’s to watch this video yet, but I’m GHA king you in advance for when I do have time to digest! Looking forward to tea with you in the near future👑
Thank you for this!! Such an epic course. Can only certain tea plants make certain types of tea because of their terroir? Or can any tea producer make an unlimited number of teas from each plant?
Wow, the part about organic tea (From around 30 mins) is so interesting to know! The rest also, but many costumers ask for organic in the tea shop and now I can tell them some more about it :)
Hi Don, thanks for sharing! It's always a joy watching your videos. I've two questions if you've the time to answer them haha 1. I'm wondering how come the producers didn't introduce the assamica variety into the eastern / northern part of China or even to Taiwan and Japan? Does the variety adapt less well to those environments or did the domestic market in those areas simply prefer the sinesis variety? 2. Is the shading practice done in China / Taiwan? I'm quite curious about the latter because I would think that there's quite a bit of Japanese influence there! So if there isn't, it'll be interesting to speculate / understand why
Japanese occupiers did bring assamica varieties to Taiwan. Look into black tea produced in Sun Moon Lake/Yuchi Township/Nantou county in Taiwan. They grow a few hybrids between assamicas and sinensis and formosensis (#8, #18, #21 are a few famous hybrids) and produce pretty unique black teas.
This is what I was looking for! Thanks I have a question: is it true that it is wrong to pour hot water directly on the tea bag? I read somewhere that the water should be poured on the side
As a beginner who wants to learn about tea and appreciate it more this is just what I've been looking for, thank you! I've got a question: You said that 99,99% of tea is from the teaplant, does that mean that herbal and fruit tea are not considered "tea" in that sense? What else would you consider them?
I tried dozens of tea, can feel the difference, but am incapable of describing the notes that you describe: cherry, plums, almond, etc... how do you train to detect that ?
Are all PuErh type teas cultivated from the asamica variety? And why does PuErh often have a barn yard aroma/feel to it? Do you have a PuErh sampler pack to experience?
You mean like that 'old house', kind of slight funky-smoky like smell? I think I know what you're trying to say, but I'm not entirely sure. Of course smell is also subjective for a big part. I have that kind of aroma/smell with shou (cooked) pu'ers. Not with the sheng (raw) pu'ers I've had. Although my experience with pu'ers has been quite limited so far. I'd love to try many more of them. Especially sheng. Shou or cooked pu'ers are usually very dark. And give off this coffee-dark liquor when infused.
I'm an herbalist trying to start a business. I went through all the info about plants on a detailed level just to graduate and realize that I didn't know much of anything about how to make a good tea.
L-theanine increases dopamine level?? ..This would mean tea (or at least gyokuro) can 100% make you addicted.. Wow that explains a lot. There might be a tea addiction just like there's alcohol or nicotine addictions...the increasing dopamine levels part is what causes the addiction.
Higly ulikely. There is usually between 10-20 mg of L-theanine in cup of tea and they have done clinical trials giving 400mg L-theanine in one go. There was no noticeable effect on the participants. They where maily testing if it increased concentration, but I doubt the ethics committee overseeing it would have given the green light if they thought L-theanine was addictive.
@@kattkatt744 Soooo...no tea addiction? Than why do I feel like I have to drink tea? Maybe I'm addicted to some other things... can you be addicted to trying new things? Or maybe it's just a nice instant gratification method
@@ediabla3333 Caffeine is know to be substance many are sensitive to. There is less in tea than in coffee, but a 2 dl cup can contain as much as 50mg of it.
Dopamine does not equal addiction. Just anecdotal personal experience but, I've taken l-dopa (a direct precursor to dopamine that can cross the blood brain barrier), but I've so far never noticed cravings for it though, nor a sense of euphoria. *Our brains & central nervous systems aren't just one big neurotransmitter soup.* More serotonin doesn't mean less depression, more dopamine doesn't mean more motivation or addiction, more GABA doesn't necessarily mean more disinhibition, etc. Also keep in mind that many receptors interact with other neurotransmitter systems, several endogenous (& exogenous) compounds can bind (with vastly differing results) to the same receptors, etc. Like delta 9-THC ('regular' THC) in (decarboxylated) cannabis, it acts as a partial agonist for the CB1 receptor. But that indirectly affects a myriad of other systems in the body. Like dopamine, serotonin (could explain the intense psychedelic effects of some cannabis strains, in some users, or how cannabis can really intensify the effects of classical serotonergic psychedelic compounds), acetylcholine & glutamate systems (which explains many of the negative effects of cannabis on memory and memory formation, mostly the temporary loss of short term memory), and so forth... I'm definitely not saying tea can't be addictive though, issues with caffeine in particular are classified in the DSM as a 'dependence', but to believe one can't actually get addicted to caffeine (or even an herb in its whole like tea) is nonsense. People can get clinically addicted to a myriad of things. There have been people whom were addicted to eating the filling of a matrass... Besides, tea contains at least over 30 000 compounds anyway. L-theanine is just one many like to hype & 'brag' about. Again, just anecdotal, but I've taken pure l-theanine at dosages of up to 3 grams at once. With only mild effects. (And you can trust me, I've done many things, so it's not like I have absolutely no frame of reference.)
26:45 The correct term would be hypothesis. :) Evolution, gravity, etc. are also 'theories', but it's not like there isn't abundant empirical evidence for said theories. (Although gravity is kind of an odd one out when it comes to fundamental forces, as it can be explained equally well through spactime/relativity as through looking at it as just another kind of force.) A 'theory' in scientific nomenclature isn't equal in meaning and/or connotation as the term 'theory' in everyday laymans' vocabulary. That's why you get these creationists coming with their "Oh, well... evolution is 'just' a theory anyway..." Yeah, what else would it be called? The law of evolution? (Which some literature actually sporadically uses.) Or flat earthers equally go: "Gravity is just a theory." Making a calculated, or logically deduced guess, assumption or plausible explanation like in a context as this. Would better be described as a hypothesis. I keep a sceptical outlook on l-theanine though. I've been experimenting with it for a few years now. Taking dosages of up to 3 grams at once. And it's mostly a mild effect, although individual differences might certainly play a role, my anecdotal personal experience is just that. 'My' experience, not necessarily that shared by many others. Maybe I'm one of the unlucky few that aren't as much affected by l-theanine's supposedly interesting effects? Never felt 'happier', just a bit spacier, maybe a little more mindful/'in the moment', but nothing out of the extraordinary. It's something you could put 10 grams of in someones food (say someone living a busy day, being kind of on auto pilot), and they probably wouldn't notice anything 'different' about their day. (Now imagine putting 100 micrograms of a certain lysergamide in someones food. XD) *To believe the extreme small amounts (we're talking like 1% in dry leaf) in tea alone, has much of an effect though, seems quite unlikely.* Many teas with the most potent psychoactive effects (like pu'ers) are the lowest in l-theanine. *Cooked pu'ers (shou pu'ers) tend to show almost no l-theanine concentration at all* , as most of it has been processed 'away' through fermentation. www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4787341/ " ° Thirty-seven commercial white, green, oolong, black, and pu-erh tea samples were analyzed for caffeine and theanine content ° *While the caffeine content was similar, the theanine contents of black teas were slightly lower and practically zero in pu-erh* " L-theanine, as far as the pharmacology is known, acts as an antagonist for the glutamate receptors AMPA & kainate, and an agonist for the NMDA glutamate receptor (not to be confused with MDMA :) ) It also inhibits glutamate transporters, basically acting as a glutamate & glutamine reuptake inhibitor. It has been shown to increase dopamine, and affect dopamine receptors (D1 & D5, a.k.a. the 'D1-family') in some ways. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29944861/ Of course tea contains other amino acids besides l-theanine alone, so that could explain some of the umami/savoury notes in certain teas as well. But I have to admit, the taste of pure l-theanine (or rather, l-theanine dissolved in plain water), is extremely similar to the savoury note of a steamed, shade grown, Japanese green tea. 46:10 Doesn't make much sense, as l-theanine is a secundary metabolite for the plant in this case, right? Assuming only an extremely small amount of plant species on earth produce this amino acid, it seems highly unlikely from an evolutionary standpoint - or just in general - that it's an essential compound for the tea plant's growth. 49:30 There have been some studies done on this, and l-theanine takes about 12 to 30 minutes to build up to a measurable amount in the blood. Crossing the blood brain barrier would take a similar, although slightly higher, amount of time. academic.oup.com/view-large/figure/151494472/2091fig1.jpeg academic.oup.com/jn/article/142/12/2091/4630725 My hypothesis, besides placebo, or (up until now) unmeasurable concepts like 'cha qi'; is that the many other compounds (at least over 30 000?!) in tea play a role as well, *'maybe'* ...? teaepicure.com/tea-chemistry/ Keep in mind, that aging (including fermentation, literally micro organisms fiddling with the leaves) could also play a major role in teas' effects. It would certainly be a viable explanation for the pronounced psychoactive (including hallucinogenic, both psychedelic as dissociative) effects of certain pu'ers. On the subject of other Camellias though. Not only have other species been used for 'tea' production, but also do some of them contain xanthines like caffeine & l-theanine as well. (Or on the other hand, some are grown for their lack of caffeine, yet very tea-like aromatics and way of brewing.) Some have used Camellia japonica on small scale (I've personally made a 'white' like 'tea' from Japonica which was very light, yet pretty nice in my opinion. Light, aromatic, with floral-like notes similar to regular white & green teas.) & Camellia ptilophylla has been consumed in Guangdong province. Camellia sasanqua has been used in Japan for 'tea'. Camellia taliensis is used in Yunnan province: "Camellia taliensis is locally used to make white tea, black tea, and pu'er tea. Yue Guang Bai (月光白 "Moonlight White") is a white tea made from the plant. Yunnan pu-erh tea made from C. taliensis can command a much higher price than pu'er made from the more common C. sinensis." Wild Camellia crassicolumna are picked to make a kind of pu'er. This Camellia species is actually caffeine free, interestingly enough. (don't know about other xanthines like theobromine, I guess not, but don't take my word for it) My own Camellia sinensis' aren't doing so well though. XD 2 of my 5 plants are basically dead at this point. It also takes a huge load of plants (about 3, of course it depends on how big the individual plants are obviously) to produce the amount of tea needed for just one cup. At least if you go for only bud & 2 leaves picking. If you brew the whole plant, all leaves and stems, yeah, you could get more cups out of it.
Nice, where do you get tea made from these plants? Do you order it online, do you have connections or a specialty store where you live? I've seen one site selling them, but I have reasons not to buy from them though. I'm mostly just interested in where you get yours.
The more I listen, the more I realize how much Cannabis sativa enthusiasts can learn from understanding and appreciating Camelia sinensis. Tea lovers can also pickup some complimentary knowledge from investigating cannabis as well. I see cannabis and tea as beautiful partners. I would love to see loose teas and basic brewing equipment available at legal dispensaries. It would cost little for dispensaries to put out a few jars of primo tea at bargain prices because their overhead is already covered by thc sales. They could seriously undercut local tea shops while simultaneously expanding the tea market. Budtenders would need little training to get up to speed on plant, processing and chemistry geekiness of Camelia. Cannabis shops have a ready built customer base that is already comfortable forking out hundreds of dollars per ounce for herbal treats. I truly hope Master Mei enjoys a handrolled cannabis cigarette with his tea now and then.
I plan on experimenting with physical manipulation of cannabis flowers prior to curing and drying, perhaps running freshly picked buds though a pasta roller or hand hammering them on a steel plate. Just learning a minimum about tea processing has given me a dozen ideas that can be applied to modern cannabis processing.
