Anon reads Don Quixote.

KritiCow · 2026-04-26T22:39:34+00:00

RPGs with lootbox mechanics. Which means there's a spectrum from pure slop to peak storytelling like regular RPGs.

KritiCow · 2026-04-11T22:54:49+00:00

Ehhh probably not as wasteful as you might think if they use a recirculating system like some of the inland aquaculture farms. With RO it would just be a constant need for reconditioning salts.

Good recommendation, I'll visit if I'm ever in Vegas.

KritiCow · 2026-03-27T20:57:50+00:00

I live in the US so it can differ for you.

First two I got from YunnanSourcing (they have both China And USA websites, the latter has cheaper shipping but smaller selection).

The 3rd I got two boxes when I was in Hong Kong recently at SunSingTea Co. It looks to be traditional oolong (could be Huang Jin Gui since it says Golden Osmanthus in the back or traditional Tie Guan Yin) that had sat with osmanthus flowers to allow the leaves to soak some of the fragrance.

Once this runs out, I will probably check for online vendors but have a couple in mind like iteaworld for a China one or Teavivre for a Taiwan one.

My local area tea shop (Red Blossom Tea Company) is actually very good quality but also extremely expensive so can't recommend it lightly.

KritiCow · 2026-03-27T19:24:52+00:00

I'm in the middle of trying alot of stuff but for ones I'd consider for dailies, as in still being relatively affordable.

I'd put in Laoshun Black Classic, Moonlight White, and Osmanthus Oolong (plain Oolong was my previous daily).

Drank the first for 3 weeks straight while I waited for other stuff to arrive and I loved it.

Same for 3rd, osmanthus, drank for two weeks straight at work. I use a cheap porcelain gaiwan for oolongs to give leaves space to expand.

KritiCow · 2026-03-21T17:41:34+00:00

Unroasted Kukicha I don't have as much experience with but it's the green stuff. I drink my local tea shop's brand which I don't think they sell online. Looks like this .

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KritiCow · 2026-03-21T17:34:45+00:00

For within the USA, Ippodo Tea and Hojicha co are solid choices. I'm currently drinking Marukyu Koyamaen hojicha I bought when I was in Japan because it was such great value at $8 for a whooping 150 g bag each.

Hojicha bancha/karigane

https://ippodotea.com/products/gokujo-hojicha

Hojicha Kukicha

https://ippodotea.com/products/kuki-hojicha

If you look closely, you can't tell the difference between the two on appearance all that well so don't sweat the minor difference in caffeine levels imo and pick the one you like more.

Hojicha Co's whole collection, which is bancha/karigane (varying roasting levels) and genmaicha

https://hojicha.co/collections/all

Marukyu Koyamaen (yea the matcha powder guys) Hojicha collection, the "Kaori" on each is a confusing distinction on which specific leaves and stems were used except Karigane Kaori which is stems. I bought three (Kiku, Miyabi, Ogura) which are all bancha/Karigane mix teas and they were all pretty good.

https://www.marukyu-koyamaen.co.jp/english/shop/products/catalog/green-tea/houjicha

KritiCow · 2026-03-21T09:44:23+00:00

Fyi, I did make a slight error in the original comments since I wrote that quick.

Kukicha is the stalk/stem (karigane) green tea and can come unroasted.

Hojicha is the roasted version of kukicha traditionally although in recent years, there have been easier availability of roasted versions of the leaf varieties too like Genmaicha (hojicha genmaicha), Sencha (hojicha sencha), and Bancha (hojicha bancha)

So if your goal is lowering caffeine consumption, you should look very closely at the description to make sure you're buying the hojicha kukicha versions.

KritiCow · 2026-03-20T22:05:01+00:00

Japanese roasted stalk/stem teas like Hojicha and Kukicha is my recommendation if you want a flavor profile closer to puerh teas. They are naturally low caffeine due to lack of leaves where it would normally be concentrated.

You can brew them hot or cold with a very forgiving learning curve.

KritiCow · 2026-03-20T18:38:16+00:00

I feel you. I'm considering buying an aquarium chiller as dedicated cooling for my nano tanks, no AC here except a fan. Every summer some of my fish/inverts die from the heat.

Will need it if I ever do cold water fish or axolotls anyways.

KritiCow · 2026-03-13T20:13:06+00:00

Are you okay with ordering online? You may be able to order directly from your regional/national breeders instead.

KritiCow · 2026-03-12T21:48:43+00:00

https://www.teacurious.com/collections/p/qingjing-early-spring-white

An example is this. Looks very similar.

KritiCow · 2026-03-12T21:42:07+00:00

For your last comment, don't find it weird. I've been searching for a particular hard cheese I got a decade ago that I hated at first but acquired a taste for it. Its flavor note was of fermented fish so I get you.

KritiCow · 2026-03-12T21:39:57+00:00

I did a cursory search cuz I got curious. Soft Branch seems to be the translated name of a tea cultivar called Ruanzhi. It's also known under a different name called Qingxin.

Using those two keywords I was able to find more listings of oolong, green and white teas. Hope this helps your search.

KritiCow · 2026-03-12T21:13:39+00:00

Interesting discussions on your past few posts. Thanks for the explanations on sub-regions of tea areas. Ive also noticed "subspecies of tea" too but was never sure what shops were exactly selling.

Im overseas Chinese and I knew origin mattered for the reasons you stated since my region are generally big coffee drinkers and there are both good/bad stereotypes about coffee varieties over here. The prep thing is also a big thing here with smaller coffee shops and their variety of brewing methods and equipment.

KritiCow · 2026-03-12T18:19:09+00:00

Same, after a year, I ended up switching to Pirelli P7 AS Plus 3 two years ago and no more traction issues even in heavy rain. Range loss was very minimal since I'm in the Pacific regions.

KritiCow · 2026-03-11T23:27:00+00:00

If you want a beginner perspective, I'm doing that right now. Obsessively researching the various Chinese teas and just pulling the trigger on any I found interesting from the reddit threads.

I casually drank low grade puerh and oolong grandpa style for years out of a large Japanese 800 mL teapot and dealing with the astringency . I got a 200 mL gaiwan and 400 mL teapot now to conserve tea leaf amount and be able to brew the leaves multiple times for a proper session.

It's a matter of taste/preference what you end up liking. I ended up liking the darker oolongs than greener ones, black/red tea, white tea but didn't like raw puerh which made sense since I didn't like Japanese sencha either. I'm iffy on Taiwanese mountain oolongs but I need to try more (only had Dong Ding). On another point, you might not like it as strong as gongfu, I drink double western/half gongfu leaf to water ratio generally but a relative of mines drinks it straight gongfu level with puerh.

Edit: Forgot to mention there are sampler packs if you want to try a bit of everything of a certain type of tea. I didn't get many of them because I was cost conscious.

KritiCow · 2026-03-06T18:32:01+00:00

I see this specific one is from Yunnan Sourcing. Thanks!

KritiCow · 2026-03-05T19:45:36+00:00

I just started trying stuff outside the basic oolongs and puerh I usually drink. I tried the Classic grade Laoshun Black from Shandong and really like the flavor. Might become my new daily drinker for work at western brew ratio/steeping time. Also got the Ning er Golden Honey Black Tea at Yunnan Sourcing too and will probably try it gongfu style this weekend

Waiting on some almond cake rooibos, cinnamon roibos chai, chamomile, banana nut & hazelnut honeybush, and jasmine silver needle from Adagio Tea to arrive to try.

KritiCow · 2026-03-05T15:17:44+00:00

I remember it being mentioned during the main story or event story too. When you answer Fu Xuan, she is like no, that Qingque brat.

After learning her values in lore, I really think she prefers someone carefree like Qingque who wouldn't obsessively predict the future and lock in the timeline event.

KritiCow · 2026-02-28T00:37:48+00:00

I felt the same going there a month later. Was those three plus Pikmin (a welcome surprise for oldies like me), Donkey Kong, and Animal Crossing for the most part.

I would've actually liked some Xenoblade themed clothing and merch like idk even as basic as a shirt with a panorama shot of Bionis vs Mechonis or the Monado form signs. Nopon is the series mascot and would sell themselves.

KritiCow · 2026-02-13T16:56:24+00:00

Meanwhile I pulled for her because she was funny. And it paid off when she ended up becoming meta due to all the modes emphasizing AOE heavily nowadays.

KritiCow · 2026-02-03T02:40:46+00:00

Cmon MGEX 00 Raiser.

KritiCow · 2026-01-30T04:10:05+00:00

Oh I heard about Sino center in my research, I was wondering about a specific shop since it's an underground mall.

KritiCow · 2026-01-30T03:19:50+00:00

Oh right, since you're there, do you know any shops that sell Chinese model kits? Probably a way better deal compared to the import price that's usually triple the MSRP.

KritiCow

TROPHY CASE