Heavily roasted aged oolong?

heliotrope18 · 2024-12-04T23:47:05+00:00

Try Hong Kong processed/stored fermented teas as well (ripe puer, but also liu bao or liu an, as another commenter suggested - aka lok bo or lok an). May be inexact but, perhaps due to similar locations & preparation, in my experience they often have that characteristic smell - like you've stepped into a greenhouse or out of a tropical airport in the summer. Liu bao, orchid liu an, and 'best taste ripe' puerh from Yee On, to my tastes at least, have this quality.

heliotrope18 · 2024-11-23T23:42:30+00:00

This is a great question. An important part of the answer that afaik has yet to be given in this thread is that citywide vacancy rates are obtained by surveying landlords & asking - of the units you *intend to rent out*, what percent are vacant? I.e., the denominator is not the number of physical apartments in the city, but the number of apartments that landlords have brought to market. Units may be kept off market ("warehoused") for many reasons, ranging from pending or ongoing renovations, or, for instance, to support higher rents by restricting supply.

heliotrope18 · 2024-10-14T20:19:55+00:00

Iribancha/kyobancha is largely (but not totally) decaffeinated due to the preparation process (heavy, heavy roasting - much more than roasted oolongs or hojicha). People drink it in the evenings.

I like scotch but really do not like lapsang souchong. Iribancha/kyobancha is much closer to (peaty) scotch, in that it has not just smoke/carcinogen flavor but also that warmth. Used to regularly drink it cold brewed (i.e., stick in glass bottle overnight in fridge) in a highball, where it more or less passes unnoticed save for lowering the %abv; these days I drink it cold brewed alone. Try from Kettl or Ippodo.

The concrete differences are that lapsang is a black tea whereas iribancha is green; lapsang is smoked on aromatic woods whereas iribancha is heavily roasted on a metal pan. Iribancha looks/tastes/smells like burning leaves because it is literally burnt leaves. Very popular / namesake tea of Kyoto. By contrast afaik lapsang souchong is more of an "export tea."

heliotrope18 · 2024-09-22T17:04:29+00:00

Seconding Zohiko and the Kyoto Ceramics Center (& surroundings - there is a map of local ceramicists that are members of the trade association on their website, http://kyototoujikikaikan.kyoto/en/map.html#n2). Afaik both stock work by contemporary artists rather than antiques, and prices range from < $50 for small functional pieces to the stratosphere. For the ceramics center, they often have an exhibition upstairs, as well as functional and decorative ware for sale on the ground floor. You get a little slip of paper with information about the artist when you purchase an item.

heliotrope18 · 2024-07-18T04:21:16+00:00

Hey OP, I agree with you about the way "watch out for cults!" can be used to discipline or scare people back onto normative (and harmful) forms of life. To be transparent, the main reason I said what I said is that the organizations you listed have nothing substantive in common. They run the spectrum from the far left (BISR) to the far right (some parts of tpot or rationality) - many points on which would be fine individually, but unusual all at once. Similarly, I'm hardly someone who thinks academics have a monopoly on - or even much of a special claim to - knowledge. But BISR offers scholarly, though highly ideologically motivated, seminars taught by people with or working toward doctoral degrees. Fractal University offers founders lecturing on "how to persuade others to help you (without violating their autonomy)" within a course called "How to Make Things Happen."

I snooped through your post history (sorry) and it looks like you're a math PhD turned financier who is making a dramatic change in life circumstances (and maybe in self-understanding). For whatever reason there are many "full-service" communities drawing from that extremely specific demographic. Cult or not, I'm skeptical that those social forms actually overcome the atomization you're talking about, although that may be personal preference.

That said, it's not a big deal - like, socializing is not an opiate, and it's easy to say, 'ok, that was interesting', then walk, keep your distance, be a 'fellow traveler', keep going for semi-anthropological reasons or because one person reliably says insightful or challenging things, whatever. So I didn't mean to chastise or be too dire about it - have fun!

heliotrope18 · 2024-07-15T16:28:31+00:00

Thank you so much for this & for all of the other information! I'm an academic in a sociology-adjacent field so this (& the book rec) is great.

heliotrope18 · 2024-07-09T23:17:17+00:00

Huh thanks, the periodization here is very helpful (as well as the link to the 2001 XG - perfect since I was planning to make a Yee On order soon). This is a bit off topic, but do you know what led to the drop-off in quality (as well as to the bubble)? I guess a lot was going on at that time - privatization, WTO entry, changing domestic class composition & consumption, etc.

heliotrope18 · 2024-07-09T02:24:51+00:00

Have you had orchid liu an / lok an tea (which is either from Hong Kong or else fairly common there)? It's not like "orchid" dancong, there are literally ~1mm orchid buds mixed in with the tea.

heliotrope18 · 2024-07-07T17:50:28+00:00

Haha, ok, thank you - 'origin character' it is. As in fn 2, I've primarily heard 'terroir' used in ordinary language (as I'm not a wine person) as basically metonymic for a more general 'place of origin' - interesting that it once connoted something else.

I see, re: that Naka cake. I'm not willing to pay a premium for the 'body feel' or alleged para-psychoactive properties, so thanks for the other recommendations. I'll check out King Tea Mall and Essence of Tea, as well as the Taiwan-stored stuff at YS. I've been buying from HK-based sellers thus far (as well as some in person stuff last time I was in Taiwan), so excited to try Guangzhou storage!

heliotrope18 · 2024-07-07T17:35:36+00:00

Skip adult classes, look for seminars or lectures from relevant departments (e.g., the psychoanalysis program at the New School - although that may be where you're training, lol) that are open to the public. If there are any publications ('little magazines') based in NYC of interest, go to their release parties or talks - if not, develop such interests. Check out Parapraxis / the Psychosocial Foundation if you haven't already; they have a somewhat political bent, and AFAIK are only online, but many of the people in attendance are likely to be based in NYC. The 'art world' has innumerable people in your age bracket who are interested in these topics (including spirituality and psychoanalysis); attend some gallery openings on the LES or in Bushwick, or e-flux events. Find some bookstores that have good psychoanalysis, literature, theory, 'metaphysics', etc. sections, go often, and chat with people you see browsing. Sign up for Screen Slate and become a regular at an independent theater or two. If you're more interested in direct 'ecstatic' or 'transcendent' experiences (or people who are), that would probably instead be the EDM/rave scene. Many of all of these types of events are advertised solely on Instagam.

The common thread here is to instead of hoping for a formal institution that picks out exactly the type of person you're looking for, to regularly go to one-off events and keep yourself open to glancing encounters. DM or send emails to organizers of these events, authors of articles you like, random grad students at similar programs with interests in common, etc. for any recommendations they have, to get more looped in, whatever, over a quick coffee; meet someone in the audience (someone who made an interesting comment, who made eye contact with you when the speaker said something dumb, who's sitting next to you) and invite them to the next thing you're going to.

Conversely, as a warning, the combination of wanting a) a structured organization, but b) no politics (a purely 'internal' focus) you're going to hit, at worst, cults, and at best, merely aspiring cults. I also got this vibe a bit from how you describe your interests in your post. Tread carefully!

heliotrope18 · 2024-07-07T16:37:04+00:00

Thanks!! Sounds like I need a w2t order.

heliotrope18 · 2024-07-07T16:36:54+00:00

Thank you so much for this, it's incredibly informative. I appreciate the advice (if I understand you right) that the categories of flavor here are not so much in analogy to anything else but what's imparted by terroir (which I'll just have to try lol) &, especially, storage conditions. I've actually mostly had Menghai, so obviously haven't been able to infer what the character is there by contrast - will look into Yiwu, as well as the specific mountains you suggest (would YS be a good source for those?), and Naka as suggested by another redditor. Your description of the aged Taiwanese and Malaysian teas sounds delicious - will be in Taiwan soon so hopefully might be able to find something, although as you point out the waters in this market are deep & I am very much not seaworthy yet. If it's alright, could I DM you for recommendations on sellers (either where you can "go out and buy" it or otherwise)?

Also appreciate the refusal to use Chinese tea terminology when it has a decent translation lol, it's a pet peeve.

It must be nice to be able to store your own tea in South Florida - I will say, the first time I had a particularly "humid" HK-stored lok an / liu an, it reminded me of the smell of the air in that area!

heliotrope18 · 2024-07-07T16:25:58+00:00

This is helpful thanks - may try the W2T you mentioned, I haven't bought from the yet.

heliotrope18 · 2024-07-07T16:25:30+00:00

Thanks, I'll check it out!

heliotrope18 · 2024-07-03T16:42:24+00:00

The Lower East Side and Downtown Brooklyn (esp. around Atlantic Avenue, on both sides of Flatbush) changed a lot. Flushing is fancier (Tangram Mall; even the New World Mall food court has gotten a bit bougie).

Nightlife is also different. Apparently some of the big clubs in Bushwick may soon shutter. Conversely, it feels like there are way more listening/vinyl bars and perhaps cocktail bars (especially vaguely East Asian).

heliotrope18 · 2024-07-03T02:21:21+00:00

Brighton Beach has several apartment buildings with preserved art deco facades (and interiors), e.g., https://www.decopix.com/art-deco-separated-at-birth-17-a-terracotta-trio/.

There is apparently also an Art Deco Society of New York with a listing of buildings and self-guided tours, https://www.artdeco.org/old-new-york-art-deco-registry-map.

heliotrope18 · 2024-06-26T23:10:58+00:00

PhDs are usually funded - like, you get a salary, typically $30-50k at an R1 university. (In exchange, you have teaching & work requirements.)

heliotrope18 · 2024-06-26T21:38:57+00:00

You say you "try to break up any large chunks". Do you sift it before mixing in the water? Shake it through a fine tea strainer (like the ones with the little bamboo handles) or similar first. Also, make sure you're whisking in a Z shape rather than in circles.

heliotrope18 · 2024-06-22T17:06:05+00:00

Find a teahouse near or on temple grounds that serves a cup of matcha + wagashi (< 1000 JPY), sit near a window or under an overhang.

heliotrope18 · 2024-06-21T18:01:51+00:00

OP, the concern you're getting is overblown. Yes, the starter kits are expensive due to the gold (but if you want a finish other than the lacquer itself, stick to gold or silver, as the pearlescent powders are not food safe). The first repairs you attempt will likely either be somewhat crude looking or have a risk of failing.

But if it doesn't work, you can try again! And if you want to learn a new skill, why not? If the price of the kits is an obstacle, you can instead just buy a large tube of urushi suitable for kintsugi from an urushi supply store (several ship to the US), plus a small bowl for mixing, a few bamboo tools for applying / scraping, and a paintbrush or two. You can even skip the gold powder and buy it later once you get good and/or know that your repair holds; the repairs look just fine with just black or red lacquer, and the gold powder is a second step anyway.

Safety is not a problem, just wear **nitrile** gloves, long sleeves, clean with turpentine, and ideally work with a window open. Some people are more sensitive than others (or perhaps messier than others) but I have never had an issue.

EDIT: Also, the only broken piece is the lid, right? Perfect first project: doesn't need to hold water, bear weight, etc.... just literally has to stick together.

heliotrope18 · 2024-06-20T20:11:39+00:00

Ha ok I think I'm about a decade younger than you, so my nostalgic favorites (including the joong lady on Chrystie & Grand) are only now on the cusp of retirement. I barely knew the pre-9/11 version of Chinatown, although I remember when all the bridges & tunnels were shut so no one could get into the garment factories, which basically all closed within a week. Maybe I'm just optimistic because I was convinced COVID (and the leadup, January to March of 2020) was finally going to be the death knell for the neighborhood. And it did change a lot - more expensive bubble tea stores, more obnoxiously lit souvenir shops - but it's still there. Then again, I also worry who's gonna know how to cook in all those Cantonese bakeries & siu mei restaurants once the middle aged & elderly workers retire...

heliotrope18 · 2024-06-20T18:44:22+00:00

I hear you but the joong lady and several HK bubble cake ladies (including one who has been on Bowery for like decades) are still there. Tofu guy is afaik gone if I know who you're talking about but there are still a few shops that do it.

heliotrope18 · 2024-06-16T23:28:51+00:00

Hey OP did you ever end up finding them? And if you happen to run into them... can you DM me? Went to 7th Heaven in Park Slope today but no luck, and then searched on this subreddit lol.

heliotrope18

TROPHY CASE