A tasting at home

Three two-tea tasting flights

Two teas, two identical cups, the same water, weight, temperature and time. Change one thing and write down what you notice.

Taste both at the same warmth and decide which cup you prefer before you look at the labels.

Each flight uses two teas from the Flavor Journey set, with a price checked on the vendor’s page. These are comparisons, not controlled experiments: the unmatched factors are listed for each pair. You can run the same prompts with two teas you already own.

You need a scale that reads to 0.1 g, a thermometer or a variable-temperature kettle, and a timer. Combined totals are prices before shipping.

Steamed versus pan-fired green tea

Ippodo’s Kumpu Sencha and Red Blossom’s Pre-rain Dragonwell are both unoxidized spring green teas. The difference is the kill-green step: Japanese sencha is steamed, Chinese Longjing is pan-roasted. Kumpu is $31 for 80 g; the Dragonwell is $45 for 56 g. Two countries and two producers, so this is a practical contrast, not a controlled test of heat method.

Kumpu Sencha (80g Bag)

Ippodo Tea

Default Title / one-time

$31.00 / 80 g bag before shipping

Checked Oct 1, 2026

  • umami
  • sweet
  • soft
  • long finish
Check offer at Ippodo Tea

Combined price before shipping: $76.00

What this pairing can show

Use 4 g of each in 240 ml at 80 °C for 2 minutes. That sits inside In Pursuit of Tea’s green-tea range (3–5 g per 8 oz, 170–185 °F, 2–3 minutes).

No need to buy these two: any pair from your own cupboard works with these prompts. Approximate substitutes from this set: Sencha Superior ($20.50 / 50 g). Recheck a substitute before buying it.

Unmatched factors

  • Different countries, producers and cultivars (Ippodo does not publish Kumpu’s cultivar)
  • Kumpu is a house blend; the Dragonwell is a single Panan County lot
  • Leaf shape differs (needles versus flat blades), which changes how fast each infuses

Three things to notice

  1. Which dry leaf smells more like cooked greens or seaweed, and which like toasted nuts?
  2. Which cup feels thicker on the tongue?
  3. Brew a second round 30 seconds longer. Which one turns bitter first?

Pick a favorite while the cups are still unlabelled. Either pick is fine. Brewing background: the brewing guides.

If you preferred the steamed cup, try Sencha Fukamushi or Rishi’s Sencha Superior next. If you preferred the toasted cup, try a roasted oolong such as the Monkey Picked Tieguanyin.

Two roasts of Tieguanyin

Red Blossom sells two Anxi Tieguanyin oolongs, both listed at about 30% oxidation: the Monkey Picked (Daily) at $16 and the Dark Roast at $31, each for 56 g. Same county, same vendor, same oxidation. The roast differs, and so does the season: the daily lot is an autumn harvest, the dark roast a spring one.

Combined price before shipping: $47.00

What this pairing can show

Red Blossom’s guide for these teas is 1 g per ounce of water at 195 °F for 1 minute. Use 3 g in 90 ml (about 3 oz) in two identical gaiwans or cups, and repeat for three steeps, adding 15 seconds each time.

No need to buy these two: any pair from your own cupboard works with these prompts. Approximate substitutes from this set: Alishan, Spring ($31.00 / 56 g (2 oz)) and Wuyi Oolong Da Hong Pao ($30.00 / 50 g). Recheck a substitute before buying it.

Unmatched factors

  • Autumn versus spring harvest
  • Roast level and finishing differ (medium roast versus a traditional loose-roll roast)
  • Price: the dark roast costs about twice as much per gram

Three things to notice

  1. Which dry leaf smells more of roasted nuts or toffee?
  2. On the third steep, which cup still tastes floral?
  3. Which finish lingers longer after you swallow?

Pick a favorite while the cups are still unlabelled. Either pick is fine. Brewing background: the brewing guides.

If you preferred the lighter cup, try Alishan, Spring, an unroasted high-mountain oolong. If you preferred the roast, try Rishi’s Wuyi Da Hong Pao.

Darjeeling versus Assam

Both are Indian black teas from In Pursuit of Tea: a spring 2026 first-flush Darjeeling from Jungpana Estate at about 5,000 feet ($22.75, 2 oz) and a summer 2025 Assam from a small farm in Kachibari Village ($17.50, 4 oz). Altitude, season and plant type all differ, which is why "black tea" covers such different cups.

Darjeeling 1st Flush, Jungpana Estate

In Pursuit of Tea

Default Title / one-time

$22.75 / 2 oz before shipping

Checked Oct 1, 2026

  • narcissus
  • orange peel
  • cinnamon
Check offer at In Pursuit of Tea

Assam, Kachibari Village

In Pursuit of Tea

4 oz / one-time

$17.50 / 4 oz before shipping

Checked Oct 1, 2026

  • strawberry jam
  • molasses
  • smooth
Check offer at In Pursuit of Tea

Combined price before shipping: $40.25

What this pairing can show

Use 3.5 g in 240 ml at 200 °F (93 °C) for 3 minutes for both, so only the leaf changes. In Pursuit of Tea’s range is 3–4 g per 8 oz.

No need to buy these two: any pair from your own cupboard works with these prompts. Approximate substitutes from this set: Nepal Summer ($33.75 / 2 oz) and Lover's Leap OP Ceylon ($17.25 / 100 g packet). Recheck a substitute before buying it.

Unmatched factors

  • Different seasons (spring 2026 first flush versus summer 2025)
  • Different regions and altitudes (Himalayan foothills versus the Assam valley)
  • In Pursuit of Tea brews its Darjeeling at 200 °F and black tea generally at 210 °F

Three things to notice

  1. Which cup is lighter in color?
  2. Which smells more floral, and which more malty or jammy?
  3. Add a splash of milk to a second cup of each. Which one still tastes like itself?

Pick a favorite while the cups are still unlabelled. Either pick is fine. Brewing background: the brewing guides.

If you preferred the Darjeeling, try Nepal Summer from Jun Chiyabari, across the border. If you preferred the Assam, try Lover’s Leap OP Ceylon.