tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post8222088831672037852..comments2023-07-05T09:38:23.624+01:00Comments on The Half-Dipper: 2004 CNNP - Jixing "Yuechen Yuexiang"Hobbeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10719619695211038389noreply@blogger.comBlogger24125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-79400113581707344952011-01-28T19:17:17.244+00:002011-01-28T19:17:17.244+00:00Dear Martin,
I'm really lo-fi in my brewing...Dear Martin,<br /><br /> I'm really lo-fi in my brewing of rooibos - the Jing version is solid and interesting, without losing flavour too quickly. I brew it roughly in a gaiwan, without much thought. The Jing version also seems quite tolerant of errors, such as me getting distracted and returning to my desk ten minutes later :)<br /><br /><br /> Best wishes,<br /><br /> HobbesHobbeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10719619695211038389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-431128398614604232011-01-22T10:16:10.108+00:002011-01-22T10:16:10.108+00:00More an aside question - I think you mentioned bef...More an aside question - I think you mentioned before that you like rooibos in the later part of the day, enjoying it's maltiness.<br />I often get dissapointed with it, finding a nasty, aggressive fruitiness in it (attacks the necks of my teeth). Might be a) the tea b) my brewing. What differences do you find in various rooibos teas/ in what is the Jing good? And what style/ parameters do A Student Of Teahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10049646395598215963noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-77319141198011882072011-01-19T17:15:30.795+00:002011-01-19T17:15:30.795+00:00You will discover that China does not have bedbugs...You will discover that China does not have bedbugs.MarshalNhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16776398824139018801noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-14111510138750269942011-01-18T08:22:44.772+00:002011-01-18T08:22:44.772+00:00I suspect China's Own Critics would be very we...I suspect China's Own Critics would be very well-received by the ladies in my house, so I'll find a copy - thanks.<br /><br />Shah8 - sadly, it has been years since I've had the time required for a full game of rugby (or any other sport for that matter - my other games being <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Real_tennis" rel="nofollow">real tennis</a> and cricket). I look forwardHobbeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10719619695211038389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-71207784652674869492011-01-17T21:04:47.730+00:002011-01-17T21:04:47.730+00:00Pomeranz is respected in the field. The problem i...Pomeranz is respected in the field. The problem is that the Great Divergence is such a one-liner.... and really doesn't need a whole book to make the point he does. It's one of those books that has caught more attention outside than among historians.<br /><br />China's Own Critics is a great read -- the Lin Yutang chapters are especially wonderful.MarshalNhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16776398824139018801noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-77313993390835753962011-01-17T20:15:50.880+00:002011-01-17T20:15:50.880+00:00You wouldn't happen to be a fellow rugby playe...You wouldn't happen to be a fellow rugby player, now, would you? Did some intramural in high school.<br /><br />--shah8Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-89008786776365685432011-01-17T10:28:35.995+00:002011-01-17T10:28:35.995+00:00While replying to a comment on an old article, Ind...While replying to a comment on an old article, <a href="http://half-dipper.blogspot.com/2009/03/induction-heating-101.html" rel="nofollow">Induction 101</a>, I noticed that you can see me in the background, in a rugby shirt. :)<br /><br /><br />Toodlepip,<br /><br />HobbesHobbeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10719619695211038389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-65233964450258742622011-01-15T17:45:28.951+00:002011-01-15T17:45:28.951+00:00I can recommend Lin Yutang's writings, if you&...I can recommend Lin Yutang's writings, if you're after a delightfully-written (if nostalgic) observer's opinion of pre-PRC China. The cover blurb calls him "the last great Chinese scholar", which depends on your assessment of modern Chinese scholarship >:)<br /><br />Either way, I do live his books.<br /><br /><br />Toodlepip,<br /><br />HobbesHobbeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10719619695211038389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-44161502027493946532011-01-15T15:30:57.028+00:002011-01-15T15:30:57.028+00:00Please, then, don't sum it up! I'd like t...Please, then, don't sum it up! I'd like to know of the better books for reading! Especially from a historian!<br /><br />I am deeply aware of the tendency for popular works of non-fiction to suit the biases of its potential audience, and Pomeranz certainly has written more overt easy reading economic history. <br /><br />On the other hand, it's quite hard to sift through stuff and Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-51699077612103936952011-01-15T02:48:10.858+00:002011-01-15T02:48:10.858+00:00Please don't waste your time reading the Great...Please don't waste your time reading the Great Divergence -- I can sum it up for you in one line, if you wish. There are better books out there.MarshalNhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16776398824139018801noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-59846751366639633922011-01-14T19:39:03.495+00:002011-01-14T19:39:03.495+00:00Oops! I mistook Blake for you!
-shah8Oops! I mistook Blake for you!<br /><br />-shah8Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-4209542726025054252011-01-14T18:07:50.763+00:002011-01-14T18:07:50.763+00:00Do you mean this post? That's not me! Those ...Do you mean <a href="http://half-dipper.blogspot.com/2007/09/postcards-from-orient.html" rel="nofollow">this post</a>? That's not me! Those are the various owners of various tea-shops in Maliandao :)<br /><br />I'm a red-headed Englishman, and usually behind the camera, because I'm taking the pictires!<br /><br /><br />Toodlepip,<br /><br />HobbesHobbeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10719619695211038389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-24371835347360128802011-01-14T18:04:46.482+00:002011-01-14T18:04:46.482+00:00Is there?! Haha... OK, I will try to find it.Is there?! Haha... OK, I will try to find it.Hobbeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10719619695211038389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-22957704919882563782011-01-14T15:30:42.129+00:002011-01-14T15:30:42.129+00:00There is a picture of your scruffy self in that se...There is a picture of your scruffy self in that series where you try to (not really) haggle your way through Maliandro. Right above the skit where you try to talk down the dude with the Menghai Yiwu Zhengshan '01 and other nice cakes, when he quietly insists on his one price...<br /><br />--shah8Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-70000813887742667692011-01-14T11:53:33.380+00:002011-01-14T11:53:33.380+00:00P.s. How do you know what I look like?! :)P.s. How do you know what I look like?! :)Hobbeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10719619695211038389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-63596469398605773912011-01-14T11:52:54.976+00:002011-01-14T11:52:54.976+00:00Dear Shah8,
Hah - you certainly have a good idea ...Dear Shah8,<br /><br />Hah - you certainly have a good idea of the man behind this blog. Nerdy, rural, engineer - spot on. <br /><br />I always take book recommendations very seriously, and so will look into <i>The Great Divergence</i> - thanks for pointing it out. I assume it's about the dot product of the differential operator, nabla, with a vector field? (Boom)<br /><br />By accident Hobbeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10719619695211038389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-60521633423917664622011-01-13T22:33:43.936+00:002011-01-13T22:33:43.936+00:00I focus on the lincang stuff, because it's a s...I focus on the lincang stuff, because it's a strong false note in what is a fairly harmonious sensibility in tastes. I don't really like shicang as much as you do, but I certainly agree that a light touch is wonderful.<br /><br />In general, part of the reason I read you is that we're about as similar as a US black southerner and a english guy with rural roots can get. I've Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-38781464811877610172011-01-13T14:57:14.384+00:002011-01-13T14:57:14.384+00:00On Houde prices - the Houde backcatalogue is brill...On Houde prices - the Houde backcatalogue is brilliant. Guang doesn't seem to change his old prices, and I have written on several occassions on how bargains are to be had from his list of old teas. I've picked up some great old Yichanghao cakes, for example, which are still being sold at (or near) their original price. While that was very expensive back when those cakes were new, theyHobbeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10719619695211038389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-11639505044004728742011-01-13T14:54:50.124+00:002011-01-13T14:54:50.124+00:00Dear Shah8,
Thanks for the detailed comment. L...Dear Shah8,<br /><br /> Thanks for the detailed comment. Let's tackle 'em one-by-one.<br /><br /> You mentioned Mengku/Lincang, fruity, expensive teas as being something that you can expect me not to like. While there are certainly some types of pu'ercha that I don't enjoy (usually the heavily-processed kind, watery and charmless), I tend to enjoy most cakes. I seem to recallHobbeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10719619695211038389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-77561555269268982792011-01-13T14:46:53.853+00:002011-01-13T14:46:53.853+00:00Dear Lew,
I don't know where we'd be wi...Dear Lew,<br /><br /> I don't know where we'd be without the mighty 'Carp - for those of us who are less confident with reading and writing Chinese, it's absolutely invaluable. I even struggle with Pinyin-entry systems... :)<br /><br /><br />Toodlepip,<br /><br />HobbesHobbeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10719619695211038389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-78144431416135106692011-01-13T02:41:24.289+00:002011-01-13T02:41:24.289+00:00That was an interesting update!
I just roll my ey...That was an interesting update!<br /><br />I just roll my eyes when you get on your hobby horses and read on...In any event, I think it's just a matter of tastes and what you prioritize in your tea performance. If it's 1) Mengku/Lincang 2) Fruity 3) Expensive, then I can almost expect a harsh review contrary to my views, it seems. I also check age of the bing vs age of the review-Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-56795808728473821362011-01-12T19:27:57.270+00:002011-01-12T19:27:57.270+00:00Thanks very much for your recent mentions of Babel...Thanks very much for your recent mentions of Babelcarp! By the way,<br />the recent redesign of the user interface, which you describe as<br />“dashing”, wasn’t done for the sake of appearances, at least not<br />mostly. What happened was that a teahead who is a professional Web<br />usability specialist was nice enough to tell me what parts of the old<br />interface were making it hard for Lew Perinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05843222191460729180noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-85719320424892116092011-01-11T14:47:20.089+00:002011-01-11T14:47:20.089+00:00Dear Matthew,
I buy rooibos from Jing of London...Dear Matthew,<br /><br /> I buy rooibos from Jing of London, actually. It's expensive, but excellent. For uncaffeinated afternoons in my office, it hits the spot.<br /><br /> I'm not tempted by the rest, given the availability elsewhere, more or less.<br /><br /><br />Toodlepip,<br /><br />HobbesHobbeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10719619695211038389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753589427119541238.post-55027879562849199532011-01-11T11:52:43.666+00:002011-01-11T11:52:43.666+00:00Mr Hobbes,
I thought I'd sneak a comment in b...Mr Hobbes,<br /><br />I thought I'd sneak a comment in before the outraged responses from Jing and Canton flood your blog. <br /><br />Nice to see somebody write so honestly, but for the Jing and Canton virgins outs there (who may be put off by your righteous fury), I wanted to say that whilst Jing are outrageously expensive, their oolong is really good compared to other Europe-based Rayuelahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18309599602337793984noreply@blogger.com