Many years ago, I discovered a wonderful little tea shop near downtown Mountain View. I went in and browsed around, loving all the tea pots and the variety of tea choices.
One of the owners, an older Chinese man, was present. When I told him which kinds of tea cups and pots I like (I am very drawn to those made from the Yixing clay [simplified Chinese characters: 宜兴; traditional Chinese characters: 宜興), he said I must be a genuine tea lover. He said most people like me (presumably amiably clueless-looking, though I am far sharper than I appear) prefer the shiny, smooth glazed pots. Which are pretty enough, but there is something about the Yixing pots that speaks to a very deep part of me. He then gave me some sample tastes of various teas. Honored and delighted, I purchased several teas, which I carried home and enjoyed.
So that you know my credentials, I love tea of just about every kind, and have tried a lot of different teas. The teas I purchased at the Mountain View Tea Village are uniformly high quality, and are the best I have ever had.
I had occasion to visit the shop several times after that, since a company I was working for was located nearby at the time. Although I have loved every tea I purchased there, my very favorite is their green osmanthus oolong (I have tried the black, but vastly prefer the green). My only sadness about their shop, which is now right on Castro Street, is that it is a two-hour drive away and so is not convenient for me.
Recently, they have established a Web presence, and that is the main point of this post: to tell you about a wonderful tea shop whose teas are now available for purchase online. I have corresponded with their Web master with various questions, and have had nothing but excellent, immediate, personal responses. Please go take a look and order some tea! Their Web site is http://www.mvteavillage.com/.
