Haveteawilltravel select Send Message

This tea was released some time ago, and I immediately knew that I had to have it. I read the description, and it brought me back home. I was born and raised in Arizona, and I’ve been a long ways away from home lately. This description touched my heart, and I honestly had some rough nostalgia. So, I picked up an ounce and waited. I was planning on traveling back home for a week, so I kept this oz on hand to truly experience where it was born, like I was. I kept this bag full of spices hidden until the perfect moment. That moment was an experience I’ll hopefully remember for a long long time. My close friends and I were going on a road trip and hike while I was there on vacation. We picked a taunting mountain spire in Northern Arizona. I packed up my sac full with some beautiful Desert looking cups, my new tea press, Hopper, and an oz of this homey blend. We hiked for hours and climbed for longer. The desert was filled with the all too familiar red dust, smooth scents, and light sage in the air. The climb was pretty steep at 900 feet+ in .9 miles, so we were getting tired. We pressed on in anticipation of watching sunset at the summit. Finally, after climbing for most of the day, we reached the top. We couldn’t have planned it any better. I had the exact right amount of time to unpack the tea goodies and brew up a pot as the sun split at the horizon and blasted the sky with its pallet of colors. We sat on the mountain top and enjoyed some of the best chai I’ve ever had. The dry tea complimented the beauty of the desert with its delicate silvery curls, crimson red saffron, and small sand colored spices. The brew was sweet smelling with warm spiced tones. The taste was astonishing! My friends and I sat atop the mountain enjoying the landscape that inspired the beautiful blend we sipped on. They all were enthralled by its experience. This is what the magic of tea is all about! I could taste the dry desert floor as the wind carried the sage. I took in the spice of the mesquite and ironwood trees spread throughout the valley. I savored the sweetness of the desert and the beauty of one of the best sunsets I’ve ever witnessed. This tea made an amazing memory for me, and I will treasure that. I suggest others should try this out. There is nothing more special than being at a tea’s birthplace; whether it be a lush garden in Yunnan, or a dry desert in Arizona. It’s something special. I learned more deeply about the inspiration of this blend, and It’s beautifully thing to see how Cricket can bring so much joy and magic. This blend will be one for the books for me.

The Perfect Shot
https://www.instagram.com/p/BAqeVMnzGdx/?taken-by=haveteawilltravel

Hopper joins in on the moment
https://www.instagram.com/p/BAqfNfPTGfk/?taken-by=haveteawilltravel

The infamous White Whale! Sadly, I didn’t jump on this when the price was low, for I nabbed it once it rose to 30$+. I was hesitant; because, I read that smokey notes were common in this brew. I do not care for smoky tastes.

I opened the wrapper and took in Moby Dick. The brick is superbly compressed and has an array of golden threads. The condensed tea carries a slight spice, pine resin, tobacco, and the all too familiar aged scent. This darkened mass did look appeasing, and I was curious as to the experience ahead of me. I took my puerh harpoon in hand and pierced the whale. Regrettably, I did stab myself a few times due to how compressed the brick was. Then, after a tireless effort, I broke off some debris for brewing. I placed the small rocks into the warmed jianshui and let them sit for a little bit. I lifted the lid and sniffed at the blubber. I noted strong notes of pipe tobacco, wet wood, whiskey barrel, and undertones of slight smoke and some cranberry. I recoiled at the scent of the smoke. I had read some reliable reviews, and they reassured the absence of smoke in the taste. I repeated this in my head, for I reaaally didn’t want that flavor. I washed the whale skin twice before brewing. I took an inhale of the steeped leaves and breathed a sigh of relief. The dreaded smoke has vanished, and it was replaced with some intense aromas. I was picking up dominant burnt sugar, tobacco resin, and spice. I caught a lingering dark fruitiness in the background. The liquor itself was a nice darkened bronze. The initial sip was smooth with some bitterness. This drink had a nice body, yet it wasn’t as full as I would’ve guessed. I picked up some tannin flavors with a pleasant oak tone. The brew progressively became deeper and gained a darker color. The body grew somewhat with depth and became sweeter. The huigan was peculiar, for it was a rough sweetness the lingered in the throat. The brew was not overly complex, and it kept a consistent flavor profile. The qi was great and calming. The feeling began in the head and slowly moved around the body. I experienced a nice warming feeling. This drink had an interesting mouth action with some cooling effects. This is a nice brick, but I would feel better about it if I grabbed it when it was cheaper. For the future, I will be breaking it in half; one I will enjoy and give away, and the other will be going into storage. This is a very interesting tea, and I enjoyed the experience. Also, this is a good bargain buy for a nicely stored aged raw.

https://www.instagram.com/p/_9lUXBzGb3/?taken-by=haveteawilltravel

I am back from vacation!
This is my second attempt at brewing this, for the first time wasn’t all that great.

This session was much better. I got a new teapot as a gift while on vacation, and it seasoned very nicely. I dedicated the yixing to large leaf fresh spring sheng. I opened up the wrapper and reveled a very tightly wound little orb. The planet has a slight spiced green scent. I warmed up the yixing and popped this orb inside. i let it sit in the pot for some time to soak up the steam. I opened the lid and took in a wonderful fresh sweet scent. I washed the orb three times to allow the leaves to begin opening up. The taste began light and sweet, with a nice golden color. The brew progressively grew darker and yielded some more deeper flavors. The beginning of these tastes were intensely fresh; this orb is pure spring. I tasted some strong grassy notes with a wonderful sweetness. The brew has a brief peppery kuwei and a nice huigan that follows the drinker. The brew grew into some light roasted tones with a warm slight nuttiness in the aftertaste. The grassy tones kept consistently strong throughout the entire session; however, I also noted some woodiness in a later steeping. The drink has a beginning bite and then soothes with a sugarcane sweetness. The final steeping had a dry grass tone covered with a wet wood and warm sweetness. The qi is nice and warming with an alert effect. The sensation begins behind the eyelids and flows throughout the body. This warming feeling cools down to a percolating stimulate and gives the drinker a nice buzz. I liked this little orb. I would categorize this as a nice treat for traveling, but it isn’t something I’d keep for a staple. The price point is a little high for this tea. I enjoyed my session, and I’m happy that I gave this another chance.

https://www.instagram.com/p/9vwxNRzGSL/?taken-by=haveteawilltravel

I had this for my morning brew, and it is reaaaally good. This tea got me very excited for spring harvest. I haven’t had any green tea since April or ay’ish, so this was a nice change. I grabbed my kyusu and warmed it up. I poured a heavy amount of these leaves into it. These small needles are a brilliant emerald green and fairly glossy. I warmed them up and they gave off an enticing aroma of creamy vegetables. I really missed the scent of Japanese greens. I brewed these up and poured myself a cup. The liquor was a beautiful shade of green. The color was so vibrant and astonishing. I tried to take a photo of it, but it was too dark this morning to capture it. I sat for some time just admiring the shade of green. The taste was fantastic. This tea has an extremely thick body with a salivating juiciness. I always think of “life water” or some sort of elixir when I drink gyokuru. This tea just has that “life giving” characteristics. I picked up a decent umami profile and some astringency in the aftertaste. This wasn’t a completely light and sweet green; instead, it was a little rough, and it carried some heavier tones. This tea gave me an amazing head high, and it really got me buzzing for work. I love that green tea energy! I really liked this brew, like a lot. I wish I had some more. This tea sparked the fire I had for green tea, so I’m counting the days until spring. I will surely stock up.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BAMzCefzGdt/?taken-by=haveteawilltravel

I leave for vacation very soon, and I had a six hour safety course to complete before hand. This was the perfect time for a looong session. I brought this out, and I was pretty excited to try it out. I opened the jar and took in a sweet woodsy aroma with some spice in the background. I warmed the Jianshui up and placed a decent amount inside. I lifted the lid and took in an amazing aroma! The scent began with a sweet aged profile. I then picked up the “oaky” whiskey barrel scent, and then a tasty finish of caramel and vanilla bean. I also noted an odd scent. I was in Oklahoma City once, and they had an orchid named the “Amazon Orchid” at their Botanical Gardens. This flower had such a peculiar scent that was both sweet and spiced. The warmed leaf took me back to the scent of that orchid. I returned back to my session and washed the leaves once. The steeped leaves are a dark crimson and carry such a scrumptious scent. I picked up most of the same tones as earlier except now I could take in some pipe tobacco and mulled cider. I was pretty excited to brew this up. The initial sip was a very full body. The flavor was thick and lasting. This tea brews up a rusted orange color. The session is relatively consistent with its flavor profile. I picked up a nice oak median with some drying sensations. The brew has sweet tones of sugarcane and sap, and spiced tones with a fibrous astringency. This brew keeps a steady wood taste with a nice pleasant huigan. The qi is deep and warming with nice chest compression. This is a slow building qi and just follows you throughout the session. The qi didn’t overwhelm nor take off; it was just kinda in the back of the head and at heart center. The session lasted two hours and forty minutes until it became flat (the timer of the course assisted with a reliable timeline). I really liked this tea, and it was a nice smooth session. However, this wasn’t spectacular. I believe this solely is a collector’s tea, and it’s price does not reflect the experience. I would not spend this much on this tea again. The tea is a very solid and reliable session, but it isn’t something memorable. I would only show this off because of its brand, year, and authenticity; not for the actual taste or qi. I liked this, and I’m glad I was able to try. This isn’t something I will seek out again.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BANtKpizGfv/?taken-by=haveteawilltravel

I’m going to be leaving town soon, and I knew I had to try this before I left. This tea is beautiful, and I am most grateful for an opportunity to try. The leaves are long, intact, and graciously delicate. I gave them a whiff and picked up some dried and fermented fruit tones. I warmed my gaiwan up, and I got ready to brew these treasures up. I placed a fairly decent amount in my warmed gaiwan, and I let them sit. I sat back in my chair and took time to think about what this tea really is. This is a historical brew. This tea has seen more time than I have, and it has stayed intact and ready to be enjoyed. I love the idea of drinking a piece of history. I love the thought that this tea has sat waiting for decades, and it decided to show up on my doorstep. I returned back from my daydreams and lifted the gaiwan lid. I picked up so many complex tones. The aroma began with a sweet plum and then quickly moved into a spiced persimmon. This scent carried into smoothed mahogany with some candied rhubarb. The steam scents ended with some ripe pipe tobacco and remnants of tree sap. I sat for quite some time to take in this buffet of scents. I washed the leaves, and I drank the rinse. The rinse had a nice body, clean sweetness, and was subtly tangy. In my opinion, the drink itself was more for the experience rather than the taste. This is not to say that this tea tasted poorly, for it was an exquisite flavor profile. However, I have had more palette pleasing sessions. The taste begins with sweet candied dark fruit and light aged wood. This brew is subtle yet a full mouth-feel. I picked up a sweet twisted tang on the tongue after every sip. The brew moves from antiquated woods to dried red fruits. The mid session brings about a nice lasting sweetness with rustic tobacco flavors. Oddly, this brew faintly reminds me of a higher quality Old Bear Fangcha (W2T). The flavor drops off incredibly slowly and becomes sweeter and smoother. This brew is spectacularly smooth and clean throughout the entire session. I’m amazed at how this has been stored so purely for such a long span of time. The tea lasts forever and can brewed over and over. I was able to let it steep and walk away without any bitterness or astringency occurring. The final note is about the qi. The feeling this tea gifted me is something phenomenal. There is a slight and subtle feeling at the get-go. The sensation begins in the head and repeatedly rushes the body with a wave of warmth. The feeling then moves into a more whimsical flight prescience. Afterwards, the sensation calms the body and gives a debilitating effect. Finally, the sensations circulates throughout body. I experience a deep warmth and uplifted feeling. I loved this tea, and I’m grateful to experience it. I usually don’t ramble, but I always want to give the good ones their proper spotlight.

https://www.instagram.com/p/_u795LTGYR/?taken-by=haveteawilltravel

I’ve had this for awhile, so I finally decided to take it out. I’m not going to go into too much detail about this brew, for it wasn’t that complex. The dry leaf gave off a Shou earth aroma. I warmed the leaves, and I got a deeper earth. The steeped leaves had the same warmed earth. The liquor tasted like….. you guessed it, earth. This wasn’t terrible, but it was boringly basic. This tea was thin and didn’t have any differentiated tones other than earth, wet earth, soil, and warmed earth. All these tones are pretty much the same, or at least in the same category. I won’t be getting any more of this. I wouldn’t use the word “rich” to describe it either.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BAC5lc6zGdx/?taken-by=haveteawilltravel

This is an interesting tea. I decided to gongfu it solely for my own curiosities. Needless to say, this shouldn’t be gongfu’d. The tea is oddly sweet but rough at the same time. I noticed a lot of bitterness, and an overpowering taste of dust or dirt. This drink was filled with malt and astringent flavors. The aftertaste included an underlying stevia sweetness. I liked the experience, but I didn’t finish the session. I’ll be sure to just western brew this if I ever acquire more.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BAFRyvuTGfp/?taken-by=haveteawilltravel

This company has recently sparked my interest, for I had never noticed them until just recently. I enjoy their product appearance, and I knew I had to give them a go. I acquired some of this tea, so I decided to brew it up. The leaf consists of small delicate ebony curls that give off a sweet musky cherry scent. I was also picking up some dark chocolate tones. I placed them inside the warmed teapot and gave them a shake. The scent became a sweet butter or molasses scent. I was still picking up the chocolate tone, only it became much more smooth. I washed the leaves once and prepared for brewing. The steeped leaves transform towards more sharper tones of malt, dark wood, and burnt sugar. The flavor began as pure buttery molasses. The taste was sweet, smooth, and lasting. The second steep brought more maltier and wood flavors. The next steeping session slowly pushed the tea into a rough and robust direction. I really enjoyed this tea, but I believe it should be brewed western instead of gongfu. I know that I should explore more from this company, and I am happy to have tried this.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BAGFeNqTGZQ/?taken-by=haveteawilltravel