4843 Tasting Notes
Since it’s getting later, I figured I’d slow things down a little and drink something with a little (or no!) caffeine. I love my Starry Night blend. Green rooibos, which I prefer over the red, with delightful fruit flavors – peach and mango are the most prominent.
Delicious!
Preparation
Time for my daily Oolong! No… I don’t have Oolong every SINGLE day, but I do try to. It is my favorite tea, after all!
This is the first time I’m tasting this Oolong from The Simple Leaf, but I was so incredibly impressed with “Dawn” that I have high expectations. Also, it is an Oolong from Nepal, and I have had a couple of Oolongs from Nepal and have loved them. So… yeah… I expect big taste from this cup of Oolong.
And it delivers! Not my favorite Oolong, but it is really good. Distinct notes of honey in the aroma and the taste. Pleasant mouthfeel – not as thick and buttery as a greener Oolong would be, but, very smooth and silky. It also possesses a woodsy character and a fruit-like quality to it. It is quite a bit lighter in flavor than other Oolongs, so I think the next time I brew this tea I’ll steep a little longer.
Preparation
I have this one too! I really should sample it soon. But I have horrible allergies right now so I don’t think I could do it justice. What’s your favorite oolong?
Ali Shan High Mountain from Norbu:
http://steepster.com/teas/norbu/8063-ali-shan-high-mountain-oolong-fall-09
LOVE it.
I have pretty horrible allergies too, fortunately though, my Allergi-TEA and the local raw honey is doing it’s job and I’m experiencing fewer and fewer symptoms with each new day. A week ago… I was a mess!
Thanks! I have to check out Norbu! I waiting on some oolong samples from Teaspring. After them, Norbu’s Ali Shan is next!
I’m drinking pu-erh right now and it seems to be helping somehow. But I still feel blech.
I’m on to my second infusion of these leaves. The second infusion produces a much earthier taste. Honey notes still there although they are much softer. The woodsy characteristics I mentioned earlier are much more pronounced in the second steeping. Floral notes are more evident in this infusion as well.
Delightful! This may very well be the best Genmaicha tea I’ve ever tasted – certainly the best Genmaicha with Matcha! The Genmaicha base is smooth with a sweet, nutty contribution from the toasted rice. Pleasantly sweet – it seems to happily glide across the palate! The flavor is much less vegetative than bancha based genmaicha teas. The matcha adds a pleasantly sweet note. There is very little bitterness to this cup.
I adore this tea!
Preparation
Another purchase based upon the weirdness of it … yeah, I do that a lot. But… peanut butter is where I draw the line. (Sorry 52Teas) The smell of the dry leaves is intriguing, it reminds me of sesame oil and Chinese cuisine, and because I’m hungry, this aroma is making me even hungrier!
Because of previous issues that I’ve had with Adagio’s black teas – I found them to be just a bit bitter when brewed for the recommended time of 5 minutes – I chose to brew this just 2 1/2 minutes, which seems to be just about perfect for this tea.
I like it better than I thought I would. It possesses a very unique flavor. Adagio’s black tea base is much more tannic than the average Ceylon. It has a stronger astringency, and a tendency to get bitter if it’s brewed too long.
The sesame is toasty and nutty. However, I think that much of the sesame’s characteristics are overwhelmed a bit with this Ceylon – perhaps it would be a flavor better suited for a green tea? I don’t know… I think I need to taste it a few more times before I can really summarize my thoughts on this tea…
Preparation
I find it funny you find a peanut butter tea more odd than toasted sesame lol :) I thought the same thing about switching to a green tea base… but I think it’s just cuz it’s an Asian flavor- I thought the same of their Thai Chai
I guess I’ve never been a big peanut butter fan. I like it ok, but, about the only way I really ever “crave” or even “want” peanut butter is in peanut butter blossom cookies and I think that is mostly because my gramma made these and they hold a special place in my heart because of that. I don’t know… I guess it’s just one of those weird things that I can’t explain … Peanut butter in tea just doesn’t sound appealing to me at all. LOL
The second infusion of these leaves proved to be much better than the first. The Ceylon base softened significantly and what remains is a very smooth tasting tea. This allowed for some of the more interesting notes of the sesame to reveal themselves – it is a little sweeter with a stronger nutty quality, and a very pleasant toasty note.
peanut butter is where I draw the line. (sorry 52teas)
Just stumbled onto this and it made me lol.
I finished off the last that I had of this treat in a teacup! I love this tea. It is especially good “Latte” – I warm the milk and then froth it foamy, and top it with a grind of fresh nutmeg. YUM!
The cinnamon is sweet (not a spicy cinnamon) and the almond has a beautiful nutty character. The black tea is bold enough to taste, but not so bold that it overwhelms the cup. A very pleasant way to start the afternoon!
Preparation
I like the nutmeg idea!!!
This sounds like one I must try! I’m really having a “Year of the Almond”.
I’m looking forward to trying this. I have a number of teas in my pantry now with the moniker “cookie.” Some even have the exact same name. I think I have two or three orange cookies. Obviously, I have cookies on the brain…
For my Oolong today, I thought I’d try this tea from Adagio. I love grapefruit… I love Formosa Oolong, so I am thinking this has to be the bomb, right?
The aroma is nice… woodsy, slightly smoky even, with light floral notes and of course, citrus.
The flavor reveals a hint of buttery smoothness which I’ve found to be typical of greener Oolongs, but not so much of the darker Oolongs. I can taste the deeper, natural peachy notes of the Oolong which blend quite well with the bright, sunny taste of the grapefruit. The grapefruit is soft in this blend, but not quite as soft as I found the grapefruit black tea from Adagio Teas to be. Perhaps the softer flavors of the Oolong allow for the grapefruit flavor shine through.
A decent Oolong, and I look forward to another infusion!
Preparation
Yum! I love my caramel tea!
The flavor is rich and smooth, but with a bold base – a touch of malt that really goes nicely with the caramel notes. Not super sweet – even though I named it as such… I was thinking of Axl Rose at the time! It has a nice sweetness though but one that I like to accent with a bit of raw sugar to bring out some of the richer notes of the caramel.
YUM!
Preparation
This is one of the only green teas that I enjoy as a latte… and it is YUMMY!
The creamy vanilla flavoring in the tea is accented well by the addition of the steamed milk. I like that the mint is strong here but not so much that it overwhelms the grassy nature of the green tea.
Preparation
My order from Den’s arrived! I ordered a couple of teas as well as their Green Tea Sampler (just for fun!) so that I could get over the $30 so I could get the Gyrokuro.
This is the first tea that I’m trying from Den’s. The color of the tea is very bright green, much like a thin Matcha, but the aroma … is most prominently of Genmaicha. YUM! I love me some Genmaicha!
YUM! Did I say that already? I love the roasty-toasty flavor of Genmaicha. The matcha is not quite as prominent as the Genmaicha, but, it is still quite pleasant and mildly sweet.
