Roughage Send Message

I spent yesterday drinking this tea and really enjoying it. I find that it is a tough tea to get the best out of but when you do manage it, it is sublime. There are honeysuckle, peach and spice notes in it that make it really refreshing, while vegetal undertones keep it grounded. I like this tea and find it worth the effort. That is probably just as well, because I have a whole tin of it!

Thank you to Teavivre for for this free sample, and my apologies that I am totally behind on reviewing the teas I was sent. Still, only one left to try. That will be today’s project.

So, I drank this a while back but have not managed to write it up before now. I made it in an yixing pot and managed to get a good few steeps from it. The dry leaf had a strong hay aroma with a slight floral edge. The liquor brewed up yellow with some honey, hay and floral notes. The tea is smoky with vegetal notes. It is sweet and has a lasting aftertaste. There is some puckering of the tongue from the astringency that is quite pleasant. As I resteeped the tea, the flavour deepened and mellowed. I liked the way the tea developed and the flavours became more pronounced for the first half dozen steeps.

One thing I did find a bit odd was the recommendation to brew with boiling water. I normally brew sheng at 85-90 degrees C. With this tea I tried both. I found that I had to wait for it to cool before I could taste anything when I brewed it with boiling water while the cooler brew did not impair the flavour at all. I am still undecided about which is better but probably prefer the cooler brew. Perhaps I need to get some more to experiment a bit.

Thanks to mrmopar for this sample. It’s a mellow and woody tea with a hint of cinnamon. The liquor is rich and dark, like coffee. There is some earthiness there, and no off flavours at all. I would say that this is a very comfortable tea to drink, and I have been very comfortable drinking it since yesterday.

I wanted a black tea and succumbed to the blandishments of the tea aisle in Sainsburys at the weekend. “How bad can it be?” I thought to myself, “It’s in their Taste the Difference range and it says it is leaf tea.” Well, I should have expected the packet full of fannings, but I was deceived by the statement on the packet that it was leaf tea. I suppose that is technically true, but it’s not really the leaves I wanted. The instructions on the side of the packet don’t give much confidence either, but I know better than to trust those anyway. Well, the first cup was made as they suggested and it was bitter. Too strong, no flavour. That’s a point, where is the ‘depth of flavour’ you claim for this tea, Mr Sainsbury? Your advertising blurb is rubbish. The only flavour is a slight maltiness that is tasted as if almost at second or third hand. The second cup was made at a lower temperature and with less tea for a shorter time. That was better. I’ve got it sussed to the level where I can make a reasonable cuppa out of this but it really is not the quality tea that their branding makes out. It’s not even an everyday tea really, just drinkable in need. I was not expecting anything stellar, but I really did hope for an everyday tea. I guess all those decent teas I have been drinking have improved my palate well beyond anything that a supermarket is likely to stock. It must be time to start saving up again so I can order something decent. In the meantime I should try to make some quiet time to enjoy the puerhs that I have lurking in nooks and crannies around the house. Time is the problem, alas. They are good teas and require attention and time that I feel I do not have much of.

Thank you to Teavivre for this free sample.

When I opened the packet I thought it looked like a packet of tiny, dark brown worms. The leaves are small and slightly curly, quite tippy in fact. The dry leaf smells of dark chocolate while the wet leaf and liquor are heading more towards milk chocolate. The liquor is thick and black . It tastes extremely smooth and mellow with elements of leather, malt and cocoa. It reminds me very much of a good breakfast tea. This is not my favourite tea from Teavivre, but it is another solid offering with much to give in terms of depth of flavour and complexity.

Thank you to Bonnie for sending me this tea. It has languished in the cupboard until today when I found it tucked at the back. The leaf is dark green and twisty. It brews up to an olive green leaf and a pale soup. The colours are great and the aroma of the liquor is green beans and spinach. The aroma carries into the tea with vegetal notes, green beans and a touch of spinach. It is creamy and quite filling. Thank you, Bonnie. This is a good green tea and quite different from most that I drink. I would be very tempted to try brewing this one with an ice cube, Gyokuro style. I bet it would be brilliant.

Thank you to Teavivre for this free sample. I’m just sorry it has taken me this long to make time to try it.

The dry leaf has a thick milky floral aroma. As the nuggets open, the teapot (a glass one) I can see that the soup and leaf together take on an electric green colour that is really exciting. The liquor is pale green. It smells more creamy than the dry leaf and the floral notes are enhanced. The mouthfeel is milky and the tea is sweet and vegetal. The sweetness continues to develop on the tongue after swallowing. Overall, this is a light, refreshing tea that is perfect for warm summer days like today. Definitely a good choice.

Interestingly, I wrote about this tea two years ago. It is instructive to see how my descriptions have changed in that time.

Drinking this one to wake myself up and found it to be totally soporific instead! It’s smoky, peppery and still pretty darn good.

Thank you to Teavivre for this sample.

It does not take much guessing to realise that this is a Yunnan tea. It immediately reminds me of the Fengqing Dragon Pearl and Golden Monkey teas. The dry twisty leaves are a lovely mix of dark chocolate brown and gold. They give off a malty, chocolate aroma when dry. Upon steeping the aroma changes to floral, cocoa and honey aromas. The tea itself is sweet with caramel and honey notes, and the chocolate carries through from the liquor into the aftertaste. Underneath it all is the promised sweet potato, beefing the flavour up and giving the tea body and a creamy mouthfeel. The aftertaste endures nicely, with the aforementioned chocolate notes and more sweet potato as the tea cools. It has good depth to it and brings on a pleasing though light cooling sensation to the body. Overall, this is yet another great tea from Teavivre. Actually, I don’t think they have sent me a dud tea yet. May that record long continue.

Making it in a teapot this time around. The resultant experience is still superb but quite different from the gaiwan. This time it is thick and fruity, reminding me of bread and butter pudding with a slight note of custard on the side. I really like this tea.