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Tea Swap
Sipdown

I’ve been taking more samples from the swap box to work lately, and trying to get the teas which I’d assume to be best western styled, down as much as possible. I have had this gongfu style, too, but I didn’t take any notes on the session though….However, I had decided to brew a variety of teas at work and note as much as I could during my 10 minute breaks….

On the packet I noted: A mild dark chocolate flavor, with a sweet note which lingers in the mouth.

I’m putting this note here to remind myself that I’ve tried it, have a few grams more, and will review later….My first session with this tea cannot be the time in which I rate the tea…Once I play around with tea/water volume, I’ll give more details to the session…

I will point out that the flavor of the tea is consistent (floral, sweet), the soup is thick, and it is refreshing…but there’s more to this tea that must be found through experimentation….

To be continued….

Puerh TTB/Sipdown
I’m up late tonight working on some music (lyrics/composing a guitar piece) for a 2018 music project/venture which has been inspired by my wife and friend (who is much more talented than myself in all sorts of way).

I must say that this is such a unique and very unusual tea that I cannot help to like it. I’m getting a pickled note throughout the tea, but it’s pretty nice despite the weirdness which lingers in the mouth (sour, vinegar). I’ve been keeping my eye out on YS for the amount of cakes remaining, and I’m hoping/planning on picking up a couple in January/February, depending on how much remains….I’d definitely like to drink one now and age another.

Backlog

Baked bread with a citrus notes.

That’s all I wrote? :P

Backlog

Right off the bat: Not bitter at all, smooth, has longevity (16 steeps), & DO NOT brew anywhere above 195 F until the end of its life….Still pretty good stuff, though.

Backlog

I’ve been bad at getting notes posted as I try the tea. For whatever reason, I feel most comfortable when allowing the notes to pile up, collect dust, and become long forgotten. However, my goal this morning is to ‘catch up’ and get everything—no matter how brief the note—down.

This tea was by far one of the better non-roasted oolong teas that I’ve had in a while. I’ve started to lean slightly toward the roasted oolong side of tea, so most of the time, I pretty ‘eh’ about the greener stuff. Ha-ha.

Notes: Pretty sweet melon-y notes throughout. I cannot remember any bitterness/astringency coming from this tea. I was able to push it to 13 steeps (the last 5 steeps were noted “1 min per following steep”), so it definitely had a bit of life in the leaf.

Backlog
Brief notes

Smooth start—sweet, floral, & stone fruits. It developed a leather-y note after the first 3 steeps, added with a sourness. On the 8th steep, the tea developed a bitterness on the initial taste, but had a sour/leather aftertaste.

Late Night Session
Tea Swap
Sipdown

I have had this tea in my stash since last December from a Secret Santa gift exchange/tea swap. I have reorganized my stash to start drinking the older teas first, rather than breaking into the “newer” stuff. I figured that with my new system in 2018, I might as well start with the old and work my way to the “new.”

This was from a swap/tea exchange from 2016 (thank you again, Matu); which I’m currently finished drinking/sampling/sipping. This tea is the last of the stash! :)

Notes:
Rinse/1st Steep: Buttery, crispy, & fruity.
2nd Steep: Creamier/milkier, buttery, & refreshing.
3rd Steep: Creamy & fruity

And the notes end there.

Backlog—“Yu Lang Xiang” from LH Tea Farmer

I’ve been without a computer for the past few weeks, but with plenty of patience of waiting on parts to arrive in the mail, I’m up and running again!

Notes:

1st Steep: Sweet pecan & with a thick mouthfeel despite the color of liquor.
2nd Steep: Nutty/pecans & slight bitterness in the back of the mouth.
3rd Steep: "Mixed nuts w/pecans, a slight bitterness still; less “sweet” more “savory.”
4th Steep: “You get the idea.” xD

7/10

Backlog/Tea Swap/Sipdown

I must admit that the teas which are “high end” teas like this make me avoid going to a companies website and blowing a hole in my wallet just for a “meh” cup of tea. Overall, it was pretty “basic” and “boring” after a while. Toward the beginning of the session, the tea was without much “oomph” or flavor. I had to increase the temperature to 205 F to get anything from the leaf; which resulted in too much bitterness. I reduced the temperature back to 195 F after a while, but after the 9th steep, it sort of died away. Is this worth the $70/cake? For me, no, but I can see how some people may enjoy this one….I apologize to the person who had swapped this out with me, but I still appreciate the swap, despite my hardness toward the tea…

PS. Regardless of my initial “points” awarded to this or any tea, I will always add 5 points to the tea only when it is swapped and/or gifted as a courtesy to my tea friends!