Little Red Cup Tea Co.

tea from earlier today. Another tasty offering from Little Red. They now have really cute tins as well! haha

i know…not my usual cup of tea. But i bought a sample of this (that was huge! and cheap!) for those days when i really want a white/green/ sort of tea lol. today was one of those days. :)

sipdown! This was a sample from Little Red Cup Tea Company. The sample they sent was more than generous, which is why i’m passing along the other half of my sample to Terri, to help spread the word about their teas. This is a delicious tea! it’s nothing like a green tea…instead it comes across as more of a white tea, but with a bit more flavour than i’m used to in whites. it’s sweet, not overly floral, though there is a bit of that. i quite like this one, and hope my tea sister does as well. Looking forward to trying the keemun from the same company too!

Rich and aromatic. The small black leaves let up a very faint scent of smoke and greens, typical of the type, but less pronounced than others I’ve tried.

A beautiful liquor the color of weak cola filled the cup, and to my surprise, scented the air around me with a wonderful smokey floral aroma. The first taste to reveal itself was that of light smoke; not Lapsang strong, but present and tempered with a wonderful maltiness in good balance. The finish was floral and vegetal, with a final buttery flavor, perhaps what others call creaminess.

I’m whittling down the number of teas which I’ll reorder and stock in quantity; this one makes that list!

Gene

Many thanks to Little Red Cup for the sample!

I used about 1.5-2 tsp to 12 oz of water for a first infusion of 40 seconds. It’s surprisingly crisp and a touch sour upon first sip, like the peels of white grapes. A bit fruity…Vegetal, light, and ends on a slightly sweet note. It leaves faint traces of a sweet, buttery, flowery softness in my mouth that makes me want to drink more.

Second infusion, 55 seconds. The smell of the wet leaves reminds me a lot of Laoshan Green, but the taste is more light and springy than hearty and bean-y. The second steep isn’t quite as sharp as the first but it’s still bright and a little sweeter than before! The buttery/floral notes become less shy and make more of an appearance. MAN this is good.

Third infusion, 1 minute 10 seconds. Back to sharp and springy, not so much sweet but with a lingering smoothness and a slight honey aftertaste. The more the tea cools and the nearer I get to the bottom of the cup, the more honeyed and rich and caramelly the taste is. Coats my mouth a little. Interesting. Still, I kind of wish I’d let it steep a bit longer.

It’s late, so I’ll pay these leaves another visit in the morning. (: Loving it so far! Very nice, and very much appreciated!

Keemun Tea is a fairly popular (ok it is probably the most famous of the Chinese Black, or Red Tea if you are fancy) tea from Jiangxi Province. Also known by the name Qimen, which is what I recognized it as for years before I realized Keemun and Qimen were the same things, ah dialects, so much fun! This Keemun has a delightful smoky aroma that is stronger in this batch than other Keemuns I have tried, and I really enjoy that. Along with the smokiness there is a rich sweet aroma and a touch of wine. Sadly I am not skilled enough to say what kind of wine the aroma evokes except red and sweet, I am sure someone with more wine skills than me can fill in the blanks.

Once the tea has been given a trip to the sauna it takes on an oaky aroma, like it has been aged in an oak cask somewhat smoky. The aroma is super rich and mouthwatering, I feel like I am being transported to a basement in Venice or the like. Nothing to do with China, I know, but that is where the aroma took me. It is lovely. The liquid once the leaves have wandered off is still very rich and smoky but also has a sweet note.

After I finish being transported to another part of the world I figure it is time to drink the tea, after-all this is the last tea I will be drinking for a few days, I might as well enjoy it! The taste is tangy, in a very delicious way, similar to oak resin or the aroma of oak galls. For someone who has spent way too much time in a forest this flavor will be very nostalgic and pleasant. There is still the smoky richness that the aroma promised and it mixes with an underlying sweetness that stays in the mouth long after you have swallowed. This is a perfect tea for an Autumn evening, I plan on saving the bit I have left for just such an occasion. The first really cool, smoky evening I will sit under the stars and sip this tea. I really enjoyed it, it is smoky enough to evoke the Autumn feel and just give you the idea, but it is no where near as smoky as Lapsang Souchong. A delicious tea before I have to take a break.

For blog and photos: http://ramblingbutterflythoughts.blogspot.com/2013/10/little-red-cup-tea-co-keemun-black-tea.html

I didn’t look at the description before I brewed it. I assumed it was an oolong.
It’s light, air, and has an “open air” kind of flavor. Slightly fruity and sweet. I thought it was odd for an oolong, oh but wait its a white tea! Hmmm… my first white tea… I Kinda like it. Not sure really what to think of it but it seems like a good starting point.

Drank it again. Oh, its tasty. I like to sit out in my garden and pretend I am in an open prairie enjoying the fresh air. This tea just reminds me of fresh air, calmness, and freedom.
On days when I can’t escape the city, i can at least drink this and pretend I can escape.

I think i ruined my tea a bit on the second and third cup because i had water about 80°c and made a to long steep (about 5min). It turned a little bit bitter but it was still enjoyable. If i keep up with the 70°c steeps i believe the tea will hold out better because the quality of the first cup was really tasty. Still got enough sample size left to make a new go somewhere this week!

Time for trying out my first sample from Little Red Cup Tea. Its a fairly big sample so thanks very a lot for giving me a chance to test it out!

The leaf’s are when dry a bit fluffy like the hairs on silver needles, but more green. I make my first cup with a 3min steep time on 70°c. The liquor of the brew turns out to be a bit between white and green tea. Its golden like a white tea, but with a green tint.

Its still a bit warm with my first sips but i’m getting a nice creamy flavor with some sweet aftertaste. This tea sure is more leaning towards a white then a green thats surprising and it drinks away very easy. When its more cooled down it reminds me a bit of a white darjeeling i had some time ago. Its a very nice cup and i’m curious about the second and third brew i’m going to make from it!

Well this is interesting. It has a creamy straw/hay flavor like a white tea, with a hint of green vegetal flavor, and a slight maltyness like a black tea. Also a hint of floral aroma. It is good, but hard to describe! Smooth and mellow and somewhat sweet.

Thank you Little Red Cup for providing me a sample of this unique tea for review! :)

Thanks very much Little Red Cup for a sample of this tea for review!

This reminds me of a stripped down version of one of my favorite green teas of all time- Laoshan Green. There is no soybean creaminess, but the sweetness and GREEN vegetal flavors are there. I would also compare it to Spring Twist by Butiki, but less sweet and delicate. If you are a fan of either of those teas, this might be a suitable and much less expensive alternative!

Hint of floral aroma and tiny bit of astringency. I went for extra leaf and extra steep time so I could hopefully assess everything this tea has to offer. I would definitely drink this one again :)

This just gets better and better with each cup. Previous notes are heavy on the fruit metaphors; this afternoon,I’m picking up some nutmegginess, too. Perfect for late afternoon.

Squoze out a reasonable second steep from yesterday’s leaves. The sharpest citrusy edges aren’t there, but still fruity and extremely drinkable. This Mao Jian (Tazo pronounces it Meow Jian) has rejuvenated my interest in green tea.

Peer pressure coupled with a tasty lunch of lemon chicken at the local Asian quickie place prompted this cup. This is just a plain ol’ pleasant, drinkable, slightly fruity green tea that is worth seeking out.

Little skinny grassy leaves, about two minutes, and ooh! Serendipity! Instead of green-grassy-vegetal, we get sharpish-springy-fruity: golden raisins or white grape juice-ish. Not a lick of bitterness. Nicest surprise in a cuppa green I’ve had in a long while.

Greenies, you’ll like this one!

I was interested in trying this tea, since I’m a big fan of keemun, and this was a potential bargain compared to the teas I usually buy. Thanks to Little Red Cup for the sample.

The initial aroma was a powerful smell of old leather. I later noticed some smoke behind the leather. The taste has the same features: strong leather with hints of smoke. Good long finish. The tea is well-made, smooth and powerful, but I just can’t get into the leather flavor.

The first tea, White Monkey from Hunan Province, is neither white or a monkey, but it is delightfully fuzzy (this fuzz is called Trichomes, for the botany minded types) and very lovely to look at. White Monkey is actually a fairly delicate green tea that was picked very early in the season and in a lot of ways acts like a white tea. Full of mystery and fuzz, just the way I like my tea! The aroma of these downy leaves is sweet, like hay and fresh vegetation, like walking through an overgrown field. There is also a rich undertone of muscatel that is wonderfully mixed with the initial sweetness. A very fresh aroma that is both mellow and invigorating. It always amuses me when a tea can do that.

Once the leaves are taking a nice swim in their warm bath the aroma takes on a floral tone, a nice comparison to the initial field aroma of the leaves (the field has bloomed! Spring to Summer) it fades to a mix of muscatel and bright citrus. A pleasant little zing at the end, a wake you up from your daydreaming about fields. The liquid away from the leaves has the aroma of fresh hay, very mild and pleasantly sweet.

I love drinking fuzzy teas because it always tickles just a little bit. The taste is what is important, not the adorable fuzz, this first brew I gave a short steep and it produced a delightfully mild tea. The primary taste is vegetal, like spinach, mixed with mown hay. The aftertaste is gently sweet with a tiny, tiny hint of flowers. As the tea cools it takes on a quince flavor with a bit of tartness.

The second steep I let sit a bit longer to see what other flavors I could glean, as per recommended from the website. The aroma is much more green and takes on a real body that honestly I thought of as crunchy. Odd I know, but that was the first thing that came to mind ‘this smells crunchy.’ The taste is much more intense! The quince taste that was noticed once the tea cools is much more prominent and is accompanied by a citrusy tartness. There is a strong vegetal aftertaste that wraps up the tea nicely. As to be expected the second steep is not as fuzzy. A nicely mild tea that is one that is good for anytime drinking.

Blog post and photos: http://ramblingbutterflythoughts.blogspot.com/2013/09/little-red-cup-tea-co-white-monkey-tea.html

I don’t generally catch myself saying, “Self, you need to buy yourself some green tea.” (It’s usually, “Self, you need to spend more money than you need to on bundles and batches of black tea and caffeinate yourself into a coma.”) But if I told myself that, this would be on the short list. Precise balance of greeny and cereally; a second steep holds up nicely; even better when you’re drinking it from your Favorite Sunny Spot.

Picked this because it’s a cold, cloudy, raw afternoon; need to be slamming away at a due-too-soon writing project instead of tasting notes, so I’m anticipating multiple cuppas to keep me going—-resteeps should keep the caffeine level manageable.

Used water that was a little too warm on this one, so it’s heavier on the “bite” than my previous experiences. But sometimes a little bite, judiciously applied to the proper spot, is what you need to get off your keister (keester? keyster?) and get to work.

Well…there goes a carefully crafted tasting note (don’t you hate when that happens)? Deep breath—-now what did I say that was worth repeating?

First, thanks to the Little Red Cup crew for the sample. Eyebrow tea is just cute. Perky, short, curly, happy leaves.

Went to the long side of the recommended steep time—2 minutes. I’m always pleasantly surprised when I can taste a green or white tea. Rice Chex with honey at the front of the sip; little bite of bitter (dark red leaf lettuce) at the end. Grain and veggies. I feel healthier already.

Thanks, Red Cup Tea Company!

This is a very refreshing oolong. It reminds me a little of rose violet calendula oolong by Butiki teas because it has so many prominent, natural floral tones. It’s tastes like violets or orchids. Jade oolong does have much more of a woody kick too it. It’s a powerful flavor that really spreads quickly. There is a light creaminess that prevents the wood from becoming too overwhelming. There is a little drymouth and bitterness to the aftertaste, but not much.

This tastes more like I assumed keemun would taste when I first tried it in spring—smoky (though less so than most lapsang souchongs I’ve had), strong, and bittersweet in a way that evokes dark chocolate, a little like an assam mixed with an LS. The ones I tried earlier (from Teavivre and Harney if I recall) were lighter, less smoky, and sweeter, much more chocolate than smoke. This would make a welcome eye opener. I especially like the dry and brewing aroma.