Single Origin Teas

In this day of political correctness, we aren’t supposed to have prejudice, but I have to confess that I have prejudice against certain teas, including Nilgiri. I’ve never had one that I thought was better than ordinary. Until this one.

This tea was really nice. The first Nilgiri that I’ve really enjoyed. It reminds me a bit of a Yunnan: earthy, with a hint of chocolate. The second steep was slightly bitter, but a third was smooth and enjoyable. Not great, but certainly rising above ordinary.

From the Unflavored TTB.
One of the disadvantages of a TTB is that there is a tension between using a lot of tea and leaving more for future participants. I’m also trying to taste a lot of different teas, so I don’t want to spend half the day with a single tea. So for this tea, I did a weird compromise between a western style and gong-fu: steeping 2 grams of tea in 6 oz of water for several 2-minute steeps. It let me get a sense of the tea without using a lot of tea or feeling like I wanted to do 10 re-steeps. It seemed to work out reasonably well.

1st steep (2 min): Soft nose is straw with grassy/spicy undertones. As it cooled, the spice became more prominent. The taste has a good mouth-feel, with a blend of straw and grass and a hint of spice. 2nd (2 min): Smell is now grass and toast. Much richer flavors. Less grass, more spice. By the third steep (5 min):, the taste is really deep and rich. Not much grass at all.

The dry leaves smell of rum and sugared nuts (think of those roasted nut stands in Asia).

The smell of the brewed tea is of roasted nuts and smokiness with a hit of sweetness at the end. The liquor is a light amber. The sip starts buttery and sweet and finishes with a woodsy smoke reminiscent of tobacco. The finish is brought back to an earthy sweetness.

I enjoy this tea and its complexity. It is great as an oolong because black tea would be too astringent. This oolong borders on being almost too astringent, but it pulls itself back from the edge with the sweetness and smokiness. From the leaf I thought it would be much sweeter, but it is actually quite well balanced. I could see this becoming more indulgent with sugar and cream, but I like it just the way it is.

I got a whiff of molasses as I poured, but couldn’t find it in the cup. I’m not a big fan of Assam, but keep searching, hoping to find that special tea that lets me love Assam. This one is close, but not quite there.

I tried this as the first tea of the morning on the first full day of the unflavored TTB. Sort of a high end English Breakfast? It is powerful enough, but not overwhelming. Very smooth, malty with hints of fruit, and on the tannic side; almost at the point where I want to add sugar (which I normally would with breakfast tea, but not with fine teas – I’m still trying to decide which side of the line this one falls). The finish is excellent: long and complex, and I think the molasses may make a subtle re-appearance. In the end, I couldn’t quite love it, but I liked it a lot. We’ll just remain friends.

From the Unflavored TTB

The box just arrived and I’m anxious to try some tea, but it’s 4 PM. Pai Mu Tan isn’t supposed to have too much caffeine, so I’ll take my chances.

The nose is really rich. My first thought was melon, but it then tasted more fruity I thought of honeysuckle, but I think pear comes closest. The taste is sweet; a bit simpler than the nose, but continues the flavors, with an additional dusty character. The finish is good, but doesn’t quite live up to the promise of the nose. There were no disagreeable elements; the flavors worked well together in a nice, smooth cup.

Overall, this is a very fine tea. To my mind, the aroma is the best part of the tea, but the taste and finish are also very good. I lingered over my first cup and while the aroma remained excellent, the taste seemed to fade a bit as the tea cooled. Still good, but no longer excellent.

Resisting the temptation to rush to another tea, and mindful of the impact of too much caffeine on the odds of my getting a decent night’s sleep, I tried a re-steep (also 3 minutes). The aroma is similar to before, but weaker. The taste and finish in the re-steep initially seemed much simpler than before: basic white tea; good, but not in the same league as the first steep. However, as the tea cooled (and I took bigger sips) it opened up into a very good tea.

Drinking my last bit of this. This is one of the only Assams that I drink straight. There is a nice fruitiness to it that adds some sweetness. It is also full of wonderful malt notes as well as caramel. The last time i had this I noted that it was a touch astrigent, so I lowered my water temp, and that fixed it. No dryness, just a nice smooth sip.

I’ll definitely pick up more of this at some point. It’s a very reliable and tasty Assam.

(From the Unflavored Traveling Tea Box)

Tea of the morning. A nice Assam. It’s smooth and malty with a touch of astringency. There’s also a sweetness – a brown sugar like flavor – that is most present before the tea cools. Holds up well to milk and sugar, but I think I appreciate this tea more sans additions.

I’m all grumbly/grumpy and am attempting to adjust my mood with tea. Yesterday was a fairly craptacular day, including among other things: my debit card quit working (for some reason it decided it wasn’t “activated” anymore), I thought I left my wallet in my shopping cart, went running back through the parking lot to retrieve it and I broke my baby toe by hitting it on the concrete parking bump thingie. Right now my baby toe is the color of 7 minute steeped Special Dark (which I had a cup of as soon as I woke myself up by getting my broken toe caught in the covers and which hurt like howling HELL). And also? It’s Monday.

So today I get to look forward to: going in late to work because I have to go to my bank and straighten out my debit card and hobbling around on my hurty toe without vicodin because I can’t take vicodin and drive/work and a crappy meeting that I’ve been not looking forward to.

Soooooo that is a lot of grumpiness right there. I’m trying to adjust my attitude. I had my big cup of comforting Special Dark, have now started on a cup of this delicious Jun Chiyabari from our Unflavored TTB and have Golden Fleece and Golden Orchid waiting in the wings.

I really like this tea and need to do a real note on it. I have enough left for one small cup after this and will do an actual note on it then. But right now I’m enjoying the floral, muscaty, lychyeeness of this. I plan on ordering some because this is happy tea. It’s all sparkly and lovely and I’m happy drinking it. It’s different from anything I’ve tasted before and I’m enjoying it very much. Another happy thing is that my dahlias are starting to bloom and they make me smile. Maybe today will get better.

(From the Unflavored Traveling Tea Box)

I’ve only had two infusions of this one so far, but I’m enjoying them quite a bit. The flavor is roasty and nutty with a touch of floral right at the end. All of the flavors are mild without begin too subtle making this easy to sip and savor while carrying on with other things.

Single Origin Teas has really impressed me with the quality of their teas. There are a few more in the box, and I’m looking forward to trying them all.

I still love this one. Tonight I tasted a toasty note that I don’t think I noticed in this tea before. I still get lemon and rose as well as the muscatel flavors as the tea cools a bit, but I liked the slightly deeper roast-y toast-y note added to the mix. It works especially well with the sharp wine-like finish.

Basically this tea is amazing.

This tea. Oh my, this tea. I love it. I’ve sampled many Nepali teas this year, and this one has been my hands down favorite. It’s delicate but intense, and there’s so much going on with the various flavors that I feel like I’ve never done a good job describing it. Can I just say that it’s awesome? I love the rose-y floral notes mixed with the toastiness. There’s a touch of something spicy (like the thought of a hint of cracked pepper), a lemon like citrus note, the fruity muscatel flavor, and the pleasantly sharp wine-like finish.

Love this one.

Tea of the morning. I’m absolutely enchanted by this tea. It has a nice toasty note as well as lemon and rose. As the tea cools the muscatel flavor appears which blends beautifully with the citrus and floral notes. So, so good!

Sweet mercy in the mornin’, this is some good stuff! It’s delicate and lovely with rose and lemon notes giving way to good crusty bread. There’s a sharpness to the finish that is very wine-like, and as the tea cools the muscatel notes come out and blend with the floral and lemon notes in a really beautiful way.

Love, love, love this one.

Bumping my rating up from 99 to 100.

(From the Unflavored Traveling Tea Box)

I’m all fan girly over the teas from Jun Chiyabari Estate at the moment. I had a tea from this estate (via a different tea company) a few days ago and loved it. I’m thinking I like this one even more. This tea has a light body with notes of rose, lemon, and toasty bread. There is also a muscatel note that has a sharp wine like finish. This isn’t just good, it’s incredibly good. As the tea cools there is a bit of a clean hay flavor, and while there is some astringency it is much less than I was expecting.

The rose/floral notes in this one set it apart for me. They aren’t in-your-face strong, but they are present throughout the sip as the other flavors slip in and out. It gives the tea balance and a bit of playfulness. I think I could drink this tea all day and be very happy.

(From the Unflavored Traveling Tea Box)

I think this tea was too subtle for me. I kept thinking that maybe I taste lemon, or maybe there is some sweetness, or maybe a malty note. I had no trouble drinking it. It just didn’t impress me too much.

Tea of the morning. Today is the day I take down the Christmas tree and get all of the holiday decorations tucked back in the attic for another year. This year my decorations were very simple, so it shouldn’t take too long. I do hate saying good bye to the holiday season, but I like having things back in their proper place. But before that, tea.

I love when I’m looking through my teas in the morning and one just jumps out at me. Today it was this one, and the peppery, sweet, malty notes are just what I want. I always think of this as a light tea, but it has decent body and strength. It’s also good for multiple steeps which is nice. I still think of this as an afternoon tea, but this morning it’s hitting all the right notes.

This was my daughter’s tea choice this morning. She loves this tea. She says it’s , “a peppy happy tea,” and I totally agree with her. I resteeped her leaves, and I’m enjoying that this tea is light but still has strength. There is also a zippy bell pepper-ish note that I’ve never tasted in any other tea. I’m liking it here. It gives a balance to the natural sweetness of the tea. Really, really good.

Tea of the morning. I sipped on this while sitting on my front porch watching the lunar eclipse. Everything was calm and lovely. I enjoyed the mix of fruity, spicy, malty notes in this tea while watching nature do her thing.

Tea of the morning. I like how bright this tea is. It manages to have a lightness to it while still having body. Maybe it’s the spicy notes or the fact that the malt note never overwhelms the tea. I don’t know, but I do know that this is a nice tea and I’m happy to have it in my cup today.

(From the Unflavored Traveling Tea Box)

The UTTB arrived today, and after much oohing and ahhing at the amazing teas I get to taste I chose this one as my starting point. I’ve never tried a tea from Vietnam before, and SOT’s description of it intrigued me.

This tea is good. Very good. The color of the infused tea is a medium amber, and the smell is a mix of spice and leather. It’s an appealing and very comforting smell. It makes me think of a nice study with deep leather chairs to curl up in while reading. The taste also has a hint of cinnamon as well as some malt. It’s not as malty as an Assam, but there are similarities. There are also notes of raisin as the tea cools a bit which I’m really enjoying. I also like how full this tea is. It has a thickness and a richness to it that makes me want to stop everything and just enjoy it. I think this could be either a breakfast or an afternoon tea, but I see myself reaching for it more in the afternoon when I’m really needing a nice tea break.

Well, if this is any indicator of the kinds of teas I’m going to be drinking for the next few days then I am a luck girl. This tea is going on my shopping list.

(From the UTTB.)

First steep: The aroma of the tea is kind of like Laoshan Green—it’s beany. The taste doesn’t quite match. It’s savory and a little grassy. There’s a fruitiness that reminds me of lychee fruit and citrus…as I’ve said in other notes, I often think of colors when I’m tasting something. Especially tea. This one is like citrus because it makes me think of citrus colors: bright green, yellow, and orange…it doesn’t necessarily make me think of citrus fruits. It’s bright with a savory-bitter background that’s like vegetables. There’s a floral creaminess to the aftertaste, but it’s not very noticeable.

Second steep: It smells like…squash? There’s a little more tang and a little more vegetable in this cup. The citrus/lychee is stronger, too. It softens at the end of each sip, turning once more into a flowery, creamy flavor. Predominantly it’s grassy and vegetal. I left it to cool and returned when it was lukewarm. The cooler temperature made it seem more creamy, with a bean-like softness to it. This makes me wonder how it would taste cold-brewed.

It’s not a bad tea, just not for me!

(From the UTTB.)

This is everything I imagine when I think of an Assam. It’s bright, vibrant, and a little fruity with a touch of caramel sweetness. It’s cheerful! The first cup was more bold and drying on the tongue. Not very astringent, but definitely drying. I’d say it’s a medium-bold tea. The second cup mellowed out a bit to allow some of the sweet caramel notes to peek through. (Wasn’t getting much in the first.) I think it’s a good breakfast tea. I prefer my calm-chocolatey-floral-sweet evening teas, but this was still quite nice! I drank it straight but it could definitely stand up to some milk and sugar.

(From the UTTB.)

This is a gentle and unassuming tea. Lightly roasted, with a buttery taste and floral background. It’s clean. Fresh. Green. It’s like spring water and flower stems to me. I prefer more oxidized oolongs, but this is still nice. It’s just not something I could see myself craving.

(From the UTTB.)

The leaves are very pretty: tiny, curled little things that are a dusky brown color. Some have an orange tint, others are touched with silver. As soon as the leaves hit they all turn a deep autumnal orange. They’re still dark in tone.

The smell…wow, to describe the smell. Very complex. I kept sniffing while it steeped because I was so surprised by all of the scents I was picking up. At first it was fruity with this tart, astringent undercurrent. Then it was like bell peppers. It was peppery, both like crushed black pepper and bell peppers. Kind of earthy. Then it was sweet and fruity again. Now, it’s sweet and spicy on a backdrop of cinnamon. It smells kind of like bread. There’s also this other quality that I can’t describe…I’m guessing it’s muscatel. It reminds me of olive oil. It’s blowing my mind over here.

I’m sipping now and it’s not going to be any easier for me to describe the taste! There’s so much going on. Here are my impressions, in order: light body, green, fruity, sweet, cream, olive oil, more fruit, silkiness, soft, bread, lingering sweetness. It’s even a little malty. It covers your mouth with softness and a sparkling fruity taste. There’s also a certain earthiness to it. That bell pepper thing I was talking about. It’s got spice and pep. It has the qualities of both a black tea and a white tea! I love it.

Second steep, smells light with a little fruitiness and spice. It has a roastiness about it. It tastes like fruit with the same olive oil/muscatel notes as before. There’s more spice and pepper in this cup. There’s a touch of nutty roastiness too. In the aftertaste there’s something that makes me think of apple skins…the crispness of them, the fruit taste matched by a sort of darker, bitter note. (The tea itself is NOT bitter.) There’s some earthiness with a lingering sweet cream flavor. It’s soft with a guava-like sweetness.

I’ve got to run but I’ll probably be back for a third, or even a fourth steep. This is just too good. No words can describe. None. (: