Teavivre

tea from yesterday. Kiddo is enjoying keeping me u, so keeping this short and sweet. enjoyable cup, but nothing over the top or anything i need to keep in my cupboard. really glad i have these samples to go through though.

this was a rather uneventful black tea this morning. Nothing crazy exciting, nothing bad about it. Brewed western, just sort of average. Lighter brew than my preferred dark and delicious teas, but smooth, no astringency. I’ll enjoy drinking the rest of this, but likely not needed as a staple in my cupboard.

Very vegetal in flavour- string beans and spinach. There is a harsh quick floral note in the immediate aftertaste When paired with a shortbread cookie, the sweetness allows the flavour to bloom into a matcha-like note.

Dry leaf has strong aroma of alfalfa.
Brewed tisane has strong aroma of steamed spinach with a lighter note of barn smell.
Brewed tisane has a strong spinach flavour with a strong bitter note. There is a sharp sweet note that comes through an blooms into a matcha-like taste while it mixes with the bitterness.
This is certainly too bitter for me. I may have to try to infuse it for less time in the future.

Rating: 30

Swap Sample Sipdown! (14 | 83)

I’m finishing off the second dragon ball from tea-sipper grandpa-style.

I used one orb in a 16-ounce glass and 185° water. I’m on my fourth refill now and it’s still flavorful. The ball has completely disintegrated at this point, which is nice because it didn’t sink properly while it was still formed.

I definitely like this one much better this way! It has a nice sweet and malty flavor that is very close to a light black tea. Then there’s the lovely honeyed raisin notes, along with the usual hay, grain, and oats. Surprisingly, there’s no hint of bitterness even with these long steep times.

I wasn’t sure whether this would be well-suited to this treatment, since this is my first time steeping this way. But it’s definitely a perfect match! Low maintenance and yummy, I’ll have to remember this for the future, and order a suitable brewing vessel for it.

365 Days of Tea Challenge – Day 34

This tea came from tea-sipper!

I followed TeaVivre’s recommended parameters for this session. The time progression was interesting, I’m wondering if the shorter steeps in the middle are where they expect the dragon ball to unfurl.

Anyway, I wasn’t very impressed with this one… It started off extremely light in flavor. About halfway through the session, I started to help the leaves unfurl a little bit since they were still mostly compacted in a ball and I felt like that was why I wasn’t getting much flavor. It did definitely help a lot!

Overall, this had a very smoky and mineral taste that I wasn’t expecting. There were also some more classic white tea notes of oats and hay, along with a light honey sweetness and some date and golden raisin flavors. I also tasted some apricot notes and a bit of malt. There was very little bitterness, but a slight astringency did develop as the steeps grew longer.

I found it somewhat meh. Happily, I still have one dragon ball to try, so I’m thinking I’ll try Western or grandpa style for that one and see how it compares.

1 piece – 130ml – 200°F – rinse/50/60/70/50/50/30/40/70/90/110s

https://www.instagram.com/p/BtcOe5ElYxS/

My other morning tea today – great accompaniment to the everything bagel with herb and garlic cream cheese :) another sipdown too, since why the hell not! haha still hold that this is a perfectly fine average tea.

Kinda boring as far as teas go. Sort of reminds me a little bit of “red rose” though higher quality :) It was fine as a morning tea goes with breakfast but this is the sort of tea i’d prefer to drink with food, not on it’s own to enjoy if that makes sense.

Another tea from this morning. Sadly all i really recall was that it was pretty tasty. Luckily i have more and can take the time to really focus on it next time i have it :)

Well, you know that Mandala glass Thermos I just bought a reviewed a few weeks ago? I already broke it. Um, yeah. It fell to an ugly death. I’m wondering when my new Lupicia mug will join it. lol On a good note, I have never broken a teapot or gaiwan but that’s mainly because it remains on my tray. Thank goodness :). Sigh.

Tons of reviews on this. My two cents: The dry leaves were pretty with twisted black strips and golden tips. It had the aroma of hay. After the rinse, the liquor had a strong sweet potatoes aroma. The liquor was a very bright orange-reddish color. The first infusion I got notes of cocoa, caramel, sweet potatoes, honey, baked bread. The second infusion there were cream notes and floral notes, almost perfumey but not quite. It still had the notes from the first infusion, just more floral. That aroma also was more floral too, less sweet potatoes. The third infusion was a little astringent, more honey sweetness, not as floral. Dried fruit notes became more pronounced in the later infusions. Throughout the infusions, it was sweet, malty, smooth, toasty, with caramel, sweet potatoes, and cream notes. The flavor was relatively rich and satisfying. No bitterness in any of the infusions. Subtle and sweet aftertaste, soft mouthfeel. It gave me good energy… Let’s see what else I’ll break running around. o.O

I didn’t go with the recommended parameters. I opted for a longer steep time this time around.

Porcelain gaiwan, 7g, 200°F, 110ml, rinse, 7 steeps: 25s, 35s, 45s, 55s, 65s, 75s, 120s

Geez, this tea is really popular and I think my first from Teavivre.

The dry dark mossy green nuggets smelled mostly of toasted rice with a bit of brown butter. Rinsing brought forward aromas of spinach, lilac, vanilla, cream, sugarcane, white lily and butter. For the first few infusions, the light green-yellow silky liquor had tastes of lightly buttered spinach, steamed milk and light sugarcane and florals with a pleasant aftertaste highlighted by cream and butter.

The milkiness of the cultivar slipped away as the session progressed and the tea mostly exhibited light spinach/vegetal tastes as the florals and some bitterness grew. Nice, light sugarcane returning sweetness. Here and there later on I could pick up on coconut and apricot in the aftertaste. The spent leaf looked healthy with mostly 3-4 leaves and a bud attached to the stem and holy moly did they want to escape the gaiwan.

This tea struck me as a good example of the unscented/unflavored, natural Jin Xuan cultivar. While not quite my style, I can see how its lightness and sweet, milky taste are quite the draw. Thanks for sharing, Kawaii433 :)

Sample sipdown! Osmanthus is the overall flavor of this oolong. However, this flowery tea is not to my taste. I find it to be a pretty one dimensional. Thanks for the share delighful kiwi

I think this sample is from a long ago swap with delightful kiwi. Sorry it’s taken forever for me to get to these.
200F, 3min, 12 oz
I don’t know what Osmanthus is supposed to taste/smell like, but I’m getting a very intense floral note. That’s really all I can taste. It’s well scented as the flavor continues through to the 2nd cup. Because it’s so strong, I don’t want too much, so it wouldn’t be one I’d purchase. Thanks for the sample though!

Attention!
Attention!
We have Gong Fu. I repeat, we have Gong Fu!

Yes, you read that right. I’m trying it again. I came into acquisition of some small cups designed, not necessarily for Gong Fu, but for a more relaxed and gentle tea session. They are I’d say about 4-6 oz cups, and now that I have them (well, one) I am trying Gong Fu again.

I’m not exactly being scientific about this, just sort of mimicking what I see on all those youtube videos.

Anyway, after a quick rinse, I steeped for about 5 seconds. BTW: The leaves in the gaiwan smell like sweet potatoes and hay. I don’t like sweet potatoes. We’ll see how this goes.

It was very strong at first. A bit too robust for me. I tasted malt and leather, but a good deal of harsh tannin as well. As the session progressed, the tea mellowed out, turning smooth with cocoa and yes, sweet potato notes. However, I didn’t hate it. Those sweet potato tones shifted to apricot on the final two steeps, leaving a lingering sweetness in my mouth once the session was over. Overall, once the tea softened a bit, I found myself enjoying it! It’s not bad fixed this way. In fact, it’s pretty darn good! According to steepster, my original rating was 82, but I somewhat remember not liking this tea, so that 82 might have been before I stopped rating everything high, regardless of if I liked it or not. There’s no tasting note that I can find, so I have no idea.

As for the experience, I was almost sad when the session was concluded. I got a good seven or eight steeps from this ranging from the initial 5 seconds to about 2 minutes. I will say that one problem with gong-fu for me is that my Breville doesn’t possess a keep warm feature, so I can’t keep the temperature consistent, and I certainly don’t want to re-heat the water. Once I get that new kettle (hopefully next month) and I redo my kitchen, I may invest in a proper full gong-fu tea set. Nothing fancy, just something a bit more extensive than a single gaiwan and a teacup. I do think I would like a small teapot at least to go with it, and actual gong-fu cups. The small teacup, while nice, was still way too big for what I was putting in it!

So, my final thoughts. Well, guess what. I think I’m going to break my habit. I now see that gong-fu can greatly improve the texture/flavor of good quality tea. So hopefully, in the near future, I can try this again. Maybe I can acquire a nice Wuyi to try it with.

Showtune of the Moment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8n7X-st2QPc

Ok so this is my first time trying yellow tea. I really don’t know what to expect. Going in pretty much blind.
Also had to guess on prep instructions. Went with 195F water at 3min western style.
Taste is… very vegetal. It is like a mouth full o’greens. However, the green flavor is rather pleasant. Getting a strong flavor of spinach and hay, with a very faint background sweetness. There’s a small amount of bitterness associated with that spinach and hay flavor but nothing too unpleasant. I’m finding the same grassy flavors that turned me off of grocery store greens are actually growing on me in loose leaf.

Bottom line is, this is a green tea that veers very sharply into green territory. While the soup is definitely golden in color, as opposed to yellow or amber of greens, the flavor is very close to that of a strong green. Give it a shot, if that is your sort of thing. You might actually like it.

It is a perfect tea to sip slowly while doing some work on the computer or reading a book: it does not distract but adds some background depth and color to whatever you are doing. It is a humble tea that will not try to make a big splash and become the center of attention but instead is deeply content to be friendly, useful and quietly helpful.

Ok I couldn’t remember if I had reviewed this or not, but then I realized I did a quickie review. Time for something more in depth.
Smell of pearls in package is mostly jasmine, with some very faint fruity notes.
Brewed about 7 pearls for 12 oz of water, 3min/185F.
Taste is… very pleasing. The floral jasmine is prominant, which I always love, but the overall experience is smooth. I’m getting a very mild fruit background note, but nothing too major. I do wish the peach was more pronounced. It is a very delicious tea though. Highly recommend. That is, if you like Jasmine anyway.

Yayayay another Jasmine.

Quick note today, as I really am not in mood for anything legnthy.
The flavor balance on this one is quite nice. Some jasmine, a bit of peach, some vegetal greeness. All around good tea. I’m on my third steep and it’s still really good.

Totally recommend.

Huzzah. another black tea. This time, it’s the Fengqing Dragon Pearls from Tevivre.
Starting out by saying I love how the “sample” packs from tevivre are exactly one serving. Yes you get two individually wrapped single serving packs per sample, and yes I ordered two of almost every sample in my order. Still- nice touch.

(NOTE) I should add that for a small, 6oz cup of tea, the amount per sample package is probably closer to two servings. But for my large 12oz cup, it is a single serving.

Ok, western style, 195F Water at 6 min per steeping instructions.
Flavor is… different. It’s not as cocoa-y as my golden blacks, although that flavor is still present. Strong malt flavor and I now know what that flavor tag “Autumn Leaf Pile” means because holy cow is that here. I’m not sure if I like this or not. It kinda tastes… dirty. Not earthy, DIRTY. There’s a bit of bread flavor here too. I’ve let it sit a bit and it really doesn’t taste good once it’s cooled. I think it was much tastier when hot. I mean, if you like a really woodsy black tea, then this would definitely be for you. I personally, however, think I will stick to my regular golden blacks.

Additional note:

Sipdown.

Over 300 reviews on this tea, so here are my quick thoughts… It’s good stuff. I always feel that TeaVivre’s teas are underrated. I really enjoyed this batch, and will probably get more. Sweet potatoes, malt, lightly floral, peach and stonefruit, baked bread… Smooth mouthfeel, nice aftertaste.

It was great gongfu style and great with milk this morning (a new & necessary habit I picked up so I can drink some black tea in the morning since my tummy is hating me these days).

Highly recommended.

Lots and lots of good reviews on this so I will make it quick.

I made an order around Dec. 11th, 2018, and I took advantage of the black tea sample sale even though I’m currently exploring oolongs and pu’er. I just recently received this package. It usually doesn’t take that long but the holidays I suppose.

The dry leaves were pretty, twisted leaves with gold tips and had the aroma of sweetness, hay, and a subtle aroma of sweet potato. The liquor had a pretty orangish-red color. Smooth, silky mouthfeel, malty, mellow, sweet aftertaste, notes of molasses, yams, baked bread, no astringency nor bitterness, just smooth & sweet, exceptionally comforting.

Gaiwan, 185°F, 9g, rinse, 8 steeps: 20s, 25s, 35s, 45s, 55s, 65s, 75s, 120s

First I thought that this was a version of the well-reviewed Teavivre’s Organic Nonpareil Dragon Well but this is a totally different tea despite the tea leaves looking remarkably similar. It is from Sichuan. I had it both gongfu and western with equally satisfying results.

The leaves are pretty and have a nice aroma similar to dragon wells. The taste reminded me of dragonwells as well, with grass, asparagus, spinach, broccoli and butter. Also, some faint sweetness and spiciness. Way to often green teas feel to weak and understated to me but this one had a strong bitter-sour note that blended well with the rest of the flavors and was quite welcome. This note lingered and transformed into the grass, spicy and pleasantly bitter aftertaste.

It is a complex and bold (for a green) tea. The complexity fades somewhat during the gongfu session but it remains enjoyable for multiple steepings nevertheless. Actually, it becomes intiguingly savory and sweet. This is probably the best green I tried so far but it’s on the pricey side with $0.40 per gram, so I guess the high quality should be expected. Also, it is 10 months old by now, which leaves the possibility of it is being fantastic when the leaves are just picked.

Sipdown from earlier this morning. Pulled this one out as i wanted a tea i knew i’d enjoy and figured i might as well also work on finishing one off. while it’s not the lapsang i really really love, it’s a damn good one and one i’d happily put in my cupboard again :)