Teavivre

Yummy. It’s vacuum freeze-dried lemons so you can guess what it tastes like. lol It tastes incredibly fresh unlike other types of lemon tea. It was sour but not too acidic like if I dropped fresh lemons in there so it was a wonderful nighttime drink, especially after a heavy meal. I’ll have to stock up on this because it is so convenient. I could also use it to add to my other teas. I like sour so I brewed it Western 16oz / 355ml, 212 ºF, 4 or 5 pieces lemon but I would think most would like a little honey with it.

I’ve been having to drink herbal tea instead before I go to bed cause all the tea was keeping me up all night. I still stay up all night hehe but at least when I fall asleep, it’s less interrupted. I usually drink their Tartary Buckwheat and/or Hawthorn Berry Herbal tea so this was a nice switch. The Goji berry is good too but in tea form, it’s far too sweet for me.

I’m shocked, as is the world, at NBA Legend Kobe Bryant’s and his 13 yr old daughter’s death. Some of my fondest memories are going to Laker games with my dad. #RIPKobe

This tastes pretty plain, but the rooibos is decent, and it stays good for two steeps! Would never know this is supposed to be chocolate though.

I buy Goji berries (dried) all the time and I put them in homemade kefir jello and smoothies. I got this as a sample from TeaVivre and well, just like any other Goji Berry… If you make a tea out of it, all you taste is sweetness. It is natural sweetness. I can vouch for that because I tried making a tea out of my no sugar added organic goji berries that I have in the fridge and it was exactly the same. So, I’m just going to eat these straight because if you make a tea out of them, the berry taste doesn’t come out in the tea, just the sweet taste of the berry. I’m not going to dock the rating though because it is far too sweet for me because I’m sure people who enjoy Goji berry tea will love this too.

I was dubious about if this would be tasty since often fruity rooibos can be weird. Happily, this was quite good! The strawberry flavor was clear and tasty, and the rooibos was good too. I think their toffee rooibos flavor is my favorite, but I enjoyed this too!

I was very curious about this tea. You all know how the descriptions can catch your eye, and you think – HMMMPH- what’s -—- taste like? In this case, ORCHID, they don’t smell, they are not fragrant flowers, so???? HIGH FRAGRANCE, lightly roasted and somewhat sweet rock tea. The second brew, less fragrance less sweet and fell flat… I’m still figuring this one out, (I’m glad it was a sample) I wasn’t that impressed because it came on strong and left me hanging with a blank WTHeck?

From Meowster a while ago!  Thanks so much!  I haven’t had any sheng in ages.  It was time to steep this up.  Raw pu-erh rolled into the shape of a ball, wrapped in something like tissue paper.  After all these years, sheng is still tough for me to describe but I’ll try.  There is a drying effect. The second cup simply tastes like MINERALS.  And more MINERALS.   The third steep is much of the same.  It certainly isn’t getting bitter at all. The basket infuser is almost FULL of unraveled leaves.  I like this, I just feel like I’m sometimes bored with sheng as my palate isn’t doing well enough at finding these flavors , or probably I shouldn’t be steeping them Western?  Luckily Meowster only sent me two of these babies, so much wasn’t wasted on my palate.
Steep #1 // 1 dragon ball for full mug// 33 minutes after boiling // rinse // 30 second steep
Steep #2 // 30 minutes after boiling  // 30 second steep   
Steep #3 //  32 minutes after boiling  // 40 second steep

Normally I don’t write tasting notes for samples, because if I like a sample, I’ll buy it, add it to my cupboard and then write a tasting note on it. If I don’t like it, I won’t bother writing about it. Not a perfect system, but it works for me. Chances are very slim I’ll end up with additional samples of a tea I don’t like.

This is different.

I am trying to not buy more tea for now. I already have two other milky oolongs that I have to drink. But, I don’t want to forget this one when I finally do start buying again. I’ve never had a milky oolong that didn’t have additional flavoring added so this was a first. It’s a wonder. Not a “hit you over the head with a baseball bat” milky flavor (which I do love), but I definitely could taste the creamy milkiness. It was delicious – comforting but not overwhelmimg – and I’ll definitely want to get more. Great end-of-the-day cup to relax with.

Cold Brew Sipdown (804)!

Another share from Kittenna – I was intrigued; Teavivre’s different herbal/fruit blends have been a bit hit or miss for me. This is pretty nice, but I’ve been trying to place exactly what the intended fruit flavour is for the last half hour and I’m not totally sure. I would say maybe blueberry!? It’s sort of just a generic fruity berry flavour though. That’s fine ‘cause it’s definitely still refreshing and the hibiscus/apple combo isn’t too obviously present or excessively tart – so it’s great for in the moment drinking.

I predict it’ll fade into obscurity in my memory, though.

I won a gorgeous scarlet tin of this tea during Teavivre’s Black Friday event. Very grateful, thanks so much Teavivre!  Somehow I haven’t tried this yet, even though I’ve tried most of what Teavivre offers. It is so nice to have a fresh green tea.  The leaves are lovely.  The flavor is so layered and exceptional.  Hints of minerals, very beany, nutty, sweet, lingering, both vegetal and fruity at the same time, with the slightest hint of butter.  Like I said, very layered!  It’s the flavor of health.  I love a great fresh green, so this found a great home to stop at.  Hopefully the red of the tin will scream at me to enjoy this one more often than not. 
Steep #1 // 34 minutes after boiling // 1 1/2 minute steep
Steep #2 // 34 minutes after boiling  // 2 minute steep 
2020 Sipdowns: 7 (Upton – China Keemun Heng Ru)

From TTB 2019/2020.

I love that there are a few herbs in the box that aren’t mixed into blends. I’ve been pulling out my herb books and doing some searching online tonight to learn more about the properties of the herbs included. The first one I’m trying is the red clover. Teavivre no longer has this listed on their website so I looked in a few other places to learn more about red clover blossoms and how to steep them.

The Herbal Academy has a good write-up here – https://theherbalacademy.com/red-clover-tea/ – that gives some info on how to make a red clover tea from dried blossoms. I used their recommendations to steep my cup tonight. It seemed a good tisane to try since they mention that red clover has mild sedative properties. It’s also good for arthritis and inflammation, both of which I’m irritated by tonight, so why not have a cup?

After steeping, it is so much darker than I expected! I really thought it would be very light in color and in flavor but it’s neither. The taste is a little bitter, but also grassy with a distinct honey note. Aside from the bitterness, which may have been due to my long steep, it’s quite tasty! It’s far from the worst herb I’ve tasted, and I really think it might do well mixed in a blend.

I had read that one of the reasons Anji Bai Cha is so healthy for you is because less of the theanine is converted to chlorophyll, and therefore, it has a much higher theanine content, ~3-4% higher than most green teas. Theanine has lots of health benefits, if curious, there is a lot of data on it. I personally like the relaxation aspect but it doesn’t make you sleepy at all. Adds concentration and mental alertness.

The dry leaves are long and slender, a pale green, sharp looking. The dry leaves had a slightly grassy aroma, and the extremely pale yellow-greenish liquor also had a slightly grassy aroma with hints of fruits, citrus.

Deeply umami. Rich and smooth mouthfeel. Slightly nutty, maybe chestnut. Definitely vegetal: Asparagus, celery, green beans, some soybean notes. Don’t quote me but I believe the high presence of amino acids also contribute to this thick mouthfeel, the brothy-ness, a little sweetness in some infusions, and alas, a complex tea. It’s full of amino acids that help lower cortisone, therefore reducing stress levels.

Very nice.

This was a free sample with one of my orders a while ago.  It’s very sad I’m not trying teas like this when they are fresher.  But as ever,  Teavivre’s packaging is great so I’m sure that helps.  This seems like a different tea on every level: the dry leaf, the wet leaf, the flavor of the tea couldn’t be more different.  Before steeping, the long dark leaves have a fragrance of dried hay.   After steeping, the scent was very strong, smoky with a hint of grapefruit which is very unique — I’ve never noticed that in any tea before.  The flavor is very citrusy, both grapefruit and lemon, maybe even some lemon myrtle with the smoke in the background.  I say smoke, but it’s really just that type of flavor that is this type of oolong — tough to describe!  Lingering flavors on the backsip of green grapes, minerals, sugarcane.  After the cup has cooled, the “smoke” moves to the front of the profile.  The color of the brew even looks like lemonade or water infused with lemon.  Then a lingering creaminess takes over.  The first steep was the best and I wished I had kept steeping with cooler water, shorter steep times because then the “smokiness” takes over more — less of those lighter flavors. Maybe this tea tasted more like “honey orchid” when it was fresher? Again I could kick myself for not drinking it sooner.   I certainly don’t usually prefer teas like this one, but this might be the best I’ve tried.   Very unique, at least to me in my tea journey so far.
Note to self, steep cooler with shorter steeps.
Steep #1 // 2 teaspoons for a full mug // 20 minutes after boiling // 1 minute steep
Steep #2 // 18 minutes after boiling  // 2 minute steep   
Steep #3 //  just boiled // 2 minute steep
Harvest: 2018

I hope everyone who celebrates is having a wonderful Christmas!

Thanks so much for the samples, Teavivre!  I was looking forward to this special tea.  The leaves are such a vibrant collection of greens in color.  The scent of the unsteeped leaves is like a fresh Spring lawn.  I think the water cooled too long on the first cup, I knew the flavors weren’t popping enough.  The second steep was a flavor burst of mostly sugary sweetness.  Wow, it’s like I added sugar to the mug.  Otherwise there is the lightest flavor of starchy yams hiding behind the sugar.  Possibly squash and hints of pear or other fruits.  Starchiness of pears!  The second steep was the real winner.  By the third and fourth steeps, the flavor was muted, definitely not as sugary sweet.  Oddly, the flavors were a little indistinguishable after the second steep. I’m not sure what happened but it’s probably all in how I’m steeping it, if this tea isn’t as fussy as I think it is.   Maybe Western steeping isn’t ideal for this tea. So this isn’t really what I’m looking for in an oolong, without that longevity in Western steeps, but that second steep was divine.
Steep #1 // 1 heaping teaspoon for a not-quite-full mug // 25 minutes after boiling // rinse // 1 minute steep
Steep #2 // 20 minutes after boiling  // 2 minute steep   
Steep #3 //  15 minutes after boiling  // 2 minute steep
Steep #4 // just boiled // 2 minute steep
Harvest: 2019

I hope everyone who celebrates is having a great Thanksgiving! That ET commercial… I can’t even. They are trying to kill me with 80s nostalgia today. haha

Gongfu Sipdown (714)!

Pretty sure I’ve had this sample for a while – not actually sure how old it is and I wasn’t sure if it would still be any good or not. It was, though! I had a hearty tea session; longer steeps and more tea steeped at a time – kind of a Western meets Gongfu merger, if you will? It was thick and viscous with strong cocoa powder notes accompanied by notes of freshly baked bread & a starchy sweetness. Hints of red fruit in the undertones, but more focus on the round, coating body of the sip. I can see why this hong cha is award winning!!

Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/B5RZpplASw0/

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rypTnxt4_Xc

This was included in Teavivre’s great sample sale last year.  The dragon ball with yellow chrysanthemums is a slow unraveler in the first steep. Interestingly enough, I’m noticing more chrysanthemum flavors in this than the jasmine dragon ball has of jasmine.  But the chrysanthemum flavor seems to be gone by the second and third steeps.  I’m not too familiar with chrysanthemum, but it is a sweet floral flavor from these big blossoms that float to the top of the infuser while the dragon ball unfurls.  Otherwise, the black tea certainly has strong notes of cinnamon and cardamom somehow, which is odd for a Yunnan.  It’s very sweet like a dessert.  Very dark in the mug which isn’t surprising because once the dragon ball was unraveled, the leaves filled the entire basket infuser.  Though dark, the tea remained sweet.  This is an interesting flavor combination – a change from the usual.  Three very solid steeps. 
Harvest: 2018

Quick additional notes: I finally tried it with a little half and half (1T in 16 oz), and one small drop of honey. It’s wonderful this way for a night drink. You still get the tart aftertaste followed with more creaminess. It balances it out even more to me. I know I said I was going to try it as a latte but haven’t got there quite yet lol. I’m drinking a lot of my TeaVivre teas lately, and feeling for them and other companies whose businesses are affected by Coronavirus.