Upton Tea Imports
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sample sip down, yeah!
I was hoping that I was gonna love this tea, but didn’t. The pear is an interesting sharp flavor but mostly of bartlett pear skin, but also quite floral. There’s a sweetness, but its off that unripe pear skin taste. Lol, kind of reminds me of when I lived in a farming area back in BC and stealing pears off farms as a teenager – that orchard smell.
However I was hoping for a more mellow pear flavor, not tart and sharp. The creamyness is just an after sensation.
Maybe if I played with the steeping times, adding sugar or something but alas, it’s just a sample and I have so much tea, I need to move on.
Preparation
Thank you TeaEqualsBliss for sending me some of this Darjeeling.
A really interesting Darjeeling in that it has a more substantial body than I normally would associate with a Darjeeling. This tea has some substance to it. It’s a heartier Darjeeling (and hearty isn’t usually a word I’d use to describe Darjeeling, you know?) It’s not as bold as say, an Assam, but it’s not as light and crisp as a typical Darjeeling.
There is a nice fruity tone to this, and even notes of Muscatel. I noticed more muscatel notes in the dry leaf aroma than I do in the brewed tea. It’s sweet, with earthy tones and a strong floral quality to it.
A very unique 2nd Flush Darjeeling, nice … but I find myself wanting a little less floral and a little more muscatel from a 2nd Flush … but I do like this for what it is. It’s different!
Backlog:
Thank you TeaEqualsBliss for sending me this tea.
A really lovely Assam. Sweet, caramel-y, with nice fruit tones. Malty with hints of a wine-like quality.
It has a bake-y kind of quality to it, like a freshly baked loaf of french bread … you know that warm, caramelized crust that’s chewy and yummy? Yeah … it’s got that kind of yumminess to it.
A really nice Assam.
sipdown! (though that’s nearly the last of them for tonight). This tea? It pretty much makes me want to make some ginger chicken or something. This is not something i want to drink, i want to eat it! so um yeah. it’s not bad..but i feel like it’s something i should be cooking with instead heh
Backlog:
Thank you TeaEqualsBliss for sending this one my way.
The leaves were beautiful … long and wiry. This is a pleasantly bold Ceylon … not quite as bold as an Assam, of course (as well it shouldn’t be, since this isn’t an Assam) but, a bit more out there than a typical Ceylon. It’s flavorful.
Pleasant fruit notes, as well as notes of earth and flower. A really good Ceylon!
Thank you TeaEqualsBliss for sending me a sampling of this tea.
I love that autumn has finally arrived. I love the chill in the air, I don’t even mind that up here in the Pacific NorthWET it rains more than it shines this time of year. I love it.
And this tea … seems the perfect way to welcome autumn. It is rich and warm with smoky tones and so inviting. I like that the smoky tones are there but they aren’t in my face. It’s smoky but not too much. It’s a rich, full-flavored cuppa with enjoyable caramel-y undertones.
A really nice tea. I’m glad I got the opportunity to try it.
Another from Momo’s teaboxB! I just got the ’Here’s Hoping’ teabox I started back today, but I haven’t opened it yet because I’d really like to get a handle on this teabox first. Teabox B is definitely first priority, but I might not be able to mail both boxes until the same time anyway. I’d like to at least have it ready to go in case I CAN make it to the PO though. I will resist the urge to even open the other teabox for a couple days! It is BIG. There are at least ten more teas I’d like to try from this teabox, but it will probably end up being more.
Anyway, on to the tea. This might be the first straight green rooibos I’ve tried. (I know Teataku after me in the teabox order wants green rooibos so I will just try a teaspoon! :D) It’s actually very nice! Green rooibos seems to pair very well with pear (I swear I didn’t mean to just use pair and pear in the same sentence.) There is less of a cream flavor but there is definitely a pear flavor! Seems kind of like apple at times. But the pear is very distinct throughout the entire cup. The rooibos is nice and less scratchy on my throat than most rooibos. A nice change from red rooibos! I really need to find some tea filter bags for rooibos though, as I suddenly stopped loving rooibos as much as I once did. But I’m sure filter teabags would help!
Sipdown! mostly because i’m splitting the remainder of this package up for my tea sister and for my tea friend down under. I’ve had a couple yellow teas before, that inspired me to keep trying them. This one, however, is pretty meh. It’s not a BAD tea…but it’s not nearly as delectable as the other yellow teas that i’ve had. where those were juicy and mouthwateringly good…this is just a cup of lighter tea. It’s like it can’t decide if it wants to be a white or a green. Ah well! one to cross off my list!
From Teabox B! I’ve never had any Upton teas even though they seem like they have some delicious ones. This is a decently spiced chai with a fairly brisk base. Chai must be brisk! I didn’t really taste the roses and almonds but maybe I didn’t get any in my infuser. This one is a nice kick in the morning. I should have added milk though.
Tea #2 from Traveling Tea Box C (I can’t find the first tea I tried in the database yet. Lol)
1 tsp/cup
I think the cup of sencha I had before didn’t completely wash out of either my cup or the steeper, because I’m getting strong impressions of that greenness smell, and it’s rather spoiling the whole cup because I tend to inhale the aroma before taking a sip. Lol. Not rating it because of this. If I pinch my nose and take a sip, I do get the vanilla in the tea, but really, it’s not that strong anyway. I would think a straight vanilla tea would have a ‘bam!’ sort of vanilla-ness to it, or at least that’s what I wish for. So while not bad, I’ve had better vanilla teas.
Preparation
If anyone is curious, Tie Guan Yin Oolong is by far my favorite tea. I first discovered it my freshman year of high school when I worked at a coffee and tea shop, but at that time it was sold as Iron Goddess of Mercy Oolong and it took me a year or two to realize they were the same tea. Tie Guan Yin has the amazing properties to soothe my spirits and body whenever they are off, which is perfect because today I am certainly not on top of my game.
When I find a new tea store the first thing I do is look at its Oolongs ‘does it have Tie Guan Yin…does it have Tie Guan Yin I can afford?’ are the questions I ask. Alas I am but a poor tea lover and Tie Guan Yin is the most expensive tea in the world. Today we are exploring the ins and outs of Upton Tea Import’s Tie Guan Yin First Grade (not to be mistaken for their second grade, special grade, seasonal, and black) from China (and I am assuming Fujian). One of my biggest complaints with a lot of tea companies (Upton is sadly included in this one) is lack of information, what time of year was this picked? What region? Traditional or Green? It is the little things that my information obsessed mind craves and without these facts I have to try to solve the puzzle on my own.
The aroma is wonderful, a mix of orchids and chestnuts mixed with a gentle warmth and spice. The spice is not strong and is more of a memory of an aroma after the others have faded. The chestnut aroma gives the tea a sweet and roasted quality that is intoxicating when mixed with the floral notes. Overall the aroma is heady and lulls me into a relaxed state.
Once brewed the aroma just fills up the area…and I was sitting outside when I brewed this tea! In all seriousness I popped inside for a moment and when I came back the whole porch smelled of roasting chestnuts, orchids, honeysuckles, sweetness, and a hint of almonds. The roasted notes gave it an almost Hojicha quality. The liquid smelled much the same with more floral and less chestnut, and the liquid is beautiful.
The taste is ever so slightly honey sweet with a gentle floral touch. There is also a very vegetal taste to the teas as well, especially as it cools, similar to the way green bean water tastes. Only very mildly roasted tasting which was a tiny bit disappointing since I prefer my Tie Guan Yins to be roasty more than green, but the teas is still very good! It is also noticeably mild and relaxing, which is perfect for me at the moment. I think my biggest over all opinion is it reminds me of late spring time with blooming flowers and the air is warm, giving everything that sun kissed taste. I certainly recommend and look forward to trying all the other Tie Guan Yin Oolongs from Upton Teas.
This is just a really solid Assam that I enjoy more and more with each cup. It isn’t the least bit bitter and has a more pronounced cocoa flavor than most Assams I’ve had. Not a lot of leaf is required to get a tasty and memorable cup.
Preparation
Another Sample from a swap from Stephanie. I had this one for breakfast. It was a nice subtle tea. I really enjoyed it. I got 4 beautiful steeping’s out of it and then remembered I had many more teas to get through. It was a nice tea to experience. Thank you Stephanie.
Busting my tail because last night in bed before drifting to sleep I was fantasizing about relaxing later today with a tray bearing a big ol’ pot of plain unfancy black tea, milk and raw sugar in my little spice caddies, and a spoon and hunkering down to watch more Venture Brothers (Puddy! The sound design!!) and PBS David Chang (when they showed how they make the ramen stock at Momofuku I almost died, little sighs of lust). Just learned Jesu’s coming out with a new album the week of our anniversary, and I still need to pick up the Scud Mtn. Boys one. Having things to look forward to is heaven.
Preparation
This is the first Lapsang Souchong I’ve ever had and I’m not sure how it compares to non-organic Upton version. Its so interesting for me. I can’t smell this and not think of my grandpa’s cabin in the pines on the Olympic peninsula. My grandpa’s cabin had a wood burning stove for heat year round and during the summers we would help him split wood to get ready for winter. I can just remember sitting on his log splitter and splitting wood with the crisp damp Pacific Northwest air wrought with the smell of pine and smoke from his fire. He smoked a pipe and a bit of tobacco smell is also woven through this cup The tea is extremely smoky in the leaves with slightly less in the brewed cup. It is wrought with bits of mint and menthol and a touch of toasty sweetness. I don’t think I could drink this every day, but I want to drink it every time I want to remember my grandpa and the wonderful summers at his cabin.
Preparation
Sipdown! 825.
You know – this isn’t too bad at all! However, I’m not sure what osmanthus is supposed to taste like (peach??), but all I’m getting here is an aged oolong (lighter than the other I tried today), which is quite tasty. I’m getting some fruitiness (as opposed to floral), but would be hard-pressed to describe it as anything specific, let alone peach. Anyhow, it’s yet another tasty oolong for me tonight. I really do adore oolongs – although the one downside (kind of) is that they halt my sipdown progress since I feel guilty unless I resteep them at least twice, which means 6 more cups of tea (between the three) before I get to empty those infusers. Oh well! At least it will be tasty :D
Preparation
I have been more than pleasantly surprised by this tea. My wife and I are in the process of paying off all of our debt, and part of that means that I have had to cut back my monthly tea budget. Two months ago I was looking for the best quality tea I could get for the lowest price and stumbled across this in the “Seasons Pick” section at Upton. I am huge fan of Yunnan teas and so I went out on a limb and bought an entire kilo of this stuff without having ever tried it. I was a little terrified.
This has turned out to be one of the most enjoyable teas for daily drinking that I have had in a long time. It doesn’t have the same complexity as some of the nicer Yunnans that I have tried, but then I knew ahead of time that it wouldn’t. It did, however, surprise me with a depth and richness that I have fallen in love with. It is not at all bitter, but has the boldness I need out of a morning cup of tea. As I said, I have had one or more pots of this for two months now and have yet to tire of it. I am going to miss it here in a week or so when I run out.
Preparation
Brewed this for 3 minutes with 180°F water and then put in the refrigerator to chill, since I drink most of my teas chilled.
I always want to love nutty flavored teas, but usually I just don’t. I love eating nuts, but for some reason it doesn’t translate into tea for me. That said, I was pleasantly surprised by this tea. It is very enjoyable. It tastes like baked almond cookies and the aroma is delicious. The green tea, cinnamon, and almond (think Jordan Almonds) flavors combine to make something that is sweet, baked like a cookie, and not over the top almond. I still don’t know that this is something that I could or would want to drink regularly. There is something that keeps me from gulping it and I know I’ll hit my limit before my thermos is finished. Funny that I could eat almonds all day long, but can’t drink more than a cup of almond tea at a sitting.
There is a slight offness to the aftertaste, but otherwise it’s sweet almond and cinnamon.
