Upton Tea Imports

Another sample of black tea from Upton {I got 14}. This is an incredibly strong and robust brew perfectly suited as an eye-opener. I can see this getting incredibly dark and gnarly if you let it steep past 3 minutes. I can imagine this as the espresso of the tea world. I brewed 2 steeps before I decided that this would make a nice iced tea. So today after the Bohea I am enjoying the rest of this and it turned out nice even after 2 steeps it remained strong and assertive.

This truly is an elegant tea. In my previous tasting I thought it was better suited as an evening tea. It does not have a robust flavor but it does have an intense energy that is capable of awakening any hardened tea drinker. I just wish it was not so expensive. See my previous notes and others who love this tea.

This is my second tasting of this sample from Upton. The first tasting I found it to be very mild in taste yet it had this captivating aroma of pine and a whisper of smoke. I could not stop smellling the wonderful aroma. Today I upped the steep time and the amount of leaf and it improved the cup slightly for my morning cup. I do believe this is better suited for an evening tea. It is very subtle and mild. This is a very fine tea that in my opinion is better for an evening tea.

Think this will pass the chill test just fine. I threw the leftovers after my original steep into a pint jar and tucked it in the fridge. Even with recycled apple chunks (yeah, doesn’t THAT sound appetizing?) it was passable. Ought to do nicely with fresh stuff right out of the bag.

I thought about adding a little sugar as I was drinking last night, but I figured that would just make it into apple juice and ruin the lightness and freshness of its tisane personality.

It wasn’t exactly a surprise, because I knew it was coming, but in my poor-me frame of mind, it was nice to come home to my little goodie box of samples I ordered from Upton. (I guess the surprise was how speedily it got here—props to their customer service.)

Big chunks of apple makes this look good and chewy; smells like fresh produce. After a honkin’ old steep time of eight minutes, the color was so light, I was braced to be disappointed. I braced needlessly. It’s delicate—doesn’t hit you in the face—but is pleasantly, mellowly crisp and fruity. Golden Delicious peel instead of Granny Smiths.

Not sure how well this will take to a second steep, but I’m going to give it an overnight shot—I think this would be great cold.

Used up the last of this leaf last night, and doing some last steepings this morning.

The past three weeks have been “Hatch season” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hatch_chile) here in Houston and it has been a powerful reminder to me about how much our society has lost about not only living seasonally, but also in celebrating those seasons. I blogged about this earlier this week.

And so it is bitter sweet to drink the last of a pre-chingming. Sure, next year I could get more (for all I know, I could order more of this year’s right now), but next year’s leaf is not this year’s leaf. It will not be exactly the same.

But, I think there is a certain joy which can be found in embracing what is present for what it is, and letting the unknown of tomorrow not only wait its turn, but then be embraced for what it is and not as a “replacement” for what has passed on into history.

The 2012 pre-chingming da hong pao was a genuine milestone for me in terms of understanding tea. It may not even be a great tea, I have no idea. But not every great tea teaches you something. And not every tea that teaches has to be a great tea.

I will miss this tea. But if nothing else, it has taught me not to miss tea.

I did long steepings with this for the first time, yesterday.

I freely admit that at this point I am extremely spoiled by my semi-gongfu double gaiwan style of steeping most tea most of the time. Working from home, and so having access to the kettle, all the hardware, towels, etc. means I can make great cups of tea all day every day.

So, on those occasions I make larger batches and do longer steepings, I have to remind myself that of course the results aren’t going to be as dramatic.

The balance in this tea just amazes me. Whether steeped long or short, the roasted notes one expects in da hong pao are always playing this complex game of tag with the more lady orchid type notes.

I was pleased to discover that while a Western steep doesn’t sparkle the way a gongfu steep does, the result is still a well balanced, excellent cup of extremely refreshing oolong tea.

I finally put my finger on what this tea reminds me of.

Lady Orchid (Lan Gui Ren).

That ginseng coating sweetness, and the floral hints with the roasted oolong beneath it.

This is far more subtle, of course, since it is the natural flavor of the tea itself, but that’s what it is like.

Considering lady orchid is something I more or less never drink, I feel rather chuffed that I was able to make that connection. It only took, what, four tastings? ;-)

I have my tea tins in a line in the cabinet and the same variety is in the same spot in “the line up” all the time. This allows me to find tea when not yet awake. :-)

The problem is that if I make a substitution, it is easy to forget.

In the wake of my purchase of Golden Fleece I have been a bit tapped out on Yunnan golden. I need to forget before I can order another dian hong and enjoy it.

Meanwhile, this order of pre-chingming da hong pao is in the tea tin that usually has Yunnan gold in it, and I’ve been avoiding it because I forgot what was in it (the label is on top instead of on the front, which I now know to fix next time I fill it). So, this tea has languished.

I started an argument the last time I said this, but I’m going to say it again anyway. :-)

I really want to enjoy this tea with high quality dim sum. People forget, I think, that “dim sum” is the food, but when you invite people to eat that food, you don’t invite them to “dim sum” you invite them to yum cha — drink tea. The food is an excuse to linger over pots of tea without having to get fussy with gongfu.

There is something about these “in between” oolongs that makes me turn to food thinking that the pairings will help differentiate the various aspects of the tea. Pork fat to bring out the sweetness. Red bean bun to bring out the toasted notes. Shu mai bring out the brothy mouthfeel. Steamed bean curd skin wrapped around savory vegetables brings out the floral notes.

OK… now I have to make plans to yum cha…

(I don’t know why I can’t get the image to attach)

Well, it appears I am the first to get to talk about this 2012 pre-chingming da hong pao!

This tea is a real eye opener to the significant differences that time of harvest can make with a tea. After my rinse, when the aroma of the wet leaf reached my nose, I had to run back and double-check the canister. I thought I had the wrong tea! “It smells like tiguanyin” I thought.

An amazing balance is present here between a floral, green oolong, and an amber, roasted one. It really is almost like a blend of da hong pao and tiguanyin. The result really is a “best of both worlds” flavor profile.

My morning cup. The first steeping was deep, strong and dark. As far as energy goes, it failed. Or did I fail it? A 4 minute steep time with a bit over a teaspoon of leaf {the dried leaf smells awesome}. The second steep was somewhat weak and left me wanting something else. Maybe I will use more leaf and increase the steep time for the remainder of the sample. This is my second tasting of this tea since I received my samples from Upton. The first time it was better but unfortunetly it was a workday and my Steepster time is limited….

This is my second tasting of Holy Basil. I am going to make this and Celestial Seasons Tension Tamer my late-night relaxation brews. This is rich and complex in flavor and definitely something for later in the evening. I brewed this one day in the afternoon and I could not figure out why I was so mellow, bordering on sleepy. Thanks to all of the Steepsterites who turned me on to this herb.

After yesterdays first surf session since May I awoke tired and in need of something strong. This was the right tea. When I poured the boiling water upon the teaspoon or so of leaf I noticed that it gets strong quickly. I had to keep an eye on this one. After maybe 3 minutes I was awoken with its aroma and flavor. This is a good strong tea for beginning the day. It had that strong breakfast tea get up and go while retaining a clean briskness and it was not overpowering. I enjoyed this throughly.

I know several fellow Steepsterites said that blends were not their cup of tea. This may change their minds.

This is my first East Frisian tea. It is strong but it still has the complex flavor of a finer tea. I noticed immediately that the energy was coursing through my body. My eyes were keen and aware. In my quest for a coffee replacement this one does just fine. I also purchased the BOP version and 13 other samples to try for my morning cup. While laying in my hospital bed a month ago I decided that I was going to give up coffee and devote myself fully to my beloved tea. Morning, noon and night….

I really am glad I found this tea.

Know that an “entry level” sheng exists that I can point newbies towards without scaring them with either big price tags or overwhelming flavor profiles is comforting.

And let’s face it, you can’t drink “blow my mind” tea all day every day. If nothing else, the wallet won’t allow it.

So having a sheng you can consider a “daily drinker” is pretty excellent.

With modest leaf in a small gaiwan, this tea is mellow and almost sweet. It makes me wish I had a yixing for it. I have found the yixing I want to invest in, but this will take time. And money.

I continue to be impressed with this tea.

But I need to remember next time to do Western length steepings instead of gongfu.

As is the way in Houston, two weeks of daily rain have given way to crushing humidity and Summer heat. This afternoon I’ll need to go water the garden for the first time since my birthday, and if I can get the back yard mowed today, I’ll officially have the lawn “under control” and out ahead of rain growth for the first time since June.

Liz has been gone for six weeks and I still don’t quite have my life into any kind of new rhythm or routines, yet. Uncertainty about work and the chaos around the house have made it nearly impossible to settle down.

I need pu-erh to soothe the soul.

This leaf still amazes me. Neither the gnarled little nubs of a shou, nor the flat, hard sheng one picks off a brick, this tea looks like a high mountain oolong.

Nor orchids here, though. As Charles says: just SHENG.

Birthday ==> shipment of teas!

How can you go wrong with “ancient forest”?

This is an unusual leaf. I’ve never seen sheng leaf that looks like this.

Excellently, this lack of the every day translates into the cup, as well. A thick, brothy cup is easily achieved and the flavor profile is bold and bright without being too wooly or sharp.

I picked this up on a whim as I was placing an order and I’m glad I did.

It has been raining for a week solid and forecasted for a week more (when did I get transported to Seattle) and this is a great “cozy” cup.

Trying this one gongfu style for a change up.

Very vegetal. Quite pleasant.

Second steep is even stronger vegetal flavors and starting a hint of bitterness. Still nice, though.

Third steep and not any noticeable change. This seems a pretty one-taste-tea, though I’m going to steep it a few more times.

It is quite tasty if you like those vegetal tastes to your whites.

I’m on my iPad so can’t really do the rating and time and such with those darn drag lines, so: a rating of 50-60, 25sec steeps, water of 180 degrees.

I was pleasantly surprised with this one. It brewed up to an orange hue after 3 minutes and it has that intoxicating and mysterious Sheng energy that I love. I for whatever reason cannot place any particular flavor other than SHENG. Sheng is what it is. I am sure as with most Sheng this will be steeped multiple times even after a long initial steep. This is a winner and the price is resonable. It compares with some of the finest that I have had.

Wah Estate teas have been intriguing to me for quite a bit.

This is a very interesting cup of tea. It feels very thick on the mouth, but it’s light and sweet. First I thought the thickness came from what I ate before so I did everything possible to make sure it wasn’t me. It’s definitely the tea.

I don’t quite care for the way it smells. “Light pungency” is just kind of being nice in the description I think and it carries over into the aroma of the tea, not just the taste.

After the sweetness subsides, it kind of has the aftertaste of pita bread. I have no idea how I’m getting pita bread, but it really tastes like astringent pita bread, if that existed. Before that it’s kind of almondy.

Not sure I like it, but it was worth a try.

I am drinking this Western style in an infuser basket this morning, which I know is not optimal. Approximately 2g for a 10 oz. mug of tea.

Steep #1: about 3 minutes due to the leaf/water ratio. The tea has a very nice roasted smell and the tea liquor is a medium yellow kind of color. It’s a bit peachy and flowery, with a nice sweet aftertaste.

Steep #2: I tried for another 3 minutes but with less water this time (6 ounces?) The tea does seem more golden (as in yellow) than some other teas I’ve had from this region. Second steep is a bit weaker in flavor than the first, coming up slightly nutty.

I feel like I can’t really rate this properly until I try using the gong fu method at least once, although the sample size was only 4 grams to begin with. Right now I will have to say it is pleasant but I’m not too blown away by it.

Funny, first time I drank this I complained about it with boiling water, and I used boiling water again and definitely oversteeped it, and loved it. I loved a first flush! I had to go back and also double check it was a first flush, haha.

This is basically a hockey backlog and I don’t even remember the tea well now…just that it seemed a bit heavier than most first flushes. Or maybe age is good for it for my tastes? Ha.