Various Artists

So this is another one of those teas that my friend brought back for me from a trip to China.

It came in a cardboard tea canister with a large vacuum packed package of tea in it. The outside says Nature on it. It’s a really pretty canister. The package with the tea in it had a lot of characters that I don’t read. But fortunately there is English on it as well:

High Mountain Tea
Taiwanese tea quality good, wanting to drink tea will choose Taiwanese tea.

There are also some tea making instructions.

I opened the bag, and it’s what looks like a nice oolong. Great. I’ll just make it like I would an oolong.

It’s pretty nice. Green and a little buttery. The leaves expand like crazy. I had some yesterday, too, and I overleafed that but I still enjoyed it. (I was going to write that up after the vets, and steep the leaves a few times more, but then everything went to heck in a handbasket, and well…. this was not the tea I wanted last night at all.)

Anyway, sometimes it’s a lot of fun drinking teas I have no idea what they are. It’s a good thing because I’ve got a few more to try.

Included in my last Butiki Teas order was a sneak preview of a new tea Stacy is working on. I’m not going to talk about it because it would ruin the surprise when it does come out.

I just have to say that this tea is not something I would have ordered for myself just based on the name.

I love it. I love this tea.

I really am looking forward to when it’s out (and I’m allowing myself to buy tea again) because this one I will get. It’ll be a special treat for myself.

This goes to show that you can’t judge a book by its cover, or a tea by its name. I need to be more adventurous if I want to try all the teas. This was a start at making myself venture off the beaten path.

Tonight I am drinking a tea brewed from a peppermint plant I bought to put in my herb garden. It was called Strawberry Peppermint and when I tasted the leaves I could taste strawberry along with the peppermint!

I dried a few leaves and am just having them now. It’s got a lighter peppermint flavour than plain peppermint teas and a light strawberry finish. Love it! I hope my plant grows really big so I can harvest lots of leaves for tea.

I got a sample from Liquid Proust and it was hard to read what was written on the sample . I think it’s Fukuyu Sencha from ESP Emporium. I couldn’t find that tea listed here so I didn’t bother setting it up.

Had this one at work and just brewed up western style. Oh, wow, was it ever good. It tasted fruity. Really fruity and sweet. I really want more of this green tea. Soooo good!

I usually have green tea, more green, some light oolong and once in awhile a sheng. Today I felt like something really different so pulled out a sample of Lapsang Souchong Black tea from Royal Tea Bay. I didn’t add this to the teas on Steepster because there are so many types of Lapsang Souchong and I’m not sure I’d get it listed right.

Anyway I haven’t tried out this tea because I wasn’t sure a smokey tea was for me. Even when I pulled it out today, I was a little apprehensive. I was thinking to myself I could just make a cup of something else if I don’t like it.

The dry leaves smelled so BBQ smokey! Really strong! I wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or not. Brewed up western style and Wow! Soooo good. Like I get a buttery, malty with smoke and plum fruit. Cup is nearly gone. I am totally surprised I loved this tea. I never thought I would. Now I’m thinking I should have ordered Traditional Smoked Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong * Lapsang Souchong Black tea from Yunnan Sourcing when I placed my order yesterday. Oh well! Another time.

I didn’t know where to post this tea review. It’s a new tea sample. I ordered the sample pack of Japanese teas on Ebay from Ebay seller yuu.choose. This tea is Suizawa Tokujou Kabusecha. All the little sample packets came with only Japanese writing on them and I didn’t know what was what. So I brought up the Ebay auction sample pack and matched symbols to their English translation and figured it out. I couldn’t find a company name anyway unless it’s Ise Tea.

No brewing instruction either so I used Yunomi brewing instructions. The first cup was very light (30 sec) but I loved it. A light grassy sweet tea. So delicate and tasty. Second brewing was 1 min and the tea brewed stronger. Still soooo beautifully sweet. Not a hint of bitterness. The colour of the tea was a bright green, like a matcha tea and tasted very grassy. I have to go back for another steep. This is so good. I definitely will consider buying more of this tea.

For those that are interested , the shipping was a bit slow with this seller but otherwise a good transaction.

I’m having Tealux – Imperial Gyokuro Genmaicha this morning. I’ve left a review on it already and it’s very good tea. I haven’t been having too many new teas lately. Just already tried teas from my cupboard.

Yesterday I had:

Imperial Dark – Mandala Tea – a good morning cup

White Sands Tea -Royal Tea Bay – A pleasant green

Mandarin Silk Oolong -Tealux – I’ve moved away from a lot of flavoured teas. I still love this though. I haven’t had it in a long time and it was so nice having a cup. Mmmmm

China Moon Palace TeaFrog This one fell short for the day. I can’t remember my initial review on it and I don’t have much left of it (1 tsp); but it wasn’t the best. I shared this one with Hubby but it was a bit of a let down after some of the amazing greens I’m used to.

Well, considering, should I check out the Coffee/Tea show today? A great chance to try some more teas but I’m definitely gonna have to post on here with teas I want to swap. I know I’ve got some David’s Tea -Coconut Oolong I can’t have anymore because the artificial flavour give me a headache and breathing problems. It smells delicious though.

What is it with doctors and vets? Tests, tests , tests and more tests with no results. I’m fed up with all of them. So to relax I am having Tenkaichi Sencha Supreme from Tealux. I’ve left reviews on this before. Brewed only 1 min at 185. It tastes soooo good.

I enjoyed my Strawberry Pecan green tea from DesignATea today. I know they don’t get a lot of reviews on here but they do have some quite good flavoured teas. I brewed this up at work and haven’t been having good results with green teas at work because I can’t get the water temperature right. I had a lightbulb moment and figured I would used the hot water dispenser in the water cooler. Yes, it seemed to be the perfect temperature for greens. It might be a tad on the cool side of what the temperature should be but it’s better than being too hot and getting bitter tea.

I still have some Design A Tea samples in my cabinet untried! So this morning pulled out Chestnut Raspberry Oolong. Not bad! Definitely the chestnut flavour is prominent followed by lighter notes of raspberry. I’m not getting much of the oolong base because the chestnut is pretty strong but overall it’s still a pretty decent cup. It is after all my own weird combo. Definitely nice to try but not a winner for buying more. Of course Design a Tea makes it so easy to try out many different combos.

TTTTB R2

Did not find this listed and did not want to add it since I don’t know much about it. Karamell by Qualitatstee,TraceyC got this while visiting Germany and I loved the idea of trying something I can not get easily. This caramel tea reminds me of the beerbutter I’ve been drinking up lately but better because it is smoother. Way too sweet for me this morning but it does have nice caramel flavor. I would take the rest but I’d rather leave it for someone else.

T&C TTB 21/23

Numi Pettit flower: there was a picture guide to help tell them apart but none of them had the shape I was looking for but two had the color combination I was looking for.
After adding the water it was fun to watch it bloom to find a little reddish flower thing in the middle. After comparing the bloomed flower with the choices, I think I picked Dragon Lily. After reading what Dragon Lily tasted like “sweet apricot” I think I can taste apricot but I mostly smell and taste over cooked vegetables. Not sure what I picked but it was fun to try.

Tea notes from my trip to China (part 2 of 2)

I didn’t try that many oolong or black teas on this trip, as green tea had a much bigger presence in the region. I did try a Jin Jun Mei that was truly extraordinary, and a fairly good Da Hong Pao (both of which I have stocked up on). Also, I had a few more encounters with hotel-room bagged tea…which seemed to be at least a little better than its Western counterpart.

One of the more interesting experiences I had with black tea was visiting an English-styled teahouse in Shanghai. The chain is called Annvita and is partnered with Whittard (which may be a more familiar name around here), though it also has many of its own blends. You can buy loose-leaf tea or sit down to a pot of tea and desserts in the shop. It’s a bit overpriced, and the price tag is as much for the experience (fancy tea room and teaware, candlelit pot warmer, high tea, etc) as the product. I went with a small group and tried a few teas there:

-First Flush Darjeeling: very lovely fragrance, floral and delicate, probably one of the best darjeelings I’ve tried. We were given no instructions not to oversteep by the staff, and there was no way to stop steeping (the pot was brewed with loose leaves and poured over a strainer when you wanted to fill a cup), so it inevitably became bitter later on.

-Earl Grey: smooth, with very fresh-tasting bergamot. Presentation probably made it taste better, but it does rank as one of the best EGs I’ve tried.

-iced honeydew black tea: probably Ceylon base, crisp and enjoyable on a hot day, with fresh, natural-seeming fruit flavor.

Overall, it was a fun place to go with friends, with high quality tea, but probably not a spot I would visit often if it was local to me, due to the price markup. The popularity of the chain and their products is proof that English-styled tea, flavored black teas, and tisanes are gaining ground in China as well.

Tea notes from my trip to China (part 1 of 2)

I’m back in the US now, and somehow forgot to bring my notebook back with me, so this will be from memory. I mostly visited relatives in the Jiangsu Province, which is a temperate area through which the Yangtze River runs. The local tea culture focuses heavily on green tea, and almost every city and town has a tea or two that they are known for. Many of these are lesser-known outside of China, so I am very glad I got the chance to sample them.

One of the best local teas I tried was a Zhenjiang green (I believe the name translates either to golden shoot or verdant shoot…if only I still had my notebook!). This was a very fresh spring picking, vivid green leaves, very tender. The tea is light-bodied, not very vegetal but slightly sweet, and you can just imagine the leaves soaking up the sunshine. [Edit: I realize this sounds a lot like my description of another Chinese green tea from not long ago, and I do find these two very similar.]

Another local favorite was Nanjing Yuhua (rain flower). This is a more vegetal green, light and subtle (almost white-tea-like in my opinion), with notes of what I can only describe at lotus leaf.

Most of the people I met tended to overleaf their green teas, but as I grew to realize, this was often not a bad practice. Much of the time, someone has a favorite green tea and a tried-and-true method for brewing it, and what looks like too much leaf to me actually isn’t. This was the case when I was given a cup of Maojian that initially almost scared me off with how much leaf it contained. But the resulting brew was not bitter or astringent at all, and had an almost malt-candy-esque sweetness. The overall effect was quite energizing, and something good to have in the afternoon during a workday.

Back in the land of “random teas from China I found lying around the house”…

1. A sachet tea labelled as sheng pu-erh. The dry sachet has a smoky, almost lapsang-like smell. After rinsing and brewing, it has an aroma and flavor reminiscent of tobacco and damp leaves, a hint of muscatel, and a drying edge. Given my (and my family’s) limited experience with pu-erh, I don’t have much to compare this one to, but I hope to try more proper pu-erhs this summer.

2. A green tea with slender, twisty leaves that unfurl upon brewing. The fully opened leaves have a delicate spring-green color, and look good enough to eat (and actually are quite tasty when I accidentally imbibe one). The visual effect of the leaves dancing up and down in this one is too beautiful to use any sort of sachet or brew basket to confine them. The flavor of this tea is sublimely light and vegetal, with a fresh quality to it—the leaves are very tender and seem to have just soaked up the newest spring sunshine. Really love this one and wish I knew where it was from.

Today on “not sure if this is a good idea but I’m going to try it anyway”: instant pu-erh. My family received this as a gift, and it comes in the form of small individual packages in a rather nice-looking tin. Originally this was marketed as a high-end product, but I had my doubts…like many “gifty” teas, I thought it would probably be just mediocre (if not downright terrifying).

The contents of an individual pouch consist of a dark, coffee-grounds-colored powder that quickly dissolves in hot water. The initial aroma had a touch of fishiness to it, which made me think it wasn’t going to be good at all. The actual taste of the tea, however, is surprisingly pleasant. It’s smooth and completely free of fishiness, with a little bit of caramelized, coffee-like undertone. The overall body of the tea is silky and slightly sweet, similar to snow ear fungus soup.

Overall, this experiment turned out to be much better than I expected. Maybe this product isn’t for seasoned pu-erh drinkers, but it’s quite enjoyable and will be useful as something to carry during travel or other busy times. And as it turns out, “instant” pu-erh solidified from brewed tea has a long history and is more common than I thought (a quick search brings up several vendors that sell in the U.S. as well). I’m glad I gave this a chance in spite of initial misgivings, it’s often good to try something completely different!

I did a little alchemy with some teas I had on hand that I thought would blend nicely—the unknown green tea I’ve spent a few notes on figuring out, an unknown white tea that was quite subtle with a light stonefruit note, and a few buds of Yabao from Whispering Pines. It turns out that the Yabao dominates, even though I only put two buds in this cup. The tea has that very fresh, light pine quality, with a bit of juicy vegetal sweetness. The green tea adds a very faint bitterness to the background, actually a good thing in this case. Overall it was fairly interesting, more full-bodied than Yabao by itself, with the fruitiness of the other teas somewhat tempered.

I also tried a sample that was Whittard English Rose Black Tea, but it was unlike the ones listed on Steepster—it specifically was stated to contain no petals. The tea was not marketed on the main Whittard site but sold by an authorized distributor overseas. This was a mellow black tea with a light floral note, but it did not smell or taste sharply of rose. There was also a touch of fresh apple in the aroma. It was a pretty enjoyable, gentle blend that was not overly perfumed, something I appreciate.

In conclusion…I need to get more teas soon.

An update on the mysterious, unidentified, probably-Longjing green tea:

I took a small amount out of the original tin and stored it in a small plastic container for bringing to work. I didn’t end up drinking it at work, and it remained in the cupboard. After about a week, I noticed that the container didn’t completely snap shut at one corner, so while there wasn’t a gap that could have allowed any objects to get in or fall out, the tea had probably been exposed to outside air to some extent. Seeing as it was probably perfectly fine and hadn’t been exposed to moisture or other strongly-scented teas, I thought I would still give it a try. And it was…a lot better?

The aroma and taste now have a very subtle, smooth sweetness I usually associate with good quality white teas. It’s nothing artificial or external. There’s something reminiscent of malt sugar and candied plums. Furthermore, this tea used to have a strong, lingering note that I couldn’t identify, which I did not really like—something like burnt bamboo, if I really had to stretch my imagination. Now, after storage, that note is completely gone. If I were giving ratings (a somewhat futile endeavor for the “random steepings” category), this one would have just jumped up by 20 points. Anyone have any input on what might have happened here? The container had not previously housed any flavored or scented items. Everything is clean and the tea definitely hasn’t spoiled.

One part Laoshan Black first picking + one part Lily Chai Tea Snow Flake = magic. The chocolate, almond and coconut all come through evenly in this one. I picked these two teas to blend not only because of the flavors, but because both are black teas that brew up to a relatively light color and low astringency. The result is a cup with rich aroma and taste, without a heavy mouthfeel.

By the way, I’ve narrowed down the possible contents of my mystery can of green tea to two choices: Longjing or Laoshan green tea (very different from the type acquired through Verdant). I don’t have enough experience with Longjing to definitively say it’s one or the other yet. Pictures of both kinds of tea that come in this packaging look rather similar to what I have.

New tea (hooray!) but one that I can’t add to my cupboard or the database, because, well…it just says “tea” on the package. It’s a green tea from China, and while it comes in a tin, the packaging is not very pretentious or gifty, which raises my hopes.

The leaves are flat and pressed-looking, with fine silver hairs. There’s a warm, vegetal and bread-like aroma. The brewed liquor is pale gold, and the taste is initially very subtle and light compared to what the aroma might suggest. Mellow and lightly grassy, with just a hint of richer flavors, and something I can’t quite put my finger on that is the most surprising note in the background, which leads to a stronger finish. This morning I just can’t seem to think of the right word for it. It’s a good standard green tea to have on hand.

This is the “everything else” category, right?

It was 100F again today, so iced tea was looking like a good idea. I cold brewed one sachet each of Lupcia Ume Vert and Tsugaru Green together, and it’s pretty much the greatest thing ever on a hot day. It has what I liked most in both blends without either one dominating. Too bad I’m almost out of the Ume Vert now!

Just a note, more for myself. I ordered some sort of Peppermint Candy Cane tea for a friend on my last Adagio order to save her the shipping costs. She gave me one of the bags, as we trade teas all the time. I can’t find what looks like the right one in the Steepster db so I am noting this under Random Steepings.

Unfortunately, I am not a fan of this tea. It’s a black tea with peppermint blend, but I think there’s some coconut in it. Not really doing it for me this morning. Not really bad, just not to my liking. I would not order it for myself.

Happy Valley Darjeeling by some tea place in Kansas (received in a swap).
Not great. Maybe I just don’t like darjeelings. I don’t seem to ever find any love for them!

This stuff wasn’t full leaves, it was all cut up leaf bits – not tiny ones, but still not full leaves.

I think I will give this away to my friend Robin.