What-Cha

After a very long day at work, I came home and unwound with several cups of this tea. It was my first South American tea, and after trying it, I can honestly say that I will be keeping my eye out for more teas from Bitaco. This was a rock solid, traditional black tea that was very approachable and easy to drink.

I prepared this tea two ways. First, I steeped about 3 grams of loose tea leaves in approximately 8 ounces of 203 F water for 5 minutes. The second preparation was a multi-step process. I steeped 4 grams of loose tea leaves in approximately 8 ounces of 203 F water for 2 minutes, the followed this infusion with 3 and 5 minute infusions in the same amount of water and at the same temperature.

Prior to infusion, the dry tea leaves produced a woody, subtly malty bouquet with hints of citrus. The single infusion produced a bouquet that was heavy on oak, malt, orange, lemon zest, and black walnut. In the mouth, I detected notes of chocolate, brown toast, malt, cream, lemon zest, orange peel, black walnut, and chestnut underscored by hints of caramel and sorghum. The finish was pleasantly woody and citrusy with lingering malt and nut tones in the background. The multi-step Western process allowed the tea to emphasize different aspects of its aroma and flavor profiles with each infusion. The first infusion emphasized nut, malt, cream, and mild chocolate impressions, while the citrus, wood, toast, and sorghum aromas and flavors provided balance. The second infusion saw the caramel appear and the chocolate, citrus, and toast emerge more fully. The third and final infusion saw malt and nut notes return to the fore, while the oak wood impressions continued to remain prominent.

This was a nicely balanced black tea with a passing resemblance to some high grade Assams, though I, personally, found its styling to be more reminiscent of some Chinese black teas. It would make a good breakfast or afternoon tea. I would have no issue recommending this tea to anyone looking for a flavorful tea for regular consumption.

Here is another tea that I meant to get around to quite some time ago, but just made time for recently. I think I was probably just trying to focus on some of the unflavored teas I had larger amounts of and ended up forgetting about this one, but man, do I wish I had gotten to it a little sooner! This was a very nice milk oolong.

I prepared this tea gongfu style. After a brief rinse, I steeped 6 grams of loose tea leaves in a 4 ounce gaiwan filled with 185 F water for 7 seconds. This infusion was chased by 14 subsequent infusions. Steep times for these infusions were as follows: 10 seconds, 15 seconds, 20 seconds, 25 seconds, 30 seconds, 40 seconds, 50 seconds, 1 minute, 1 minute 15 seconds, 1 minute 30 seconds, 2 minutes, 3 minutes, 5 minutes, and 7 minutes.

Prior to the rinse, the dry tea leaves emitted pronounced aromas of cream, butter, popcorn, and grass underscored by a faint floral scent. After the rinse, I detected a subtle lilac aroma coupled with more powerful aromas of custard and coconut milk. The first infusion introduced hints of ripe melon, spinach, and honeysuckle to the bouquet. In the mouth, I easily detected gentle notes of cream, butter, custard, popcorn, damp grass, spinach, and coconut milk balanced by subtle traces of fresh flowers. Subsequent infusions introduced a slightly more pronounced lilac presence, as well as emerging impressions of honeysuckle, butterscotch, cantaloupe, honeydew, pineapple, broccoli, daylily shoots, minerals, and bok choy. The later infusions were smooth and silky, offering a subtle mineral presence and lingering hints of cream, butter, coconut milk, popcorn, spinach, broccoli, and daylily shoots.

This was a nice milk oolong. I normally do not enjoy enhanced/flavored Jin Xuans like this, but this one was excellent. It had a wonderful texture, a satisfyingly full body, and a unique, yet approachable mix of aromas and flavors that displayed unexpected longevity. I would have no issue recommending this tea to seasoned oolong drinkers and neophytes alike.

Once I finished my 80s action movie binge, I decided to wind down further with a gongfu session. I also decided to challenge myself by picking a tea that was wholly new to me. I ended up picking this one. I had been curious about this tea and felt like I had been trying to come up with both time and a reason to try it for months. I had never had an African oolong before, so this was unexplored territory for me. I ended up finding it to be a very mild tea with an odd texture and unexpected layers of flavors that tended to dance in and out of focus throughout the session.

Obviously, I prepared this tea gongfu style. After a brief rinse, I steeped 6 grams of loose tea leaves in a 4 ounce gaiwan filled with 185 F water for 7 seconds. This infusion was chased by 13 subsequent infusions. Steep times for these infusions were as follows: 10 seconds, 15 seconds, 20 seconds, 25 seconds, 30 seconds, 40 seconds, 50 seconds, 1 minute, 1 minute 15 seconds, 1 minute 30 seconds, 2 minutes, 3 minutes, and 5 minutes.

Prior to the rinse, the dry tea leaves emitted aromas of ripe plum, fig, honey, and peach. The rinse brought out touches of hay, malt, black grape, and nectarine. The first infusion brought out a slight butteriness, as well as touches of damp grass, huckleberry, elderberry, and red raspberry. Oddly, the mouth, however, was disappointingly bland. I picked up touches of malt, hay, and butter, as well as slight undertones of plum, honey, and fig, but otherwise, there was not much for me to discover. Subsequent infusions brought out slightly stronger aromas and flavors of plum, fig, honey, malt, hay, and butter. The red raspberry, huckleberry, black grape, damp grass, peach, and nectarine also made appearances. Furthermore, new aromas and flavors reminiscent of cinnamon, autumn leaves, sugarcane, almond, minerals, raisin, spinach, and pomegranate emerged. The later infusions were mild and somewhat sharp. I mostly detected minerals, hay, malt, autumn leaves, and almond underscored by faint wisps of stone fruits, honey, grapes, and berries.

This tea was interesting and displayed some complexity, but I don’t think I would go out of my way to try it again. The aromas and flavors were just so uneven throughout the session. What was perhaps most frustrating for me was just how subtle and timid many of the aromas and flavors were. I was constantly hoping something would really pop out of the mix and grab me, but it never happened. I was also a little nonplussed by how thin and sharp the tea was in the mouth. There was an astringency that built throughout the session that I found somewhat offputting. Overall, this tea was not horrible, but it was an uneven, often confounding experience from start to finish. The other reviews back that assertion up too. I noticed that opinion on this tea was divided. No one seemed to know how to take it and the flavor notes were all over the place. I guess at this point all I can say is that I’m glad I tried it, but it wasn’t for me.

Since I’ve been slacking in an impressive fashion lately, I decided to spend some time on myself today. I needed to de-stress and try to find some motivation to accomplish a few things. To that end, I spent my day doing some things I enjoy, and so far, I have spent my evening watching 80s action movies and drinking tea. I feel a little more recharged now. Hopefully, I can sleep late tomorrow, get some chores done through the day, and then go into the workweek a little more refreshed.

I finished a sample pouch of this tea while lying on my couch watching Rambo III. Drinking this tea was not nearly as regrettable of a choice as watching that particular film. I found it to be a very approachable, yet somewhat deceptive black tea. It was not nearly as bold, vibrant, or intense as the Nepal ‘Greenland Farm Signature’ Black Tea I drank last week, yet there was more going on with this one underneath its smooth, breezy exterior than I initially thought.

I prepared this tea in the Western style. I steeped about 3-4 grams of loose tea leaves in approximately 8 ounces of 203 F water for 5 minutes. I did not attempt any additional infusions.

Prior to infusion, I could not detect much of an aroma from the dry tea leaves. I could pick up on a subtle and indistinct fruitiness, but that was it. After infusion, I picked up very subtle aromas of herbs, Muscatel, citrus, and fresh flowers. In the mouth, I initially picked up a not particularly surprising mix of Muscatel, herbs, wood, almond, malt, and lemon zest backed by a hint of straw. Closer examination, however, also revealed relatively subtle impressions of orange peel, green apple, dandelion, marigold, and viola. The finish was surprisingly tart, offering lingering citrus and floral tones framed against a firm malt backbone.

This did not come off as a particularly deep, complex, or challenging tea, but again, there was more to it than I initially thought. It was not the sort of tea I would want to drink regularly, but I did find it at least somewhat enjoyable. I could see fans of heavily citrusy and/or floral black teas taking a liking to this one. I, however, would have enjoyed it more if it had been a little more robust on the front end.

I finished a sample pouch of this tea last night. Unfortunately, I am working entirely from memory since I did not bother jotting down notes. I recall perceiving this to be a very comforting, smooth second flush Darjeeling.

I prepared this tea in the Western style. I steeped 3-4 grams of loose tea leaves in approximately 8 ounces of 203 F water for 5 minutes. I did not attempt any additional infusions.

Prior to infusion, the dry tea leaves emitted delicate floral, fruity aromas. After infusion, I caught a pronounced scent of Muscatel accompanied by almond, herbs, malt, toast, and fresh flowers. There was also a subtle scent of chocolate. In the mouth, I immediately detected a robust Muscatel note chased by subtler, well-integrated notes of malt, toast, almond, herbs, candied orange peel, chocolate, cream, honey, golden raisin, butter, and a melange of dandelion, violet, and rose. The finish was fruity and floral. Muscatel, violet, and rose were the dominant impressions, though hints of almond, chocolate, honey, and toast lingered in the mouth.

This was a nice second flush Darjeeling. I especially appreciated its smoothness in the mouth and its sophisticated layering of aromas and flavors. Definitely check this one out if you are looking for a flavorful Darjeeling that is easy to drink.

I really didnt want any black tea, malt is not my thing at all. so much tea with ‘golden’ in the title lying around not being finished I try not to buy any more. But this one came recommended from Alistair, and I liked the description so I went for some – & really glad I did.

Possibly one of the nicest black teas I have tried. It has a fruity blackberry taste & aroma, with honey-sweet smoothness, & an slight oily leaf taste reminiscent of wuyi yancha running through it. In fact it has the taste of a steeped wuyi, you know when the roast has gone and you are left with the leafy taste (in a good way?) it kinda has that, under the bolder black tea taste. It also has a nice tongue-whetting aspect from the sweetness.

If you like the other smoother black teas that what-cha have/had (the georgian one springs to mind) or just want something slightly different from the usual golden malty blacks, you should consider trying this, the blackberry fruit really lifts it into special territory.

I have been drinking it gongfu, but I’m pretty sure a well made cup of this would sing at the right times.

Received a sample of this from a tea friend and drank it a few weeks ago. I really need to get back into the habit of just directly putting my tasting notes here instead of saving them in email drafts and notes on my phone.

Anyhow. 2016 harvest. 4g
The smell of the leaves is sweet in the bag, and they take on a slightly buttery aroma once poured into my brewing vessel. The dry leaves are rather dark and chopped-looking, and they produce a light gold liquor.

The first steep tastes of sweet chestnut, and that persists into the second steep to be joined by an almost rice-like or grainy flavor. It kind of reminds me of having a bowl of cereal.

Overall, this was a really interesting tasting green tea that I enjoyed. Thanks for the sample, Hoálatha!

My second sample sipdown of the day, this was an incredibly interesting, challenging Assam. When What-Cha described it as atypical, they were telling the truth. Despite its uniqueness, it did, however, maintain approachability while displaying an immediate appeal.

I prepared this tea in the Western style. I steeped 3-4 grams of loose tea leaves in approximately 8 ounces of 194 F water for 5 minutes. I did not attempt any additional infusions.

Prior to infusion, the dry tea leaves emitted aromas of spice, orchard fruits, honey, and malt. After infusion, the aforementioned aromas intensified and were joined by subtle scents of cream and caramel. In the mouth, fairly robust notes of malt, honey, cinnamon, ginger, clove, red apple, and pear gradually faded and revealed delicate hints of sweet orange, cream, steamed milk, golden raisin, and toffee. The finish was smooth, silky, and unbelievably mellow with lingering cream, malt, citrus, spice, and orchard fruit impressions evident.

I will concede that I was not expecting this kind of experience from an Assam, but man, am I glad I purchased this tea. This reminded me of the Azerbaijani and Georgian black teas What-Cha offers. I admire those teas, and to me, this was like a fruitier, spicier version of them. If you are looking for a unique black tea and/or want proof that an Assam can be thrilling, step up and give this tea a shot.

It’s taken me awhile, but I’m finally beginning to get into some of the black teas produced in Nepal. This was my latest sipdown, and I found it to be very unique and enjoyable. For once, I was not overly tempted to compare a Nepalese tea to a Darjeeling.

I prepared this tea in the Western style. I steeped 3-4 grams of loose tea leaves in approximately 8 ounces of 194 F water for 5 minutes. I did not attempt any additional infusions.

Prior to infusion, the dry tea leaves emitted mild aromas of citrus, straw, flowers, and Muscatel. After infusion, I detected robust aromas of dandelion, marigold, rose, chrysanthemum, malt, straw, mandarin orange, Muscatel, and lemon zest underscored by a subtle smokiness. In the mouth, I picked up strong notes of chrysanthemum, dandelion, marigold, rose, lemon zest, mandarin orange, and Muscatel which quickly softened to reveal notes of malt, grass, straw, smoke, almond, sweet corn, pine, and wintergreen. The finish sported a unique mix of flowers, citrus, straw, sweet corn, and cooling wintergreen.

This was such a quirky tea, and may I add that the leaves were beautiful. This was definitely a quality picking. I wasn’t expecting this tea to be so robustly aromatic and flavorful, but I ended up enjoying it. I would not want to have it on a regular basis, but I would likely spring for it again if given the opportunity.

I figured out that very quick flash steeps with later escalations Gong Fu in drier fall weather is the best way to drink this tea. I swear that the humidity of the past few months intensified the apricot and grassy notes making it harder to drink, but it was incredibly easy to drink this morning.

I broke the brick into rough thirds, and began with a rinse not longer than 15 seconds and not shorter than 10 using 185 F water. Creamy sweet florals lead on, starting off with a lilac-vanilla rise and going down a butter-scotch honeysuckle end of its wispy body. The second 30 second steep was more intense, painting more florals that I could not identify well amidst its creamy body. The later steeps beginning from brew three at a 35 seconds developed the apricot-citrus note from there on to the rest of the session while maintaining its dry creaminess. I partially see the nut thing that Alistair describes because it goes dry, wet, dry in the body. I also got more mineral throughout, becoming stronger in later steeps.

It finally had the Taiwaneese Gaoshan similarities and uniquely green Shui Xian Character that I love, but I am glad that I did not bulk on the cakes. It is a more nuanced version of the Floral, yet I personally found it more delicate to brew. That might change in the future.

I think that this tea is more approachable for oolong lovers and intermediate or advanced drinkers that are used to brewing Gong Fu. I’ve yet had a successful western session and only one mediocre Grandpa One. New drinkers might have a harder time brewing it, and it might be too close to delicate for some though it compares to heavier Lishans. I also got a charge of qi one night with it, so some may be able to find some qi from this tea especially if their tolerance is lower.

I rate this a 90 though I do not think I’d buy this tea too often despite my usual enjoyment of the variety and this seasons popularity for it. I admit that there are other teas that I prefer to this one, it is one that I think is better to savor and meditate with rather than a daily tea injection. Hence, this tea is ultimately for someone looking to try it in smaller quantities and to expand their horizons.

I swore I added this…I need to figure out how I like this one. I have not found the balance between the florals and the apricots yet. Sometimes, it’s been like hitting a flat film of floral on my tongue when I try it out. As I said two sentences ago, I need to figure this one out because I LOVE these types of oolongs and I usually appreciate them.

Now, Daylon, figure out how you should do this one.

I’ve had this for a while. I bought it thinking that it would instantly become a staple, but I’ve had to finnick the brew for preference. Dawdle might be a better word for how I brewed some cups unsuccessfully, but it did take more refinement than I expected. I followed exact instruction at first, then gong fu’d, then used longer steeping times, and they all had odd floral oil balances that I was not a huge fan of. I was able to get a more fully realized profile with a whole cake, 10 oz of water, and 2 min 15 seconds steeping. Water was 196 F.

This has some interesting things going on in the flavor and texture. Like the other two Shui Xian cakes, the light flavor profile contradicted the texture. Drinking it was like squeezing floral essential oils into my mouth, with the light florals heading a charge of cream, apricot, roast( or nuttiness), citrus orange zest, then left over light sweetness. The florals themselves were an odd mix of honeysuckle, hyacinth, and hinted hibiscus, both the tropical flower and the other related flower that is used for so many herbal teas.

There is no doubting this was a good oolong, but I need to enjoy more of what I have before I rate it. I’m preferring the Indonesia Baozhong I finished off (I’m so close to getting more) despite the similarity this tea bears. Something is missing.

To top it all off, I am looking at a sampler fest while trying to decide how much of the Li Shan I should get. Buying 8 oz tempted me, but so do some of the many offerings What-Cha has right now. In fact, the Indonezia Baozhong changed my mind in general about Indonesian Teas and perked my curiosity in the Jin Xuan. I also want to try the Nepal Jun Chiyabari ‘Himayalan Imperial’ Black, the Nepal Rolled Oolong, the Toba Wangi ‘Wu Mei Oolong’, and the Golden Monkey.

There are four problems:
1. I have a lot of tea.
2. Money. I am still trying to find a summer job, and when the school year starts, I need money for gas in an unpaid “internship” student teaching while paying graduate level tuition (GI BILL PLEASE GO THROUGH). I also need to save for school supplies.
3. I am still waiting for a lot of Li Shan from Berylleb. It’s surprising that I have not received it yet because the orders are usually as early as the first suggested day or before. When I do receive it, I will have a lot of Li Shan. I will drink ALL of it, but Li Shan is expensive to drink constantly, or even frugally.
4. It’s summer. Though I still drink hot and iced tea and coffee over the summer, it’s not in the mega amounts I do in fall or winter. So, yeah….

I need to bide my time and think critically as I need to try this tea with a little more care. It does resemble a Taiwaneese tea, and the roast if you ever taste it is fairly pleasant.I still recommend it.

Here’s yet another sample sipdown. I way overloaded on caffeine the last couple of days, but could not go without my daily sipping session, so I did something I don’t do often-I broke out a white tea. It totally hit the spot too.

I brewed this tea gongfu. After a 10 second rinse, I steeped the entire 6 gram dragon ball in 4 ounces of 194 F water for 10 seconds. This infusion was chased by 15 additional infusions. Steep times for these infusions was as follows: 12 seconds, 15 seconds, 20 seconds, 25 seconds, 30 seconds, 40 seconds, 50 seconds, 1 minute, 1 minute 15 seconds, 1 minute 30 seconds, 2 minutes, 3 minutes, 5 minutes, 7 minutes, and 10 minutes.

Prior to the rinse, the dragon ball emitted aromas of hay, honey, eucalyptus, and apricot. After the rinse, I began to pick up on grass, nectar, wood, toast, and camphor. The first infusion introduced hints of butter, pine, cucumber, and malt. In the mouth, I mostly picked up on notes of butter, malt, cucumber, damp grass, hay, pine, eucalyptus, wood, and honey underscored by touches of apricot, camphor, and nectar. Subsequent infusions saw the camphor, apricot, and nectar intensify in the mouth. I also began to detect impressions of almond, wheat toast, puff pastry, cedar, dates, oats, cream, minerals, golden raisin, cinnamon, vanilla, and clove. The later infusions were smooth, displaying pronounced buttery, creamy qualities with hints of minerals, hay, pine, eucalyptus, spices, toast, and apricot in places.

I normally don’t go for white teas, but I have had a soft spot for Yue Guang Bai for a little over a year now. This one was excellent. It was deep, complex, mellow, long-lasting, and well-balanced.

I finished this one last night, which was a terrible decision. I had way too much tea yesterday and ended up not falling asleep until around 3:00 A.M. as a result. I didn’t get up this morning until somewhere around 10:00 A.M. I may have put myself through hell, but at least the teas I drank yesterday were good. This one was no exception, and for me, that’s saying something because I’m still not totally sold on Nilgiri teas.

I prepared this tea in the Western style. I steeped approximately 3 grams of loose tea leaves in 8 ounces of 194 F water for 5 minutes. I did not attempt any additional infusions.

Prior to infusion, the dry tea leaves emitted a fairly powerful bouquet that presented a blend of honey, flowers, grass, and fruit. After infusion, I detected pronounced scents of honey, violet, grass, rose, and mango. In the mouth, I detected honey and flowers up front. It was hard to pinpoint exactly what kind of floral impressions I was getting. At the time, I pegged it as a mixture of chrysanthemum, rose, tea flower, and violet. With the exception of the violet, I’m still not confident that my description would strike anyone else as being remotely accurate. Just beneath the honey and floral notes, I detected impressions of grass, straw, malt, herbs, mango, and nectarine underscored by a touch of smoke. The finish was sweet with a nice mix of floral, fruity, and honeyed tones.

This was an interesting and satisfying black tea. I was pretty much firing in all directions simultaneously when I attempted to log this, so I have no idea if my description of this tea even approaches adequacy, but I can confirm that it was a nice drinking experience. Again, I’m still not the hugest fan of Nilgiris, but I thought this one was quite good. I imagine that those who have more interest in teas of this type would get considerably more out of it than someone like me.

This was another tea I forgot I had. While going through one of my tea totes last night, I stumbled upon it and thought to myself, “I should probably try this soon.” I then put it aside with the intention of breaking it out within the next couple of days. Curiosity got the better of me, however, and I decided I just had to have it this morning. I found it to be an interesting, mellow oolong with a good deal of complexity and the expected young sheng brininess.

I prepared this tea gongfu style. Just out of curiosity, I measured the dragon ball prior to starting the session. I had expected it to weigh approximately 6 grams, but my scale showed right around 8. Not wanting to chance it in a smaller gaiwan, I broke out an unused 5 oz. easy gaiwan I had been meaning to try out sooner. After a 10 second rinse, I steeped the entire dragon ball in 5 ounces of 194 F water for 5 seconds. This infusion was chased by 16 additional infusions. Steep times for these infusions were as follows: 7 seconds, 10 seconds, 15 seconds, 20 seconds, 25 seconds, 30 seconds, 40 seconds, 50 seconds, 1 minute, 1 minute 15 seconds, 1 minute 30 seconds, 2 minutes, 3 minutes, 5 minutes, 7 minutes, and 10 minutes.

Prior to the rinse, the dry dragon ball emitted interesting, somewhat funky aromas of stone fruits, smoke, wood, grass, camphor, and brine. The rinse brought out more fruitiness (I began to catch distinct impressions of longan and lychee) as well as honey and more intense smoke, grass, wood, and brine scents. The first infusion introduced hints of pine, wild mushroom, and apricot. In the mouth, I mostly detected a touch of fruitiness coupled with an odd blend of mushroom, honey, smoke, grass, camphor, and brine. Clearly, I didn’t infuse this long enough, but whatever. Subsequent infusions allowed the fruit notes to separate and develop. I definitely got longan, lychee, and apricot. Soon, I also began to pick up tart cherry, lemon, and Asian pear notes, maybe even a touch of something like jackfruit. I also got more intense wood, grass, honey, brine, and smoke. The pine showed up on the palate too. Impressions of earth, minerals, hay, spruce, malt, dried flowers, and birch also joined the party. The later infusions were dominated by minerals, malt, wood, mushroom, and camphor, though I could still detect hints of honey, dried flowers, grass, and stone fruits with just a touch of belatedly emerging caramel.

This was a complex, challenging, quirky tea, but it wasn’t particularly intense. It was very forgiving and even-tempered throughout the session, lacking the peaks and valleys I tend to get from the vast majority of the other teas I brew gongfu. I found it to be a tea worth trying, though I doubt I would be in any rush to return to it.

This was my afternoon tea today. I have been working on finishing up a few of the samples I have lying around and I was in the mood for a Darjeeling. It came down to either this or the Rohini Golden Buds, but I ended up selecting this one. I tend to be a fan of the teas produced by the Gopaldhara Estate and had heard some good things about this one. I found it to be a very pleasant, slightly quirky first flush Darjeeling with a pronounced fruity character.

I prepared this tea in the Western style. I steeped about 3-4 grams of loose tea leaves in approximately 8 ounces of 194 F water for 5 minutes. I did not attempt any additional infusions.

Prior to infusion, the dry tea leaves emitted pleasantly fruity, malty, grassy aromas. After infusion, I detected clearer aromas of honey, peach, straw, grass, Muscatel, flowers, and melon. There were also subtle touches of wood, lemon zest, and smoke. In the mouth, I picked up a delicate mixture of honey, almond, straw, grass, cucumber, wood, smoke, lemon zest, tangerine, honeydew melon, white peach, malt, and Muscatel balanced by subtle minerals and fleeting impressions of dandelion, chrysanthemum, marigold, and violet. The finish was fruity and malty, offering lingering malt, Muscatel, melon, peach, and citrus notes with just a touch of floral character.

Yeah, this one was excellent. What-Cha normally does a great job sourcing Darjeelings, especially first flush Darjeelings. I kind of wish I had a little more of this to play around with, but I don’t. I may have to pick up some more soon. If you are a fan of first flush Darjeelings, give this one a shot. I doubt you will be disappointed.

2 tsp, hot water (under boiling), 300 mL gong-fu teapot

Steep 1: 50 seconds: vegetal, spicy (like how green peppers aren’t hot spicy but sort of have that edge to them)
Steep 2: 2 min – bamboo, spicy, tender wood
Steep 3: 3 min – wood chips, grass seed, Earthy
Steep 4: 5 min – peat, cedar wood, cleaner flavour now
Steep 5: 3 min – less generic woody and more like dry cedar shavings, dark raisins (like the small brown kind), a certain vegetal quality (Earthy?), and something that reminds me of resin/sap

It was an interesting tea, but not really my thing.

Wow, interesting coldbrew.

1 tsp leaf, 500 mL cold water. This doesn’t steep well cold. It was very light and the pearls didn’t open up very well. I think a longer steep (306 hours) would produce a much more flavourful brew.

My immediate thought was raisins and brown sugar. Molasses, lighted roasted, fruity (apricot and navel orange), sweet. Normally when I get molasses and roasty flavours I expect the slight bitterness associated with burnt sugar or buckwheat, but this tea has no bitterness.

I polished off a sample pouch of this tea to start my day. I think I’m going to spend much of the rest of this day cleaning house and catching up on reviews. I have a couple of others that I need to post. Anyway, this was kind of a standard Kenyan black tea in the sense that it was a strong, malty Assamica. It definitely did the trick as a breakfast tea.

I prepared this tea in the Western style. I steeped somewhere in the neighborhood of 3-4 grams of loose tea leaves in approximately 8 ounces of 203 F water for 5 minutes. I did not attempt any additional infusions.

Prior to infusion, the dry tea leaves emitted mildly malty, woody aromas. After infusion, I caught hints of camphor and anise to go along with caramel, cocoa, molasses, leather, malt, nuts, and wood. In the mouth, the tea was strongly herbal and nutty up front. Along with a somewhat menthol note of camphor and a hint of anise, I immediately detected notes of black walnut, beechnut, and roasted chestnut. The tea then opened up, allowing notes of cream, malt, butter, leather, brown toast, orange, and dark wood to appear. I could detect impressions of cocoa powder, coffee bean, and molasses lurking in the background. The finish was malty, nutty, creamy, and somewhat sweet with a returning hit of camphor and a belatedly emerging leafiness.

For kind of a standard issue African Assam-type black tea, this was very nice. It wasn’t quite as syrupy or as heavy as some of the other African black teas I have tried. I could see it taking additives well, though it does not need them to shine. I would have no difficulty recommending this tea to anyone looking for a respectable breakfast tea to get them going in the morning.