Yunnan Sourcing US

I find this one to be more complex than the other reviewers here. On the nose I got typical sweet potato, malt, also got dates, dried apricot and a buttery aroma with marigold flower. On the palate very similar to nose, slight allspice with Assam tea quality also. Some of the flavors were quite delicate. Not a big and rich tea, but very nice

I wasn’t sure what I was going to get when I ordered this, as I’ve never tried the purple tea varietals. This one is a nice strong tea; a smooth, mild black tea, and has a sweetness that reminds me of rose petals or a flower. I found that it steeped best at (1.5 tsp/8oz) 185 F for 3 minutes . I did try 205 F for 4 minutes just for fun – while slightly more ‘potent’ than the first option it was definitely still smooth and not remotely bitter. Not a picky tea IMHO. What I really love about this tea is the ‘energy’ of the tea. It leaves me feeling good about the world and with a sense of wellbeing. Out of all the teas I got last time (most of which I will order again) none of them compared in “esscence”. I hope to order more in the future.

I tossed a couple little packets of this Heicha into a Yunnan Sourcing order I made a few months back, and one of them just surfaced in my sample box. After drinking it, I’m sad to say they’re gone on Yunnan Sourcing’s site – it was a very interesting and tasty tea. The dry leaf had a pungent prune or other dried fruit smell. The aroma was largely unchanged after a rinse, with a bit of maltiness entering the mix as well.

The flavor was pretty out there – I got a lot of that same sour dried fruitiness, I’m gonna call it prunes, throughout the session. The first steep was prunes and dried cherries with a slight cooling mouthfeel. I haven’t ever tasted a tea that was much of anything like that first steep. It was like everything I always hope for (and have never gotten) when black teas are labeled as “fruity.” Nice and bright flavor.

I didn’t taste the cherry after that first steep, but the rest of the session was nice as well. It got a touch of bittersweet chocolate to it, with the fruit a little more distant in the finish, but still quite there and quite pruney. The chocolate vibe only lasted through around steep 4, but even once it was gone, the tea retained a bit of a bittersweet note to it which I couldn’t pin down.

Compared to a lot of the puerh and stuff I drink, this one didn’t have quite the longevity – I got 8 steeps out of it, and the last two were pretty diminished. Despite that, I would buy up a lot more of this tea in a heartbeat if it were available. The single-session packaging and affordability make it a no brainer for such an interesting tea. I really need to try some more Tian Jian and other heicha…haven’t had great experience with Liu Bao, but these other heicha have been nice.

This one kind of reminded me of a really funky and whacked out black tea – like black tea’s psycho cousin. I liked it a lot.

I wanted to like this more. I did two gong fu sessions over the weekend and wasn’t getting any thing but a weak bland flavor. Decided to do western style just now and heavily leafed it. It is a bit stronger but the malt note is falling short and it has a rather generic black tea flavor. It isn’t bad but isn’t anything special.

NOt sure what to say about this tea. While I could have over brewed it, It seems to have a note of sour fruit to it. Not so much that it is undrinkable but still there.

Brewed this one time in a 16oz Teavana Glass Perfect Tea Maker/Gravity Steeper with 3 tsp leaf and 185 degree water for 3 minutes.

Sample from Hoálatha

Notes of dark chocolate which lingers on the tip of the tongue in the aftertaste. A softer mouthfeel that the Classic Laoshan. I loved that the dark chocolate note had coated the mouth on the initial sip, and lingered behind in the aftertaste.

This is a nice malty black with undertones of dark chocolate. It is quite enjoyable even though it only got steeped western style today.

I brewed 3 tsp leaf in a 16oz Teavana Glass Perfect Tea Maker/Gravity Steeper with boiling water for 3 minutes.

Rolled green leaves expand quickly in the first steep. Floral scent with a hint of roastedness.

Very light, clear yellow liquor. Looks quite viscous and it goes down smooth. First steep is quite floral, as is the aftertaste. I get a slight bit of roast in the first sip but none after that.

Water is a few degrees cooler for the second steep. This steep also comes through very floral. I know that it is often described as osmanthus, but I am not familiar with what osmanthus smells like. Following steeps taste, more or less, the same. As the liquor cools the mouthfeel thickens up and becomes more of a creamy smooth than a fluid smooth.

This is a good tea, I think it just may be too floral for me without having enough of any other kinds of notes to balance it out. I will give it another chance, but I think it is probably just not for me.

I’m so torn about this tea. It’s definitely cocoa-y and a bit malty. No bitterness though there’s an astringency that I feel rather than taste. I tried steeping shorter times but found it thin and weak. Three minutes seemed to be the sweet spot for me. I got a pleasant four minute additional steep out of it as well.

As to why I’m torn, I like it though I feel like I prefer the VT Laoshan black, but would really really rather prefer this one because there’s just so much more on offering through YS that I’m enjoying. And the better price point sure doesn’t hurt. I really should have gotten a sample of the Classic Laoshan Black as well. Derp. Oh well.

It’s funny how things change. I’ve tried this one two times before and I’m still not sure if I was steeping it poorly, if my palate is more developed or if a combination of the two things are responsible for my change in perception, but I feel totally different about this tea now.

We decided to give this one another try, as I’ve been sniffing it here and there lately and feeling drawn to it, and it seems the third time’s the charm. After a quick wash and flash steep, the leaves released a fantastic fruity aroma and created a deep golden liquor.

The first steep tastes of lightly roasted almonds, with light florals and a hint of marshmallow. The floral flavor becomes more prominent starting in the next steep, with hints of fruit, but the fruity flavors never really stand out in this one in my opinion.

I continue this steep the following morning and get a few more out of it before I start pulling out a significant amount of bitterness. All in all, I’ve had a much better experience with this one this time, so I’m glad I decided to keep trying out.

I feel like I must just be preparing this wrong. Trying it today, it was basically the same experience as the first time I had it. I don’t know if it’s me or the tea, but I don’t think I’ll be bothering with this one again.

The dry leaves smell salty and umami, sort of like light kombu.
I did two quick rinses of this tea.
There is a super-light roasted scent to the wet leaves with that saltiness in the background. The wet leaves are a dark green, and produce a fairly light-colored, light-scented liquor.
For me, each steep has a light-roasted taste. Slight bitterness. Thick and smooth coating left in the mouth.
I have read that dancong can be difficult to steep well, so I think I will need some more practice!

Farewell delicious tea! Have to try and get a few sipdowns in today and this was one of them. Malty deliciousness. noms.

mmmmmmmm malty deliciousness. So good today even though i drank it after it was significantly cooled. heh

Another one from this morning. So much to do before the end of the year, and not just in tea drinking land! I’m backing up my boss this week, have major projects to close out and i need to get in to see my eye dr, dentist, rmt, banker before dec 31 while also trying to find 2 days to take off so i’m only carrying over 3wks hahahahaha. Finding the time off shouldn’t be that difficult but i can’t take time off this week and next week i already have mon and tues off because of the bank holidays. we’re also trying to get up to ottawa to see my parents for a couple days…and i really just want to play some board games but everyone is working!

anyone wanna come to my place for some gaming? :)

Another cup from this morning. So delicious and malty. So good to be home.

somehow this wasn’t in my cupboard. added it yesterday so my number’s up a little. this was a malty delicious cup from what i recall.

Just needed to drink something I knew I would like this afternoon.

Couldn’t make a tea decision this morning, so I pulled out a baggie of this that I had stored at work. Leaves still have that nice, spiced scent. I didn’t really plan to write a tasting note for this, but upon tasting it I didn’t have a choice.

The first steep is way sweeter than I remember this being the past times I drank it, and I’m getting a sweet scent that lingers in the cup afterward. The second infusion is like a medley of sweet spices. Thick and smooth, just as I recall. I’m finding this experience with this blend to be /much/ more like what YS describes on their site than the first time I tried this. I am enjoying it much more than I did the first time, as well.

The third infusion is so sweet and spiced that I’m actually a bit shocked. Finished this up with a couple more steeps, the last one long. All-in-all, much happier with this session than the first!

This is a very pretty cake, and layers of it break off without too much effort.

Very fragrant, spicy scent. The first infusion is kind of watery, though, so maybe I didn’t go long enough or it needs hotter water. That spiced taste lingers on the tongue, however. Not much of a scent lingering in the cup afterward.

Second infusion, same fragrance. The taste is like drinking some herbal infusion moreso than drinking tea, at least for my taste buds. The liquor is a little thicker-feeling in the mouth this go round.

It’s funny. From a distance this tea smells sweeter than it does up close. I think I found the third infusion thicker than the first two. Didn’t have time to enjoy any more after that cup, unfortunately.