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I wasn’t going to rate this one again, either, but brewed grandpa in a thermos it’s a bit better. It can be funky and tart in the first few sips before the flavors meld, but otherwise it’s got a mellow winter squash going on. The liquor smells like spiced winter squash with brown sugar. The faint mint taste I experienced brewed western has turned into a more noticeable menthol which combines with a new nutmeg? allspice? flavor, making the aftertaste reminiscent of camphor. It can get a little astringent at the bottom but it’s tolerable for me. This tea packs a serious punch of caffeine and is helping me power through the day after a sleepless night and a public medical emergency this morning. I’m still on the fence about it but I might try another season’s harvest if one is ever available again and make up my mind after that. I think it’s worth a try if you want something high in caffeine and different. Bumping from 64 to 71.

This was my first Laoshan black and it was quite tasty. Spring 2018 harvest prepared gong fu with 5g and water just off boiling, no rinse. Ten second first steep with increases of 5s for subsequents steeps. I think I got 8 total.

The dry leaf was very fragrant, smelling of dark chocolate and fig. Wet leaf was also very fragrant with red fruit that smelled deep and full-bodied with a high note. It reminded me of the Mangosteen Skinny Tea I had last night, which possessed a very similar taste as the wet leaf aroma of this tea. I could also initially smell rum and dark chocolate with those moving into dark milk chocolate and honey as steeps progressed. The aroma of the wet leaf and liquor was strong enough to create a chocolatey ether in my vicinity.

The taste remained fairly stable throughout, lightening from the third steep on. I picked up on chocolate, wood, honey, golden raisin, sourness and brightness like an orange but not quite, malt, toast, roasted grains, minerals (limestone and iron), a light mushroom, very mild bitterness and later a hint of cedar. There was some astringency early on in the throat which faded. The mineral effect of the tea was very strong and made me salivate something wicked, which I freaking love. The aftertaste was light at first with some dark chocolate, then progressed into an incredible ball of honey sweetness that sat unmoving at the back of my tongue. The bottom of the cup retained a very strong graham cracker and thick honey scent.

Overall, I’m pretty impressed with my first Laoshan black. It was incredibly fragrant and the tastes were complex enough to remain interesting, though it was a little too sweet and light-bodied for me. It’s not quite a dessert tea for me and I’d hesitate to suggest it to dessert tea lovers due to it’s woodiness but I think it’s worth picking up a sample to try. I’m looking forward to comparing the other two Laoshan black tea samples I purchased from Verdant.

I wasn’t going to review this again but I finished up the last of the 25g sample and noticed some changes that could be attributed to my developing tastes or the tea changing from sitting in a non-airtight tin. The leaf is not as bright as it was fresh, which is expected. I also brewed a small amount gong fu side by side with my western cup.

This time around I didn’t pick up on the olive. Rather, it moved toward a really weird tisane I’ve had before, Numi’s Dry Desert Lime. Don’t let the reviews of that tea scare you, as it was certainly different than this one, but now I’m picking up on that kind of dried desert lime, a little bit of an earthy tartness. This tea is still as refreshing and bright as the first time I had it, though less floral. The minerals are very much present in mouthfeel but not in taste, creating that very vibrant feeling. Kind of like a salted citrus, but focused mostly on the side of the tongue and salivary glands.

I thought I’d have a little go at gong fu just because. The first three steeps were light and tasted similar to a pickle or pickled leaf. After that it, it thickened up and tasted more like the western brew with still light but more pronounced floral.

I’m not sure somebody else would rate this as highly as I do, but It’s just such a clean, delicate, easy tea to drink tea that has no hint of grassiness nor does it upset my stomach. It’s very non-dominating and somehow works despite my preferences for bold tastes. I like that it’s hard for me to describe, yet I don’t feel annoyed that I’m searching for a way to do so.

Tea #4 from a teaswap with Mastress Alita. Thanks!

In my quest to both move through various samples and go through the teaswaps in a timely manner, I chose this tea for my morning brew. It was nice to compare to the Li Shan I tried yesterday. I have a third Li Shan I might try tomorrow to give me a more well-rounded impression of this type of tea.

I prepared this two ways: gongfu and western, with enough nuggets left over for another western cup.

Spring 2017 harvest. The dry leaf smells vegetal, creamy, floral.

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Gongfu: 3g, 60mL, 195F, 10s rinse, 10/12/15/20/25/30/40/50/60/70s
Warmed leaf smelled of spring bulb flowers like daffodil and lily, kind of perfumey and sour vegetal. The taste started out light and remained relatively light-bodied throughout the session, with tastes of the springtime florals and a sweet-tartness like golden delicious apple. Mid-session, retained the same notes with the addition of moderate astringency, light sugarcane, peppery watercress and hints of parsley, spinach, cream and butter. Changing the temperature might allow for the butter and cream to become more prominent but I think increasing it would also greatly increase the mouth-drying quality. Final steeps faded nicely, with the green vegetal moving more toward broccoli stalk. Aroma was moderate with springtime florals. Aftertaste was pleasant, sweet and relatively short-lived.

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Western: 3.5g, 8oz, 195F, 2.5/4m.
I’d have to say I preferred this western style, as it hand a stronger, more well rounded profile while keeping the astringency to a lower level. Really nice, not over-powering florals in the mouth and nose. The distinct vegetal qualities were smoothed over. A stronger sugarcane sweetness developed with the creaminess, giving a thicker feel in the body of the liquor. More pronounced cooling. Very nice floral aroma wafted from the cup and the aftertaste was much sweeter this way. Wet leaf is kind of thin and delicate but most of it is 3-4 intact leaves and a bud here and there still attached to the stem.

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I found this tea to have the qualities of a great daily drinker and preferred it western. The price seems a little high for that, though. In comparison to a different, more complex Li Shan I drank yesterday (which is $10 cheaper per 100g), the price for this tea from Rishi is quite high.

EDIT If you play with the steep times western, you can minimize the slightly drying mouthfeel. Also picked up massive honeydew and more cooling sensation with the last of my sample brewed western. Do three steeps.

Thanks again Mastress Alita :).

This is the third of four freebies that came with my tea order. Thanks.

Well tea friends, if you don’t hear from me for a few days, consider me a goner. Mastress Alita might still have my address. Feel free to alert the authorities. I have no idea what’s in this herbal tea but one would hope BTTC isn’t trying to pluck off their customer base. I ate a whole frozen pizza for dinner and I’m drinking down samples and ends-of-stash, so naturally this ‘Skinny Tea’ was my last pick of the night, lol.

1 bag to 160z of boiling water, steeped forever. Brews a dark amber. Smells like somebody drizzled golden syrup on a wet carpet remnant, no joke. As time goes on, the syrupy smell gets darker and thicker. They say to drink it once it’s cooled but I’m bucking suggestion. Tastes like wet carpet soaked in golden syrup. Reallly sweet like stevia in the back of the mouth. This might be as sweet as Verdant’s Gan Zao Ye but thicker. Going down quicker than anticipated. Ohh it’s getting strongly minty. Nice. The end tastes the same but with a major dose of green bell pepper. What the hell is in this bag? Has anybody tried mangosteen fruit before? I wonder what it tastes like.

No rating because not on the website.

EDIT: I am alive and well rested. I actually quite enjoyed the flavor despite the wet carpet smell. The syrup quality was satisfying and it ended up tasting kind of red-fruity. The green bell pepper at the end was not off-putting and provided an interesting savory note. I’d purchase more if I knew what was in it; I am hesitant to buy herbal teas without ingredients listed. Even then that is no guarantee that non-standardized and untested herbal blends coming directly from any location do not contain potentially life-threatening ingredients.

Received as a 5g freebie with my ridiculous 5g sample order, thanks!

Teapot time. 5g, 100mL teapot, temps ranging from just off boiling (Verdant-recommended) to 190F, 10s rinse, 10s/15/20/25/30/45/1m/1m15/1m30

Yeah, I know ‘light’ shows up a lot, but that’s just what this tea is.

Dry leaf doesn’t have much scent, warmed smelled like woody peach and perfume-orchid. Very light-bodied and -flavored with a really nice, moderate camphor effect; however, the taste of camphor was light in comparison. Some light savory fruitiness came in to play along with a tingling tongue and pronounced salivation in later steeps. Aftertaste was a light camphor and peach seed with the addition of faint florals in late steeps. The florals were more evident in the nose: the same perfume-orchid of the warmed leaf. Is that what Verdant’s noted plumeria smells like? There was also a fair amount of astringency that I tried to coax away by playing with temps with no luck, though I did permanently bump the remaining steeps down to 190F. I experienced a warm fuzzing of my vision and slight muscle relaxation.

Overall, this tea was too light and delicate for my burly preferences and the astringency was too strong for what the rest of the tea was. In retrospect, I’d do a flash rinse and start with 190F, possibly going lower.

Incredible cold brew. I steeped it overnight, using 3 grams to a liter since they’re so powerful. The aroma of the liquor was a delightful watermelon backed by rose that I could smell 2 feet away and that’s while it was cold! It’s mouthwatering. The fruit note reminded me strongly of Ouch! watermelon gum mixed with Big League Chew gum from the 80s. The taste was rose backed by watermelon, a little astringency and faintly bitter. It had an aftertaste that lingered long, not at all what I was expecting from a cold brew.

Again, the flavor profile isn’t my thing but I wholeheartedly recommend this tea as a treat for fruity and floral lovers. Take it easy on the buds if brewing gongfu and know when to stop.

I received this as a freebie with my last order, which Alistair graciously handled after an unrelated to this tea request. Incredible customer service.

I’ve been enjoying my few days alone and the long weekend. Phone off – sorry friends and family, no Labor Day activities for me. Just catching up on some physics and engineering coursework, interspersed with furry meowmeowkittymeowmeow bonding and more tea than usual. I should get outside after this, though. It’s a beautiful day, cool and not so sunny that I want to stay in the apartment with curtains closed. I guess it’s not quite summer here yet. This tea seemed like a natural pick for the weather.

June 2018 harvest. Gone gaiwan. 3g, 60mL, 195F, 10s rinse, initial steeps at 10/12/15s then felt my way through the rest. 13 steeps total.

I can’t even begin to describe the floral component of this tea. I’m not there yet with high mountain oolongs but I think I can recognize this as a remarkable tea. I was floating while sipping and the tea managed to float above me.

The dry leaf smells like spring bulb flowers such as daffodil and hyacinth. The tea presents as thick and sweet in its aroma, its hour-long aftertaste and in the bottom of the cup. The liquor itself is fairly light-bodied. It starts out mellow with a bouquet of unplaceable-as-of-yet florals, citrus, asian pear, light vegetal, and mineral. Sugarcane, vanilla, sweet cream and a kind of nuttiness like macadamia move in and get cozy, with a cooling sensation showing up in later steeps. The tea seems to just keep ramping up over the course of the session with no extreme changes and never a question of whether I should change the temperature. Very intuitive – I never timed anything beyond the first 3 steeps. It flows incredibly well. Really pleasant energy.

Drank this, was it last night or a few nights ago? I found it to be a mellow and balanced tea. My sample was about half cake, half loose leaf and smelled like plums and hay. Warm leaf was stongly prune and that carried through into the rinsed leaf, which had the addition of wood and coffee grounds. The prominent taste was a bitter, airy but lightly resinous floral supplemented here and there with a light stonefruit (apricot and plum), sourness and minerality. Some astringency but nothing overpowering. A very clean menthol (not camphor) and sweetness showed up in the later steeps with a kind of stevia aftertaste. The tea provided a barely noticeable but sustained, calm energy that kept me awake into the night without anxiety. Spent leaf was cut/chopped quite a bit, looked a little aged already. Several long, leafless stems.

This is a good sheng to drink now but probably not something I’d buy again since I’m looking for a little more oomph in terms of fruitiness and bitterness. I’m a sucker for that light resinous taste and menthol, though.

Received as a freebie with my order, thanks!

I have to preface this review by stating I… don’t really care for honey blacks. :$

Real-time review. I’m preparing this according to MST’s gong fu guidelines. About 4.5 g, 100mL, 195F, steeps of 30/45/60/+5-10.

MST be throwing me off. Nothing says this is roasted but that’s what I taste.

Dry leaf smells like, well, imagine Honeycomb cereal. Rinsed leaf scent is hard to pick out because it seems perfumey above all else but hiding in there is roast, wood, and a mix of citrus-red cherry-rose. The brew starts out very light in the first steep and gets successively stronger in aroma, taste and texture. It moves from light roast and sweet into a progressively darker but light-bodied liquor with notes of citrus-cherry-honey. The light roast flavor underpins it all. It’s a bright tasting tea considering it tastes roasted, with a long and brilliant citrus and honey aftertaste. The bottom of the cup is retaining a scent of honeycomb. There’s an incredible body buzz that comes with it, too. I feel like I’m puddling, spreading out, then sucking parts of myself back in. Imagine the movement of an amoeba. A grinning tea-stoned amoebaaaah.

Oof. Don’t drink this before a work meeting or a test. I can’t even finish my review.

Edit: Got 6 steeps by letting the last one sit for 5+ minutes. There’s also a very strong tangerine zest feeling throughout my whole mouth. Added a rating.