737 Tasting Notes
Mostly lemongrass and lemon flavor. Very little lavender. I may be too harsh on this one because I’m a sucker for a tart lavender lemonade and maybe that tartness is what I had in mind when sipping on this. It definitely has the flatter mouthfeel of herbal teas. Next round will include a small pinch of my own lavender flowers and gasp, maybe some hibiscus for pucker.
Flavors: Lemongrass
Preparation
The dry bag had the typical sweet linden aroma. A pour of boiling water revealed nothing of substance. If anything, this served as a reminder to keep a high quality linden permanently stocked. I believe it and a strong peppermint to be my herbal panaceae.
Flavors: Dust, Earth, Flowers
Preparation
I’ve never had a linden tea. I might have to go in search of one. Also, what is your favourite peppermint tea? I had a good one from ZenTeaLife in Vancouver, but they’ve stopped selling tea to focus on teaware.
If neither of you have tried it yet, QNTM Leaf Tea has a wonderful peppermint tea called Mindful Mint. It’s also the strongest peppermint I’ve had yet.
Qntm Leaf is suspiciously silent about international shipping. Have any Canadians tried this company?
Leafhopper, I’ve been searching for linden teas and all my favorites have disappeared. Maybe it’s high demand and/or supply chain issues due to COVID. Luckily my local herb shop has some loose in stock and I ordered a box of sachets from Harney. As far as peppermint, I like the stuff grown in the Pacific Northwest US since it’s usually organic, strong and clean. The brands of bags/sachets I love are (ranked): two leaves and a bud, Traditional Medicinals and Celestial Seasonings
Thanks for the rec, Shae :)
Leafhopper, I reached out to QNTM Leaf Tea and they do ship to Canada. Here is the response I received -
“Yes we ship to CN and they should be able to purchase directly through the site.”
Hope this helps!
derk, I look forward to hearing what you think if you decide to try it! I thought it was a really unique blend.
From White Antlers. I’ve always wanted to try this, so thanks unto you.
Sealed pouch of Summer 2015 harvest. The green tea has seen better days. It is vegetal. The lotus scenting is still strong. I can’t imagine how much more so when fresh. It’s such a complex fragrance, like juicy grapes, anise seed, hyacinth and sassafras. Intriguing, definitely. I might set some of this aside for kombucha before passing the rest forward.
Preparation
June 2014 harvest
Little rolled balls of whole and chopped green tea leaf. Dry leaf aroma is light citrus blossom-grass-vegetal. Wet leaf aroma is strongly brothy with vegetal, roasted chestnut and anise notes. Light yellow, viscous brew. Taste is refreshing and mimics the dry leaf aroma. With the second steep, it becomes more vegetal-chestnut with a hint of anise on the sip. A pronounced lemon taste and a whisper of smoke follow, giving way to a tangy feeling after the swallow. A bit drying with a happy and floral, white peach-like aftertaste. Very nice quality for a green tea 6 years old. Somebody who’s not me has the fortitude to not open their tea packages when they arrive.
2.5g, 250mL, 175F, 3 steeps.
Flavors: Anise, Butter, Chestnut, Drying, Flowers, Grass, Lemon, Orange Blossom, Peach, Smoke, Smooth, Tangy, Vegetable Broth, Vegetal
Preparation
I’m glad I’m not the only one to still have tea from 2014. :)
I inherited so much tea last week, a good chunk of it older. I’m going to figure out some fun ways to disperse it as I sample through almost everything that’s not a single serving!
It’ll be interesting to see how all that old tea is holding up.
Tea flavored panna cotta!
This wild tea is gloriously bitter. It reminds me of somebody. Beneath the bitter pill exterior there is a world of depth and insight; a powerful, dark and discerning, truth-revealing energy. A sniper skirting the fine line between good and evil with an intensely romantic preference for cherrywood stocks. Listen to some Deftones and it will make sense.
Anybody have a cake they want to sell? This question applies to anybody reading this note in the distant future — message me.
Sell it?! Oh no-I want to date this tea! : )
I’m trying to come up with something witty but failing.
@derk shoot us an email… we’ve got a few here
I double caked this one.
Why the tea reminds me myself? Bitter exterior, but dark, discerning (wonderful word btw) and truth-revealing sounds like me.
But if I want tea like that? Not sure, but worth trying :)
I love this review!
That derk…she’s got a way about her. : )
Yellow florality top note is underpinned by an autumn leaf-straw body, light creamed honey sweetness with a mellow pine-smoked meat base note from the roast. Slight citric-fruity aftertaste and clean minerality. Unique like the 2018 with less complexity. Comforting taste with high energy. The 2019 is definitely worth a try for a different white tea experience. More robust flavor when brewed with water off the boil.
2.5g, 300mL, 200F
Flavors: Autumn Leaf Pile, Campfire, Citrus, Flowers, Honey, Meat, Mineral, Straw
Preparation
2017 harvest.
Cool, slick mineral-pear sweetness. Very floral perfume with gardenias, vanilla, sweet pea and lilac. Some roasted almond and baked bread provide deeper notes. Creamy bulb flowers like narcissus and lily in the aftertaste. Cooling and drying in the mouth, warming in the body. Strong zoning out and calm followed by a caffeine rush. Plenty of longevity brewed gongfu with longer steep times. This was the best Zhangping Shuixian oolong I’ve had.
7.5g, 150mL glass gaiwan, 195F
Flavors: Almond, Baked Bread, Creamy, Drying, Floral, Flowers, Gardenias, Mineral, Narcissus, Nectar, Pear, Perfume, Roasted, Sweet, Vanilla
Preparation
Thanks for the freebie in my latest order. November 2019 harvest.
More aromatic than full of flavor. Aroma notes of baked fruits, lychee, peach, blueberry, strong woody-floral cinnamon, nutmeg, apricot, brown sugar, golden syrup, rose, wood furniture. Most notable is the sweetness, very much like asian pear with a thinned, almost watery simple syrup. Cooling. Tastes and aftertaste are more retronasal than on the tongue, possessing the same notes as the aroma; very little evolution of flavor when prepared gongfu.
This is a very friendly tea. I would recommend it to those looking to explore oolong!
2.5g, 50mL, 195F, starting at 10s after short rinse
Flavors: Apricot, Blueberry, Brown Sugar, Cinnamon, Dark Wood, Floral, Lychee, Nutmeg, Peach, Pear, Rose, Stewed Fruits, Sugar, Sweet
Preparation
I don’t like pure spearmint, fresh or dried or gum/mints, but sometimes I get wild and eat or drink something that doesn’t sit right with me thinking maybe my tastes have changed. (My definition of wild has changed wildly in the past few years.)
It turns out I’ve made this into my morning wake-up and nightcap every day this week. It’s so sweet and so spearmint and so clean. I can see myself reaching for this when I want mint but not something as strong as my preferred peppermint.
Bananas, though. I will never enjoy a ripe, yellow banana from the peel.
Flavors: Spearmint, Sweet
Preparation
Banana is my most hated food. I have such a strong aversion to them I can’t even stand when someone ELSE is enjoying one ripe, straight from the peel. O-o
My favorite mint blends are usually a mix of both peppermint and spearmint. Even better if just a hint of one of the lemony herbs is thrown in to add just a dash of citrus to the menthol.
I never understood what’s wrong with bananas?
Everything, haha
I feel you on your definition of getting wild. I was promised that my taste buds would change as I got older so I keep trying thinks I generally don’t like in hopes for some magical shift where things suddenly taste great, but that day has yet to come.
By this point I’m on a mission though, so I won’t stop trying lol…
Sadly, I can’t handle any mint in my tea. hehe at “wild”, derk. :)
I preferred this cold brewed, but hot or cold, a puckery note is needed.
I loved Lavender Lemon Potion from Tealyra for the reasons you mentioned; I love lavender and lemon but I like that tart lemonade sort of pucker. That one has hibi and his a very lemon-citrusy tea rather than lemongrassy-herbal. It is decently lavender but IMO could be even stronger (cause I love lavender!) and have also done the “add a small pinch” of additional buds depending on my mood.