Jude

Smokey, maybe 25% as smokey as a lapsong souchong, especially predominant on the first steep. I’m thinking smoked figs, as if such a thing exists. Nice cup of tea to muse over. Medium-bodied with nice balance of flavors. 2nd steep still flavorful, with the smoke diminishing to an undertone.

This leans toward the darker side of tie guan yins rather than the brighter, loftier toned versions. The first steep is smokey and even somewhat musty, but with a little focus I picked up the familiar tie guan yin flavor profile lying underneath. The second steep was delicious, floral front and smooth. The third steep suffered a sharp dropoff in flavor, but certainly was still drinkable. Three steeps, three surprises.

Not a big fan of flavored teas but this is a nice change of pace. Looking to avoid ag chemicals it caught my eye plus being sold in bulk I could try just a few cups’ worth so no commitment issues.

Inhaling the steam is a peachy wake-up. Flavor is smooth and clean, with well-rounded notes for a fruity tea. The tangerine is a little greeting on the finish. I’d recommend this to those who want to add something with fruit to their cupboard. It’s not subtle, but it’s not overstated, either.

I imagine it’d be delicious iced… not too frank a fruit tea and nice balanced flavor. This would be just fine without any sweetener, it’s nice as it is. Could probably take on some sprigs of fresh mint. Ooh, or even a little splash of sparkling white, like a bellini. I might have to pick up some more for the summer.

Went with a group to Ching Ching Cha today… tried a number of their teas. Nice place – standard tables with chairs and low tables with floor pillows to sit on. Good selection of attractive but pricey cast iron teapots. They’re good about refilling the hot water.

So the Orchid Oolong was pretty good. Kind of a stargazer lilly spice fragrance and taste, though a much milder version. Green and fairly light, but buttery. Table mates liked it, including one who only likes sweetened teas.

A light puerh that has a fragrance and taste of roasted hazelnuts. A little smokey. Amber liquor. Very drinkable but without the depth of typical puerh. Since Wegmans gets some of its teas from ItoEn it’s possible that this is actually the tea listed here; although mine does not say green, it is definitely not your usual dark puerh:
http://steepster.com/teas/ito-en/4617-sweet-green-tuocha-pu-erh

Think woody campfire smoke, inhaled, then consumed as a liquid. Doesn’t make you cough, but otherwise this is pretty much my experience of this tea. Can be pleasant or not depending on your taste and your emotional associations with campfires. I could easily close my eyes and be transported back to some great times with this imagination-inducing tea. Drinking it straight would be an acquired taste, but I’ll blend this with other teas to add a bit of smokey depth.

A decent, smooth rooibos.

This is my first silver needle, and it’s a standout among teas… maybe simply because it’s silver needle or maybe just this particular silver needle is this good, don’t know yet… but now that I’m in the door, I’m going to solve this mini-mystery. It is light, refreshing and sweet in the most natural, unassuming way. It tastes like a more sophisticated version of Juicy Fruit gum. Fragrance is a heavenly soft floral.

Refreshing, nicely composed marriage of puerh, orange and ginger. The dry tea smells more of ginger but it is really more of a complement to the others once brewed… a mild little kick at the end. The puerh is lighter-bodied than the typical dark, earthy varieties I’ve explored, and the orange further contributes to this lighter palate. No trace of the sea-flavors that some dislike.

Still getting used to this, my first WuYi. Smokey and dry. I inquired with Wegman’s HQ and they confirmed that this is Rishi. Wegman’s doesn’t identify the producer on its bulk tea labels, but most of their teas are Ito En, also Rishi and Republic of Tea.
http://steepster.com/teas/rishi-tea/418-wuyi-oolong

This is light for a pu-erh, though still flavorful. Smooth and pleasantly complex… apricot and smoke, with just a touch of astringency on the finish. It has a faint undertone of the typical earthiness, but even with that and the smokiness, it’s not at all dark. Because of its natural sweetness, this is also nice chilled.

Pu-erh on wheels. Delicious, juicy, multi-note bittersweet orange marmalade tempered by the perfect touch of ginger are riding shotgun. This tea has great complementarity of flavors and is a fun changeup from the more serious straight-forward pu-erhs that I love. Might be a good intro to pu-erh, especially for folks who like flavored teas; I didn’t pick up much of the usual fishy/seaweed but it still had decent depth. The hint of ginger leaves a bit of a tingle on the tongue.

Nice full-bodied coffee/mocha analogue. The hazelnut is most prominent in the fragrance and in the aftertaste. Added almond milk. I imagine it’d be great extracted a bit stronger and with fresh whipped cream. For those looking for comparisons with similar mate’s, this is more coffee/mocha-like than Teavana’s Morning Mate or Matevana, but less so than Guayaki’s Vanilla Nut Mate and Mocha Macha. To me, those Teavana blends don’t have as satisfying or well-rounded a flavor profile.

This is a nice ti kuan yin, a gentle embrace of a tea. Fragrant and… best way I can think of describing it is it leaves your palate feeling fresh. Of course, it’s not minty fresh, it’s spring flower fresh. I’ve been spoiled by Chicago Tea Garden’s version, which has both more flavor and more subtle, dancey notes.

At the first sip I was taken aback by the upfront deep smokiness of this tea. Kind of a sharp snap-to for the morning senses. But as I grew more awake I started to enjoy its smooth, full bodied, earthy depth. Rich like a pu-erh but a lot more smokey. With the first cup, each post-sip exhale gave the sensation of exhaling pipe smoke. Second cup seemed to be a touch sweeter and less smokey. I found the lychee to be a little subtle, but it’s there and complements the smokiness perfectly. I would come back to this tea in the same frame of mind in which I’d seek out the kind of friend with whom you have deep, serious conversations. An enjoyable contemplation tea…

Smells smokey, tastes roasty. Enjoyable, rich flavor, a full-palate experience. Kind of a symphony playing around the green tea flavor. This is not a tea that you sip without taking notice of its personality. 2nd steep retained the flavor profile well.

This tea has good personality with an unambiguous smokey roasted aroma and taste. I got more of a roasted walnut experience mingling with charred peppers. The flavor lingers in the mouth longer than most teas I’ve tried, evoking an amusing sensation of exhaling roasty smoke out of the nose. I enjoyed this sample but the astringent aftertaste went on too long for me to put this in my regular rotation. If you like a strong roasted flavor you would enjoy trying this tea.

The aroma and flavor profile of this tea are enjoyable – cocoa and cinnamon with a hint of spice. But that blend doesn’t carry the bland thinness of it, unfortunately. This is especially noticeable for puerh drinkers anticipating some depth to dive into. If you’re willing to give it a double or triple bag infusion its personality would probably pick up, but I haven’t taken that route. Adding a touch of almond milk added body and seemed to intensify the flavor a bit, so that’ll be its destiny.

I have had a few “wow” moments with this tea, which is always a welcome surprise. “Wow” anything is nice, of course, but tea doesn’t often engender that response from me. More like “mmmm” most of the time if it’s good.

The first wow was inhaling the fragrance of the initial steep: it was like stepping outside on an early spring day… thinking about it (“what is that familiar fragrance?”) I realized it’s lilac. Your first whiff of lilac in the spring. Actually fooled me for a second into feeling like I’m not locked into winter here on the east coast. Then as I drank it it was just like honeysuckle, one of my all-time favorite scent experiences. This continued in subsequent steeps. I’m not too fond of any floral tastes or scents in tea, but this tea’s front floral personality coupled with its butteriness just kept making me smile with enjoyment.

Loved this tea. Inhaling the first steam from the rinse elicited a rare, spontaneous “wow” that pretty much held through to the final sip. The brew doesn’t have the dark intensity of other puerhs I’ve tried — it’s more silky than velvety yet somehow equally satisfying in its subtlety. A little smoky but very clean. I’d agree with the company’s “malty” description, but in an understated, well-balanced way; it’s a great full-mouth flavor that’s reminiscent of the gentle, rich scent of leaves walking through the woods in autumn. There is mild astringency after a long brew, but that wouldn’t deter me from drinking it frequently, because it is delicious.

This tea has an up-front jasmine-y fragrance and taste. Not like other pu-ehrs I’ve tried so not what I was hoping for.

Also don’t know why the box says caffeine free, since mate has about 50% the caffeine of coffee: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yerba_mate

It tastes more like carob than chocolate to me. The bag yields a fairly weak cup; a little tastier once I added almond milk, but still wouldn’t go out of my way to purchase this. Would be better if the bags were filled with more than a scant 1 1/2 teaspoons. Next time I’ll use 2 bags.

Deliciously refreshing chilled – fruity and fragrant without being too sweet. Just an undercurrent of a bit of spice that balances it out well. Didn’t enjoy it as much hot, but I’ll be making this all summer.