LiberTEAS

Time for some Oolong!

I almost (almost!) wish that I had postponed brewing this tea, because, shortly after I had, there was a knock on the door from FedEx delivering my order from Old Wilmington. Woo hoo – I like it when I receive two tea orders in one day! (The other one was from 52Teas)

But, I’m only “almost” wishing I had postponed this brewing, because, well, it’s hard to be disappointed in having a cup of this fantastic Oolong tea.

The honey notes are really profound in this cup. You really don’t need to add anything extra to the cup to get all this sweetness… it just naturally tastes like honey! In fact, this reminds me a lot of back when I was much younger. When I used to get sick, before I really got “into” tea the way I am now, and if I happened to be out of tea, I would heat up some water, squeeze a little lemon and add a generous dollop of honey… and drink hot, honeyed lemon water to soothe my sore throat. That is what this tastes like, sans the lemon.

Yummy Yummy Oolong! Many more infusions to enjoy!

Yep… matcha. I thought I had had enough of gadgets for the day as I am using a teapot, mary pop-in and tea cozy as opposed to my standard smart brewing device… but apparently not, since … I found myself walking to my tea cupboard and removing my chasen and chawan. I don’t know why I did it. I didn’t even think about it, it was like… “habit.”

Anyway… here I sit with a bowl of Matcha Miyabi in front of me. Pleasant, sweet, and that ever so slight touch of bitterness that I find so appealing. Lovely. So lovely, in fact, that just for fun, I have decided to give it another point or two…

Once again enjoying this generous sampling from Doulton

This time I decreased the steep time by about 30 seconds and found that the cup was even better than I remember it. The slight bitter taste that I noticed the first time around is not present now, just a very beautiful bergamot flavor. The tea is robust – surprisingly robust for a Ceylon. The bergamot is very strong here… citrus-y with a pleasing floral note.

Nice!

I recently blended a batch of this tea (which has already sold out, thanks to some very devoted fans of the tea), but I needed to test it before I could ship it! So that’s what I’m doing.

Pleasant, smooth, and rich. I love the note of cinnamon which is not spicy – a sweeter side of cinnamon.

I chose to start my day with a Nilgiri. One of my two favorite black teas (with a good quality Yunnan being first, a good quality Nilgiri being second).

This one has a nice complexity. It is bright and flavorful, with interesting fruit-like notes (I can definitely taste a citrus-y flavor, especially right at the finish).

Very smooth and rich tasting for a medium-bodied tea. This is definitely a tea you want to watch carefully to not over-brew, as it can get bitter.

I had to use a different tool today to brew my tea (yep, had to grab a different gadget!) The brewing of the Fleur De Vie tea last night left my smart brewing device smelling quite like the very fragrant tea, so the device requires some added attention to free it of that aroma so that it doesn’t possibly affect the flavors of the teas that I brew today.

So, I got out a teapot, and used for the first time a Mary Pop-In. This seems like an effective tool to strain teas from a tea pot, but I don’t know how well it would fair with a rooibos or a finely cut chai. I shall have to do a little more testing.

I also used for the first time a tea cozy from Thistledown Cozies – I like this cozy! What it lacks in handmade charm it makes up for in conventional wisdom.

So, there! See! I can and do use gadgetry. However, there is something that is quite peaceful and meditative about simplicity when brewing tea, and I prefer that overall sense of calm to being the TEAtective Gadget, which is why I am so resistant to the gadgets in the first place. Tea isn’t just about good taste, it’s about that beautiful sense of serenity that comes from the process… it helps the chaos of everyday life melt away for a few moments each day.

The last time I wrote a tasting note on this tea, I was unsure about this tea. I liked it, but something felt a little off so I wanted to add a little extra leaf and adjust the brewing parameters a bit. I didn’t adjust the brewing parameters, but I did add a little extra leaf, and I do think I like it better now than I did.

I can taste the bergamot, but it is a gentler bergamot than a typical Earl Grey tea… the green tea is also a bit mild, but the tulsi is vibrant. These three flavors together with the rose create a very exciting and unique cup of tea that I’m enjoying quite a bit. The rose is really delicious in this blend… and really works well with the bergamot. (I also quite like tulsi and rose together).

This is my favorite “non green” jasmine… and quite possibly my favorite white tea (I think I had responded on an earlier tasting note that there was another white tea I liked better than this – Frutto Bianco Pearls from Teavana… but I like this one better than Frutto Bianco).

The jasmine flavor is remarkable in this blend, delicate yet so delightful. Sweet and exhilarating. Beautiful…absolutely beautiful.

You can read more about my thoughts of this tea here:

http://www.teareviewblog.com/?p=4134

Delightful!

Now that I’m finished with my “matcha break” I have moved on to my third infusion of these leaves. Those little tiny slivers of leaves have expanded to at least 5 or 6 times their size! And they are still providing amazing flavor.

This time I steeped for a full minute, just like the first infusion (the second infusion I steeped for just 45 seconds) and I must say that I prefer the full minute to the 45 seconds.

The flavor is sweet, nutty, and much less vegetal than the first infusion. Not that the vegetal flavor was bad, because I liked it. There is very little bitterness to this – there was more bitterness to the first infusion (although it was still quite subtle). Buttery! Nice floral note – but difficult to pinpoint the flower. It’s delicious though… whatever it is!

Tea is truly perfection – and this tea is a clear statement to that perfection. How can anyone prefer a soda (or coffee, or anything else, for that matter) to this?

Wow… 2 bowls of matcha in 3 days! Not at all like me… Steepster is having an influence on me… good influence? bad influence? Haven’t decided yet.

I love this ginger matcha. Smooth and sweet – yummy! I love the ginger in it, and how you can actually bite into the little bits and release some of their peppery power! This particular bowl of matcha has quite a bit more ginger bits than the previous bowls.

This is still not my favorite matcha, though… but, it IS delightful and if I don’t start staying away from Steepster I might end up having matcha on a daily basis or something like I do my Oolong.

A very low temperature and short steep time is suggested by SpecialTeas for this tea, and I recommend it as well.

The aroma of the dry leaf is vegetal with pleasant floral notes. Upon brewing – or I should say, when I finished brewing and strained the tea through my smart brewing device, I could smell a very pungent vegetable scent… like freshly steamed vegetables with butter.

The flavor of this tea is excellent. The vegetative flavor is softer than the aroma suggests, it is smooth and buttery, with a slight bitter undertone. There is also a fruit essence. It amazes me that this much flavor came at such a low temperature with such a short steeping time – especially after my last cup of tea (Lupicia’s green paradise).

A very pleasant, complex cup of tea, making me eager to seek out other Gyokuro teas.

This is one of two free samples that I received in my order from Lupicia a couple of weeks ago… while rummaging through my samplings this afternoon, this one seemed to jump into my hand and beg me to brew it.

The aroma of the tea when I first opened the pouch was overwhelming – a vibrant smell of tropical fruit.

The sample came in a tea pyramid, and after seeing how much the leaf expanded, I wish I would have cut open the pyramid and infused the tea as a loose leaf. The infused leaves completely filled the pyramid to the point of looking overstuffed!

The flavor of this tea pales in comparison to the aroma of it. When I smelled how beautifully fragrant it was, I was expecting a very pronounced flavor, but, it really isn’t. The flavors are very soft. I can taste a subtle, melon-y kind of flavor to it, as well as a touch of citrus and maybe even a little coconut? Because the flavors are so soft it’s difficult to discern just what I’m tasting beyond the flavor of the bancha tea.

It’s not a bad tasting tea, it’s just a bit soft in flavor so it becomes difficult to know what I’m tasting beyond green tea. There is something there but I really wish it were stronger. It’s one that I would actually be interested in trying again, simply so that I could try to discern some of the flavor… kind of like a mystery that needs to be solved.

Another sampling from Doulton!

When I first saw Andrews & Dunham’s third series, THIS is the tea that I really wanted to try from the three. I didn’t think I would be interested at all in the Caravan as I’m not really into smoky teas, and the Jasmine didn’t excite me to the point of wanting to place the order. I mean, Jasmine greens are great, don’t get me wrong, I love jasmine… but, I so prefer jasmine pearls to jasmine greens and since I have quite a few jasmine pearls I didn’t feel the necessity to order a jasmine green.

That being said, and now after having tasted both the Jasmine and the Earl Grey from A&D – I must admit that the tea I am now excited to receive from them is the Jasmine!

Don’t get me wrong, this is a good Earl Grey. But lately, I’ve tasted some really REMARKABLE Earl Greys (Lupicia, Steven Smith Teamaker), and this one isn’t quite as remarkable as those two. However, this is a very, very good Earl Grey.

I like that the bergamot in this tea is a very clear and focused flavoring. You can actually taste that the bergamot is an orange in this tea which is something that I can’t always taste, because the bergamot oils used in some other teas tend to be too flowery. This has less flower and more fruit.

The tea base is much smoother than in the other two Earl Grey teas I mentioned in this note, and perhaps that is the reason why I prefer those… I’d like the black tea in this to be just a little brisker… and if it were, this might be a contender.

Overall, an excellent Earl Grey, but not an exceptional one.

This is really tasty.

The flavor of the rooibos is a perfect union for the root beer flavor… and the flavor seems to nicely off-set that funky, saccharine-ish flavor from the rooibos that I generally find so off-putting when it comes to rooibos.

I am very pleasantly surprised by this blend. I didn’t try it with milk this time around, but, I think when I brew up the last of my sample, I will froth up some milk and serve this latte style to see how/if that enhances the “float” part of the flavoring.

I must really be happy with me today, because not only did I have Norbu Oolong tea, but I’m treating myself to some Jasmine Pearls.

Now, a little explanation – these are “custom” because, well, I get my jasmine pearls from various sources. There are some perks to being a tea purveyor. Anyways… as I haven’t really found much difference from brand to brand, I just keep them in my pretty little washi paper tin, combining them as I get them… and to be honest, I really don’t know which source(s) I received these from.

Anyways, until I find the “perfect” pearl – if it exists – a pearl is a pearl is a pearl… and all are equally lovely in my eyes.

When it comes to pearls, I have found that a moderately low temperature and extended brewing time works wonders.

The flavor is amazing. Jasmine. Smooth, delicious, sweet green tea leaves, delicate in flavor. Sweet, floral jasmine tantalizing my palate. Delightful.

Finishing up the last of this sampling that Doulton sent me. Thank you! You are so kind!

I really like this tea – I think I may even like the smoky quality to it! And that’s not an easy feat. I notice that the smokiness is more in the aroma than in the flavor though. If I smell the tea before I sip (which I normally do) the taste is much smokier than if I sip without a deep inhale. But… I don’t find the smoky flavor here unpleasant – quite the opposite, actually.

I use a little extra leaf and steep a little less time than the brewing parameters suggest… and the tea comes out perfectly for me.

Now that I’ve steeped the last from my Oolong, I thought I’d have some Vienna Green.

On a slightly unrelated note, I wish that teany included photos of their tea on their website. It would make life so much easier for this tea reviewer!

This tea is yummy. Chocolate is well pronounced in the cup, but I can also taste the green tea – pleasant, fresh, and only very slightly vegetative. A toasted sweetness from the nuts. I can also taste a slight buttery flavor to the overall blend – a very rich, creamy taste. Very decadent. YUMMY!

This is a tea that absolutely requires a low temperature for steeping. Too high a heat will give this tea a really blah taste…

Oolong! It’s been a couple of days since I’ve enjoyed Oolong – I’m overdue!

So to make up for it, I chose one of my favorites. This Oolong is amazing. Buttery, rich, floral. Almost jasmine-esque but not quite… maybe like a cross between jasmine and orchid, and maybe even honeysuckle. So… amazing.

And… already gone. I need to steep again!

Another sample from the order I received last week.

In reading the ingredients, one might think that this is kind of like a green chai tea with peppermint, but, it doesn’t taste like a chai to me. The peppermint is the strongest flavor here, and the other spices in the blend act more as an enhancement or an accent for the peppermint than as the basis for a chai blend.

Either way, it’s quite tasty. I like the ginger in this blend especially, it has a pleasant, peppery kick to it – a nice contrast with the crisp, vibrant flavor of the peppermint. The green tea base really is just that – a base, but not much definition to it.

Overall, though, a pleasant and soothing cup.

I’ve had a few different Earl Grey teas lately, and they’ve all been quite good. This is definitely one of my favorites. I don’t know if I like Lupicia’s Earl Grey better… one of these days I’ll have to do a side by side on the two and see which one I prefer. But, even if Lupicia’s is first, this one would probably be second. Although… I’ve not tried A&D’s Earl Grey yet (Maybe I’ll try the sampling that Doulton sent me later today), so… that could change after tasting that one.

Wow… I feel like I’m rambling!

OK… what makes this Earl Grey so great? Well, it’s the blend of tea, for one thing. Not just a Ceylon, but, an excellent blend of Ceylons as well as a delightful Assam that provides a very pleasing malty touch. Bold and brisk, yet, smooth. A very well rounded blend.

The bergamot flavoring is strong but not perfume-ish. It’s been flavored perfectly.

YUM!

I knew that I would be staying up this morning – although a nap would be nice – so I decided to start the day with a tea that would get me going. I usually like to make this one a latte – complete with steamed, frothed milk (yes Cofftea, I do have a frother, I just don’t like to get it out and use it all the time) – but milk just didn’t sound good to me this morning. So I drank it sans steamed milk, but with a nice dollop of honey!

Mmmm… I love how honey enhances the flavors of chai. It really gives a nice definition to the spices of chai. I know that sugar can do this to (and when I’ve run out of honey, I’ve used sugar) as can agave nectar, but, there is just something so perfect about honey and chai.

I ordered this one a while back, but I hadn’t tried it yet… so I thought it was about time!

I have a tremendous fondness for white tea. And this one is very good. I have read of many a displeasure on Steepster when it comes to white pear teas, but this one has a very pleasing pear flavor, and it is nicely accented with cinnamon and cloves.

Very good tea. I don’t know how this would fair as an iced tea – the flavors might be a bit too delicate for iced tea. But it does make a pleasing hot tea for later in the evening.

Matcha – oh how I love thee!

This ginger Matcha from Art of Tea is delightful. The ginger flavor is quite subtle until you get to about mid-bowl, and then the flavor develops. Every once in a while, you’ll get one of the itty bitty ginger pieces and I love biting into them to release their peppery goodness! YUMMY!

Smooth, sweet, a little spicy. Pleasantly vegetative. I really like how the ginger contrasts with the matcha’s grassy flavor.

I received this sample from JK Tea Shop on Monday, but, my Mondays and Tuesdays are generally pretty hectic since they are typically hubby’s days off, and we’re always out running errands and such… so I saved trying this tea until this evening when I could really give it my full attention.

Based on AmazonV’s suggestion, I brewed these beautiful blossoms 3 minutes. The resulting liquor is a very pale, even paler than pale yellow. The aroma is vegetal and floral, but perhaps more vegetative than floral.

The flavor is very smooth and fresh tasting. It has a floral taste to it (not surprising, right?) and an interesting vegetative quality as well as a pollen-y characteristic – almost sweet, but not quite.

Because I found the flavor a bit in need of a little something after my initial taste, I added a very small amount of raw honey and the result was very pleasing. The addition of honey seems to pump up the natural sweetness of this tisane. It is just ok without the honey, but with the honey, it’s much more pleasant to drink.

I have wanted to try a Tai Ping tea for a long time!

The leaves are HUGE and flat. Since I don’t subscribe to the gadgetry concept and don’t use any of those new fangled scales :) I eyeballed the amount I put into my smart brewer.

I must have done well with my measuring because the flavor is rich, vegetative, buttery, nutty, and just plain AWESOME. I’m liking it a lot! A very smooth taste but with a nice mouthfeel. The mouthfeel is a little thicker than a Dragonwell, but not quite as thick as a green Oolong. Pleasant!

A very strong buttery taste, and a nice nutty quality to it.

Ah… I love this tea!