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A sipdown! (M: 5 Y: 5) prompt: January 19 – World Snow Day – drink a white tea!

I am in the same boat as Coutney. It’s not too flavourful, but thea dry tea bag smelled slightly of dragonfruit.

It is a sipdown nevertheless.

I had last 10 grams remaining, as I sent some across the pond because I just didn’t cared too much for this tea. From those 10 grams I used 5 grams today and steeped in the pot and… I think I just found the best steeping method for this tea!

I tried gongfu, western in a strainer or fillable paper tea bag, but it has been always somehow meh. But method I tried today changed my impressions by a lot.

Smooth, forest honey tasting, with kind of floral impressions, that’s basically how first steep is like. That translates later to the malty notes; along with hints of caramel and stewed fruits, with longer mouthfeel.

Second steep is like the later notes of the first one, with some kind of spicy notes that black tea sometimes produces; and it has been highly enjoyable, warming and cozy.

I assume that the steeping temperature, which was 90°C and steeping time (3 minutes) in a big basket strainer is the key for this tea. The tea pot is said to have volume of 1000 ml, but I actually never measured it myself. The oolong leaves needs to expand well and maybe they were a little bit more prominent in the bottom of the tin. When steeped it was a wonderful two-coloured combo in the strainer.

A sipdown! (M: 4 Y: 4) prompt: Your oldest green tea

A very focused tea to sipdown. It is rather old (about two years), but it never tasted good in the first place. It was somehow expected from me though.

It is very generic green tea, with lots of hay notes, and if steeped well (short steep and not boiling water), it was okay-ish. Very good for not tea-enthusiasts; for me it was just boring and definitely not tasting fresh green. Longer steeps leaded to mineral notes; and harsh mouthfeel.

11 tea bags finished within January, well that is an achievement to share.

This tea I drank last two evenings as those two days were a bit harsh at work; leaving late, tired and with a mood for simple but delicious tea. I just picked this one because it needs to be drinked anyway.

The orange (tangerine) note has weakened a lot and I am actually glad for that. Now it is rose-y chamomile tea that have a wonderful texture, nice scents, and tastes good enough too.
Works so well for relaxing purposes; and there are no too strong flavours to be cloying. Now I can see a chance to finish the box :)

I went to the store that I don’t visit often; as it is nearby my work, but closed when I go to work and when I am going home, I am catching the train and have no time. But today, I have left work late; and train just left when I was left the company. And another one in a hour.

As there is no place to wait but outside, I decided to call home if someone could pick me up (it’s about 20 minutes) and they have agreed. But I was hungry, so I went to that shop. And when I was shopping, I saw this bottled kombucha, from a brand I never heard of and decided to give it a try. There was “last chance” label on it, so probably it isn’t sold as they much as they have hoped. To be honest it is no surprise, because I bet there aren’t much people who would buy a glass bottle with something they don’t even know how to pronounce correctly; with rather higher price tag.

I digressed greatly from the tea itself, so sorry for that and here below are my impressions:

It is very refreshing and not sweet. Actually as they claim, they have used apple juice instead of sugar; and well, it works well. The green tea isn’t too strong, giving me impressions of mediocre tea used, hay-grassy notes. On the first sip I couldn’t notice jasmine at all, but later on it became prominent and gave me a nice impression and brought florals, but in just right level; so it wasn’t soapy. Definitely there are no artificial or chemical notes in this bottle. For the price tag, I wouldn’t buy it for daily drinking, though.

A sipdown! (M: 3 Y: 3)
I assume this was one of the teas that ignited my love for Georgian teas. I decided to buy this, with no or very limited experience with Georgian teas, especially different ones than black.

And well this tea delivered!
Today I prepared last 6 grams that I had in sealed wrapper for long time and apparently the best before day was the last day of 2022, so… yep, old! Especially for white tea! Vendor have still some available, but there is no harvest year mentioned.

Those 6 grams I have used in my teapot, used 90°C water and steeped for 2-3 minutes.
Naturally, it used to have much more flavour; but nevertheless there are notes of meadow flowers with flax notes.

Also the texture used to be more thick. But on the other hand it was light-feeling tea; good for evening, easy to drink even for not so experienced tea-drinkers as my family members.

Happy to have it finished, but sad to call it sipdown. Should I buy another 37.5 grams? Maybe one day… or other white from this region. Afterall, I still have some from the group buy that I organised!

I see I never wrote a note of this, that’s rather surprising, but well here is the note:

I was in a mood to prepare a tea in a pot again, mostly because I was feeling cold all day somehow; and I wanted to had more than a single mug. This particular batch is from Autumnal Flush 2023.

So yep, I prepared 8 grams (or 6 grams? I don’t remember!) in the pot and used 85°C water. I wasn’t paying much attention to the scents, but taste was very nice. It was delicate herbal, creamy and smooth, with notes of hay, cut grass and citrus peels.

The liquor is very bright with green-yellow hue, very clear and there weren’t any dust in cups. Either the strainer is very fine or there is no dust in the tea.

After a long time, I’m finally writing a tasting note for another Tielka tea I received last year. I’ve been enjoying it regularly, but as I’m nearing the bottom of the tin, it’s high time to share my thoughts.

This Yueguang white tea is beautifully fuzzy, a mix of buds and leaves, which I find particularly appealing. The aroma is equally delightful, reminiscent of fresh hay, meadow flowers, and a subtle herbaceous note.

I typically steep 5 grams of leaf in 300 ml of water, using around 80°C. The vendor suggests 70°C, which is difficult for me to achieve precisely, as my kettle only has settings for 60°C and 80°C (among others). I opted for a slightly higher temperature, but the result is still excellent.

The flavor is mellow, delicate, and smooth, echoing the fresh hay aroma. Each sip offers a lovely sweetness, complemented by subtle fruity notes that linger in the aftertaste.

In conclusion, I’m conflicted about sourcing this tea from Australia due to its carbon footprint. However, I greatly appreciate it as a palate cleanser for its simplicity and mellow flavor profile.

Note: I received Tielka teas, included in this (and following) tasting notes, free of charge in exchange for a tasting note. I will do my best to remain unbiased, but of course, I am very grateful for this opportunity.

A teapot time.
I have used all 8 grams received from Derk in the session today morning and in the teapot; to share this tea with other family members. Thank you derk!

I have used 90°C water and steeped for 3 minutes. After we have finished first session, I decided to brew myself second session and steeped again for 3 minutes. There is no lose in the flavours and the leaves were almost lifting up the lid of the pot. I am sure there would be more steeps possible, but I haven’t made them.

I find this tea rather hard to describe. It is a wonderful and very, very complex tea with aroma of florals, herbals, and tropical fruits. Very ripe mango and bananas, in my opinon; combined with some, a little savoury, herbs. I wasn’t able to point out them, but then I read the description for medium roast version and I am pretty sure it is galangal, something I tried during the advent season for (probably) very first time. It was kind of spicy, but not fiery… rather piney as derk notices there.

There is an extremely long aftertaste, and overall high enjoyment of the tea not only from me, but also family members. As my mom described: “Delicate and mellow, with full of flavour.” When I examined the steeped leaves, I could show them the bugbitten leaves and explained them how it contributes to the taste and… yep I liked it very much because of it too. It has got a sweet finish, mouthcoating qualities and if there is something I am sad about, it’s that I will hardly try this tea again.

Of course, I am sure Song Tea would send me some, even they don’t specify shipping on their website; but to be honest, it is kind of expensive for me.

A sipdown! (M: 2 Y: 2) prompt: A tea you put off drinking

I don’t really know why I put this tea off; maybe because I was afraid it would be too smoky, or just haven’t got a mood for gongfu, or…

It seems that all smokiness is gone by now. Smooth and floral cuppa, with hints of red fruits and some woodiness. Works well to me, however I am not able to point out exact flavours. But it’s cozy enough in snowy afternoon.