Mercuryhime

Thank you Azzrian for this yummy tea! I brought this to share with my sister while cake baking for mother’s day. It’s very peachy! Real sweet peach! It’s reminiscent of gummies. I think a lot of Lupicia teas taste like gummies. Soooo good!

The oolong also makes a lovely fresh appearance making the peach not too candy-like. Oh, Lupicia. Why can’t you be on the east coast? whhyyyy???

No notes yet.

So I’m trying this awesome sample from Azzrian in my brand new glass mug with strainer and lid. I can drink tea at work without those paper filters now! Awesome! I also love how lovely the tea looks through the glass. I want to just look out the window and drink tea for the rest of the day.

I’m quite enjoying this one. It’s not as creamy and milky as other milk oolongs I’ve tried. I think I’ve only had David’s and the three from Tea from Taiwan. It’s also quite it bit more drying on the tongue, though not unpleasantly. This may be because I’ve always brewed my oolongs with below recommended temperatures. I tend to prefer them that way, but I followed directions this time. Hmm… I guess I’ll try a cooler temp next time and see how it goes.

As it is, this oolong is very nice for a daily brew. The first steep was sweet and floral with a light milkiness. This second brew is more vegetal with an aftertaste of unripe melon. There’s a heaviness in the mouthfeel but the lightly floral scent in the back of the sip keeps things balanced.

Not my favorite to be honest, but it makes a good everyday tea. I wonder if I’ll like the flavored one more. :D

Thank you again, Azzrian, for the chance to taste this!

Hmm, this tea seems to be a bit polarizing, judging from the reviews. Oddly enough, I rather enjoyed this one. I would have guessed that I wouldn’t like it due to the hibiscus, but I sort of used a lot more water than recommended so whatever sourness is likely drowned out. I can still detect juicy strawberry and warm ginger though. Very nice. I imagine this would make a good base for lemonade. Strawberry ginger lemonade. Yum. I am brilliant! Too bad I only got a sample and it’s gone now. I’m not willing to order it either. hah! It’s not really that good even if it is enjoyable. For a strawberry tea with a spicy element, I’ll stick with Blazing Strawberry, which I recently got 50g of. yaaay.

I noticed that the summer collection just came out, btw! I’m super curious about Luscious Watermelon but I’m also pretty sure I won’t really like it too much so I’m hesitant to buy it. Anyone want to swap some for Blazing Strawberry or Swampwater? :)

OMG. Is this really green tea? I’m brewing this in the little yellow pot I usually use for oolongs and I suspect I’m somehow drinking an oolong instead of a green. Is it possible for green tea to have such sweet complexity and floral savory smoothness? This lightly colored liquor is absolutely lovely. It’s got this bright exotic citrus zestiness and an underlying vegetal deliciousness. Mmmm…

Steep two is more vegetal with a ghostly hint of limey flowers. It’s pleasingly drying. Mmm..brothy…

I can imagine this being so good lemon pound cake or thai food. versatile and so very good. I totally get why people are crazy over these Verdant Teas.

Hey! This is my first Verdant? I think I’ll have to explore further…
Thank you Azzrian for this delicious sample! so good!

I think I got this from Lindsay? I’m not sure. sorry! Well, anyway, I got this maybe a month or so ago and I never got around to trying it. Something about roasted oolongs are a turn off for me. I know that all oolongs are pretty much roasted or cooked or something, but the ones that promote roastyness…I dunnoooo. I like my oolongs green and fresh. So yeah, I was a bit nervous. But then, I was asked for this in a swap and I figured I’d better try it before I get rid of it. :)

I make myself a small tasting sized pot of this and hmmm…it’s not bad. It’s not as green as I prefer my oolongs but still, it’s got a bit of a honeyed note along with more traditional ti guan yin flavors. Quite good in fact. I probably wouldn’t buy it myself, but it’s good enough to enjoy. The second infusion is so average tasting though. There’s some creaminess in there, but I’m not sure if that’s left over from the coconut pouchong I was sipping earlier.

In any case, good experience!

And now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve been drinking tea all morning without a bit of food in my stomach…

This tea was absolutely delicious. I got off work a little early yesterday. It’s eerie when you’re the only one left in the office at 3:30. So I thought I’d make a little excursion to SoHo to use the ScoutMob coupon someone posted on a discussion thread.

I get there and these all sorts of noisy construction going on right outside. Then you enter a quiet, dimly lit interior filled with the smells of baked goods and tea canisters all around the walls. Is this heaven? :)

While I’ve always been a fan of Harney’s teas, I rarely ever bought from them because I always felt they were a bit over-priced. Maybe the flavored blacks were decently priced, but I’m not a fan of blacks so it wasn’t for me. But this coupon for 50% off makes it all worthwhile! Figuring I’d make the most of the coupon, I asked to look at three of the more expensive oolongs they have. Ali san, Li shan, and Wenshan Baozhong. The first two smelled amazing. I was pretty sure I’d love it even though I haven’t tried it yet. This Baozhong however…very intriguing scent. Like savory herbs and vegetables. Yet, my experience with baozhong (also called pouchong (?)) has always been creamy and sweet. Since they only let you sample one tea from the shelf, I picked the one I wasn’t sure about.

Let me tell you, this tea tastes nothing like it smells. It’s creamy and sweet with light fruity/floral notes. yummy first infusion. They made a second infusion for me upon request and that one was also wonderful. More creamy, less fruity/floral and more vegetal.

If I ever get another chance to buy a fancy expensive oolong from Harney, I’d get this one. But yesterday, I bought the Li Shan, the most expensive option. I’ll be writing a review for that one when I get to drinking it. :)

This tea is exactly what I hoped it would be. It’s my favorite Japanese Kasugai brand Muscat gummies. Only it’s liquid and not going to rot my teeth. I’ll have to invest in this oolong for health reasons. Mmhmm. Health reasons.

The base of this tea is pretty light. It seems like a light black, or a slightly roasty and autumnal oolong. The flavoring is so right. It’s floral and raisin-y and sweet and nectary. I love this. Love this sooooo much. Muscato is actually my favorite wine, and muscat grapes tie with kyoho grapes for being my favorite. All those things are expensive. This oolong is is cheap by comparison. Cheap, and delicious and so much better for me than gummies. I love gummies. haha I bet this would make an amazing cold brew.

I am so amazed at this tea right now. So. Amazed. When is Lupicia coming to the east coast????

Thank you sooooo much, Azzrian for this delicious sample! When I finally get to ordering from Lupicia, I am getting some of this!

Edit: Steep two and the oolong base is stronger now with weaker muscat flavor. It is still really tasty. This tea shows no signs of being bitter or astringent. I think I’m liking this infusion more than the first because the flavor and tea is more balanced.

This is sooooooo amazing cold brewed. Sooooooooo amazing. It tastes like heavenly snow. Like lilacs and winter. Smooth and sparkly and so delicious. I can’t describe it. I can’t compare it. Nothing compares. It would cheapen the tea to be compared to any other scent or flavor. I tried comparing up there, but it all falls short. So tasty.

It’s also soooooooo expensive. Sometimes, I wish I were like those people who can’t taste the different between lipton and high quality looseleaf. Or maybe I should just wish to be rolling in money?

Anyway, my sample is gone now. Bye bye delicious tea.

Thus far Dan Congs are the only non-green oolongs that I enjoy. I think green oolongs are still my favorite by just a little, but sometimes I really just want a delicious cup of Mi Lan Dan Cong. I made a cup of this and put it by my side to cool a bit before drinking. I kept catching whiffs of sweet honey and fruity lychee. numnumnum. The first sip was amaaaazing. That first sip of hot tea in the morning really warms your belly. :)

I think I may have made this a bit too strong. but it’s still tasty, just intense. It tastes autumnal to me, though lychees are in season in the summer. I think most dark oolongs have that autumnal flavor and I really like my teas to be more light and springy feeling. The natural honey and lychee flavors really make this tea and exception though. So good.

Now I want lychees. Can’t wait for summer fruits to start rolling in! Mmmm…berries and peaches…

okay. So I know it’s unwise to drink matcha so late in the evening. It’s probably going to keep me up, but heck, it’s Friday tomorrow and everyone knows nothing really gets done on Friday anyways, right? It’s like, a law of office work ethics everywhere!
Anyway, I’ve had this matcha in my tea drawer for a while now. I keep thinking about it, but I wanted to wait for a “perfect” moment. The perfect moment will probably never come! Oh wait…my friends and I are going to a Cherry Blossom Festival this Saturday at the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens. Dammit! That would totally have been the perfect moment! I suck…

Well, I’ve already sampled the tea so on with the review! Perhaps I can bring some to share! But there’ll probably be a tea ceremony at the festival…

Anyway… I’m going to compare this tea to the Starter matcha since it’s the one I’ve had most often and most recently. I must say, I don’t see or taste too much of a difference. The green is a bit brighter, but not the light neon green I’ve seen in super fresh oceanic matchas. It’s also pretty clumpy. It makes me wish I had a mini sifter.

The flavor, is minerally and sweet. It’s smooth and green with no bitterness. I’m enjoying this quite a bit, but I think not more than the starter matcha. Hmmm… There’s nothing distinctive or extraordinary about this tea, but that does not make it bad. After all, ordinary vanilla ice cream is still vanilla ice cream, which is awesome. I would say this is representative of a classic matcha flavor. This is what you taste when you get green tea ice cream in china town. It’s delicious, just not super high quality. I would definitely recommend this for lovers of green tea, but if I wanted to get a regular matcha from Red Leaf, I think I’ll stick with the Starter Matcha. And oddly enough, I think this may be one of those rare teas I simply prefer sugared and milked. Like early grey and chai.

I am still super curious about the higher grade stuff though! What does the Emperor’s Matcha taste like, for example? And White Tea matcha! So intriguing! And I can’t imagine liking red matcha, but I’m super curious about that too! Halp! I want to try them all!

Oh, and the caffeine has kicked in now. I was feeling really sluggish and tired, but now I’m all energetic. ack! And I only had so little. :( I wish all teas were caffeine free so I can enjoy them late into the night. I’m always having to drink honeybush/rooibos or plain mint. While I enjoy all those things, I’d really rather be sipping a cup of oolong or green tea.

For a good matcha experience, please check out:
http://www.redleaftea.com/matcha-tea/royal-matcha.html

Okay. I so I have had this bag of delicious matcha in my cupboard for a while now. I kept wanting to open it up and make myself a delicious sweet drink, but I have refrained. Why? Well, I wanted to finish my starter matcha before opening another one. My mom has always told me to finish one box of cereal before starting another one. Even if they are different flavors. And I know how quickly matcha can deteriorate. :( But I can’t stand it any longer. Aisling’s mouth watering review pushed me over the edge. (Thank you, by the way. :))

I normally don’t have time to get a drink of tea in before leaving for work, but I start a little later today but my body made me wake up at the same time. In any case, this is a delicious way to start the day. The moment I ripped open that foil packet, my heart was lost. How could I have waited so long? The smell is intoxicating. It’s like those caramel hard candies wrapped in that neon yellow wrapping paper. I think I might even spy tiny bits of caramel in the tea. Yummy. I quickly whip up a cup with just hot water. Smells so amazing!

First, the color of the powder is a bit of a brownish green. This is likely due to whatever is used to flavor the tea. I did get a stronger flavor than the default. I love me some caramel. The powder blended into the water nicely with barely any clumps. The froth in minimal, but I only have a spoon and a mug so I’m probably at fault here rather than the matcha.

And best of all, the flavor! The flavor is true to the smell. It’s really more of a hard candy caramel than a soft gooey caramel. I’m not too picky about my caramels in general though, so I pretty much love this. From the smell, you’d expect a sugary sweetness, but it’s just the usual natural sweetness of the matcha. It’s manages to be both green and refreshing and sweet and desserty. I definitely approve of this compromise.

As for the matcha itself, I used the cheapest option, Starter Matcha, since I figured I would let the flavor shine and drink high quality matcha unadulterated. Not that the Starter Matcha isn’t a good matcha. I think it’s a very good matcha for the price, though it definitely not the best matcha ever.

As usual, my sensitivity to caffeine makes me a good judge of how caffeinated a tea is. This one is moderately caffeinated, by my judgement. It certainly left me feeling energetic this morning! And my spring allergies were a bit less irritating, but I don’t know if I can attribute this to the matcha. Perhaps I should just drink matcha every morning and see how it goes! Certainly better than popping Claritin everyday.

The flavor of this matcha also begs to be played around with. Perhaps I could dust some over vanilla pudding/ice cream? Of course it would be good as a latte. As an add in to homemade caramel green tea truffles? I think I’m drooling…

In closing, if you love caramel and enjoy matcha, you’ll love this tea!
http://www.redleaftea.com/matcha-tea/caramel-matcha.html

More on this tea later. I just wanted to pop in and say OMG! This is good! I’ve got to share this with my sister. We sat around one day and decided which matchas to get from Red Leaf and she chose this one with quite a bit of enthusiasm. I really didn’t expect their flavoring to be so good but it SO is. And of course matcha is pretty awesome too. :)

Weekend mornings are oolong mornings, it seems. It’s just that I always want to spend time with an oolong and evenings are bad because of the caffeine so it’s always got to be a day with I have a few morning hours to spare. This oolong is definitely worth the time.

Steep 1: Mmm…so floral honey and creamy and sweet. It has an unusual crispness. I’m not sure how to describe it, but it’s intriguing and delicious.

Steep 2: Vegetal now, but still sweet and smooth. It tastes like summer. Like the smell of the country in July, full of promise for a fruitful harvest. (I hope you’ll forgive my poetic inclinations this morning. :)) It’s also a delicious floral perfume and a hint of fresh cut grass or maybe budding spring greenery. I’m trying to describe it objectively, but this tea just tastes like imagery instead. No wonder oolongs always make me feel so meditative.

Steep 3: More vegetal and more creamy. Like a creamy vegetable soup. Asparagus? not really… milder. artichoke heart? hmm… maybe.

Steep 4: That floral essence is sort of in the background now with the vegetal aspect being more assertive. That odd delicious crispiness is also stronger. It is pleasantly drying on the tongue. There’s a bit of a honey aftertaste. The caffeine has me feeling alert and invigorated, which is great since I plan on going for a jog soon. It’s such a beautiful day, I might not even need music to convince myself to keep going just a little longer. :)

I think I’m good now. I maybe steep more later but I’m done for the moment. Good bye delicious oolong samples from t-oolongtea. I’d buy more but I’ve got lots of tea to drink through first. I really need to drink through my collection faster! I need more visitors so I can make tea for them! Also, when I ask people what sort of tea they’re interested in, they NEVER pick oolong. Sad.

EDIT: My 200th tasting note! Cheers! clinks mugs all around :)

Tasty! I didn’t expect to like this too much since previous orange flavor things from David’s has been too candy like in the past. Fortunately, this one is more natural with a rich creamy chocolate flavor. The puerh base is also pretty notable. I was a bit surprised by it at first but really started to like the earthy flavor as I continued to sip. The flavors blend so nicely! Very sweet. This might be a good base for hot chocolate or as a latte. Or hot chocolate latte? Holy cow! I’m brilliant. I know what I’m having tomorrow!

Before tea, let me just say that this weather is amaaaazing. Sunny and warm but still a bit of a chill. I’ve opened my windows and my doggies sit themselves in front of the breeze and just sniff. They do this all day long. You would think I never take them outside. sheesh. But it’s cute so it’s ok.

Anyways, I got home early from training for my new job craving something fruity. Fortunately, it’s not so warm that hot tea is an unbearable thought. I found this tea that I got from the generous MadelineAlyce a while back. I think I’m brave enough to try it today. :) I actually love the way it looks. It’s got cute little jasmine tea balls and nice colorful dried fruit. The name of the tea is a bit off-putting, as is Teavana’s reputation. But it smells pretty good and I like jasmine so how bad can it be, right? I grew more nervous when I realized from the red brew that I was about to imbibe some hibiscus concoction. I cut the brewing time short so it wouldn’t get too sour.

I’m actually enjoying this. Jasmine and peach go pretty well together. I could definitely do without the hibiscus though. The flavors are pretty light. I’m pretty sure it’s because I took the leaves out so quickly to avoid hibiscus overkill. Perhaps a second brew would be good now that the jasmine balls have unfurled a bit. I do love me some jasmine. As for the berry part of this tea, I don’t really taste it. It’s mostly hibiscus with a smooth jasmine and peach background. Not something I’d buy, but I think I’ll be able to finish the sample without any trouble. :)

Had this as a latte for dessert. Steeped perfectly at 6 minutes. Totally yum! I love the strawberry in this. And the chocolate. I’m very impressed with this blend. I’d say that this and the piña colada and the lemon lime cheesecake are the epitome of tasty honeybush blends. The end.

I’ve gotta learn to be careful with my honeybush/rooibos teas. After a long steep, the flavors I don’t like come out and ruin things. AFter 6-7 minutes, it starts to taste like sour wood.

Anyway, over steeping aside, this tea is nice flavored! It’s actually better than any neapolitan ice cream I’ve ever had. The strawberry was sweet and juicy and the chocolate was totally yum. I didn’t get much vanilla, but I’m betting it’s the stupid sour wood flavor that’s getting in the way. I’ll have this again soon, steeped correctly, and then we’ll see. I’m enjoying this one though. I’m glad I picked this one over the strawberry pie, though I’m sure that one’s good too. :)

I realized last night that it’s been forever since I last had a gong fu oolong session. I love my green oolongs and they have been sadly neglected while I dallied about with dazzling new flavors and alluring Japanese greens. I’m sorry oolong. You deserve better. This Sunday morning is all yours.

I snipped open my sample pack of Alishan from Canton Tea and was greeted with the most seductive aroma. Honey and green and flowers. Oh yum.

First steep: This was pretty light, as is normal. The color was a lovely bright yellow and the taste was sweet and vegetal. The honey note is making a shy appearance here. Not too floral.

Steep two: This steep! Mmmm… The leaves are smelling like cooked bok choy and the tea so honey sweet and brothy. It’s lightly vegetal but mostly floral honey. The after taste reminds me of a juicy ripe plum. Did I really abandon my green oolongs for the savory oceanic flavors of Japanese greens? I guess they both have their merits… but nothing beats the complexity of a good oolong.

Steep three: Oh my! How that small handful of leaves has grown! I’m surprised every time. The smell is so intoxicating. Forget those fancy designer perfumes. Just dab some of this on your wrists and you’re ready to go. This steeping is, at the same time, honey sweet yet fruity and crisp. This might be the honey-like green oolong I’ve ever had. I love how the vegetal flavors are staying the in background for now. By the third steep, many oolongs are mostly vegetal and only barely floral and fruity. So delicious.

Steep four: This steep is possibly my favorite thus far. It’s more balanced and the flavors are more subtle. It’s still floral and sweet. Less honey. vegetal only in the after taste. It’s got a very crisp finish, yet a lovely flavor lingers in your mouth. Like apple skin. Very fresh.

Last cup for now. I’m getting quite hungry, and I’ll be needing more than tea to sustain me, I think. What a shame. :) I am very pleased with this oolong though. It’s invigorating, yet also calming. Gong fu brewing and tasting often puts me in a meditative frame of mind.

I finally purchased some honeybush blends from 52teas because of that promo code. I had barely the restraint to stop myself as it is. The promo just broke through my self-control. hah! Now I DEFINITELY have more tea than I need. More so than before.

Mint chocolate has long been a favorite flavor combo of my, much to my husband’s dismay. He seems to think that mint is vile except in toothpaste. Weird guy. Lucky for me though because it’s the only flavor of chocolate I can leave around the house and take my time to savor without worrying that it’s going to be gone the moment I turn my back. :D

This tea definitely delivers on the promised flavor too! Peppermint and dark chocolate pairs wonderfully here. Both take on a prominent role, though the mint is easier to find. The chocolate’s darker flavor tried to meld with the honeybush, but doesn’t succeed. Like the Grasshopper honeybush, I sort hoped for a creamier mouthfeel. Maybe some added chocolate chips would have done the job. I am grateful that it wasn’t added though since it would only be extra weight when I can easily add my own chips to the brew. Next time… :)

I think I may try this as a latte at some point. It tastes great as it is though.

Traveled for work again. This time I had different colleagues and the trip was much better. Much longer flight though. It’s a trade-off I guess.

I brought only this tea with me. Matcha is so easy. You just stir it into whatever water you have, be it hot or cold. Most of the time, I just added a some into my water bottle and shook the heck out of it. Frothy and delicious. I would have liked it better hot, but it’s still tea. Can’t complain. :) I also love the color of matcha. It’s such a lovely green. It makes you feel positively healthy. :)

Took the puppies out for a walk. Marveled at the budding greens of spring. Nibbled on a bit of wild garlic growing on my lawn. Came home with pups bounding before me only to notice a package by the door. Holy cow! It’s my Den’s Tea package! That was quick! And I was just getting thirsty.

I can smell the toasty cereal. There’s a hint of rice crackers. The brew is a brown and not beautiful to look at but comforting and familiar.

The taste? Hm… definitely roasty and honey sweet and a little grainy. It reminds me of a darker oolong and medicinal tea. It is also, very warming and soothing. Smoother than other houjichas I’ve had but not necessarily better. Unique and interesting, but not really that delicious. I may need time to adjust to this one. Hmmm…

THis time, I followed directions to used boiling water, but I think I might prefer it at green parameters. I’ll try that next time.

ooh, wow. It’s got one of those caffeine kicks that start you shaking.

I got a sample size of this and it was quite pricy. I mean, anything you buy in British currency is going to be pricy, but I guess this is also a yellow tea. Rarest of the rare. :) Still not entirely sure what makes this different from a white tea, though it doesn’t taste quite like other white teas I’ve had. This taste is very crisp and clean. Like salad. Yes, this reminds me of salad. Spring mix sans dressing. The flavor is also quite light, but it’s possible that I simply didn’t use enough leaf. Though with a caffeine kick like this, more leaf would probably have been a bad idea. Next time I drink this, I’ll have some food first.

This tea went for three steeps with me.

I think it’s crazy how my tea cravings change from week to week. Sometimes I want something fruity, other times, only dessert-y will do. Sometimes, I want pure and unadorned tea. I want to taste nothing but the leaf. Not too long ago, I would have told you that green oolongs are by far my favorite. These days, I’m having a renewed love affair with Japanese greens.

This particular tea tastes like grass and minerals. It’s full and brothy and also a bit drying, but not astringent. Sweet. The taste reminds me of summer somehow. I think I’ll cold steep the used leaves. Too tired for another cup now. :)