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187 Tasting Notes

Organic Genmaicha from Den's Tea
95

Mmmm mmmm MMMMMMM. Den’s really does do genmaicha well. I used a tablespoon of leaf and it’s perfect. The toasty rice flavor is there and the leaves are nice and sweet. No bitterness. I’ve been trying to drink up another genmaicha I have that is going stale; I think it’s time to call it quits on that. Why force myself to drink stale tea when I have this in the cupboard?? I just feel terrible throwing tea out, knowing how much work goes into it…

Da Hong Pao (Big Red Robe) Wuyi Rock Oolong Tea Fujian from Teavivre
93

I haven’t had this tea for several months and already it’s living up to my past experiences with it. The dry leaf smells so rich, and the wet leaves so sweet! I can tell my tastes have changed a little though, as I’ve needed to increase my original steep time. That may be however that this is an older sample, and not as fresh. I found this in my sample pile and was so angry at myself for not drinking it earlier. But then again, I’m happy to have it now. :-)
This time I’m picking up on some floral, which I don’t remember from before. The roastiness is still there, and that glorious sweetness that hits the back of the throat. Yay for old favorites!

Chocolate Honeybush from Local Coffee and Tea

I thought I would go out of my comfort zone of unflavored tea and get this. The dry tea smells pretty decadent! But the actual brew is just bad. It is so chemical to me; it actually tastes like someone dumped a little fingernail polish remover in my tea or something. Just a little. It even smells that way, brewed.

The best use for this tea is potpourri. It smells wonderful dry.

Don’t let this turn you off of this company, though. I’ve tried a few of their teas iced and they were delicious!

Wait a sec. I just brewed another cup of tea to get that taste out of my mouth and now I’m sure it’s the water. Someone else filled my Zojirushi and didn’t use spring water!!! BAD. I will try this tea again when I have better water.

Jasmine Silver Needle White Tea (Mo Li Yin Zhen) from Teavivre
95

This tea is nicely balanced. I think jasmine whites are slightly higher on my favorites list than jasmine greens. It has such a pleasant sweetness, and the jasmine isn’t too heavy. I really think the white tea adds something extra. This tea is probably one of the more lightly fragranced jasmines I’ve had, so if you don’t have any experience with jasmine it may be a good choice!
Thank you again Teavivre for the delicious sample! The people at Teavivre really are exceptionally generous. I highly recommend their company!

Organic Superfine Dragon Well Long Jing Green Tea from Teavivre
95

First, thank you Teavivre and Angel for this really delicious sample!
Wow, I love this tea! The sweet pea flavor is just so refreshing and bright. No bitterness or anything else unpleasant can be found in this tea. It’s even a little creamy, which is my favorite thing to find in a tea. Yay!
Second steep 1 min 15 sec. The leaves smell exceptionally savory this time around. It seriously smelled like pot roast to me. Maybe I’m just really hungry…the tea definitely doesn’t taste like pot roast though. It has more nuttiness this time, and less sweet pea. Still delicious!
I used 2 tsp for 8 oz.

Fengqing Dragon Pearl Black Tea from Teavivre
87

I’ve experimented with this a little to find my favorite steeping parameters, and I think 5 pieces is perfect. My favorite part is when it cools; the chocolate comes out a bit. If you like that flavor profile, you will probably like this tea. I didn’t find the cocoa notes very strong, but they were there. I like that this tea is not ‘in your face’. It’s a very pleasant tea to drink for that reason. Thank you Teavivre for the chance to try this tea! I’m very much enjoying finding black teas that I like!

Taiwan Oriental Beauty (Bai Hao) Oolong Tea from Teavivre
92
Chocolate Chamomile Curiosity Brew from Verdant Tea
97

Once again this delicious tea hits the spot!

Shui Xian Wuyi Oolong from Verdant Tea

I’ve had this tea for quite awhile but haven’t made a note until now because I have a hard time deciding on any sort of flavor profile for this one. There have been a lot of notes on it already, and I find that my tastings of it are different from what others have experienced. I taste roasty oolong with some woodsy and floral notes. The first steep has some sweetness, but I’m not getting any sort of heady vanilla or heavy banana or honey notes. This particular combination of floral and woodsy actually clash for me a little. That said, I do like this tea!

Ginger Sage Winter Spa Blend from Verdant Tea
74

Decided to drink this tea as I’ve caught the nasty cold that’s going around. When I’m sick I usually avoid tea because I can’t taste it; in the case of this tea that’s okay with me as I’m not a huge fan of the flavor but I’m absolutely willing to try this to get rid of this cold.
I can taste a little of the honey I put in, and not much else. Oh well. At least I know it’s got a good chance of helping me out!

TieGuanYin Monkey Picked-Oolong from Zen Tea
87

Another sipdown! I am sad this one is gone- not only is it tasty but it’s an oolong I can drink a lot of without getting a stomach ache! Huge bonus points for that.

Thanks again to Zen Tea for providing this sample!

Source Mountain - Ben Shan competition grade from Silk Road Teas
96

My husband is throwing a rock band party. We are currently on our second pot of this tea. Those who have tried it like it! I feel this tea is a grounding factor in this craziness! :) at least for me, anyway.

Source Mountain - Ben Shan competition grade from Silk Road Teas
96
Mrs. Li's Shi Feng Dragonwell Green Tea from Verdant Tea
92
Laoshan White from Verdant Tea
90

I’ve really been focusing on clearing out my tea drawer so that this spring I can get more…:-P. sip down!

Bailin Gongfu Black Tea from Teavivre
96

The scent of this dry is tantalizing! Mild chocolate and sweet hay notes together! Very interesting.
And the taste…oh, the taste. To me, all the hay notes remind me very much of white tea; it’s also sweet and full bodied. I see why this is a favorite here on steepster! Thank you Teavivre for this generous and delicious sample!

Jasmine Silver Needle White Tea (Mo Li Yin Zhen) from Teavivre
95
Cornfields Shu Tuocha from Verdant Tea
95

Using up my last little tuocha of this. I’m going to have to order this one after I have substantially reduced my current amount of tea- I don’t have as much as some ( ;) ) but my tea drawer is overflowing and I can’t in good conscience buy more tea while I still have some that may be going stale. This is a tea that I want to keep in stock, I think. It will be a good introduction to puerh for my friends!

Summer Harvest Laoshan Green from Verdant Tea
91

Sipdown! I’m going to miss this one. Looking forward to the new harvests this spring!

Taiwan Ginseng (Lan Gui Ren) Oolong Tea from Teavivre
94

I have no idea what ginseng is supposed to taste like, but I really like this tea! It’s sweet, vegetal, roasty, seaweed-y. This is a nice change up from what I’ve been drinking lately! I can’t decide if this tea is more vegetal or roasty; because of the sweetness I’m leaning towards vegetal. However, most of the green Oolongs I’ve tried were also quite floral. This is not the same- the sweetness could be a floral taste I suppose. Oh, who knows. This is what happens when I try to describe a new oolong, ESP Oolongs! I just confuse myself!
Sum up, this is nummy. Thank you TEAVIVRE for this delicious sample!

I used a heaping teaspoon worth for my 12 oz cup.

Keemun Panda from Pekko Teas
92

We have been so busy moving for the past month that I haven’t put up any new tasting notes. That does not mean however, that I have not been drinking tea! :) I had some of this today and it was a great choice for my mood. Bold and warming and smoky.
I again don’t have time for a long tasting note but I felt I should make an appearance! Lol!

Wild-Picked Yunnan Jin Jun Mei from Verdant Tea
90

Finishing up my last bit of this. Didn’t realize I hadn’t logged this before! I enjoy the flavor profile of this tea. It tastes like toasted grain with a hint of potato. It has a nice warming quality and is one of those teas that I would describe as tasting ‘happy’. Perhaps this is the sunny quality Verdant refers to? As it cools it slowly becomes sweeter. It is an appropriate tea for the below zero windchills here today!

Mi Lan Xiang Phoenix Mountain Dancong from Verdant Tea
92
Silver Jade from The Tea Merchant
86

Profile

Bio

I love tea. I first tasted loose leaf when my grandpa brought some back from Russia and I remember just savoring it. Not sure what kind it was; all I remember is that it was loose leaf and it was good. =)

I really enjoy oolong, jasmine tea, green tea, and white tea. I have been getting more into black tea, especially those with chocolate notes! Also, chai is a constant favorite.

As far as tisanes go, I enjoy chamomile and occasionally a mint. I am interested to try rooibus and honey bush. I do prefer teas without artificial flavoring but I’m willing to try most things.

I know next to nothing about puerh, but I like what I have tried so far.

I am consistently amazed at the flavors contained in one leaf. I am on a quest to discover all of them! Slowly, though. Good tea is expensive. :P

Other things I enjoy: Books. My family. Truth. Campfires. Animal Rescue. Gardening. Sushi. Mountain biking. Documentaries. Trees. Music. Culture. Sour cream raisin pie. Not necessarily in that order. :P

Location

North Dakota

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