Amy oh

This was another tea I got for Christmas from my brother and am just getting around to trying it now.

I decided I was going to use my xi ying teapot for wuyi oolongs only. I think the clay teapot really enhances this tea for some reason. I steeped mine for about 60 seconds and this first steep is reminiscent of toasted grains, there is a lingering sweetness and also a plummy/raisin-y fruit quality.

Second steep is about the same as the first – it’s a good tea but doesn’t rank up super high in terms of unique or intense flavors like some other wuyis I’ve had. Still. I wouldn’t mind having this around as an everyday sort of tea. In the future I might let the steeps go a bit longer to see what I end up with.

I found a Fukugata teapot today at Daiso for $4 and I couldn’t resist buying it. I never liked this Detox tea but it’s a little late for caffeine so I decided to steep some of this up to anoint the pot. The tea is still yucky but the teapot was fun to use. I noticed it has an infuser basket instead of the traditional sasame (clay filter). I think it’s a little too soon to figure out how this cheap teapot will affect the flavor of my tea. I guess I need to start first with a tea that I actually like. :)

I bought two sampler packs from Tea from Taiwan and I confess a lot of them do taste similar but this one was definitely different. For one thing it smelled so fresh and clean and VERY vegetal when I opened the bag, kind of like boiled spinach.

Due to these factors I decided to give my first steep only 60 seconds in approx. 180 F water. It’s a nice light infusion but it really is vegetal, sweet and clean. It has a bit of a “roasted” or charcoal quality. hmmm. I really like this one a lot. It is also one of the more expensive teas on their website (just my luck!)

For the second steep I decided to keep it light, only 30 seconds to see if I could capture some of the elusive fruit flavor. I am getting a little bit of melon and now it has a slightly floral aroma but I want the charcoal back!

Third steep: I am going for the gusto. Two full minutes brings back more of the delicious flavor here. This is a tea that takes you on adventure. Now I am getting a buttery popcorn flavor.

This one is very enjoyable so I am adding it to my shopping list although $29 for 75 grams is a bit steep for me. It’s very tasty though and according to the website you can steep it 8 times…

Interesting that some other tasters found it boring, I am not bored in the least! :)

Another ancient sample from David’s Tea – evidently it is cleaning up and purging ancient things time…

I was really dreading this after reading the description. Well, I do like lemongrass but with hibiscus and citrus I was anticipating a big tart mess… this probably would be a good iced tea and good with booze in it. It’s a bright pink fruity cup that has the hibiscus zingy kick. It’s pretty ok but that’s about all. Better than Teavana but I doubt I will ever come to love a hibiscus fruit blend tea.

It’s been ages since I’ve placed my last order and I have no idea why. Maybe the new spring tea collection will be coming out soon??

yummm. I was really looking forward to trying this sample after reading the description! ;)

I steeped this in an infuser mug at 180 F but I lost track of the time, it might have been 2 or 3 mins. It is buttery, slightly vegetal with a little bit of sweetness in the aftertaste. I believe this is the apple flavor that was referenced in the description?

The second steep was only for about 90 seconds. I think a light touch is paramount with this one. The vegetal notes have backed off a bit and is getting more creamy. I am enjoying it but I don’t think it will go on my “must have” list. Not sure if I need to steep this a third time, oh well. It isn’t really standing out but I’m also feeling kind of nauseated today so that isn’t really helping…

I unearthed this ancient sample from my stash – I have no idea why I didn’t try drinking it before now. I believe this was one of their spring teas and it also looks to have been discontinued but maybe they’ll bring it back.

This isn’t quite as terrible as I was fearing it would be. I actually like the raspberry here in this blend but I don’t think the coconut goes so well with it. Kind of sickly sweet somehow & might be better iced. I guess I haven’t been missing much. :-/

This was another sample pack I received when I placed my order with Upton. I really wish I had ordered more of these, they are so awesome and cheap!

This assam was steeped with boiling water in an infuser mug for 4 minutes per the company’s recommendations.

This is a delicious smelling assam – very dark, fruity and malty. It has a lot of pungency towards the end of the cup and I fear I may have steeped it a little too long or I should perhaps use a little less leaf next time because I brewed it up very strong! I love the flavor but am wishing for slighly less pungency so stay tuned, I may need to adapt this one out of sheer necessity. Soymilk is definitely helping to tone it down a bit.

Here’s my tea “nightcap” for tonight. I did notice tonight I felt the cinnamon in this blend was pretty strong so I may have oversteeped it. See my previous tasting notes. Still it’s great with soymilk as a nice treat :)

my tea notes are probably getting repetitive but at some point I will break down and just buy an entire pound of this since I drink it almost every day. =)

I am sure I will want to keep ordering this tea forever. I’m tired today and the weather is grim but this is tea is so delicious, smooth and strong. Chocolate malt perfection – Perfect for a long, cloudy day. See my previous tasting notes. :)

It is today’s first tea. Steeped this morning at boiling for 4 minutes. It’s nice but not destined to be a favorite, see previous tasting notes. I will try adding a pinch of cardamom or dried orange peel next time.

yum, it’s a tea “nightcap” – hoping there is not too much caffeine in this one. Definitely a dessert tea, great with some soymilk. I don’t see it as a coconut cream pie as much as a coconut banana cake made with whole wheat flour. Anyway it seems to be hitting the spot at the moment.

working late tonight, this tea is a nice boost and is very soothing and rich as well. A guiltless indulgence. :)

This came as a sample in my last order from Verdant. I was very surprised to find that this does smell a lot like cocoa – intriguing! I steeped it for around 3 minutes at 175 F or so. I may have used a bit too much leaf however.

I am finding this slightly less sweet and more vegetal than the spring Laoshan green. It has a full and rich flavor, definitely green beans are the predominant note here. I felt it got a bit pungent so I may need to revise my steeping parameters. I like it though…

Second steep here at 2 minutes was a lot better, I guess you don’t need much with this tea!

This is a great black tea to lift your spirits and start the day right – see my previous tasting notes. :)

I got this as a blend to mix with other teas, I don’t intend to drink it on its own. Last night I added about 1 tsp. to some plain generic honeybush and it was great, I also want to try it with assam. I think the saffron and the elderberry are both nice touches to this blend which make it a little bit out of the ordinary.

My first time trying a yellow tea. The leaves in the bag are slender and light brownish with some white areas. I steeped this in an infuser mug with water around 180 F for 3 minutes. The leaves, after steeping smell a bit sweet but also like seaweed.

I do think this is pleasant but I’m not really blown away by it. It’s a golden yellow color and has a slighty sweet/nutty flavor profile. There is something mildly oceanic in the aroma of this particular tea. I am enjoying it but I don’t think I will need to rush out and get anymore once I have depleted this sample. Also I think it is great that Upton offers sample sizes on all of their teas, just thought I would mention that! :)

This was only my second straight up nilgiri and I am having a cup of it again this morning. It is fruity, (I am getting plums and berries in this steep) but lacks the tannins/astringency of a darjeeling which makes it nice for me. I upped the rating a bit today.

This was part of a Kusmi Russian tea sampler we got. My boyfriend loves Earl Grey/bergamot blends so he likes them a little bit better than I do, I find them to be a bit perfume-y. The orange is very nice in this blend though. Might be better with a scone. ;-)

Out of all the things that I purchased from Verdant recently, this was the one I was most curious to try. I am always on the lookout for nice herbal teas especially ones that don’t have hibiscus in them (I am not a huge fan).

This did not steep up bright pink so I wonder if I should have let it steep longer – I did mine about 3 minutes. The roses definitely smell wonderful when you open up the bag. It is flowery for sure but the licorice adds in a bit of sweetness, while the elderberry provides some fruit/tart and the cinnamon rounds everything out pretty well. I was also thinking this might be nice blended with something else like a formosa oolong or an oriental beauty. Very flavorful and relaxing tea for the evening time.

Geez, it got really cold and windy in San Francisco today and this is really hitting the spot and helping me to warm up, it’s also nice with a bit of orange peel tossed in. :)

2/4 of Upton’s basic darjeeling sampler

Well evidently B.O.P. stands for broken orange pekoe and when you look at the leaves they are chopped up very fine and are various colors of brown and light green. This has a very familiar “tea” smell for those of us who grew up with the cheap orange pekoe tea that’s readily available in teabags.

I steeped this for 2 minutes with around 200F degree water, I did not want to go up to boiling. It brews up to be a lovely dark orange color. I am drinking this without milk or sugar and it’s very light and smooth, a bit like an oolong and this stage. I am enjoying the mild flavor with a touch of briskness. Thankfully it is also light on the astringency but you do get a bit of tannin in the finish, it is not bothering me too much. I think this would make a good iced tea also. A good value for the price. I am not sure I’ll need to order more of this particular tea but I will certainly enjoy the little tin I have.

Wow – this is great. It’s a delicious white peony!

Part of a 3 part sampler I got from the Tao of Tea. When I opened the can I was surprised to see so many of my leaves were still very green looking.

I did a bunch of steeps in the gaiwan at around 170 F. It is lightly honey-sweet and nutty with just a hint of something herby in the nose. Not that floral but definitely delicious. I would love to get some more of this but I wonder if this is the same tea in the picture? Curious…… Another winner from the Tao of Tea. :)

In full disclosure I am not a huge fan of jasmine tea but after reading everyone’s tasting notes I was hoping this would be the one to convert me and it would have me doing backflips and sighing with delight like everyone else.

I drank a bunch of this last night and I’m having some more this afternoon. I’ve finally pinpointed what my beef is with jasmine tea. Although I love the smell I find it very drying and it also seems to upset my stomach and that is just a bit unpleasant. I didn’t tank it in the ratings because it isn’t Verdant’s fault I don’t like jasmine, I probably should have stuck with something else.

But onto other subjects. This is very clean and nice, I think the jasmine goes really well with this particular white. I’ve tried steeping this a few different ways and my favorite is to steep it in the gaiwan at a lower water temp, I believe I’ve been using around 160 F – 170 F. That seems to bring out the natural sweetness of the white a little bit which is helping me deal with the jasmine.

I went and bought some bulk herbs and flowers and I threw a few rose petals in it which is also nice but I somehow want to go make a bath oil with it now… lol!