Amy oh

Again I am backlogging – This was a very nice pu-erh tea I had at lunch today. I believe this is the one that was 30 years old and I drank out of the gaiwan. Very dark, smoky rich flavor. I think I am getting tea fatigue right now. I like puerhs but I do not think they are worth the overly inflated price or all the hype. Perhaps I will change my mind someday. This was a great tea with our lunch of vegetarian spicy noodles and buns.

Backlogging – we had this at a tea tasting at lunch today and both loved it. Very rich, smooth, malty and sweet. Sadly I cannot really write descriptively about teas hours after I have had them. I do know I was tempted to buy it.

A nice afternoon tea for us. Do not chastise me Verdant disciples but I lowered the rating. I’ve had a few wuyis since then. I still like this one though. I love you but I am not in love with you… lol

I got this at Starbucks today before going on my hike. I thought it would be kinda Christmasy and nice… I could not pick any flavor out of it whatsoever. Like drinking tea flavored water.

I liked the spring laoshan black a bit better but this is still very delicious -Malty, fruity and chocolate notes. Very complex and chewy

This is a tea I just had to try based on all the crappy reviews people wrote about it. ;-)

Now I can’t figure out if Steepster is just full of really snooty people or I am just not snooty enough? lol…

This is really not that bad. I kind of liked it… hee hee. Is it the power of suggestion? I really do feel more relaxed. I steeped this in the Ti xing teapot with around 180 water. I used 3 infusions of one minute each. This does not really taste like a typical oolong. I swear my tastebuds are tingling. It reminds me a little of a sheng. It also reminds me a little bit of Lipton tea. It does have a bit of an aftertaste that is kind of sharp and pungent, I assume this is part of what people are reacting to negatively here. Oh well. I kind of doubt I will get more but I might. It does give me a sort of pleasant goofy feeling.

Another of my 1 oz. sampler thingies from Tao of Tea, I did not log this one yet, an oolong from India close to the darjeeling region.

It is very rich, toasty, and fruity. But it’s also a bit too darjeeling-y for my taste personally. It’s kind of astringenty and seems to have a lot of tannins. I am sure some people would love it but it’s getting the soy milk treatment from me. I thought this was ok, but not a personal favorite. Would not mind swapping this to someone who likes ceylons & darjeelings and would probably appreciate it a bit more than I will. It does seem very clean and bright.

I can’t seem to find a picture of this on the internet anywhere – sorry

My guy was very excited when he discovered a new tea shop in his neighborhood recently We popped on over there this afternoon and discovered this. A shu pu-erh tea brick from the Xinghai Tea factory, the Label says Gold Brick. The back of the box says 1998.

The lady who gave us this tasting was very energetic and enthusiastic about the world of tea. We also tried a Chinese green tea that was very flavorful. I did take good mental notes on how she brewed this stuff, very gently. It’s a very sweet, dark red creamy cup. Probably one of the sweeter pu-erhs I have had. It does smell a tad fishy/mushroomy etc but tastes like cherries, vanilla and honey. Redwood trees and bark. When we took this brick home I brewed some up in the Tetsubin. This is another disaster when steeped for too long and a little bit can make a huge difference. I tried it for two minutes and the result was a bitter, thickish mess that I had to throw out. I would suggest one minute or less for the first steep and nice little short infusions for 30 -45 seconds after that seem to be doing the trick very well here. A delicious tea perfect for drinking now. yummmy.

I will try to save some for the future too.

So I just read over the tasting notes for this tea. Should sales people from tea companies even be allowed to rate their competitor’s teas: I don’t know. It seems a bit tacky to me personally.

In any event I bought a big bag of these a few months ago in 2011. I gave some away and I only have a few left which I will save to see if and how aging changes them.

This tea benefits from a quick rinse in boiling water. They recommend steeping it for 3-4 minutes which seems like a bit extreme to me. I did mine for around 2 minutes. It’s a very dark, earthy and rich brew, no bitterness at all. OK, it does smell a tad bit fishy according to the BF but I never noticed that before. I associated it with shiitake mushrooms, coffee, chocolate and broth. Curious. I’d much rather have this than camphor any day of the week. I first started drinking tea like this when I quit drinking coffee. I was told that pu-erh has the lowest acidity of any tea. It does seem like it’s easy on my stomach. I think this is a nice little shu.

My second steep was only for around 30 seconds and it is still very flavorful. I would definitely recommend shorter steeping times with this one…

This is not as good as I remember it somehow. perhaps it needs some pu-erh in it… lol

When my boyfriend went to New York 6 months ago I was very new to the world of puerhs and how to brew any tea but Western style tea. I had a few shu puerhs though and really liked them.

So he picked this up for me as a gift and we were both pretty excited to try it out, but when we brewed it up (typical Western style) it became the most foul and bitter tasting concoction I had ever experienced. I almost threw it away but kept it in my cupboard.

This afternoon I dragged it out. I have no idea if it’s a shu or a sheng. When I used a small leaf to water ratio and a lower water temp this is actually kind of pleasant. It’s definitely on the fruitier side a little bit of smoke and some cinnamon-esque spice. I detect a lot of camphor here, that’s not my favorite flavor in tea but at least I found a way to brew this to make it actually drinkable. I’m glad I didn’t toss it after all! ;-)

Maybe if I keep experimenting the rating will go up!

Definitely this was an impulse buy at the Imperial Tea Court where I went to have some superior yellow gold oolong but that’s another story…

Here’s my first green pu-erh tea cake! Am I fully addicted to tea? I almost got a brick too but decided to save that for next time.

I steeped this in boiled water for around 3 minutes but I also noticed the website says 180F so I’ll need to modify this in the future.

I don’t know if I can really describe this with my regular words. It smells a tiny bit like an orange pekoe which has me kind of intrigued. It’s a bit sandalwoody and a bit fruity with a hint of smoke but not overwhelmingly so. I am picking up a lot of tannins here. My tastebuds are tingling with excitement and curiosity. It has a slight effervescent quality. It is definitely a green tea but not like any other green tea I’ve tried before. Mysterious.

I did manage to steep this 3 times before I gave up and decided I’ve had too much caffeine for the day already. By the third infusion it is definitely getting a lot lighter but I suspect if I had used less hot water from the very beginning this would not be the case.

I believe this is only my second green pu-erh, they are growing on me a bit. They are a little gentler than the black pu-erhs but not as sweet and light as the white ones. I did notice ITC had a 2010 green cake for $20 so I am wondering if I should go back and purchase that one and lock it in a vault for 10 years. :)

I am definitely happy with this purchase and it will be great to see how this evolves, I expect it will get better with a few years of aging but I like it pretty well now… I wonder if I can wait long enough for it to age before I drink it all!

I’m slowly coming to the end of my Arbor tea samples overall this is a pretty good tea – very nutty, vegetal, and rich smelling, I’m getting some nice seaweed type flavors. This definitely lingers in the mouth for a while. The flavor is quite good but I am getting the slight bitterness with the finish so I don’t know if I will be ordering this again, although I did enjoy it. I am a bit biased because senchas have been known to give me heartburn. I only steeped it for 60 seconds so I do not think the problem was oversteeping or water temp. I am a bit ambivalent. I definitely prefer the gyokuro but this one has a lot of flavor, sencha fans should try it!

hmm, I was very excited to try this because I am a fan of the darker aged oolong teas. I’m amused by the other notes here, what fun to read and what an in-depth probing analysis!

Ok, I actually think this tea is fabulous. It really does smell like a mix of coffee and puerh when you brew the leaves but this does not bother me at all. I brewed this in an infuser mug for 90 seconds (guesstimate) with 180 F water.

I am picking up a lot of interesting flavors here. Cinnamon is the first thing that comes to mind. Also, a little mushroomy in the aroma like you would expect from a pu-er. I am getting stone fruit like plums in the finish and yes, chestnuts.

Second steep: the flavor here is really opening up, it is rich and full with a bit of sharp tang. Reminiscent of a puerh and a big red robe. If you like those styles of tea you might want to check it out. Roasty cinnamony spicey goodness. Okay, this may be an acquired taste, it is definitely an unusual flavor but I dig it.

Thanks so much to Indigobloom for sending me a generous sample of this tea.

I like cinnamon and almonds so I was pretty sure I’d like this too. It smells incredibly like a cookie! It’s sweet and nutty and even a little bit fruity, not sure where that’s coming from but I like it. I’m having this as my after lunch treat with a bit of soymilk and it’s yummy for a dessert tea. It looks like this was discontinued, too bad it is kinda tasty. Like I need more tea! Well of course I do!

I am drinking this again today. I’m so glad I finally found a sencha which I really enjoy. I’ve almost finished the bag already! I upped the rating a wee bit too.

Thank you Charles for sending me a sample of this tea. I wanted to comment on it this morning while I was drinking it but my computer at home is acting funny.

I don’t believe I’ve had a Kemmun before. I brewed this in the tetsubin which I am using for mostly black tea these days. I think I erred a little too much on the side of caution and did not add enough leaf. I liked this though. It was a light brown, woody and smooth tea with some smoke in the aftertaste. I’m not a huge fan of smoke but I didn’t mind it here it seemed very unobtrusive. I tried adding soymilk and that was not a good idea, I preferred the taste of it plain.

I steeped some of this in my tiny little xiying teapot which seems like it was made for an elf. It is adorable. I hope it is seasoned well enough. I am drinking this tea out of a shotglass… ha ha

I think I can taste the clay a bit which is giving the tea an extra dimension. It still seems as delicious as I remember it.

I made this as a cold brew tea and I liked it this way… very refreshing. I upped the rating some today

I’m finishing off the rest of my sample today, I am going to order more. yummy yum yum

Lately I’ve learned that almost all milk oolongs are flavor enchanced which diminishes my appreciation of them a bit but this is still very fun to drink.

This one is light, brothy, flavors like popcorn. Has a very interesting thicker aftertaste that lingers for a while, reminded me of peaches a bit. Certainly it is delicious but I’m not sure I’m a huge fan of the milk oolong. What is it flavored with?

An impulse buy in Japantown. I don’t know that much about Fukamushis but did a little research on the internet that it is a type of sencha that is deep steamed and this removes a lot of the bitterness. Sounds ok to me, so far so good.

I admit I feel I am getting a cold today and my taste buds are off. In addition, with the first steep my water was too hot and this made the tea kind of unpleasant although beautiful to look at. It is a vivid beautiful deep neon green.

The second cup, with water temp around 160 and steeped for 45 seconds or so is quite lovely. I am getting a lot of flavors here, grass, seaweed, a slight tartness, very full-bodied with a lingering aftertaste. Not very buttery but definitely vegetal. I will try to update my notes when I am feeling healthier.

I have been loving japanese green tea lately, they seem like the elixir of Gods.

I’ve had this for a year or more and hope to keep it for a while to see how it evolves over time.

It’s been a process of trial and error for me as I have grown with this tea over the last few months. When I brew it Western style I get a very malty and pungent white tea which always intrigued me but left me wondering.

When I keep the infusions short and sweet (30-60 seconds) and the temp lower, to about 160 f is when this tea really starts to shine. I am getting a lot of sweetness with a tiny note of malt and fermentation. This is where I start to notice more of the floral type notes. Watching my evolution along with this tea is like watching a flower grow. It seems like there is vanilla in the finish. It is a great tea for multiple infusions as well and I look forward to seeing how it evolves over time.

I should also mention from the few white pu-erhs I have tried I seem to like them better than straight white tea. Perhaps it gives me the extra edge I need.

This is a new shipment direct from Taiwan of a bunch of oolong samples. I like Taiwanese oolongs but I don’t know if I know enough about them to rate them all differently or even tell them apart. I suppose only time will tell. I also got a cute little black xi ying teapot which I am eager to try out but not until I season it first and learn how I am supposed to brew with the thing. So this was brewed western style in an infuser mug with 180 degree water.

This tea is very charming. It’s a light yellow infusion with the usual buttery notes, has a very nice mouthfeel and smooth aftertaste. It is slightly grassy but not like eating grass. More like lying in a meadow of grass and watching the clouds go by. Some teas get me pretty wired but this is not one of them. It’s actually very relaxing and peaceful.

I am looking forward to getting more experiments going!