Amy oh

I upped the rating a bit today, this benefits from a slightly longer steeping time and then it is rich and luscious.

Thanks to Jenn for sending me a sample of this – I was a bit wary of this from the get-go and I’ve been steering away more from flavored oolongs lately so this is sort of a biased review.

To me, this is very grape. When I open up the package I smell grape bubble yum. I brewed this for around 2 minutes with 180F water. The grape is not as strong in the flavor but it is still very prominent. I’m not really a fan of this but it’s drinkable , for my own personal taste it is too sweet and too grape-y. Some other people here seemed to like it a lot more so it probably depends on your personal preferences.

I am revisiting this today with my new batch from Verdant. It is like visiting with an old friend. A sweet and delicious friend… lol!

I purchased this at the Aroma Tea Shop in San Francisco. This is just such a cute presentation, pu-erh tea cooked in a tangerine. I had to try it!

I let this steep for 3 minutes with boiling water. In hindsight, that may have been a bit too much so I will need to do more experiments. I saw on another website people had broken up parts of the peel to brew with the tea so that would also be fun to try. I also forgot to rinse this off before brewing.

I got a very dark liquor but it is very smooth and rich with no hint of astringency. A tiny bit of shiitake mushroom with some chocolate notes. I’m getting a bit of tangerine in the finish nothing like a flavored tea, this is very subtle. There is some smoke in the finish. Even with the stronger steeping this is a very mellow and easygoing tea.

One tangerine yields about 2 small or one large pot of tea. I don’t know if I have time this morning for multiple infusions which is a bit sad. Pu-erh is a tea best left for the weekends!

I did manage to get a second infusion. This time I tried for one minute with boiling water with a tiny bit of the peel thrown in for good measure. This produced a milder but still flavorful version of the first steep. Now I am getting a bit of spice in the cup as well. It’s hard to say which one I prefer more!

Received a sample in my order from Butiki…

This is a great way to end a day of tea. I am ready to Citrus Dream off to slumberland. A delightful mix of chamomile blossoms and fruit. Not tart, not sweet, just soft and pleasant. I can’t taste much of the goji or lemon grass, they are very subtle. I am getting mostly apple and chamomile with a touch of orange. I happen to like chamomile but if you don’t I would of course avoid this. It’s like Sleepytime tea x 10 in terms of flavor and beauty. Very well done for an herbal – another winner from Butiki.

he heh. I’ve already rated this and logged it a few times. I know I will need more soon – it’s my favorite evening tisane by far…

Thanks to Jenn for a sample of this!

This is a good choice for an afternoon tea. I am getting mostly white tea with lots of chamomile and a tiny bit of mango. I don’t really taste much butter or cream but it is very sweet smelling. This is one I liked better after adding soymilk to it. It’s nice but I don’t think I would buy it for myself.

I was looking to try one of the Tulsi teas from Organic India. All of the others seemed to have hibiscus or flowers so I picked this one. I really like the lemon ginger combination so I had a pretty good sense I would enjoy this. Definitely gingery and aromatic, the tulsi flavor shows up as an aftertaste of something minty here. I like it, even for a teabag! A good afternoon tea when I need to go caffeine-less but still want something tasty. This would also be good for an upset tummy or as an after meals drink.

it is growing on me…

I am drinking this today after a long hiatus from it. I downgraded it a bit as it is not as good as I remember, it’s a bit tart and has a strange aftertaste. It’s interesting how my tastebuds have evolved over time. I need to finish it though!

I bought this recently with a few things from Butiki to try. I have to say I like this very much. For one thing the unique twisted shape of the leaves in this conical fashion is just fun to look at! An organic and free trade tea from Sri Lanka, also a bonus.

For another thing this has a lot of flavor for a green tea, I am definitely picking up some vegetal notes of artichoke and the like, but there is also a flavor here which is reminiscent of black tea, I had to make sure I washed my cups since I was a bit puzzled by this. Then I went on the internet and found some other reviews which said the same exact thing so no, it is not my imagination apparently.

I feel like I am getting a hint of smoke and dried fruit in the aftertaste here. Very complex and rich for a green tea. I recommend you try it if you are a fan of green teas. :) Definitely a keeper in my book.

I followed the instructions on the bag which was 180 F and 3 minutes, two cones for 8 oz of water.

A very nice afternoon tea, delightful

i’m having some this morning and it’s still yummy. yes the gyokuru is better but this is still excellent.

It is everything the description promises. A sweet and mellow green tea with vegetal notes a bit like artichoke notes with a sweetness like clover and hay. The instructions said 180F and 2/5 minutes but I let mine go more towards 3 and it was still fine. I am enjoying it this morning. The brewed leaves smell almost floral in nature.

Japanese green tea day is slowly coming to an end here on the tea drinking homestead…

A bunch of years ago I was very interested in a macrobiotic diet and they recommended drinking twig tea as a coffee substitute so I am quite used to this stuff, but the brand I used a lot was Choice Organics Twig tea.

This is very nice, a smooth mellow cup reminiscent of toasted grains, wood and a touch of molasses. Slightly brisk. It’s a good choice for bedtime due to the low caffeine content. I steeped this for about 2.5 minutes at 180 degrees but might steep it longer to see what happens. A very comforting brew, delicious and rich. A great choice for the evening hours after dinner.

I wanted to get a different genmai cha to compare to the stuff that I’ve gotten in the past from Maeda-en. I know that the Silk Road Teas have a good reputation and I got a bit of this at the local Whole Foods this afternoon in the bulk section.

I believe this blend has slightly more green tea than what I am used to. And I’m not sure I’m a huge fan of whatever green tea this is here as the base. I am getting a bit of astringency/bitterness which is one thing I am not fond of about senchas. It does have a nice nutty quality and I like the brown rice but in my opinion it’s just ok. If I was on a desert island with no other Japanese green tea I would be happy with it, I’m sure. Of course now I am spoiled after drinking gyokuro this morning!

I was very excited to try this after my new found appreciation for Japanese green tea…

When I opened my sample package to smell the leaves are so fresh it is like smelling a bunch of spinach. I brewed this up in my glass mug for about 2 minutes using cooled boiling water.

I have to say I am in heaven! This is a beautiful greenish gold color with slight “bubbles” in the brew. It has such a creamy mouthfeel, it is VERY buttery, slightly grassy and creamy. Truly delicious. Another tea I would rate at 500 if I could because it sort of blows the other teas straight out of the water. I only got a sample of this stuff, and YES it is expensive but I am getting more. It would be very expensive for an every day tea but nice to drink on the weekends or when you needed a pick me up. It is very energizing and refreshing. A++++

note: I got four steeps out of it before I gave up and put the leaves in a smoothie. they are so mild you can eat them with no problem.

A very nice decaf offering from Lupicia for the holidays. I received this free (loose leaf!) sample at the store recently.

There is so no question that this is what my boyfriend calls a “gummy bear” tea. It’s so so sweet and festive though and the strawberry flavor really comes shining through. The coconut and vanilla round out the flavor very nicely. Ok, it is hard to taste any actual tea here especially after I added soymilk. But what a delicious, low calorie dessert drink! Lupicia does strawberry well – I also suggest trying their strawberry and rhubarb tea if you are a fan of strawberry tea. =)

It has been a very kind day to me today from the World of Teas…

I bought this a little while ago but have not had the chance to try it out now. I appreciate that this comes from a small farm in Nepal because this is an area of the world I would like to continue supporting. I got the small wonder tin of this tea which was only $4 an ounce. Truly a bargain.

This is a lovely amber colored tea, indeed it is buttery, I am getting a bit more nectarine than plum. It reminds me of the honey phoenix which I also got from the Tao of Tea… This is tasty and toasty with a rich mouthfeel. A hint of buttered toast with jam. A mellow and relaxing cup…

In the interest of full disclosure I like most plain oolongs I have tried, even the one served at the Chinese Restaurant down the street!

I needed a bit of a pick me up this afternoon, feeling kind of in the doldrums. This definitely seemed to do the trick.

It is a wonderful smelling tea – did you ever have oranges and stick cloves into them during the holiday season? So festive and bright! I really like the orange here, it reminds me of a satsuma mandarin. There is a bit of clove and cinnamon but is more subdued. Again I am thinking this is a black ceylon which actually works quite well in this combination. I do feel much more cheerful already!

I have to say that lately I’ve been thinking about the psychology of tea cups and this has led me to an interesting observation with this tea today.

Side by side I am comparing the taste in a glass mug vs. a japanese cast iron teacup. The tea I am drinking out of the tea cup (it’s black) tasted darker than the tea I’m drinking out of the glass mug. I am a kook.

Anyway it is back to the glass mug for now. This is a lovely light amber color now. I don’t believe I have ever had a golden leaf shu before and I am in for a real treat. This is another tea which is nothing like the traditonal pu-erhs I’ve had in the past. It is much lighter in color and has quite a delicate flavor. I feel I need to sit down and really appreciate it rather than just slopping some tea in a mug.

This reminds me ever so slightly of kombucha or cider which I attribute to the fermentation (and kombucha is made from tea, after all). But no sourness is present here, just a nice minerality combined with a rich beautifully aged tea. I am getting sandalwood and earth. I kind of wish I had not read Verdant’s notes on this tea before drinking it but I am reminded also of a swimming hole deep in the woods somewhere but with natural and clean water. Very surprising for a pu-erh. I will be eager and happy to try anything else that comes out of the Xingyang workshop!

It is shaping up to be a pu-erh kind of a day for me so perhaps I’ll get around to trying most of the things in my Verdant shu sampler pack very soon!

I steeped about 1 tsp of this in 8 oz boiling water in a glass mug

When I smelled this steeping, my first thoughts were: bourbon and cherries! So naturally I was excited to try it… ;)

Upon taking a sip, the word out of my mouth is “wow!” This is a pu-erh? It does not taste like any I have had before. It is exceptionally smooth and clean. I am getting cherrywood mixed with honey with only the tiniest hint of earth. It is a beautiful dark amber color which is almost red. This reminds me a bit of some dark oolongs I have tried.

Later steepings are getting lighter and more sweet with a hint of caramel. It is delicious.

Another fantastic offering from Verdant… this is going on my shopping list now!

wow- when you brew this up it smells exactly like a cinnamon cookie, I wonder how Lupicia does it…

This is kind of a pu-er for people who don’t really like pu-erhs since it is so heavily masked with other things. There is lots of sweet cinnamon here as well as some vanilla-y and coconut-y type notes. I love cinnamon so I enjoyed that aspect of it pretty well. Pu-erh was an interesting choice for the base of this tea – it does add a malty and earthy note here. This would be good with some biscotti to dunk in it. It is a tad bit too sweet for me, especially in the morning. I will need to try this as an after lunch or dessert tea instead.

Thanks to Butiki , this came as a free sample in my Butiki tea order…

Wow, I am impressed! This does not taste at all like rooibos, I can’t believe it’s not honeybush?? A very faint sweetness here with juicy mango -mango is one of my favorite fruits. I can perhaps taste a tiny bit of cardamom and calendula. A very yummy dessert tea! I put soymilk in mine and it totally hits the spot. Yeah, I would definitely buy this! Its super good!