Ben Youngbaer

This Oolong has the body of a Bai Hao or Sun Moon Lake, but tastes more delicate than its leaf size and color suggests. even with really quick infusions, the full flavor comes out immediately. each sip is a well rounded taste of sweet honeyed pecans.

as a gradually cross the 2011 teas off my list, I am now finally getting to this year’s genmaicha. i have not had this tea in a long time so it’s hard to remember what last years tasted like in comparison. this year’s has very stale popcorny taste right away, much more than i remember. after the popcorn, the toastyness really comes through. it’s a smooth transition with the underlying tea providing the perfect bridge. the tea itself is not the best, maybe a second harvest sencha or even a bancha. i wonder if tea will take over after three or four infusions…

Very slight in its aged oolong taste. perhaps the first i’ve had that wasn’t charcoal roasted in successive firings? to me it tastes a little like an Ali Shan black oolong i’ve had, very sweet almost bai hao like but it also has a hint of sour gaba sort of tones and flavors. i’ll be interested to see how the flavor changes. who knows maybe i’ll have it around long enough to require my own firing session.

the first infusion was the least flavorful but still very nice. the second through fifth were all pretty solid. each infusion had one of the subtle flavors come to the forefront.

i probably could have gotten another 3-4 infusions but i was quite tea-ed up and my cha xi collective was disbanding. as a looked through the wet leaves, i noticed that they were still rolled for the most part. the color of the wet leaves was about as dark a fresh ti kuan yin in terms of roasty brown to green ratio. very interesting for an aged tea. i’ll have to think about this one more…

This Puer is one of my favorites, it’s sweet but strong. it has a slight melon flavor that i find in a lot of raw puers. I only use a small amount and it seems to last all day. it’s a great morning puer and it’s even perfect for a hot day.

On this brutally humid day, I am revisiting an old favorite. The more I drink this tea, the more I pick up flavors reminiscent of Belgian beer. A whole mouthfeel with a crisp finish that lingers pleasantly. As this tea ages, the roast is becoming sweeter.

No notes yet.

This highly floral but creamy and a lingering sweet oolong is an emerald cup of fresh gold to be sipping on in this part of the world.

I’ve never had tea this fresh before. It was harvested on March 15th and I tasted it for the first time on April 4th! This freshness is indescribable. The aroma is almost overwhelming while the liquor is almost clear. The flavor is like fresh baby spinach with a cashew undertone. I don’t have many words, this is just wonderful and I’m going to enjoy what little I have until I can get more.

My second encounter with this tea was far more successful. I think it really stands out when compared with other Taiwanese oolongs. for me this tea is far more hearty, nutty, and buttery than any other Taiwanese tea. the typical floral notes or only slight and just in the aroma and the first taste on the tongue. the rest of the flavors surround my tongue like a warm towel of delight.

I just had the fresh batch of this and it’s wondrous. it’s flavor is so crisp and complex. the first taste is like a spring mountain stream coming through the ice followed by a sweet, almost melon kind of flavor, followed by a hint of buttered toast that warms the tongue for the finish.

A delicate but full bodied flavor with more buttery overtones than the usual taiwanese florality. Not quite as good as the Li Shan but still a spectacular tea that I’m hoping to drink more often

A dense stick of puer that hold a surprisingly sweet flavor. the light purple infusion is only a little woody followed by a pear/mango sweetness. I want more

My first sip of this came on the 5th or 6th infusion do it may not have been the best brew example. my second taste however was much more pleasant. while the first flavor that hits your tung(ha) is that crisp taiwanese florality, i expected a sweetness similar to the other rolled oolongs. such was not the case. instead i was treated to a warming vegetable quality that made me describe this tea as squash blossoms. quite buttery and even a little nutty.

Aged teas are something special. certainly not for everyone. I love them. You can taste all the years they’ve lived through. Each sip like a journey back in the history books. so smooth but rich. the liquor is a crimson chocolate and the sent of morning fir trees. not quite piney but in the conifer family. I shall savor this goodness til the next time I can get to montreal

this delicate green is hard to explain to anyone who hasn’t had it before. it’s both steamed like a japanese green and pan fried like a chinese green. the resulting flavors are a hybrid of vegetal body with sweet and nutty notes making each infusion crisp on the end of your tongue. for me this tea is a special occasion or a once in a while tea. not an everyday staple like a dian lu or a da hong pao. it also makes each brewing more enjoyable and savorable. I’ve been drinking a lot of Mao Jian recently and that’s comparable flavor wise. Mao Jian is more buttery and sqaushy though. this style of curled greens is really nice this time of year

This light and floral tea is a tightly rolled oolong that is durable like an ali shan but maybe even sweeter. the flavor held strong even after 8 infusions in a pot. this is my go to tea right now so hopefully i won’t go through it too quick.

terrible. smells like hot, old fruit by the foot. looks like dogvomit, hence the picture. tastes like air. nothing is here but i can’t get past the smell. will not be drinking “tea” from this “company again”

This year’s Bao Zhong is exceptional! it has the sweetness almost to the level of an Ali Shan!. not cuite as complex or durable as Ali, but a good backup in case you don’t have time to appreciate every Infusion of a rolled oolong. it’s good that this is so good this year because the Tung Ting has been a little disappointing. normally the TT is the alternate for Ali but the flavor has been kinda flat. the subtle textures don’t linger like they should. In the Bao Zhong however, they do. a light candied aroma fills the air after I add my leaves to the warm teapot. the first sip is a quick and brisk. it tastes of the first snowfall after a thaw. crisp then warming the body to complete the journey from teapot to mouth.

No notes yet.

I love puer and this is a great season for it. i prefer cooked puer for the most part, with the exception of my fav (lau shu) this tea is probably my second favorite cooked puer behind Zhao Li Qiao. it has a sweetness lingering amongst the earth. the infusions remain strong, with the best being 4-12

I know it’s not tea, but I drank it in my tea room using some tea room supplies and it was made by a fellow devotea @changeangeling. so warm and soothing, a treat as the snow falls outside. fall turning to winter my body warming from the inside to a fine toasty pleasance.

A warming blend of Puerh and spices makes me wish I had some ready for me every time I came in from the cold. the earthyness of the puerh balanced with the kick of the spices makes for an excellent wintery beverage.

wowza. this is an interesting one. it has some similarities to maybe a feng huang, slightly fruity but not overpowering citrus. it’s a smooth concoction that reminds me of a hot toddy to some extent…except this won’t help you get to sleep.

Could be more minty but it’s just a subtle hint, which is nice. nothing in this is too powerful. not too strong tea wise, not too sweet, not too milky. is nice. i am warm.