auraTeas

had it in the morning

This is absolutely good

I’ve noticed that oriental black teas tend to have these cocoa notes to them, but if I didn’t know better I’d swear that this tea was flavoured the cocoa scent was so strong. I brewed the tea following the directions on auraTeas website as closely as possible, though making 150ml of tea at a time looks a bit pathetic in my big coffee mug – maybe I should invest in some more authentic teaware.

I could be wrong, but I think this is the first Taiwanese black tea I’ve tried and it bears similarities to a keemun but there’s also some distinct differences as well. The tea does have a lovely bitter cocoa flavour but there’s more to it than that. There’s a smooth, sweet, honey-like undertone that keeps the tea from turning into something harsh.

It’s unusual to see a green oolong that doesn’t have rolled up leaves. These are more like little loose twists. The tea has a smooth, cooked-fruit (peaches or apricots maybe?) flavour and a sweet scent that remind me of lilacs. It has quite a few similarities to the Aged Wuyi Variety oolong that I tried from this company earlier, but it’s a bit sweeter and fruitier and lacks those bakey notes and roasted scent that the former had.

EDIT: Apologies for leaving the note unfinished last night – I got distracted. :D

Brr, yesterday it was a balmy 25C degrees outside and today it not even breaking 15C – it’s like Mother Nature said, “Enough summer for you!” and flipped a switch. So right now I’m curled up on the couch wrapped in a blanket and the hot mug of tea I’m drinking is very much appreciated.

This tea smells very much like I’d expect a Formosa oolong to – with a strong roasted, bakey scent. The flavour of the first steep (1 min) is quite unexpected however; yes there are some of those bakey notes but this tea is lighter and sweeter than I expected with some lovely fruity notes.

The second steep at 35 sec was richer and more rounded. This time I could taste some bakey notes in the flavour as well as a smooth honey-and-fruit finish. It also doesn’t cross the line of becoming too sweet like some green oolongs do (like certain Ali Shans for instance).

I’m really liking this oolong as it seems to combine some of the best qualities of a typical Formosa oolong with those of a Chinese Wuyi oolong with great results.

90ºC seems like a hot steeping temp for a green oolong, but the short length of time seems to keep the leaves from getting scalded, I suppose. It’s a tea more suited to a gong fu style brewing, I think, and maybe one of these days I’ll get the proper utensils to give that a try, but not today unfortunately.

The first steep at one minute brewed up a nice gold colour and had a lovely lilac scent. The flavour was floral and sweet with a slight fruity note. I think I can pick out the osmanthus, but it’s quite subtle and mixed well with the natural floral notes of the dong ding base.

The second steeping at 45 seconds was lighter and more floral and the third steep at 35 seconds took on more of a vegetal tone with an slight peach-like aftertaste. Each time the tea never lost its smoothness and refined character. Overall it’s an interesting-tasting, good quality oolong, but if you take away the osmanthus notes what’s left isn’t anything really unique.

I recently received an order of samples from auraTeas – they seem to specialize in oolong teas, but they have a good selection of chais (both herbal and tea based) as well.

I was surprised by the smokey scent that wafted up from the dry tea when I opened the packet – that mixed with the usual spicy chai scent made for an interesting combination. I brewed it up lighter than I normally would for a chai and had it without milk or sweetener so I could get a sense of what the tea itself was like.

There was still some smoke in the flavour, but not as much as the scent would suggest. The spices were mild with a slight herbal undertoneand I could pick up a touch of sweetness from the licorice root, but they were thankfully quite subtle with it. At the tail end of each sip I got the rose – lightly floral but not too perfumey. In my opinion they’ve put together a very nice blend.

No notes yet.

~

I dream teabag dreams.
Creamy mounds float through darkness.
Taste you as I wake.

that haiku was inspired as soon as this liquid graced my tongue.

It is a very sweet subtle black tea. I am loving the flavor. I really like this tea. Low tannin’s make this tea one of my favorite blacks. I will add more notes when I can smell and try it again.

Finishing off the last that I have of this tea. You can read my full-length review of it here:
http://sororiteasisters.com/2011/04/22/formosa-mingjian-green-tea-from-aurateas/

I like this tea very much. It is light and has a delicate sweetness that is quite nice. Citrus tones introduce themselves toward the end of the sip. They start tangy and end sweet. The light roasting adds definition to the beautiful floral tones of this tea. An exquisite tea!

No notes yet.

This is another goody courtesy of Jessica!
The first infusion is very light in color but flavorful. Both the aroma and taste are slightly buttery and grassy with a nutty edge thrown in. I don’t think I’ve ever had a medium roast oolong but this is very nice.
The second infusion is slightly more bitter and grassy but isn’t off-putting.
The third infusion is on the light side but the bitterness has been replaced with a fruity aftertaste. Unfortunatelu, I don’t think another infusion is in my future. The leaves are fully open and the last infusion wasn’t strong enough to risk another cup.
Overall I’m glad to have tried this as it reminds me why I like oolongs but this isn’t the best example out there.

The aroma is earthy. The flavor is also earthy, but not quite as strong as the aroma might suggest. There is a profound sweetness to this tea – it is deep and pleasant. A very smooth taste to this tea. By the smell I would have thought that this would taste much more “rugged” or rough but it has a very smooth, sweet taste.

Oh this is good! Rich and smooth and robust!

It has a really pleasant sweetness to it and a nice chewiness. Excellent!

Off to write a review for this tea!

This is darker than the darkest coffee I have seen! But the taste is much more smooth than I thought it would be. I’m not fond of the aroma but the taste isn’t bad!

Word Association…
Formosa…Beautiful
This Tea…Not So Beautiful.

I’m not saying I don’t like this tea…I do…it’s ok…but I wouldn’t call it beautiful…it’s very grassy and there are times I am into grassy greens and there are times I am in the mood for something else. I guess I just wasn’t ready for the level of GRASS this one set off. It’s not my favorite auraTea but I’ll add it to my ‘middle of the road’ pile :)

No notes yet.

This is beyond satisfying! I really like this! A sweeter tasting green. Slightly floral and nutty too!

This is a very nice Oolong – much different than I’m used to, so it’s a rather nice change of pace. I can taste notes of spice and even a hint of bitter in the sip – not an offensive type of bitterness, but a savory one that adds a nice contrast to the sweet, nutty flavor. Roasty-toasty flavor is very pleasant. I’m not getting a strong vegetative taste, but there is a nice peach-like background to it.

A very good Oolong!

Grassy, Sassy, Mossy, Earthy, Roasty, Toasty, semi spicy with a semi sweet finish. Not bad!

I’m really not that fond of Pu Er Aromas but once I got past that this was actually pretty good…it was much smoother than I thought it would be. As well as sweeter than I thought it would be. This is decent.

This is a lighter, less bold Golden Monkey but very smooth and tasty. It’s semi chewy and very nice hot or cold! YUM!