FONG MONG TEA

Well I got the job and now the only problem is I didn’t realize by mid-October she meant starting two days next week. Ummm. Because I have been zoned out all day (it’s amazing I actually got myself to the mall) I didn’t even think to say anything about the wedding I have to go to in 2 weeks…and now she’s on vacation. Well. I guess I’ll say something Tuesday? I am finding it incredibly hard to be excited because of how horrible I constantly feel and I’m starting to question if it’s even just ragweed.

So my mom was all like oh get yourself a beer or a nice cup of tea. I was just like oh god not drinking right now. I instead got myself another nap and now I’m going to see how long I can stay awake and drink a nice tea. I’ve been holding onto these samples to have them when I feel like I can devote time to them.

I can’t smell very well though. Of course. I put the entire 6g into my yixing pot and rinsed the leaves first, then steeped for 20 seconds.

I don’t know if that is too short or what, but this is more like a sweet garden of flowers dipped in mineral water and cream. And I really hate that I decided to drink this because I don’t think my tastebuds are going to do it justice.

Okay, gave up on that steep and am trying one for 45 seconds. It has much more color to it. Now we have butter and a mouthful of gardenias for sure. It is so velvety too.

Enjoying the last of this fine tea from a sample I received. See previous notes but this one is special.

(Free sample provided by Fong Mong Tea. Thank you!)

Setup:

Teapot/tasting cup method
- 150 ml / 3 gr
- 95 C / 6 min

Gaiwan method
- 85 ml / 3 gr
- 95 C / 4 min, 5 min, 6 min

Leaf & Infusion

Dry leaf – Mainly dark with addition of larger and more loose copper-red leaves with fine white hair. There are also some really small white buds in this small heap.

Wet leaf – Fresh fruity aroma with honey and flowery undertones. When compared to other rolled oolongs such as TGY, the leaf is somewhat smaller and variegated in shades of coppery-brown and olive green. The well preserved structure of leaf reveals its one bud – two leaves picking standard and the stalk is relatively thin and only few have wooden texture.

Infusion (Teapot) – First sip reveals rich taste and fruitiness with honey-sweet finish and intensive aftertaste of the two. As tea cools down there can be sensed some muscatel notes that get a stronger magnitude as tea continues to cool down. I did two more steeps, 8 and 10 min, and former brewed a delicious cup leaning more to lighter mouthfeel than first steep and almost as equally aromatic experience. Ten minute steep came out with decent fruity liquor that was enjoyable.

Infusion (Gaiwan) – This method seems to show off more of Oriental Beauty’s finer nuances. The infusion is rich and along of its usual fruity and honey aspect there are some earthy and woody notes involved backed with pleasant astringency and touch of bitterness.

It has taken me way too long to get around to reviewing these samples that FONG MONG TEA graciously sent me to review. Sorry FONG MONG TEA! I really wish that I had gotten to this tea sooner… It is amazing… Really!

The little gold sample packet was nicely packed with dark green rolled leaves. The green was so dark and deep that it looked almost black, like a forest in the moonlight. The scent was deliciously sweet. It smelled of hints of honey with pine-nuts. Just in case you aren’t familiar with pine-nuts, they smell and taste nothing like pine trees, but more like a mix of walnuts and cashews… It was nuttier and smoother smelling than most oolongs. The scent was thick and inviting with undeniable sweetness.

Once steeped, the tea was a golden color with a tint of olive green. It smelled delicious, with the honey notes becoming more prominent without overcoming the nuttiness of the oolong. I couldn’t wait to sip it. Something about it seemed almost magical.

The first thing that struck me the most was that as soon as I sipped it, my mouth was filled with a sweet nutty flavor. It is the sweetest tea I have tasted so far. Absolutely surreal. I really had never experienced a tea that could fool me into thinking that sugar had been added… I am pleasantly shocked by the sweetness in each sip! I taste a tiny hint of smokiness towards the end of each sip, adding depth to the natural nuttiness of the Oolong.

Also unique and worth mentioning is the cooling sensation at the end of each sip, almost like what you feel after sipping peppermint tea. It is a great combination of flavors and sensations. It is by far the most unique tea I have tasted so far. Delicious and surprising all at once.

My taste-buds feel like they just came back from a SPA all pampered and relaxed. I think that this Oolong should be tasted by anyone who is a fan of Oolongs or sweeter teas. You really need to try it… Trust me… :)

Dry leaf smells a lot like roasted seaweed.

Buttery hints on the sip. Roasted and seaweed after-taste. Very slight saltiness in the background. Hints of floral on the finish. Reminiscent of a full green tea flavour.

I am personally not a fan of teas that remind me of salt but I love the roasted seaweed flavour coming out of this one.

For the second infusion, I increased the infusion time by about 1 minute. All of the flavours from the first infusion seem more subtle with an added oolong creaminess that comes out a bit. I think that I’m getting that minty-cooling feeling in my throat as the tea cools. I didn’t find it to be very apparent in the first one (I thought that I may have feeling it only because I had read about it so much). Buttery and vegetal qualities.

This tea would not likely do well past the third infusion.

Sip down. I knew I loved this one but I forgot how wonderfully aromatic it is. I don’t care if I am dangling participles or splitting my infinitives here. The point is this smells amazing and tastes just as good. Truly a wonderful cup that reminds me of why I am so obsessed with tea..

This is fabulous! A little Alishan … a little milk Oolong … all in one cup! Yum!

I do love Alishan, it’s my favorite of the Oolongs for its delicious subtle complexity. That this is also a Jin Xuan really was enticing to me. This is probably not my first Alishan that is also a Jin Xuan but it’s the first time I’ve noticed it and put it together.

A delicious, delightful Oolong. So very nice.

I have been revisiting a number of teas today, some were not as good as I remembered, some where better, this was definitely the latter. I’m picking up on wonderful spicy and zesty notes that remind me of juniper and rooibos (in a really good way, even though I’m not a big rooibos fan) in this second steep. The first was still lush, dark, and sweet. It’s the only sample from Fong Mong I didn’t use up in one sitting. Really enjoying it!

Edit: Hmm this was stored right next to a sample of Garnet Sable, wonder if it picked up the smokey, foresty, rooibos notes from that? Either way, delicious!

Nom, hot oolong tea. How I’ve missed you. The weather hasn’t cooled down so much. Only a little from the recent rainy days, but still, it’s cool enough that a cup of hot tea doesn’t feel like torture. Plus the fan blowing in my direction doesn’t hurt things.

This cup of tea has the lovely green oolong aroma that I adore. Floral and vegetal and sweet and yummy. The color of the brewed tea is very lightly green, which I’m beginning to see is a trait of Fong Mong’s green oolongs. The taste is delectable. You are hit with a round sweet floral flavor. Then you notice the green vegetal spring-like flavor as the tea moves to the middle of the tongue. On the swallow, you feel the fruitiness and the barely drying and luscious quality of the texture. Don’t know why, but green oolongs often remind me of papaya. Papaya are sweet and floral and slightly vegetal in flavor so I guess the general flavor profile matches that of a green oolong.

Thank of for the generous sample, Fong Mong Tea. This is really delicious. :)

A tasty oolong, for sure. It’s not really coming off as a milky-style oolong to me, but it’s pretty good. The first infusion was floral and fruity, reminiscent of Fong Mong’s Fruity Sijichun oolong, but I’m finding the second infusion to be comparatively better. It’s coming off smoother and less “green”, with a delicious round, fruity flavour. For the money, I’d go for this over the Fruity Sijichun simply because it re-steeps better. Wish I had compared the two side-by-side, but I haven’t been in the mood for that sort of thing lately!

Thanks again for the sample, Fong Mong Tea!

Second and final cup of this one, part of a sample from Fong Mong Tea. I’m trying to drink down a few things to feel like I have things under control, which is totally not true…

I still think the first infusion of this oolong is really amazing, just lightly floral and fruity and oolongy. I’m not even sure I want to have a second infusion tonight because it was so unimpressive last time, and I have a host of other teas down here that I could have instead. Ah well. This one is serving my desire for a tasty oolong tonight, and that’s all that matters :)

ETA: Second cup is just generic, like I remember. Sad.

I’m on my sixth infusion now … this tea started out with a very strong sweetness that was very fruit like, tasting like something between a plum and a peach. Very sweet and juicy, with hints of sour. Hints of vegetative notes and toasted grain were in the background, and the floral tones were barely there.

By the fourth infusion, things began to change… the fruity tones had subsided, falling back into the background and becoming more of a memory than a present taste. The floral tones emerged, and there was a savory bitter tone that arrived about mid sip. More like a sharpness that lent a contrast to the sweeter notes. The vegetative notes have become stronger.

Now, the vegetative notes are much stronger than in the first four infusions, and the floral notes are pungent. The roasted notes are a bit like charcoal, and I don’t taste as much of the creamy grain notes that I noticed in the first couple of infusions…

It’s still very pleasant now, and it’s very interesting how much this tea changes over the infusions. I preferred the first couple of infusions, but I also enjoyed the transitions.

This is the last of my samples form Fong Mong and it is very nice has Great roasty toasty flavors with slightly sweet floral/fruityness peaches or peach blossoms and has some smokey notes to it as well all this while staying simple and not too complex, very enjoyable i must have some more of this one it reminds me of my favorite oolong so far.

Second tasting…thanks to Fong Mong Tea!

I have a new iPad…woo hoo! Bound to happen that I’d come home to Apple. My first computer was a Mac. I lived in Cupertino (Home of Apple) and worked off and on in Apple offices (not uncommon in Silicon Valley). After 4.5 years with a HP Laptop I’ve seen the light.
Yes, I have to pay for it over time…but it had to be done soon. My computer was whimpering, letting me know that a fatal crash was imminent.
My tea drinking is more like work today. I hate that!!!
In the middle of transfering ‘stuff’ from the HP to an external hard drive (for my iPad), setting up all the things I need on the iPad, erasing my personal ‘Stuff’ from my Kindle Fire to give to my granddaughter :) my tea review is going to sound aweful!

Sorry Fong Mong Tea!

Why didn’t I choose a crappy tea on a mentally challenging day? After all, my abilities are slow…really slow!
On stressful or busy days, everyone needs good tea!
Crappy tea fails to make you feel better.
Bad tea never stops you cold in your tracks and reminds you to take a second and reflect…
“Uh huh…I can do this task…I am drinking a very floral tea with a cool mint undertone that is wonderful. This is a tea I remember liking before…sweet and fruity.”
This is what I did.
I drank a really good tea on a stressful day! I drank several small steepings and smiled at the sweet floral flavor.

Then I went on with some clarity to finish more of my iPad setup.
I’m a step closer to a blog.

Thank you LiberTEAS for this sample!

For the last tea of the day, next up was this deliciously delightful Pou Chong Oolong. This mildly fermented tea is perfect with it’s mood matching light and gentle tones.

There is a certain asparagus flavor, yet something more. It reminds me of Spring Bud Green tea with it mellow grassy notes with an added floral trailing fragrance.

It is smooth enough to try cup after cup, with no lingering bitterness. The aroma is gentle in the cup, then it completely transform into a more expressive tea as it hits the middle of the tongue.

So I messed up… The original review that I posted for this tea was actually for Peony Tea’s Dong Ding Oolong (my bad). I got my dong dings mixed up like the ding dong I sometimes am. Anywho…

This is fantastic! I can really taste the difference between the charcoal baked oolong and the dong dings that I have tried that aren’t. This one really brings out some pleasant earthy tones and provides delicious smokey hints. I got a cute little teacup with a basket for my birthday (as well as a cast iron teapot, which I didn’t bring to work so have not yet tried…), and I made 7 cups with the same leaves and made myself pee 12 times today because I could not stop re-steeping this tea…

Second tasting note.

The first tasting of this Black Tea had been memorable and I do really love this type of tea. Coming back a second time is always a good idea. As I read reviews I notice that sometimes a person goes bleh the first time and yum the second and visa versa. Just like first impressions with people, you should give second chances.
I liked this tea the first time I tasted it very much. Today is another day…so here’s my second opinion:

The tea tasted malty and full of cocoa flavor as before, but this time there was something new that I hadn’t noticed during my first review.
Licorice.
Maybe the chocolatey cocoa and mint combined to create licorice…I have no way of knowing…but there was a definate licorice flavor in the tea that was dark and raisen like. This time I did feel a peppery astringency at the front of my tongue only.
I added cream and sweetened my cup as I do when the tea is very dark and rich, full of cocoa malt. This was my morning tea after all.

I didn’t enjoy the second tasting as much as the first time, but still think this is a high quality black tea.

I sometimes forget that Oolongs are my favorite tea. Every once in a while I will have a cup of tea like this one that makes my taste buds have a party in my mouth and my brain kicks in saying “This is sooo good! It has to be your favorite Nina!”… And so, I agree with my brain, yeps, Oolongs are just spectacular.

My boyfriend took me out for sushi tonight (lucky me!) and I was in the mood for something smooth and unflavored. Oolong was the perfect culprit!

In the bag the tightly rolled leaves smelled slightly sweet and much like milk oolong. They had a hint of mineral plantiness.

Once brewing the scent was overwhelmingly creamy and sweet. So delicious. I stood sniffing my tea the whole time it steeped, enjoying each breath of creamy promises of tastiness. The liquor was olive green and sparkled in the light of my kitchen as I waited for it to be cool enough to sip.

Once brewed, I was in love. It worked exactly like an Oolong should. First it fills your mouth with creaminess, followed by a slight mineral refreshing flavor and finally has a grand finally of sweet and savory as you swallow. I wish my cup could have lasted longer… Thankfully I have second and third steeps to look forward to! :)

Thanks a bunch to Fong Mong Tea for this spectacular sample!

Second Steep (the tea sat overnight and I am having it with breakfast)- Second steeps are usually my favorite, but this time around, the first steep takes the prize. I am finding the second steep to be a tiny bit more astringent and floral than the first creamy sweet steep. Still really enjoying it! :)

_{Free sample provided by FONG MONG Tea}

I must apologize for taking so long to get this review done. I had tried this once before and got distracted. All would have been well except that I accidentally deleted my tasting notes. So, fresh tasting today.

Dry leaves are mostly olive green with a couple of medium brown leaves and a smattering of light yellowish green leaves/tips. Leaves are twisted and are of various lengths-I would say most are medium long, but some are quite short. Dry aroma is a typical floral that you get with green oolongs. I can definitely see describing it as somewhat perfume-y.

The brewed leaf aroma is similar but more subdued. Liquor is transparent and very pale with much more yellow than green. The flavor is very smooth and somewhat sweet. I detect mainly floral and some vegetal notes. This is definitely a high quality tea. If you like Pou Chong Oolong, you will probably enjoy this tea.

I’d like to thank FONG MONG TEA again for the free samples. My favorites would have to be Sun Moon Lake Black and the Top Grade Oriental Beauty.

Next up-I received some more generous samples from Teavivre and will be reviewing them in the coming days.

The first tea to go into my yixing pot! I’d been saving my samples from Fong Mong Tea until I got one. Here it is! https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/315454_3587175127038_22846941_n.jpg It’s not even the one I ordered but that’s okay, I like this one better than that one!

I put the entire sample in, aiming for 1g of tea to 1 oz of water. Steeped it for about 40 seconds. This first steep is light but so sweet. It almost reminds me of a milk oolong. Very creamy, and just really really sweet.

Second steep! Now that the leaves are opening up a lot the volume is right where I want it. I’m pouring into a 6 oz cup and now it’s perfect. The liquor looks like I’m steeping a green tea rather than an oolong.

The second steep is very floral and also very green. I’m getting pepper, really reminiscent of pink peppercorns. The third steep is very similar, with a bit less of the pepper. It makes for a really intriguing combination with the floral flavors, that’s for sure.

More to come, it’s time to stop procrastinating on a paper for at least 20 minutes!

Very strong flavour. I’m detecting a flavour reminiscent of grapefruit which I have associated with Milk Oolong in the past. Strong roasted tone (bordering on bitter) and mild milky undertone. I’m also detecting some lemony-type flavour on the sip. Sweet on the finish. The after taste is sweet and has floral hints.

As the tea cools, I’m getting more of a full milk oolong-like hit with each sip. The roasted tone moves more into the background and the milkiness is allowed to come out more. Very delightful! I can detect some grassy notes as well. The finish is still very sweet with mild floral hints. After taste is mainly of roasted and floral flavour.

Second infusion- The milkiness really comes out The roasted flavour isn’t as prevalent, which is nice as it was a little strong on the first infusion. Smoother and softer version of the first infusion.

The flavour held pretty well for 3 infusions. I didn’t try past 3 though.

This is my last sample fron Fong Mong Tea and I would like to say Thank You for the generous samples. :))

The steeping wet leaves really let me know this was a greener, more floral tea. The wet leaves had a lightly roasted aroma, but what struck me more was the immediate floral sweetness. My nose led my mind and I couldn’t escape thoughts of honeysuckle and then orchids. There was also fruity notes present. Cup color was a very light yellow, with a light creamy, sweet, and floral nose. The flavors were light, with a very pleasant and balanced smoothness of florals and fruits.

The wet leaf aromas intensified somewhat in the second cup, while still remaining mild. Light, roasty, & milky, with a peach-like fruitiness, cooling to reveal sweet honeysuckle/orchid florals. Surprisingly, the cup color and aroma is still quite mild, with only slightly deeper creamy sweetness and florality. The flavors mimicked the aromas, with the creamy smootness and peaches clinging to my palate, whispering a gentle “Hello”. [1:45 at 195F].

My last cup was even more gentle all around, from the leaf, to aromas, to the flavors on my tongue. Subtle fruit and floral qualities made this cup sweet, smooth and relaxing. [5 minutes at 212F].

This cup was the most mild of all the Fong Mong samples, and that’s not a distraction from this Blue Jade, and its serene, fruity, & floral goodness. Great for when I need a tea for relaxation, and when I’m in a contemplative mood. This Oolong is like a relative that doesn’t necessarily demand respect, but teaches it, if one is only willing to listen and learn. :))

Cupped & Reviewed: Tuesday, July 10, 2012.

Finishing this sample off, this is a very good tea :-) thanks to Fong Mong Tea for these awesome samples, I have one more oolong to try still I have enjoyed all my samples.

This one is good, it steeped up a light color with a vegetal aroma but the taste was very refreshing and bold almost floral at first with charcoal baked flavors come out after the second steep. Not my favorite but still quite nice. I didn’t pick up any minty notes that others are getting. What I got was this is a nice Dong Ding and I would enjoy a cup anytime :-)