Norbu Tea

Just prepared this gongfu style and hated it so much that I threw the leaves out after the first cup. This is odd, since I’ve never had such a bad experience with Norbu Tea, but the tea literally tasted like vomit :(
Not grading it or chucking it at the moment – will try again with a different combination of leaves/water/temperature.

Fantastic! This tea is sweet, with no astringency, and a complex and delightful combination of traditional black maltiness with a fruity, delicate finish that takes you by surprise. A different black tea, gentle and deserving of the full gong fu treatment. This most definitely goes on my shopping list when it runs out.
If you are looking for a different black tea – this certainly fits the bill

No notes yet.

Backlogging a cup of this on my birthday a few days ago. I tasted Norbu’s Ya Bao again (in a gaiwan, for three resteepings) after I tried Verdant Tea’s Ya Bao, because I remembered enjoying Norbu’s more. Verdant’s Ya Bao is excellent, but it’s somehow harsher, more “in your face” flavour-wise, whereas Norbu’s is sweeter, more mellow, and it gently caresses your tastebuds with its cooling, soothing, toasty goodness. There was also a greenness – almost pine-like – to Verdant’s Ya Bao that was not present so much in Norbu’s. I’ll have to do a side by side tasting to make sure, but I’m certain that Norbu’s is the tea I will reach for when I’m feeling the need for a comforting white tea.

Drinking Lao Cong Zi Ya and working on my thesis. I haven’t logged tea in a while, even though I have been drinking quite a bit, and I’ve got a ton of teas to review. Just too busy with my work and thesis to properly log the tea that I’m drinking. I am trying to find time to organize my tea cupboard, and list every tea that I have in a google spreadsheet and here.
This tea is lovely, fruity, a little malty, and the first 50g that I bought are almost gone.

No notes yet.

Interestingly, taking this one on again, I’m enjoying it a lot more. The sharpness of the charcoal roast is still right there, and I have to be very light-handed and circumspect with the first few infusions (several flash infusions to 15 second infusions before getting to more typical minute or two), but then the classic Alishan notes of warm sweetness are still there underneath. I think the extra year of aging helped this one.

No notes yet.

Finally decided to give this guy a rating. Reminds me why I love Wu Yis!

Last tea of the day – a great way to unwind

Backlogging a 7 (!) brew evening with this tea, after a horrid, tough day at work. Its toasty goodness and low caffeine content made me reach out for it. This is turning out to be my “comfort cup” tea – not finicky, always sweet, positive, comforting, warm. I’ll most certainly stock up on some more on my next Norbu buy.

No notes yet.

I received a sample of this with some gaiwans that I ordered last year. I decided to give it a whirl this afternoon.

I opened the packet and gave it a sniff. Initially, it honestly didn’t smell that good – it reminded me of a wet cat. I gave the leaves a quick rinse with hot water in a gaiwan, then moved them to my Adagio ingenuiTea to steep. The wet leaves didn’t smell great to me either, but I continued on.

I whipped some splenda and half & half in a cup and dispensed the tea into my cup.

I took a hesitant sip. Light, smokey… it smelled fine now, and didn’t taste bad either. I added more water to the leaves and will try a second steep plain.

My current cup is pretty good – I think it’s a decent tea, but it’s not something I feel compelled for find more of. I definitely would not refuse a cup of it, if offered one, though.

Backlogging a cup of this in the morning, post-run. Great tea, seemingly endless capability for rebrewing

It’s turning out to be a Lao Cong Zi Ya day, which is always nice. Later on this evening I’ll have a sipdown of the Norbu Tea winter Alishan that I have.
Drinking this with fresh blueberry muffins that I made (recipe found here bit.ly/VYgj1E), while browsing for the next race to enrol to.
This tea works really well with the fruity, slightly tangy taste of the blueberries in this muffin.

One cup in the early morning, as a pre-run boost (with a banana), one cup as a post run treat – a lovely way to start the day.
Made a cup for my mom and dad. Both loved it – a very good tea that rebrews very very well.

Back from a run and on to working some more on my thesis. A perfect companion to both – Lao Cong Zi Ya. Still my #1 tea. I’m almost through the first 50g that I bought, but I’ve stocked up on plenty more of it – so all is well :)

This is a lovely Sheng – sweet, smoky, with a malty taste. The brew is very light coloured, and tastes great brewed gongfu style in my new Yixing teapot (dedicated to Shengs). It’s still a little rough at the edges at this point and I have a feeling that with time it will mellow and grow even sweeter, but it’s still lovely to drink now.
I got this a free sample in my latest order from Norbu and I most certainly will buy a cake during my next shopping spree there.
P.S. Norbu have changed the packaging of their tea, and their new bags are really lovely.

Backlogging from yesterday. This tea when dry looks like monster white buds from outer-space, the buds are so large and impressive. Most definitely a tea to brew in a glass gaiwan or teapot. The dry leaves smell like plain white rice, a very soothing smell (for me). The tea brew is practically colorless, and once again smells like rice. It tastes like sweet white rice with a slight roasted tinge to it that is very pleasant. The tea is silky and light bodied with no astringency. Its tastes are so delicate that it won’t hold well to adding milk or sugar – but then again I don’t believe it needs them. Yummy!

Nearing the end of this tea (enough for two more gongfu steepings of it) and it’s no longer available from Norbu. Was slightly saddened until I rummaged around my kitchen and discovered that I have another 50g of it stashed away. Hurray! Brewed some of and and am drinking it now while working on my thesis – in full celebration mode :) Also bumped up the tea’s rating.
I’ve also ordered all the new oolongs from Verdant’s site, plus some of the new sheng pu’erh and a small amount of the Yunnan that got such high ratings here. A friend will pick it up for me if it arrives when I’m in the UK, but I really hope that it will get here before that.

Was having a nice cup of this tea, when the sirens next to my house started blaring. Caught me completely by surprise, and sent me rushing to the sheltered room (minus the tea, which was in a glass cup…). I thought that it was probably a drill, but as we weren’t notified that there was going to be one today, I thought it better to be safe than sorry. After an uncomfortable minute or so, the siren died out and I went to check out what it was all about. It turns out that it was a drill, but there was no mention of it in the paper or the news last night, so it gave me quite a fright.
I’m now back at my desk, sipping this tea and relaxing before getting back to work. Brrr…

Another four steeps of this. I used longer steeps this time, so the cinnamon taste is more pronounced, but still not overpowering, and the tea has taken on a creamy texture. The gentle vegetal aspect of this tea has also cleared up, and I can define it as garden pea like. I’m already halfway through my stash and am contemplating another purchase. A tea well worth your time and money if you haven’t tried it yet.

The sweet gentility of this tea is quite endearing, but what really makes me reach out for it is the subtle cinnamon aftertaste that it leaves in the mouth after every sip. Very soothing and warming – just what I need when I’m down with a cold.

Not feeling well, so I searched my cupboard for a comforting tea, and picked this tea. I love love love it. Almost at the end of my first 50gr.