Settling Tea

Gongfu!

The last couple years, I’ve slowly but quite steadily fallen more in love with sheng productions from Lincang such as this one. It’s actually a really great example of the qualities I’ve loved with the pressings I’ve explored; smooth and more medium bodied with a bit of a sweeter and more fruity lean, but still with some greener and more woody and mineral elements. There was a steep from this session (the second or third) that was especially striking to me because it had such rich and nuanced notes of fresh summer peaches, linden honey, and caramelized bananas or plantains. The banana note was so unexpected and not something I’ve experienced very much at all with raw pu’erh, but it felt right in place nestled alongside the gentle flavors of stonefruit, nectar, birch bark, and dandelion greens.

Tea Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/C6pCFvhO0S8/?img_index=1

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Yqbi4fRVYE

Gongfu!

Even though this tea isn’t actually smoked or alcohol-infused, I can’t even begin to explain how excited I got when I smelled the dry leaf of this tea sample. True to name, it does have a natural smoky edge (which comes even more alive once infused) with an oaky undertone that really evokes the nose of a good whisky. Steeped up it’s pretty smooth with whisps of smoke, Bourbon Vanilla, and peat moss with a finish of oak and cooling camphor. Soft at first, but with a presence that builds into something quite powerful feeling by the mid-session. It sneaks up on you, though. Basically, it’s sneaky and slick but in a good type of way. Definitely very, very accurately named and soooo up my alley!!

Tea Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/C6HftVeuPth/?img_index=1

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uugDpWJ7big

Gongfu!

I had a really amazing Friday/Saturday this past weekend hanging out with my dear friend YogaTeaPoetry from IG while her and her partner were in town recently. We spent Friday at 1001 Pots which is one of my favourite exhibitions in Quebec. It’s in a rural, hard to reach area for non-drivers so she was SO SWEET and made the day trip out to go with me. Almost four hours of driving, in total.

We spent a stupid amount of money on pottery, but damn was it fun and I ended up getting some really good pieces for my collection. Always way more pottery than I can dream to photograph, but here’s just a snippet of it:

https://www.instagram.com/p/DMYmzBpymXw/?img_index=1

After that we grabbed supper and then the next morning I was able to host her for tea at my apartment. I don’t really have people over to my place much because it’s quite small and CRAMMED with pottery and tea samples, but I knew she was one of the few people who would get it, y’know!? I chose this tea to brew for us because we were both feeling a black tea, and it was one I was confident she wouldn’t have tried yet. She picked out the teaware we brewed with too, which was fun!

I think in total we had something like five or six steeps while enjoying a great convo and the cool breeze of the open park. The area we were in is FILLED with flowers right now that are perfectly in bloom, so it was very pretty.

I always really love this tea. It does have such a distinct cherry blossom note, with that lingering and sort of mouth coating waxy sweetness and florality. I also taste almond extract, leather, a tiny touch of musk, and cocoa. Some of the steeps were a smidge pungent and savory, but not in a bad way. She said they made her think of lentil soup, and which I didn’t personally get that tasting note it was very cool seeing how we each interpreted the flavours.

No photos or songs from this particular session, as it was really just about connecting and sharing a moment with a friend.

Gongfu!

This was one of my favourites of the teas that Settling Tea sent me last year, mostly because the name is so incredibly spot on for the highly fragrant, naturally sweet notes of sakura that flow throughout the whole session. However, I think if this were just a floral black tea it would feel a little flat tasting, so while I appreciate how delicious those notes are I am also quite thankful that they’re balanced out by darker, nuanced notes of chocolate, leather, and an almost brandied fruit undertone. The dark chocolate and cherry blossom duo is especially appealing to me – like two ends of a spectrum reaching out for one another and meeting in the middle.

Tea Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/DG1X7rxSSu-/?img_index=1

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Y7zxfEnXRw&ab_channel=NatalieWilson-Topic

Gongfu!

I was initially surprised by just how much the dry leaf smelled of fragrant, sweet sakura – though tinged with notes of dark, bittersweet chocolate. Once steeped, both of these notes continue to be present for much of the session. The cherry blossom hits the palate first and, though soft, I wouldn’t call this flavour weak or excessively delicate. In fact, it holds its own against a midsip that is much more dense and rich with notes of leather, brandied red fruits, and mahogany wood to go alongside the liqueur-like dark chocolate. In some ways, it gives the impression of what a cherry blossom truffle purchased from a very nice chocolate shop might be like. It’s so smooth, and very different from other floral-leaning black teas in my stash. So far, I’m incredibly impressed by how accurate the name inspirations of Settling Tea’s blends have been with the flavours!!

Tea Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/C5082B6udZk/?img_index=1

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJdwrthN4K8

Gongfu!

This is such a bright and lively tasting raw pu’erh with a sweet golden note that’s really true to name along with fruitier notes of red berries and peaches that seem to deepen ever so slightly as the session progresses. Even when you push the steeps, there’s virtually no bitterness or astringency with this tea, and it’s just so fresh and almost bouncy feeling on the palate. On top of that, the mouthfeel of the liquor is just really full and syrupy feeling, and I adore the dichotomy of a tea that feels so vibrant while still having a richness about it.

If anyone else has recommendations of other sheng pu’erh with tasting notes like this (especially the honey note) or favourite Lincang productions, I would love to hear them! I’d really love to add more teas to my stash like this one!

Tea Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/DNyxQSwZCgw/?img_index=1

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFybe4_dCyE&ab_channel=Lazember-Topic

Gongfu!

Enjoyed this session paired with some sweet and juicy red grapes – I’ve been on such a grape kick this summer, and it’s the perfect time of year for them now!! This tea is also delicious and so aptly named. Settling Tea sent me a bunch of samples earlier in the year, and I think this is probably my favourite of the batch. It’s got quite a viscous, syrupy liquor but is still soft and approachable. The honey notes are really bright and apparent in the top notes and body of the sip, but laced with undertones of different red fruits that finish a little more jammy and cooked down. I’m really learning to love lincang productions this year!!

Tea Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/DAUCLvvy6mS/?img_index=1

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0mNcxy5Dg8

Gongfu!

Today I’m enjoying some raw pu’erh from a new to me tea company!! This beauty is 2017 Honey Water, a Lincang sheng that settlingtea was kind enough to gift me to try along with several other tea samples that I’ll be tasting throughout the next week. The dry leaf was sweet smelling with notes of honey and ripe fruit. Those notes only intensified after the rinse, really show casing exactly where the name of this tea comes from. In addition to bright, sugary notes of golden honey this tea also has playful red berry notes, floral undertones and a finish that tastes of beeswax candles in the best sort of way. Very, very soft and smooth liquor without lacking in flavour department one bit. As a first showing from this company, it’s very impressive. Cannot wait to keep sampling!

Tea Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/C5vsqHWu0xq/?img_index=1

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtjuAStxd2o