Seven Cups

Appearance: Beautifully shaped light green buds with very few young leaves.

Dry Leaf aroma: slightly medicinal, hint of bourbon, fresh.

4 grams of tea, 4oz water at 180 F, brewed in a gaiwan.
1st steep: 2.5 mins, 2nd steep: 3 mins, 3rd steep: 3.5 mins

First steep:
deep orange liquor. Pervasive medicinal aroma, very herbaceous and plant-y with a dry finish. Not much sweetness. A bit of a toasted note. The astringency is reminiscent of Amaro or some other type of herb liqueur. A little hint of smoke on the end too. I think this would be interesting for people who like less sweet more potent tea.

Second steep:
Much lighter liquor. The vegetal notes are more pronounced. Dominate note is cooked artichoke…or maybe asparagus…no, its artichoke. kind of reminds me of chrysanthemum tea…

Third steep:
Very light liquor and subdued taste. Still a pervasive medicinal/herb aroma. Not a great third steep.

If you are a whisky, bourbon, or spirits drinker, try this tea. Has a lot in common (dry, vegetal, a bit smoky) with dryer alcohol. Fun to drink, and I happen to like dry teas, but avoid if you are looking for something sweet

(Same producer, 2009 version, too lazy to start another tea description.)

Yankee Candle recently created a line of “man” candles—a couple of which have made it under my roof for candle-loving hubby. Their “2 × 4” scent smells like sweet, light, clean sawdust in a cabinetmaker’s shop. This tea tastes like that.

I believe I like the second steep better than the first. The tangy edge is gone, and it’s just liquid suede now.

This is what I consider a pretty stereotypical oolong, with nice big dark green leaves, a sharpish flavor, and a nice smooth heavy texture. It isn’t as drying in the mouth as some oolongs, but that’s a plus as far as I’m concerned.