Tao Tea Leaf

When I received a packet of tea treats from*scribbles,* my first thought was, “No…I shall be noble and drink up the dribs and drabs that are already open.”

Yeah, that lasted about 30 seconds.

I like this one! The leaves are long and ribbony, first steep was as bright and coppery as a brand new penny, and plenty of lightly sweet malt and chocolate to think about. Second steep (western style; sorry, I’m a barbarian :) at twice the minutes was still tasty, just had to think a little harder.

This is on the lighter end of the wake-up scale; be sure you’ve had a decent night’s sleep if you drink it in the morning, but if you’re already somewhat awake, you’ll be sufficiently alert to enjoy its subtleties.

Everything I tried from Tao Tea Leaf was a winner( I’m in trouble for liking many teas, no space to store them)
This one is incredible.
Gongfu method
6g 100ml 200F
Rinse/pause/3/3/5/7/10 etc
I lost count of steeps. It’s so flavorful and complex. Fruits, nuts, some roast,cinnamon and cannabis. Very noticeable in first 3-5 steeps.
I need to reorder it because I got only 25g to try.
That was a joint order with Marzipan and other 4 ppl. I hope we will do it later in December( Boxing Day )

dexter sent this one my way and i think i’m a fan. I brewed this western style to take to the BBQ with me since i knew i’d need something to keep me going. No maple added this time since i just wanted to get a sense of the tea sans additions. This was smooth and slightly malty. No floral notes that i detected, but then i was outside for a gorgeous afternoon with awesome friends…so not much as going to ruin that!

I am so fond of Purple Zi Juan teas. I find them so intriguing and different.

Beautiful. I mean literally beautiful. I love how sleek this tea looks like. Long dark blueish grey strands with some brown shades in the mix.

The leaves are equally stunning once steeped.

Using 5g in little glass gongfu pot.

This tea has such an attractive taste, full of warmth.

First few steeps produces a rather light brew. It intensifies around steep three, where it reaches a nice medium body.

Hard to describe the taste.

It’s creamy and tart at the same time. Very lightly astringent.

A mellow white grape taste brings a nice fruitiness to it. It’s a bit woodsy, but not smokey at all.

It’s what I call a cleansing tea, you just get a sense of wellness out of it.

It’s late in the night, a nice cha qi feeling going on. All warm and peaceful inside.

This is another high quality tea from Tao Tea Leaf.

I’ve been so impressed by their standards so far.

Pics:

http://instagram.com/p/r_Bykzwh6w/

http://instagram.com/p/r_JYk1wh0H/

http://instagram.com/p/r_RcG7Qh9g/

This is a rock tea from the Wuyi Mountains. Expect greatness from a good quality Da Hong Pao.

And this one is nothing short of greatness.

It’s expensive but totally worth it. I was very lucky to have gotten it during Tao Tea Leaf 50% off sale. Bought 150g cause I knew an award winning Big Red Robe could only mean good news. Now I wish I had bought double!

Using 5g in small yixing clay pot.

The leaf is as dark as night.

The brew has this lovely orangey amber colour.

The scent is very fragrant. The taste is like burnt toasts with honey and molasses. Thick mouthfeel, full bodied. Very rich and tasty.

Someone very knowledgable with rock tea pointed out that I should find bitterness in a good Da Hong Pao.

I don’t get bitterness at all, but I realized that what he referred to as “bitter” is probably the burnt and charred taste I get, my own interpretation of it anyways.

You can actually taste the minerals, it’s even a little salty.

It’s a beautiful tea, worth devoting time to.

I like it so much, I will use it to season a very small 70ml yixing pot I just got.

Pic of the session:

http://instagram.com/p/r8qANlwh2g/

Sometimes I get so invested in my Chinese blacks I forget that there are other teas out there that deserve my attention. I’m trying to sip down all of the 1oz and under teas I have so I thought I’d kill two birds and get out a few oolongs. I randomly picked this one first and, feeling lazy, Western brewed it for 2 minutes using 2tsp leaves to 10oz boiling water.
First sip leaves me with some incredible honey sweetness. Roasted peaches (or apricots I cant tell the difference) come in and mix with a good bit of roasted wood. Very similar to the notes you’d find in a Hoji Kukicha. Strong roasty quality while still being somewhat mellow. Not one of those roasted oolongs that is entirely overwhelming. If you’ve eaten grilled peaches drizzled with honey you’ll have a good idea what this tea is like. And if you haven’t… get on it! You won’t regret giving it a try.

Can I just take a moment to say how impressed I’ve been by Tao Tea Leaf? For a company that I’d never heard of before the day I placed an order with them I’m completely surprised by how incredible their teas have been.
Earthy is how I would describe this tea. Rich and earthy. I’m kind of at a loss trying to describe what flavors I’m tasting. Sort of deep chocolate but brighter and a little nutty. Like roasted grain nutty. Quite sweet as well. Zero bitterness or astringency. I don’t know how to describe it, but I love it. Highly recommended.

Gongfu method
4g 100 ml glass teapot 205F
15/30/45/1min
I combined all steeps in one huge mug. Each steep was really good but not much of a change of flavors. Next time I’ll make it western.
This tea is lovely and so comforting. Rich chocolaty malty, some nuts.
I would drink it anytime of the day.
So glad I picked it on 50% sale . It was a join order and Marzipan placed order , packed and sent back to 4 of us. I would do it again in a heartbeat!

Phenomenal. Absolutely an amazing tea for contemplation and relaxation.

Will post a better tasting note at a later date.

This LS is magical. It’s not harsh charcoal ashtray flavor. The smoke is subtle to compliment the chocolate notes. But it’s there. I would compare it to a chile spice dark chocolate which brings chocolate to a new level.

Half way I added tiny bit of maple syrup. OMG. Maple syrup is meant for smoky teas( thanks Terri and Sil)
But… But maple syrup masked that slight minty flavor which was surprising too.

I did resteep@5min. It was very very good. This time I didn’t add anything except I had small piece of cheddar on a side.

Very enjoyable experience. So happy I picked this tea on recent 50% sale.

Western 3G 8 oz 205F
3min/ 5min

Today was a grey day with no rain…I much prefer rain.

I went in the woods to get bad vibes out of my system. I saw all kinds of beauty, and it filled my head with positive energy.

Never underestimate the power of nature.

I promised myself I would try some of my new high end dark oolong from Toa Tea Leaf.

Tonight, I chose this “almond” Phoenix Dancong. Another miracle of nature.

How does a tea get so naturally floral and nutty is beyond comprehension.

I would say this has pretty much the same profile as honey orchid oolong, except it is not as sweet, and more nutty. Roasted nuts, with an orchid opening and a light astringent finish.

This type of oolong has to be brewed with very short steeps, otherwise, it turns bitter.

The wet leaf smells like a luxuriant garden of lilac and orchids. That fragrance is just intoxicating.

Needless to say, I love it. Is it for every one? Maybe not. First, it is quite expensive and I’m not sure this flavour profile would suit you if you’ve never really experiment with oolongs. I would try with something more “friendly” like Tie Guan Yin first.

All in all, a very good tea that I’m enjoying a lot tonight.

Pic for those who are interested:

http://instagram.com/p/rn-mXdQh5J/

This tea i picked on recent 50% sale. Awesome Marzipan organized our join order and shipped teas to everybody. That’s great idea to have join orders. I wish i got that idea earlier.
Gongfu method
5g 100ml 195F
rinse/ 20/10/10/10 etc
This tea has absolutely amazing smell, after thinking couple minutes i decided it smells like cannabis. i never smoked pot but i know the scent. its unmistakable.
when hot its very roasted, but as soon as it cools its very sweet nutty taste. some tongue tingling. i will report tomorrow if i get high from this tea

I admit that I am still exploring milk oolongs; this is my third one to date. For this session I brewed the leaves western style for a total of 5 steeps. I am not sure if this oolong is scented, flavored, or 100% pure, so I am going with the guess it has nothing added (there is nothing listed on the package or website).

First steeping: 2 1/2 minutes at 210 degrees. The aroma is quite buttery, almost like movie-theater popcorn. The flavor is creamy and buttery.

Second steeping: 3 minutes at 210 degrees. The fragrance is still buttery, with a faint hint of floral. The butter notes are still strong and I detect a slight flowery aftertaste.

Third steeping: 4 minutes at 210 degrees. The liquor still smells of butter but the floral scent is gone. I still get a strong butter-creamy flavor with an unexpected lemon (or tart citrus) aftertaste. I quite like this!

Fourth steeping: 5 minutes at 210 degrees. Very much the same as the third steeping. The butter scent and flavor is not quite as strong, though the lemon aftertaste is still present.

Fifth steeping: 6 minutes at 210 degrees. The fifth infusion has a weak, though still buttery, aroma. The liquor still retains the butter and lemon essences; both are fainter.

I would like to try further steepings but it is late. This tea does not have many ratings and is not rated extremely high, however I loved it. I envisioned myself eating succulent scallops while sipping this milk oolong.

When Tea Pet mentioned that is the best rice mini tuo I really wanted to try. I already have some Lao Cang and from Puerhshop.com. this one is very rich, clean and more potent. I like it. i had some stomach ache after the BBQ but this tiny tuo did the trick.

Sipdown Sad to see this one go. I had every intention of going wild during Tao’s Boxing Day sale. In fact I had been planning my order since their Christmas in July sale! But my cupboard is honestly out of control and I knew I should be placing any large orders. Yay for self control at least.
I finished off most of this as a celebratory pot when I go my cast removed, and I saved just enough for one last cup. Decided to bust it out today for no reason in particular. Still delightfully sweet and lovely. Hopefully they’ll do the sale in July again so I can pick up a bit more of this.

Had to up the rating. This is just my absolute favorite tea of all time. I’ve been trying to ration it so it lasts until the next Tao order, but that’s looking quite impossible at the moment. This stuff is liquid happiness.

This is one of the teas I picked up during Tao Tea Leaf’s incredible Christmas in July sale (special thanks to Marzipan) and I am absolutely kicking myself for only picking up 25g of it. It is hands-down one of my favorite teas ever. A beautiful mix of malt, cocoa, and deep sweetness with next to no astringency. It has a mouthwatering scent of baked bread and rich chocolate, and tastes similar with a sweetness that lingers. Even the liquor is a gorgeous deep clear amber.

The leaves are quite twisty and wiry and it was difficult to even separate them let alone measure properly. So I ended up just dumping a couple pinches in my teapot. In retrospect I should have weighed it since it ended up being perfect. I brewed Western for a little over two minutes with about 7oz of water and it ended up lovely even though I thought it would be too weak. Definitely recommended!

This morning, courtesy of Scribbles, I’m very pleased to be the first to review Ying De Black Tea from Tao Tea Leaf, Western style: 6 oz. / 4 g / 212*F / 2 min. without sweeteners, milk, or cream.

Intro: “…from Yingde, Guangdong province, China.” “The tea should have a cocoa-like aroma and, like most Chinese black teas, a sweet aftertaste.”

Leaf: Thin and thick twisted dark chocolate-brown leaves 4.5 cm long or less. Forget about measuring with a teaspoon! A digital scale is definitely recommended for this one!
Fragrance: Fine pipe tobacco
Liquor: Clear amber
Aroma: As soon as I removed the lid from the Finum brewing basket, the cocoa-like aroma was immediately evident standing at the kitchen counter.
Flavor: Chocolate with perhaps a hint of Keemun juiciness at the end of the sip.

2-min: A creamy smooth, warm, relaxing, satisfying, full-bodied black tea with rich malty chocolate! that lingers long on the tongue. There was no hint of bitterness or astringency. With each sip the relaxing warmth keeps intensifying and my smile grows larger & larger. Ah! I’m now officially quite content. Near the bottom of the cup there’s a noticeable rich & smooth cocoa flavor.

Resteep
3-min: Malty chocolate that’s extremely well-balanced and very enjoyable.

2nd Resteep
4-min: Not yet …
6-min: Not quite …
8-min: A similar flavor profile but with lighter body.

Impression: A creamy smooth full-bodied black tea with rich malty chocolate. This is a thoroughly enjoyable and recommended black tea.

Many thanks to Scribbles for sharing a generous sample of this very satisfying chocolaty Black Tea.

Method:
RO water re-mineralized with an Aptera filter http://steepster.com/teas/teaware/39532-puregen-aptera-alkamag-water-filter
http://steepster.com/teaware/teavana/39311-perfect-tea-spoon
http://steepster.com/teas/teaware/37731-my-weigh-durascale-d2-660-digital-scale
Brewed western-style conveniently in a tea mug with a brew basket http://steepster.com/teaware/royal-albert/45581-old-country-roses-afternoontea-mugs
http://steepster.com/teas/teaware/29177-finum-brewing-basket
http://steepster.com/teaware/teavana/39312-perfect-preset-tea-timer

This morning, courtesy of Scribbles, I’m very pleased and extremely fortunate to review Jin Ping Gong Fu Black from Tao Tea Leaf, Western style: 6 oz. / 1.5 tsp. (4 g) / 212*F / 2 min. without sweeteners, milk, or cream.

Intro: This tea is not currently found on the Tao Tea Leaf website.
A web search resulted in the following information:
Per Martin of Montreal, Canada:
https://www.blogger.com/profile/12558297837241939606
A World of Tea:
The Ottawa 2nd Annual Tea Festival
December 3, 2012
http://www.mar-tea.com/2012/12/the-ottawa-2nd-annual-tea-festival.html

“Jin Ping Gong Fu (an incredible black tea I had the opportunity to taste)”
“Jin Ping Gong Fu, an incredibly rich and layered black tea”

Leaf: Thin and thick twisted dark chocolate-brown leaves 2.6 cm long or less.
Fragrance: Fine pipe tobacco
Liquor: Brilliant clear copper
Aroma: Ding, ding, ding … we have a Winner!
As soon as I removed the lid from the Finum brewing basket, the aroma was so powerful that it came wafting up to meet my nose as I stood in front of the kitchen counter and I’m 6’ tall!
Flavor: Chocolate!

2-min: A creamy smooth full-bodied black tea with incredibly deep rich malty milk chocolate! There was no hint of bitterness or astringency.

Resteep
3-min: Malty chocolate that was not quite as deep but extremely well-balanced and very enjoyable.

2nd Resteep
4-min: Not yet …
6-min: Not yet … Since this was now twice as long as the first resteep and 3x the original steep, I suspected two cups was the limit for this tea. However, I kept on …
8-min: An excellent resteep – nearly identical to the previous cup.

Impression: A creamy smooth full-bodied black tea with incredibly deep rich malty milk chocolate that will also go the distance! This black tea is thoroughly enjoyable and highly recommended … if it’s still available.

Many thanks to Scribbles for sharing a generous sample of this incredible chocolaty Jin Ping Gong Fu Black Tea.

Jin Ping “has left the building” ………

Method:
RO water re-mineralized with an Aptera filter http://steepster.com/teas/teaware/39532-puregen-aptera-alkamag-water-filter
http://steepster.com/teaware/teavana/39311-perfect-tea-spoon
http://steepster.com/teas/teaware/37731-my-weigh-durascale-d2-660-digital-scale
Brewed western-style conveniently in a tea mug with a brew basket http://steepster.com/teaware/royal-albert/45581-old-country-roses-afternoontea-mugs
http://steepster.com/teas/teaware/29177-finum-brewing-basket
http://steepster.com/teaware/teavana/39312-perfect-preset-tea-timer