Verdant Tea

I Like this tea, but it has a glaring problem: It’s a picky tea. Water too hot? Tastes bad. Steeped too long? Tastes like crap. Gets too cold after brewing? Tastes bad. The sample from Verdant had enough for three sessions, and two of those were bad. This led me to drop my rating down a bit.

The first infusion was fine, but the second turned out horrifyingly bad. I threw that out, and got the same result when I tried again. So I gave up.

I was extra careful while brewing this tea today. The result of the first infusion is a very light tea that is similar to a more traditional white because the vegetable flavors are very faint. They are still present, which sets this tea apart from other whites, I was just a little too careful while brewing and they are weaker than normal.

The second infusion was bad. The water was too warm, so the result is drinkable, but it’s getting awfully close to the point of no return. Note to self – Do not try to brew this while busy with other work…

More to come later.

Thanks to Verdant Tea for including this as a free sample with my most recent order!

After looking at several reviews, as well as the warning on the package, I decided to treat this tea like my Fukamushi Sencha: Low temperature water, short steep. The first infusion used water that was just beginning to give off steam, and I only let is brew for a minute. The resulting tea reminds me of perfectly-steamed vegetables – the description ways brussel sprouts, but I’m not sold – with a bit of butter. It’s a rather nice change of pace after five cups of black tea, as well as a nice change of pace for a white tea.

Surprisingly enough, the second infusion was exactly like the first. The only other tea I’ve ever had that had a second infusion like this was some Yabao, funny how both are technically white teas…

Anyway, the only downside on the second infusion was that I neglected it, and it got a little cold, which resulted in a bitter aftertaste developing. Not that the tea was bad, but I can certainly see how other reviewers were complaining about the tea being temperamental.

The bottom line is that this tea is not for an amateur brewer, but the results are worth the effort. The unique taste is very refreshing when brewed properly, and is definitely worth the pain that you have to go through to brew the tea corredctly.

Over that past week and a half, this has become my standard morning tea. It’s been an interesting experience drinking it at work, mostly because the preparation is a bit different and the water is cleaner (We have machines that do crazyubermega filtering, and the result is hard to argue with.). I use a about 6-8 grams of tea, and put it in the bottom of an 8 oz. ceramic mug I got a while back, but just dug up in a cupboard. I let the leaves sit in there all day, and when I start to get low, I add more hot water. The result is a milder tea, where the linen taste is less prominent than when I brew it at home with my tea ball. It is also a bit sweeter, which kinda makes me wonder what is wrong with my tap water…

Anyway, I get a good 4-5 cups of tea this way, it tastes pretty good, and it lasts me for most of the work day. What more can I ask of it?

Just a quick little note: I’m starting my internship tomorrow, so my reviews will be more limited until late August.

Anyway, This tea is delightful, espeically now that I understad why Verdant tea has Linen as one of the flavors. David Duckler had a post about tasting that discussed the other sensations, like touch and smell, and how they impact flavor. If you haven’t read it, you should check it out:

http://verdanttea.com/rebelling-against-the-tyranny-of-flavor/

I finally understand that the linen flavor is really the interesting sensation that you get on your tongue while drinking this tea, not a flavor in the traditional sense. Anyway, time to get back to unpack stuff from college…

First of all, the music for today is the album Beethoven: The Late String Quartets by The Emerson String Quartet. Anyway, I was generous with the amount of leaves I used, and I let it steep a bit longer than usual, but the result of the first steep was still great. The tea is blacker than my ex’s heart, but very warming when you actually take a sip. The flavor is intensely malty, with some nice cinnamon undertones, which results in a pleasant tingling sensation that lingers on the tongue for about two minutes. It’s a very intense experience, and was perfect for waking me up (I’m barely sentient until I have my caffeine). Anyway, this tea pairs well with my music and my activities (reading a bunch of books and articles to study for finals), so I’m really glad that I picked it for today.

The second infusion is still malty, but the cinnamon as gotten more prominent, the taste has sweetened a great deal, and the overall experience is smoother. The aftertaste has a smooth, almost-mineral quality to it. It’s like the tea is starting to become creamy, but it isn’t quite there yet. This is probably due to how strong I brewed the tea, but I’m certain that the next cup will have the creamy goodness that I remember. In the mean time, I’m going to enjoy the current flavor as much as possible.

The third infusion is malty, creamy, and a touch spicy due to the cinnamon flavor. There’s no linen (not that I’ve ever tasted the illusive linen flavor of this tea before), and the citrus flavors hasn’t made an appearance yet. Regardless, it is a well-balanced cup of tea, where the flavors harmonize quite well. On a side note, I switched my music over to J. S. Bach’s Das Musikalische Opfer, a delightfully complex piece of music to complement the tea’s development. My recording is even better because it is a Historically Informed recording, played on period instruments with a tuning system that Bach preferred. The end result is an astounding. Anyway, the tea is getting more complex, and it’s various flavors mesh together well to create something greater than the sum of its parts.

Just a quick cup before class this morning. I don’t have time to write anything now, but I’ll probably update this note after lunch, when I have a few hours of peace.

EDIT -

I got a good five infusions out of these leaves, which is why it’s my go-to black tea. You just can’t go wrong with it. I particularly like how sweet it got near the end, as I had been generous with the amount of leaves I used, and had brewed it extra strong, and I was probably due for something sweeter by that point…

Anyway, run-on sentences aside, I’m gonna be a bit infrequent with logging my teas until the 16th, when my finals are done. Such is the life of a university student. Best of luck to the rest of you!

Backlogging this from yesterday. See previous notes for more info.

Once again, I find that my procrastination has left me with one day to do all of my work. Therefore, see my previous notes for more about this tea.

I’ve got a big test on posthumanism on Monday and I needed something potent to keep me focused. My day will be filled with Philosophy, extra-strong black tea, and KPop. Sadly, this means that I don’t have time to go into the details for this tea, so check out my previous notes.

See previous notes for more information.

My newest shipment from Verdant just can in today, and I was very excited the try this tea out. My previous experience with Verdant has been excellent, with teas that outshine their competition

This is by far the best Yunnan golden bud tea I’ve had. The first infusion was the perfect balance of sweet and creamy, and not nearly as harsh as some versions of this tea that I’ve had. There was also a hint of cinnamon as a bit of foreshadowing for the second infusion.

The second infusion was still sweet, but the cinnamon flavor had strengthened considerably. The creamy flavors are surprisingly weak, but other than that, this is a delightful cup of tea.

The third infusion was mellower than the previous two, and – like the description said – reminded me of a Tie Guan Yin. It wasn’t fruity, but it had the same feeling. I was also rather impressed that the tea was still this strong, as most of the black teas that I’ve had waned more bu the third steeping.

The forth infusion was similar to the third, but weaker. This was also my last infusion, so I have a few closing remarks: This was a remarkably good black tea, and I’m really glad that I got 4 ounces of it. Also, there was no astringency in this tea, so I’m planning on experimenting this weekend to see if it can be brewed grandpa style. Regardless, I can’t wait to have this tea again.

First review from a generous sample that David included with my Verdant Tea order.

This is my 100th review Woo Hoo and a big thank you for all encouragement and comments to a newcomer to the tea community especially to David at Verdant for personal notes and samples and Angel at Teavivre for samples both companies being highly regarded!*

I’ve only ever tasted really good Jasmine tea which is fortunate so I was looking forward to this Yunnan White. The timing on my steep was 3 minutes which produced a lovely blush pale golden tea. Some Jasmine’s knock you down with floral scent but not this one. It’s more refined and gentle…a peach, jasmine, paperwhite floral with a hint of pine finish, if you can imagine such a thing. There is a creaminess and spice tingle on the tongue. We’ll see on a further pour what develops. Very delicious.

Second steep Oh My this is a bit fizzy on my tongue when hot and still lovely and creamy floral but I got distracted and put my cup down. The tea cooled. Oh well, it’s probably ok, I thought. OK? it was GREAT cool! No longer fizzy but just short of buttery and definately SILKY SMOOTH oh yes it is! Sometimes we all know how tea cools and goes all bitter, but this stayed lovely. I didn’t steep more than 3 minutes so that is important also. Quality tea has to be respected for potency… zillion proof tea needs restraint compaired to fluff and dust. I’ve been drinking so much tea that I’m going to get wicked and slice a 3 inch California strawberry and plunk it in a tall glass with the remains of the second cooled steep and a few ice cubes. Be right back…….pause…..ummmm ummmm that’s good!

I could be wrong, but this tea seems to be not composed of just buds, but also some leaves. At least, when I compare it to Rishi’s Golden Needle, after that has been brewed, it appears to be only buds (there are no open leaves at all…). Whereas, after brewing this one, the leaves seem to open, and there is also a good amount of broken/leaf parts present (nothing small, but it isn’t as homogeneous as Rishi’s GN).

I don’t know if that translates to the higher astringency that I’ve been getting from this tea, especially on the first infusion (and somewhat the second), but it does have a noticeably stronger astringency present than two other Yunnan Golds that I really enjoyed (Rishi’s and Life in Teacup’s). That being said, there is something earthy about this one that makes me really feel like it is from Yunnan (unlike the others)…. it is something about the aroma that reminds me of pu-erh, which is really cool. This was a unique experience for me – having a tea that helped me to understand regional characteristics, because of what it has in common with a completely different tea, but from the same area.

By the third steeping, the smoothness and honey-sweetness that I love or have come to expect about this kind of black tea does come out. I enjoyed the sample size that I’ve now finished, but this particular version of Yunnan Gold didn’t impress me quite the same (as others that I’ve found from different vendors).

This is my first Big Red Robe. The aroma is rather toasty/nutty.
Reminds me of roasting pine nuts when I was young, only without any of
the sap. The flavor is less toasty, but still nutty, and a bit like
salted butter. As the tea cools, the salt fades somewhat, and a
sweetness makes an appearance.

This is a difficult tea to rate. The flavor isn’t really what I want
in a tea. But there’s something about the taste that keeps calling
for a deeper exploration, as if, should I taste it just once more, I’d
realize that salted butter and toasted pine nuts is exactly what I
should want tea to taste like. It seems you can have good teas, and
interesting teas, and they’re not necessarily the same. This is an
interesting tea.

I really love this shu. It just knows what it’s doing. No heavy nonsense. No murky bitterness. No sickly saccharine. Just balanced and fair and sweet and transluscent.

It’s classy.

I want to write more about this later. This is more a reminder to drink again and take proper notes. The scribbles I do have are useless in helping me describe.

I can’t believe that it’s only been a few months since I reviewed this pu’er blend the first time. It seems like ages. Maybe there is some time warp when you’re a tea drinker (I swear I’m getting younger and I’ve also lost 20 lb’s in the last 3 months).

This week I turn 64. Yes. Those birthdays keep a-comin…year after year and there’s nothing you can do about it. The good thing about being 64 is that you don’t have to worry about your looks anymore and I don’t have to go out and get a job or worry about getting pregnant. I can say what I want and stay up late and sleep in. Not bad. So, my daughter Annalisa took me to an Eritrean dinner (a fundraiser for African Charities) at her church last night and we had a great time…I dressed in my Eritrean dress and I danced and had fresh roasted coffee. (Ethiopians and Eritreans roast and serve coffee in a ceremony that is closer to a tea ceremony and can last all day).
Here’s a photo of Annalisa and I http://www.flickr.com/photos/disabilitea/7243230384/
and the coffee…http://www.flickr.com/photos/disabilitea/7243230558/

So this morning I was sore! My legs hurt from dancing just a bit because of my fibromyalgia but it was worth it. You’ve got to live!
I really wanted a shot of good Pu’er with a wake up kick. I hadn’t had this Spiced Elderberry Pu’er is months and it sounded just right for soothing the after effects of spicy lamb, chicken, greens and injera bread from last night. I was so right!
How soothing the ginger and elderberry would be. Now that I’ve tasted several of the alchemy blends from Verdant, I delight in the restraint used when creating each blend. There is caution used so that no one herb or spice overwhelms another. This blend is warming and sweet while comforting to my stomach (a good thing) because of the mellow Pu’er. Um, this is a blend that I should be drinking more often (making that note to self).

First Review. I must compliment David at Verdant for great service since I was trying to order during the transition to the new website (which is fantastic) and had trouble with the payment screen not working…so he added some extra samples and shot me a nice email. You can be sure I’m coming back to such a service oriented company (great tea too!).

I followed the instructions to the letter for steeping but the tea was just too weak. I let it go 5 minutes before pouring. Next time since this is a blended Pu’er I may need to make sure there are enough pieces of actual Pu’er in the basket so the brew is stronger (note to self). The Pu’er is like chocolate colored chunks of tree bark and there are small pieces of orange peel and ginger, small tart elderberries (almost raisen taste) and galangel (spice/heat). You really smell ginger. Golden cocoa brownish orange colored liquid. Note* I did not read any reviews before I made MY notes and tasted the tea myself.
First impression…more like regular black tea than a Pu’er. No earthiness and the ginger is not as strong tasting but somewhat lighter than I expected. A nice floral orange blossom bouquet but no elderberry flavor or scent at all. Where is it? Hidden in a cloak of ginger? There is heat at the tip of the tongue from galangal that is nice…not too hot. Children can drink this and not have too much spice. I added some sugar which brought the richness of the spice out to a lovely fullness. As the tea cooled a bit I could smell a slight smoky earthy Pu’er note that the sneaky ginger had hidden with it’s strength when heated. I went back to my glass teapot and drank some of the cooled tea which was very nice and much less gingery. This tea will be soothing when stressed or not feeling quite well. I need to try this again.
*Second steep…really good…still ginger and spice and enough body with no earth or fish whatever. What I notice though is that long after I’m done the flavor lingers. I have this wonderful refreshing taste in my mouth that is so good that I want to go back and brew some more…(I’m getting a bit sloshy though).

Astringent horses, astringent horses, I miss riding, astringent horses… Oh hey! Looks like I should be using 195 F water, sigh, that’s better. See previous note.

So I brought this to work yesterday and brewed it side by side with Teavana’s only straight pu-erh (Nan Nuo Shan) which is limited to an expensive gift set that is currently sold out after being on sale. I let everyone smell the dried leaves of this and the other Verdant sample packs. They were impressed that they didn’t smell sickening sweet like Strawberry Slender. However when it came to tasting only one of my co-workers liked them. I should have used less tea, rinsed twice and done short steeps (but i couldnt connect to the website in the back room). I rinsed once and did a 3min steep and both the teas were bold, bitter, bitey and dry.

However this one had a nice smoke thing going on and I had to do a second infusion, this time only 30 sec and the results were much better. The smoke was still present and there was a nice creamy mouthfeel with just a hint of butter. I get the redwood and on my third and forth steep I got the licorice root and mint so yay! I do like this and have just enough for a second session. I probably won’t be repurchasing soon for the price but I would probably buy another sample for a tasting. Next weekend we’ll try the two other shengs and the silver buds Yabao.

Edit: drinking a fifth infusion this morning and I must say yumm!

this tea is deliciuos
little malty, honey, flowers.
now it’s my preferit black (red ) tea
steeped 3 times
1 90° 2.30 min
2 90° 3 min
3 90° 4 min

Brews a kind of peachy-orange color. Tastes of light earth/fresh wood that grows upon further steepings only to gently fade out. There is a smooth rock sugar overtone that makes the tea very pleasant. Some grape on the tip of my tongue. A mild but unique Shu.