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2022 harvest

Rich with malt, savory. Floral with rose which is especially prominent in the aroma. Orchid, fresh forest aromas and wood become more prominent as the tea cools. Lingering tangy malt aftertaste. Uniform tiny rolled leaves very quickly brew a clear dark brown. Strong returning sweetness emanates from palate and tonsils. Cool to lukewarm feeling in the body.

This is one of the best qimen hong cha I’ve had over the years. A very nice tea though it’s never been quite what I wanted to drink in the moment.

Only 1 cup left and I haven’t taken any notes, which seems to be the norm as of late.

The dry powder makes me happy with roasted nuts aroma. Whisked up, the tea is light in flavor and feeling. Light foam. Lightness in the body. It is not rich with umami, nor is it robust. It feels like a cool green stream which is incredibly vague (come on derk, it’s matcha, or course it tastes green and wet), but that’s what comes to mind. I prefer matcha with a more assertive personality but this is nice for times when delicacy of character is needed.

I did take my little setup to work and made a cup for a coworker who had been on a matcha Tik Tok train and was really wanting to try matcha but not wanting to buy from the grocery store. Matcha Ukitsu was of high enough quality and smooth enough in taste to not scare her away on her first try. Not having any experience with green teas before, she said it tasted softly of vegetables like soybean and bok choy. For me, the taste is firmly planted in a bed of young salad greens and wildflowers.

As I near the end of the 2022 harvest, I realize this tea’s expression has become muted. Add 4 little small-leaf chrysanthemum flowers from Mountain Stream Teas and now this tea is bursting with new life! Damn that’s good! Chrysanthemum is a beautiful companion.

Lot 1225

I think I finally have the word to describe that mix of fruity and tangy present in unroasted GABA oolong — mangosteen — a combination of wild strawberry, lychee, pineapple, peach and vanilla sugar. GABA teas’ typical squashiness is there, delicate like a squash blossom rather than lightly meaty like the flesh. GABA processing generally produces a tea with great longevity and this leaf is no exception. Excellent GABA tea. Very clean with a lingering aftertaste.

First time with Work Fu, or fuzhuan steeped western style at work. Lots of vanilla overtone here on top of a fairly smooth autumn leaf base. Slightly drowsing but complements today’s cold rain.

This kind of tea doesn’t have the deep, grounding character thatother heicha can have. It’s lighter and more gentle for my constitution.

Found this while Christmas shopping at a totally bougie store in our tiny downtown. Think bougie World Market but small and curated, focusing quite a bit on Japan. Some people lose their money to gambling; if I were a more foolish derk, I’d lose thousands at this store that carries fine worldwide goods. It’s bad enough that I spent $12 on 8 sachets.

The yuzu here isn’t distinct but it does blend well with a lighter roast, grassy hojicha. Full flavor and aroma. Lots of roasted buckwheat. Bright, citrusy, mineral, roasted grass, tangy with some tolerable astringency. It was difficult to time the first steep to get it where I wanted and so I could do a second steep.

Overall, I’m kinda meh on this yuzu hojicha because of the price I paid. It’s also a daytime brew, high in caffeine. A snack or meal was necessary as I could get jittery.

I bought this sometime in 2023 to give to my coworker who was trying to manage her pre-diabetes. I saved a mere teaspoon and it’s taken this long to get to it!

Sparkling sweetness mixed with very light vegetal taste. Calm and vibrant. It’s simple and unassumingly soothing. Tonic and moistening. I’d love to try jiaogulan again!