Dinosara

Last night when I got home from work I was very pleased to see a big box of tea waiting for me from Teavivre! My next round of samples arrived, yippee! (Also pleased to see: a packaged with new boots in it!)

This one was high on my list of teas I wanted to try from Teavivre because I love oolongs, and I especially love milk oolong, and I was disappointed that it appeared on the site after my first sample batch came. But lucky for me Angel Chen and Teavivre are exceedingly generous and they sent me another box of samples, this time including this tea. Thanks so much!

The steep parameters were pretty different than any other oolong I’ve come across, mainly steeping in boiling water. But I used those parameters anyway, because that’s what was called for. One of the other grad students came into my office right after I steeped it and remarked that this tea smelled good, and I would agree. It smells floral and creamy and buttery and vegetal.

This jin xuan definitely has great flavor. It’s buttery, it’s creamy, it’s floral, and it’s slightly sweet at the end. Really delicious. I will say that I think my concept of a milk oolong was a little warped by having ATR’s first… that is a fantastic tea, and indeed very milky, but it is a tieguanyin varietal not a jin xuan, which gives it a pretty distinct taste that’s different than other jin xuan oolongs I tried. For a while I would try milk oolongs and nothing could quite live up to ATR’s, but that’s because they weren’t playing with the same rules. When I adjust my expectations to what jin xuan milk oolongs usually taste like, which this seems to be a great of, I think I’ll be a lot more pleased with the other ones I’ve tried.

I haven’t had this one in a really long time, and this time I decided to brew it with the parameters that Teavivre gave for their white tea that I had tried, which are pretty different than the parameters I used last time (175°F, 3min).

The brewed tea smells hay-ish like I’ve come to associate with white tea, with a light rosey aroma. The flavor is pretty nice; it’s got that hayish note, and the rose flavor is light and not perfumy at all, and the whole thing rounds out to be a bit sweet. I actually associate that kind of sweetness with hay; sweet alfalfa is actually sweet if you chew on it (no wonder the horses love it), and this has the same type of sweetness. About midway through I started eating a slice of dark chocolate birthday cake (for one of the faculty in our department), and wow that’s an awesome pairing. I’m not sure whether my fondness for this tea has increased because my palate has changed a bit since I last had it, or if the brewing parameters made a difference, but I’m definitely digging it more this time. Especially with cake. Mmm, cake.

So I am almost, almost done with my rosey teas, or at least the ones that acutally are rosey. I mean, I still have a few that sprinkle a few rose petals into the mix, but nary a rose flavor is to be found. Those don’t count.

Guys, I am almost out of this tea. Like, I think I have less than a cup of leaf left, which probably means it’s getting blended with other things in a cold steep. Sad! I have quite a list of “standard panel” teas that are no longer in my possession, and it will be a while before I can restock; this one will soon be joining their ranks. I love the flavor blend in this, and that it always seems to wake me up even though it’s a black/green blend.

This tea is just one of those teas that makes me smile as soon as the hot water hits the leaf and a wave of wonderful aroma comes out of the cup. It’s just so good! It’s also one of those blends where I don’t even know what all the different flavors are, but I like them. Yes, I get the florals, including the rose, but there’s also a fruitiness that I’m not quite able to identify. Sometimes I wish I knew, and other times I don’t really care because whatever it is, it tastes good.

What? Valentines day is over, you say? Oh, but the parade of rose teas continues. By tasting through all of them I’m getting a sense of how the “rosey” part of my cupboard should be stocked, or at least that’s what I’m telling myself.

When I think about it, this tea isn’t too far off from the Shalimar Oolong I have. It’s rose and passion, except it’s on black tea instead of oolong and the Shalimar also has mango in the mix. I’m happy to report that the weird metallic taste I was getting last time is gone, thank goodness. Just tasty juicy passion fruit with a nice rose, all on a tasty black base. I think this one is a little tarter than the Shalimar Oolong, and I’m honestly not sure which I prefer. The Shalimar is certainly more easily accessible, this one being brought back from London. All the same I would probably pick up another tin of this the next time I’m in London.

I wanted a rose tea that wasn’t fruity, so this called to me. I do really like this blend, all rosey and almondy. It could only be more perfect if it was more almondy, but I’m a bit of an almond fiend so nothing is ever too almondy for me. Still, it’s a blend I would venture into a Teavana store to buy, which is definitely saying something.

Yesterday I was thinking that I would just have enough rose teas to make it through today. Then I realized… that’s silly! I have way more rose teas than that, but it can be hard to remember all of them in my stash. This was one I had forgotten about, but sure enough here it is, all rosey and lemony and a bit herby. I kind of let it over cool before I got to it, so I’m not sure if the slight bitterness is coming from that or just that I should drop the steep time. I am getting a hint of smoke from the gunpowder green thsi time as well. Still a pretty decent tea. It reminds me a bit of the rose oolong from Tea Licious that I finished up the other day, but I prefer that one (no surprise, it’s an oolong).

1.5 tsp Raspberry Black by Monterey Bay Spice Company + 0.5 tsp China Rose from ESP Emporium

Originally I was going to have a cup of just China Rose this morning because I haven’t had a straight up rose black in a long time. But then I kinda needed to try some of this raspberry tea, so I decided to make a Raspberry Rose instead.

It’s a good blend! Rose blacks are often so strong that only a bit is needed to get a rosey flavor, and that’s true here. The tea smells and tastes of roses and sweet, juicy raspberries. This is really a great blend of flavors! Honestly I think rose goes well with lots of different fruits. Adding a bit of this rose congou, which has a nice, tasty base, to the MBSC fruit black gave it a little something more interesting (I have, in the past, found MBSC fruit blacks to be a bit underwhelming in the flavor of the base… not bad, but not interesting). Anyway, it’s a good combo that I might have to keep around.

There was no question that I’d be having a cup of this today. Probably my most floral tea, and rosey to boot. When still very hot this cup seemed almost too floral for me, which is again something I am not used to, but as it cools the florals seem to mellow a bit and the oolong comes out. All the same, I’m just not feeling this one as much as I thought I would. Maybe it’s a particular floral in there (the calendula?) that I’m not as much of a fan of. Even my second steep, which is far less floral, still just doesn’t make me as excited as I would expect to be, being a lover of most things floral and green oolong. Ah well, I guess it’s a good thing I didn’t order a whole tin of this back when I put this order in!

I think I used a bit more leaf this time than I did last time… the leaves are so long and twisted that it’s one of those really hard to portion teas, and then add in huge rose buds that take up almost the entire perfect teaspoon. In any case, this time it’s still floral but also a little hayish in a very pleasant way. I think the rose/jasmine mix is a little more balanced this time, with both contributing fairly equally. There is something about this tea that is soothing and relaxing. It’s definitely getting reordered in my groupon order from the Tea Spot.

Mmm, I love this tea. It’s definitely the best fig flavored tea I’ve tried, and I love how all the flavors are both a little independant and then at once meld to form one awesome flavor. I haven’t had this one in a while and I couldn’t remember whether the rose was very prominent or not, but it’s definitely in the “there if you look for it, but not overwhelming” category. This tea is for sure on my reorder when I run out list from Dammann.

I happened across a few of these bottled teas in one of our specialty grocery stores today and had to pick one up. There were two different oolong varieties and this one acutally had rose in it. Double score! This is actually a blend of oolong and black tea with rose hips, rose petals and ginseng. It’s totally unsweetened but still manages to seem a bit sweet… though it’s also really tart, and I wouldn’t have minded a tiny bit of added sweetener. Overally it’s a pretty fruity tasting blend, with a hint of floral rose. The oolong is also definitely present in the flavor; it’s vegetal and pleasant, and there’s a hint of more of a black tea flavor as well. Overall it is pretty refershing and I would probably buy it again, though I do think it’s a little overly tart for me to be really enthusiastic about it.

I got a sample of this tisane with my last order from Verdant, and I’ve kind of been putting it off, partly because it’s herbal and I don’t drink a lot of herbals, and partly because I was starting to feel like lavender might not be my favorite thing to drink (and the dry mix smells really lavendery). But I do like lavender in some cases, and of course this fits my rose challenge, so I decided to brew up a small pot at home today.

It steeped up a dark yellow color, which isn’t quite what I was expecting. It smells lavendery, yes, but it also has that herby, minty aroma from the two kinds of mint. This smells like it would be a great stomach soother. Though I was initially worried about the lavender in this blend, I shouldn’t have been. The lavender and the mints make for a herby, slightly-minty-slightly-lavendery base, with a few bright lemongrass notes. Despite a ton of rose petals in my cup, I don’t actually get any rose flavors from this one. Oh well, it still counts. I let the herbs keep steeping while I drank my first small cup of this, which brought out more lavender in the next cup. Still a pretty tasty blend, though I am a bit disappointed by the lack of rose.

This is another flavored oolong, although this one does have that formosa base. It’s not as roasty as some of them, though, making for a very mild background to the mango/tropical fruit flavors, and of course rose. This one isn’t super rosey, partly because it’s got a lot of other flavors going on that are really the stars of the show, but a little of it peeks through. Today the oolong base (apparently I brewed it hotter than I usually do) is a bit nuttier than I remember, which is pleasant. This is a blend I always enjoy and today is no different.

Rosey tea number two, and this one is a sipdown. I’ve had this sample for a while and this is the last of it, though I think it may have to be a reorder. A lot of flavored oolongs are made on a formosa base, which isn’t one I care for a lot on it’s own, so I love that this one is a nice green one. Don’t know what type, but it is pretty tasty. I also love the combo of rose, lemongrass and ginger. It’s not really a combo I would have thought up, but it is fantastic. Not to mention great for the stomach after a lunch of greasy pizza.

This morning I have an occasional shooting pain in my thigh that is really not pleasant at all. And since tea cures all ills, maybe my morning cup with help. A girl can hope, right?

Apparently I’m having rose-scented things lately for Valentines day. Actually if I went through my cupboard I bet I could drink only different teas with rose in them until then. There is the weekend, during which I don’t drink much tea, but I would still have today, Monday and Tuesday. I think I have just set a challenge for myself, and I accept.

This tea is a lot better than I remember. My first time I logged it as a 76 because I didn’t really like the black tea base they used. I’m not sure if my tastes have changed or brewing at a lower temperature helped, but I find it perfectly fine now. The bergamot is still pretty light (probably just above Harney’s Earl Grey Supreme on my bergameter (© K S) scale… read his review of that tea if you don’t get it), but definitely more present than last time and the rose is nicely, lightly floral. I hadn’t gone back to this one in a long time because I’m never very enthusiastic about going back to a tea I don’t care for much, but now at least I can go back to my sample without fear.

This time I dumped a fair amount of leaf into my steeping basket and hoped for the best. I think I can call it a success. It’s still very pale but the tea is pretty flavorful; nicely nutty and a hint sweet. I definitely enjoy this one when I’m looking for a nice, light green tea that’s not very grassy. That chestnut flavor is great and I could see this being a nice tea to have with a meal as well.

Geez, Steepster is slow for me this morning. I was really not sure if the page was ever going to load. Anyway, I decided to have this “seasonal” tea this morning to hopefully wake me up and energize me a bit. I bought a couple of ounces of this tea a while ago but I haven’t had any of it too recently. This is a pretty tasty chocolate tea, but it’s not nearly rosey enough for me. I mean, I pretty much don’t taste it at all. I’m thinking I might have to start throwing in some rose scented black to amp up the rose and bring it to a level I want. In the end I probably won’t rebuy this one again, but I don’t think I’ll have much problem finishing it up anyway.

I had one Dong Ding oolong and really liked it, so I asked for some samples of others and luckily Amy Oh sent me a sample of this one! I tend to love the teas from Naivetea, so I am definitely excited to try it.

This one smells way more toasty than the dong ding from thepuriTea. The roasted grains aroma reminds me of some of the darker oolongs I’ve tried. When I breath in deep I get a nice autumn leaves aroma. The flavor is not unexpected based on the aroma but not exactly what I was expecting based on thepuriTea’s. That one was basically unroasted, but perhaps it is unusual? In any case, I do enjoy it a lot. It’s a bit vegetal, nicely roasty, a tiny bit sweet.

Thanks so much for this sample, Amy, I’m glad I got to try it!

Another one from my recent order from Ovation. I couldn’t resist the combination of jasmine and passion fruit, even with some ingredients that sounded odd (juniper berries?). The tea is what looks like a sencha with a scattering of jasmine pearls and a lot of jasmine blossoms, orange peel, some cornflower petals, and yes, a good number of juniper berries. It smells kind of similar to some other jasmine/fruity teas I’ve come across, but way more natural. There’s an interesting herby hint to the aroma too that I’m going to guess is the juniper berries.

Steeped it smells mmmm very nice. Lovely jasmine, sweet passion fruit, and some aroma that reminds me strongly of asian grocery stores. Actually, the whole thing kind of does; I was just in my local asian market not long ago, and it’s definitely reminding me of that. In any case it’s a pleasant aroma, and amalgamation of a lot of scents and flavors. The flavor of this is quite tasty, and fairly similar to the aroma. I put a little more leaf in than I would usually use (because that’s what the bag called for, 2tsp per cup), but I think I wouldn’t do that again because it does seem a little strong for me. But otherwise I enjoy it a lot! I don’t like gin so I was worried about the juniper berries, but they seem to just give it a pleasant, grounding, herby taste.

I have more than once bought jasmine, passion fruit & citrus flavored green teas (actually the same blend from different companies but I didn’t realize), only to be sorely disappointed by poor quality flavorings that tasted like fake fruit candy. This seems like the flavor profile that those teas were going for, but it actually succeeds. I can still pick out the jasmine and separate it from the passion fruit and a hint of citrus. It definitely works. Even if Ovation’s black tea base isn’t for me, their green & white blends have been great so I definitely see myself ordering more of those in the future.

I seem to be allergic to the heat in my house, which explains the mega sneezing/runny nose fits I have mornings there in the winter, but not anywhere else and not any other season. Bleh. By the time I get to work it’s usually settling down a bit but I’m still a little sneezy.

Of all my Dammann Freres teas, I have the least of this one left, mostly because I have sent a bunch of samples of it out. That’s ok, though, because though I do really enjoy this tea, it’s not one I have to keep in my cupboard. It is a nice morning cup. Not too complex, a lovely blend of flavors, and a smooth black tea base. Chocolate/hazelnut is a common blend, and the orange adds a little punch of citrus to this, but not enough to make me crave it. It is, however, enough to make me crave more Dammann teas… curse my tea-buying ban! :)

So I kind of sort of broke my no tea buying rule this year… but not really! This company offered a free sample of this tea if you paid $1 shipping, so how could I resist? I mean, I didn’t buy tea, I bought shipping! Watch me rationalize. Anyway, the sample was a whole ounce, so it was a really good deal anyway. The dried tea has a nice floral, fresh aroma to it, and when steeped that turns into a very floral, very buttery scent. The first thing I thought when I took the steeping basket out of my mug was “woah, those are some huge leaves!” There are some small leaves, some pieces of large leaves, and some stems in the mix.

The flavor is both strongly floral and strongly vegetal… they just play off each other so that they both get time to shine. It is a bit buttery but overall the tea is a little astringent in that way that green oolongs sometimes are. No sweetness to it, really, but it is a rather nice cup.

As a side note, this company has a lot of interesting oolongs but they only sell 5oz or more on most teas, and that is more than I want to buy untried. They have some flavored oolongs I’d like to try too, but those are only sold in 10.5oz packs! Oh well.

I got a fair amount of this tea in my recent swap with brandy3392… thanks again for the swap! I was interested in it because I like the idea of an anjou pear oolong, and also because I enjoy trying a bunch of Teavana teas without ever having to deal with the company. The dry leaf on this was something I have come to expect from some of these big flavored tea companies (not just Teavana) of a high “inclusions” to tea ratio. What’s also interesting is that the oolong seems to be a mix of dark oolong (short, uncurled leaves and some stems) and green oolong (reasonably well rolled balls).

The steeped tea on this one immediately lets me know that the rosehips and hibiscus are not going to be hiding here. It is a lovely “dusky rose” color. While I do get a pretty obvious tart hibiscus aroma from this, I also definitely smell the slightly vegetal, slightly floral oolong base underneath. Overall, I’d have to say that I like this tea ok, but I don’t think it does what it intends to… or at least what it advertises. It definitely has a super tart, hibiscusy taste at the front of the sip, which fades into a sweetish, fruity flavor toward the end. The hibiscus/rosehips kind of overwhelms the rest of it. I used to see teas with hibiscus in them and think that they’d be fine because I love hibiscus, but really I love it cold and highly sweetened, not in hot teas. I will definitely look forward to making this one iced in a big pitcher when the weather warms up.

I decided to have this tea this morning because I haven’t had it in a while, and wow I am enjoying it a lot. At the beginning of the sip I get a tart berry burst and then it rounds out into a full, rich, almost syrupy taste at the end. Delicious! I was thinking earlier about how I remembered liking this tea but I didn’t think that I would need it in my permanent collection, but now I’m not sure about that! It’s got such a great flavor, and it would also be great for blending for other teas.

Another cool thing about this tea (for me) is that it comes in sachets, which isn’t a big selling point for most people except Harney sachets are my favorite to bring with me while traveling, and I do a lot of traveling.