Kittenna

Sigh. This one is never going to live up to the amazing first cup I had of it. Faded tea crush, anyone? That said, I’m still really enjoying it tonight, even though the magic isn’t quite there the way it used to be. Second infusion is actually pretty satisfying though.
[Backlog from yesterday evening.]

Nutty and good, but not as good cold. Second infusion (2:30/90C) also tasting too weak, like Pot O’ Gold. Maybe my taste buds just want something stronger. (Aroma though? Heavenly.) Up to four good infusions :) [Backlog from yesterday evening.]

Backlog from yesterday, since Steepster’s been misbehaving.

This one’s not as great cold as it is still warm, but it’s still enjoyable. I think I was just looking for something extremely decadent tonight, and although this is yummy, it’s not quite it. Here’s hoping the next tea is a bit more what I’m apparently looking for tonight. Second infusion (4 min) is pretty weak. I feel like my tasting note from last time probably said the same thing, but I couldn’t access Steepster properly at the time so wasn’t able to look it up.

I apologize; this tea deserves a better tasting note than I have energy to write. It is a delicious, somewhat floral, creamy oolong though, and that’s what I needed/wanted tonight. Looking forward to trying the rest of my oolong samples from Fong Mong Tea! I did reserve enough of this to try it again when I have time to properly review it.

Was craving DavidsTea’s milk oolong again tonight, but I’ve decided to hold off on purchasing any tea I’ve tried before until I’ve drank a fair bit of what I have, so have to conserve it for a future craving!

Anyhow, this is what I picked in its place. Although toastily coconutty and good, I think I might have oversteeped it juuuust a touch. Not quite hitting the spot though; I probably should have gone for Teavivre’s unflavoured Milk Oolong instead. I do feel like I may prefer the London Tea Room Coconut Oolong over this, but I just bought 1 oz. of it, so it will have to do for a while. I’ll do a comparison someday.

ETA: Seriously, some of these coconutty teas last FOREVER! At least, the well-done ones. I’m on the third infusion, and it shows no sign of losing flavour. I’m using a reduced amount of water, but I’m not even sure it’s all that necessary. Yum. Now to cold-brew some of this since apparently that makes something pretty tasty :D

ETA again: On the fourth or fifth infusion, and still coconutty! However, this one has a bit of an odd flavour, so I think I’m done now. Tremendous longevity!

So I didn’t notice that the leaves hadn’t fully been immersed until about halfway through the infusion… but hopefully that doesn’t affect the flavour. The tea does smell good, so here’s hoping!

Uh… never a good sign when one chokes on the first sip. Really gotta stop doing that. Anyhow, this is pretty tasty. Very light in flavour, but delicately sweet and a bit fruity. I feel like it suffered in strength from the partial infusion, which is unfortunate but an easy fix for the next infusions! I also feel like my tastebuds are a bit… food-clouded, at the moment, so it’s difficult for me to distinguish things. Either way, pleasant enough, holding on the rating until either the next infusion of next time I try it :)

ETA: Ah, another case of the second infusion being better. 170F/3 minutes, and I’m getting a light, sweetly scented cup with a delicious light, sweet, floral white tea. Very much enjoying this infusion. I blame the first on human error, not too shockingly. No astringency, just pure white tea sweetness. Im not experienced enough in straight whites to know if this is comparatively fabulous or not, but it’s definitely quite enjoyable.

Definitely not in love with this one like everyone else is. I think, however, that it’s because this sample picked up some other flavours, not because this is a bad tea. I can almost imagine the creaminess here, but it’s masked by a fruitiness which is not unpleasant, but not characteristic of any oolong I’ve had, and I doubt it’s how this one is supposed to taste. Perhaps I’ll try another sample of this one in the future, but I won’t be too heartbroken if that doesn’t happen, because I am in love with the DavidsTea version (and will be trying the Teavivre flavoured version soon, which I’m quite excited about!)

Thanks Stacy for generously including this as a sample with my order!

I love how this tea looks, all twisted into little snakes, which also make it super easy to measure out! I had a bit of an issue brewing in that I guess the mug I used was a little too big width-wise, so the little snakes in my large infuser basket didn’t quite fit into the water to begin with (but I pushed them in as soon as they softened a bit).

I’m getting a flavour that I would usually classify as metallic and therefore reminiscent of oversteeped greens (or, so I’ve learned, tea leaves that have sat out wet for over a day. Ew.), however it morphs into a sort of pleasant tanginess which changes my view to being intrigued instead of icked out! I wonder if this is that lemon that comes out in cold-brewing?? There’s also a nice tangyish green tea aftertaste, and maybe just a touch of astringency.

So as greens go, it’s a different flavour than I’m used to – there’s a bit of sweetness reminding me of Verdant’s dragonwells, but the vegetal qualities are lacking. I’d have to say though, that although it’s interesting, it’s not a green that really fits my preferences for vegetal/seaweedy/rock sugar.

ETA: Second infusion (twisty leaves completely in-mug) for 3 min at ~177F is definitely better than the first. There’s more flavour, I’m getting a definite sweetness and the flavour is no longer coming off as metallic, though I’m still getting a bit of tanginess, which is interesting! Still not a profile I’d be likely to purchase to drink again, but deserving of a better rating than I initially gave it. Word of warning to potential buyers – make sure the little snakes fit fully in your cup! No brew baskets :)

I’m clearly being very indulgent tonight. I think I just drank three of the most expensive teas in my stash (this, Cantaloupe & Cream, Quangzhou Milk Oolong). Who cares though, I’m sure it’s far cheaper than indulging in alcohol! And all of them re-steep very well. And there’s no hangover. And almost zero calories. Yep, I’m convinced.

Anyhow, this tea really is quite lovely, although I am still getting a huge cotton candy association. This infusion had a big fat raspberry in it, so I’m also tasting that, which is delicious. Looking forward to the next infusions, where I expect the raspberry to be more prominent.

What’s a comfort tea night without some Cantaloupe & Cream? So yup, drinking this. My cup has cooled though, and I’m annoyed because my body wants warm tea. Flavour is still fabulous though (so I bet this would be great iced, although it seems a waste with such a delicious/expensive tea, since I usually gulp iced teas down). Going for another infusion shortly (and by that I mean immediately, as I just finished my cup).

Although I did purchase a 12g sample of this one today, I only tried it in store as the Tea of the Day. And, it was pretty darn good! I tried it iced, and where I usually find the in-store iced teas to be on the weak side, this one wasn’t. And it did taste much like blueberry jam. I’m interested to compare it to 52teas Blueberry Cream Cheese Danish, because although one’s mimicking a condiment and another a baked good, I’m not likely to stock two blueberry blacks. Wasn’t in the mood to try this comparison tonight though.

The only possibly negative thing I did notice (other than the stevia, which people are bound to complain about but doesn’t bother me) was a touch of astringency, but given that I wasn’t the one who brewed the tea, I won’t judge it based on this for now.

For whatever reason, I’m in a comfort tea mood tonight. Or this morning, whichever you prefer to call it. I had something like a 5 hour nap earlier, so either works. Anyways, I was packaging this tea up to send to Alphakitty last night, and upon opening the bag, I almost died at the delicious smell that I had clearly forgotten about. It nearly broke my heart to send off the remaining one cup of what I had (me=selfish girl), but I just resolved to go to the gym on Friday night and pick some more up (along with June’s TOTM, Blueberry Jam). Sooooo the amazingness that is DavidsTea’s Quangzhou Milk Oolong and I are reunited.

First infusion of 3 min at around 90C was amazing. Second infusion is a bit hot yet, but a little less creamy, and also amazing. I’m obviously in a mood for hot tea tonight too, because I drank the entire first cup while it was still warm (same with two other teas I have sitting here).

Only downside to this tea is that it’s bringing back memories of the ex-boyfriend, because this was the tea we picked out together when he visited a couple months ago :(

Whoops, backlog from yesterday morning. I forgot.

Needed some caffeine so went for this one. All I had was a lame filter that would allow all the guayasa pieces through, so just put it all directly into the cup and left it in while I was drinking. Mostly fine, except for the few pieces I choked on when taking a sip.

My recollection is of it being pleasant and sweet, but neither interesting nor capable of giving me the boost I wanted (I really didn’t feel more energized after). Definitely have to try my new guayasa from Butiki Teas to see if they’re better.

This tea is my least favourite of Verdant’s black tea offerings. That’s not to say that there’s anything wrong with it, but I love different, intriguing flavours in straight blacks (if I’m going to drink them), and this one is simply too reminiscent of a bagged black tea. It is clearly infinitely better than bagged, but the flavour profile is similar, there is no overwhelming sweetness, no chocolatey notes. Perhaps I should have gone with the recommended 3 minute infusion instead of 1.5 to bring out more flavour (I have lots left and can try this later), but I don’t think the flavours I’m looking for will be present.

This tea is insanely chocolatey. Even more so than the Zhu Rong Yunnan Black, where the chocolatey notes aren’t initially apparent, they’re present here right from the first taste to the last bit of flavour lingering on the back of your tongue. Like I mentioned in the Zhu Rong review, this one is unbelievably smooth without even a suggestion of astringency of bitterness. None whatsoever. The two teas are fairly similar though; this one’s also a bit sweet, with a roasted flavour (although it’s a bit less dominant here; the chocolate really reigns supreme in this one).

I’d have to say that the Laoshan Black is my favourite of Verdant’s black tea offerings that I’ve tried (the only one I haven’t is the Wild-Picked Yunnan Jin Jun Mei). Zhu Rong is similar, but I’m partial to this one as it’s more chocolatey. Golden Fleece may yet change my mind, although I think I’d choose chocolate over sweet, and I’m not a big fan of the Yunnan Golden Buds.

Upping the rating; I am only now coming to realize how delicious and amazing this tea is. Sacreligious perhaps, but I’m wondering what this one would taste like with the flavourings Frank used for his Pot O’ Gold tea… Butterscotch with an amazing chocolatey base?? That might just be the best tea EVER.

(More notes to come on subsequent infusions.)

ETA: Second infusion, boiling/3min was fabulously chocolatey as well. I may actually have to order some of this…. Third infusion, same parameters, also delicious. Fourth infusion, boiling/some ridiculous time like 10 minutes or more, still has the chocolate notes, and remarkably no astringency or bitterness, but it’s too weak for me to really enjoy. I should note that I typically reduce the amount of water I use for additional infusions of most teas (especially blacks) just to amp up the flavour, as I often find good flavour that’s simply too weak!

So the Golden Fleece is the only black I’ve actually purchased from Verdant (aside from a sample of Yunnan Golden Buds in the budset tasting kit); the rest are generous 2-3 cup samples provided by David Duckler with my orders. I really love getting to choose my samples – it allows me to try the teas I’m so curious about without gambling on a whole ounce which I may end up having to give away, or end up never finishing.

The first infusion of this one is smooth and dark, with a definite roasted, chocolatey sort of flavour. No real astringency or bitterness, although in comparison to the Laoshan Black, there is a touch, but ONLY because Laoshan Black is unbelievably smooth. The aftertaste here is of rich cocoa, which is… amazing. I feel like I could almost get my chocolate fix simply from drinking this tea and savouring the aftertaste!! I’ll admit – for whatever reason, I’m liking this one more as it cools (it’s at room temp now), because the cocoa notes are stronger. Although there’s a hint of sweetness, it’s definitely nothing like Golden Fleece.

(More notes to come on subsequent infusions.)

ETA: Second infusion (boiling/a bit longer than 3 minutes) was a little strong for me, perhaps because I reduced the water a touch (although it filled my teapot, so that doesn’t actually make sense). Either way, it wasn’t an astringency issue, simply it was just overwhelming, and I’m not in the mood for that tonight. So milk and sugar it is. And seriously?? This actually tastes like hot chocolate! The aftertaste is so cocoa-y. I want to feed this to someone and ask them what they think it is.

ETA again: Third infusion (boiling/3min) is pretty good, but although I drank some straight Laoshan Black tonight, I’m not in the mood for straight blacks, so milk and sugar again. I think I overdid it a touch with the milk though, as the tea wasn’t too strong this time, but it’s good and still cocoa-y. I feel like I might be able to get a fourth infusion out of the leaves as well, but that’s likely it.

For whatever reason, I felt like doing a comparison of the black teas I have from Verdant tonight, so of course wanted to start with the highly regarded Golden Fleece! I used about 2.5 tsp of leaf in 8 oz. of water.

The first thing I noticed about this tea was the downy golden orange fuzz from the buds, which left itself everywhere – most noticeably on the teaspoon, and collecting at the top of the cup. Interesting! Unlike downy white teas, the fuzz here obviously was no longer solidly attached to the buds. I got a bit of a weird aroma while brewing; reminding me a bit of fermenting compost or something. A touch offputting, but I’ve smelled far more dodgy teas, and aroma doesn’t necessarily dictate flavour.

The first infusion, for 30s, is super sweet! So sweet and honey-like. The mouthfeel is SO smooth and creamy and velvety. No astringency, no bitterness. There’s a creamy aftertaste as well. Quite tasty; I’m wishing I had done a 1.5 minute infusion to better compare to the other teas though.

Second infusion (boiling/2.5 min): Oops, got distracted for this one, so there’s some astringency now. Same thick, creamy, velvety mouthfeel though. This infusion has a similar but darker flavour profile, and although it’s astringent, it’s still pretty enjoyable. I have to admit though, that the flavours in it do remind me a bit of fermentation, moreso than I get from other blacks. (Hmm, the astringency has dropped off a bit as the cup cooled. Tastier now.)

I might try another infusion (hopefully I didn’t ruin the leaves with that overly long second one), and am glad that I have an ounce to play with so I can try a few different things. This tea by far had the sweetest initial flavour that I’ve seen in black teas, which was absolutely delicious and intriguing. As I’ve said before, black teas are not my thing, so this would probably garner a bit of a lower rating than I’m giving it because it’s not a tea I’d keep around or drink often, as I’d prefer something lighter, but I feel like black tea lovers would adore this one! Glad to have tried :)

Sigh. Sadly, Indigobloom, you were kind of right about this one. It’s pretty tart initially, and after swallowing, the aftertaste is pretty perfumily floral. Not as bad as rose teas though (ick!!!!) So although drinkable, it’s definitely not a tea I’d pick up again. Especially after Fruity Ginger…..

(Cold-brewed 7g of the tisane in 2 cups of water overnight.)

Time for another cold-steeping experiment with the last two new teas I picked up from Teaopia. I bought this one purely based on reviews – I haven’t had the best experiences with ginger in tea, so was wary, but I think it cost under $4 for 50g (or around there), so I figured it was worth a shot! Besides, I needed to hit $50 for free shipping :)

Surprisingly, this cold-brew actually has an aroma (most don’t, probably because they’re cold and the molecules aren’t moving around as much…?). Light, fresh ginger with a touch of fruity sweetness. I’m thrilled to see that the liquor is a pale yellowish colour, so it looks like there’s no hibiscus, which may be the factor that ruined other teas (Rishi’s Tangerine Ginger, DavidsTea’s Strawberry Ginger) for me.

Oh man. We have a winner!! This is fabulous! The perfect amount of ginger mixed with with a nondescript fruitness, and lots of sweetness. No bitterness. No strange flavours. This could actually stand to be diluted – I had used something like 6g in one cup, which is way overkill; could probably dilute it with at least another half cup of water and still have it taste quite good (I’m too lazy to do that now though, and it’s quite delicious as it is).

Now, I don’t know whether this is because I have been craving green oolong like mad all day or what, but I would love to pair this with an oolong to have that lingering flavour in my mouth combined with the delicious gingery fruitiness. I don’t have enough to try that tonight (lies, I just want to drink it all now!), but I should at some point. There’s a lingering almost creamy gingery flavour with this one, perhaps that’s also contributing to this idea.

I am so glad I tried this!!! Thank you Indigobloom and EarthenChild for your accurate and convincing reviews!

No notes yet.

Cold-brewed 1 tbsp in 1.5 cups water overnight, and it tastes like bubblegum! Not unpleasant, but not a favourite flavour.

I’m trying to cold-brew a different 2-3 teas each day, not only to have something on hand for when I need something thirst-quenching, but also as an integral part of my tea-stash-reduction plan (ok, there’s no real plan, I just thought it was a good idea!)

Anyhow, since I ordered so much fruity stuff from Teaopia last week, I figured I had better get started on some of them! Cold-brewed 2 tbsps of this one in two cups of water overnight. I was thinking to myself later that 1 tbsp/cup is not a sustainable amount, and could get very pricey, so it’s probably a bit overdone, but oh well.

This one smelled deliciously strawberry-like in the bag, and even cold-brewed, I’m still getting that aroma. It’s much like the 52teas Strawberry Pancake sort of candy strawberry aroma/flavour, which I’m partial to.

Aside from a bit of astringency (maybe I shouldn’t have cold brewed a white tea quite so long), this is one of the best iced teas I’ve had! Yum! Nice fruity strawberry flavour, which improves if I let the tea warm up in my mouth a bit. As usual, the flavour of the white tea is lost – I’ll have to check with this one whether it’s a cold-brewing thing or like DavidsTea, the white tea is just overwhelmed. Either way, it’s tasty. I’d buy this again at a significant discount (but the 30% off is not enough, given the much cheaper prices of Teaopia’s fruit blends).

Finishing off the last of my sample of this one from Amanda. Yum, thanks! A pretty good honeybush blend. Honeybush is a lot better than rooibos, imo.

Mmmmmmmmm so tasty. Used a random amount of leaf (maybe a tbsp?) and used my nose to figure out when I should pour it out, and my nose indicated I should start at 20 seconds, so a 30-second steep it was! Just love the light sweetness of this one and complete absence of astringeny and bitterness. I think finding the best dragonwell tea may become a goal of mine, although I’ve probably started at the wrong end of the spectrum, with the two from Verdant!! Upping the rating because this tea is remarkably consistent in its amazingness.

ETA: Second infusion (168F/1min) also great.