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drank Laoshan Black by Verdant Tea
98 tasting notes

I went for this one first after my birthday package of tea came…from my tasting note card (which was kindly provided):
Dry: subtly spicy aroma—is that cinnamon? Blankety and warm.
1st steeping: Toasty in the front of the tongue, a little bright and sweet in a blankety, caramel way (yes, blankety is totally a word) along to the back of the palate. Silky, smooth mouthfeel, with absolutely no astringency or bitterness (woohoo!).

So I’m on my fifth infusion now, which I let go for 8 minutes…this tea is magnificent. Roasty, sweet, smooth, and dusky all at the same time. The note that I was trying to name for quite some time was raisin—there is definitely a cinnamon-raisin feel to this tea, and it’s fantastic. This is probably the most unusual black tea I’ve ever tried, and come to think of it, I think it might be the first or second unflavored black tea, too. This is paradise, and I keep detecting more delightful undertones in it. Can’t wait to explore it even more. Thanks, David! Can’t wait to try all the others I got, and to order some more (maybe a pu’erh?) with my nifty coupon code!
Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 0 sec
2 comments
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David Duckler
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Wonderful tasting note- I find myself making up words all the time when I drink teas to try to get at their flavor. Blankety makes perfect sense to me! The cinnamon raison toast that you point out is great- I will look for it when I brew this up at the office tomorrow.

I am glad to know that so many people out there are loving the He family’s new experiment with black tea. Thanks!

gmathis
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Creative Writing 101: when you don’t have the right word, make it up! Blankety is good!

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David Duckler
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Wonderful tasting note- I find myself making up words all the time when I drink teas to try to get at their flavor. Blankety makes perfect sense to me! The cinnamon raison toast that you point out is great- I will look for it when I brew this up at the office tomorrow.

I am glad to know that so many people out there are loving the He family’s new experiment with black tea. Thanks!

gmathis
Delete

Creative Writing 101: when you don’t have the right word, make it up! Blankety is good!

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Bio

I’m a college tea drinker.
I cook feverishly.
I draw.
I make movies.
I knit.
Someday I wish to own chickens.

I love tea because of the complete sensory experience it offers me. Clock time fades away as I lean into my cup, watching the delicate cascades of steam waft up from the brew. Peace. Stillness. Feeling centered. It’s my meditation…

To give you a little background on my tea preferences (which will put my ratings into perspective)…

I love teas that are strong without bitterness and have earthy flavors to them, like rooibos or a really good black tea. (A few favorites in this category: Toffee Almond Supreme, Popped Rooibos, Oh Canada, Nutcracker Sweet.) Vanilla, cinnamon, and nutty are some of my favorite flavor notes. After about a year of warming up to greens, I absolutely love them—from the sweet, nutty, green-tea-ice-cream-like to the bold, grassy earthiness of Gunpowder Temple of Heaven. I also enjoy a nice white every once in a while. Fruity teas aren’t my favorite. I do have a few fruity teas that I love though, like TeaSource’s Green Tea with Pomegranate, Lemon Solstice, and Blueberry Fields.

I drink all of my teas unsweetened; if a tea needs sweetening, I usually don’t like it. A couple of notable exceptions: I sometimes sweeten straight green teas and matcha, and I drink my chai with soymilk (but no other sweetener). I sometimes like my black tea with a little dollop of soymilk.

Location

Northfield, MN

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