1237 Tasting Notes
Another Valhallow sample! I was so excited to see that this was a sticky rice tea. The aroma, the flavor, I loves it. Even though a wrapper isn’t conducive for keeping smells in, the leaves still had a lovely scent. I rinsed it once, though honestly, I don’t think it needed a rinse. The initial aroma coming off the is full of sticky rice plant. There is umami, sticky rice, and a bit of marine qualities in the wet leaves. The mouthfeel is smooth with slight astringency. It has a refreshing quality. The flavor is what I expected. Lots of sticky rice notes. Earthy notes of dry dirt and desert twigs.
There are some tea descriptors, like round, that I can’t help but roll my eyes at. Though after a bit of research I’ve found that round as a flavor descriptor means: “Round: A wine that has a good sense of body that is not overly tannic.” If we apply this to tea it can mean the same. And when steeped properly is a subjective descriptor of this tea. With my first steep it made subjective sense without the meaning. The mouthfeel was soft and round made sense. However, with the second steep some tannins punched my face because I wasn’t paying attention; not rounded. The flavors are vegetal and grassy. First steep is very smooth but as you progress each session becomes a bit more tannic.
Here’s where I found the descriptors. I know Wiki isn’t the best to source things from but I thought this was helpful regardless. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wine_tasting_descriptors
Lastly, thank you to Vallhallow for this sample!
Pine needles. They even have a bit of sharpness in their touch like them. But the color is muted. Like a dying pine needle. The initial scent coming off the leaves is very nice. Juicy. Some tropical notes mixed with slightly stewed veggies. The taste off the first steep is full of steamed and stewed veggies. It is very light on the palate.
This is the first time I have had a Laoshan tea from a company other than Verdant. The leaf is very pretty. Dark green with a few silvery buds here and there. And it is so cool to see the camellia flower in there too. I might have let this one sit for too long in a bad tin though. The aroma isn’t there. The taste is muted. Granted not all white teas are strong in your face but this muffledness is to the point where it’s hard to detect any good notes. I will further this note when I try this again at some point
Love a good bit of research to go along with a good gong fu session. Holy smokes. There is a ton of research being done on this tea! Type in “eurotium cristatum golden flower” and the amount of articles that come up is amazing. For a short summary on findings, it appears that the more golden flower present, the better the quality of this heicha. In the studies, eurotium cristatum has shown to increase relief from things like ulcerative colitis, hypertension, etc. Now I need to find a tea to help my mom-in-law and husband with their weird blood disease (very low platelets).
This mixed with a hojicha would be an interesting flavor! Frothed milk aroma in the initial rinse. Frothed milk is also in the flavor. It is slightly earthy with rich, dark dry soil and dry bark. There is a hint of smokiness as well. After 3 steepings there are still some parts that remain dry.
Vallhallow thank you for this sample! This appears to be a Dragonwell. Flattened leaves of comparable size. I would say a lower-grade Dragonwell based on the coloring of the leaves but not a low-grade knock-off based on the taste. It tastes very similar to a Dragonwell. Notes of sesame, dried grass, and slight mineral touches. Vegetal wet leaf aroma. Overcooked peas and asparagus. Overall it’s not a bad Dragonwell. Good for coffee shops and on the go but it is not one I will seek out to buy.
Their main website is currently down but here is the interview from the company on www.teatiff.com
Be careful when drinking this tea. If you are a tea nerd or someone who just likes to research tea your mind is about to blow. You begin by looking at the dry leaf. This is a tea that requires delicate hands. A perfect pluck (like most teas need) but even more so with this one because this is mainly bud and a few first leaves. Those silvery trichome-covered beauties. Though for the most part, it is olive green colored and a few silvery, hairy buds. Then we have the aroma. Gardenia for sure. Floral notes abound. But let’s stop for a second. Did you know scenting is an art process? You have to find the flowers and you have to pick them right at the perfect time. It needs to bed with the bed nightly. Sometimes they remove all the flowers, sometimes they leave them. It just depends on what the master is going for. The flavor is an abundance of gardenia with a slightly grassy background. Passion fruit mousse wet leaf aroma after the first steep. Changes to asparagus after the second steep with slight gardenia and mango. Going to try to cold steep this next.
This…. This is interesting. There are some woody notes in there somewhere. It’s also astingentcy but in a weird way. Kinda like the astringency you find from some herbs where it sits closer to the front of your tongue. Not so pleasant… But the first few sips were uh… paper? Herbaceous…. I don’t know how to explain this…
Third steeping now it was a bit sweeter. But there are still those other weird notes
There is Lapsang in the aroma of the dry leaf but it is light. A gentle scent that embraces you but doesn’t overwhelm you. Makes me think of Northern Minnesota on Lake Superior. Water lapping at the rocks and making that sound I love along with that scent of bonfire mixed with coniferous forest. This tea is all around a perfect example of that area. The flavor reveals nil to limited smoked flavor. But as a black tea, it is quite elegant. (And I slightly laugh to myself thinking about the Elegant Prof in Spy X Family). Light woody tones. Bits of cedar and tree decaying in the forest. Wet forest floor. Same with the wet leaf but to a higher degree.
