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Homemade Gift Advent Calendar #1
Brandy Oolong

I forgot. It all lined up so pretty and nice on my tea shelf like a little Christmas village. Delicious Christmas village. So here I am three days in with the first open just now open. I’ll make up for it tomorrow. big grin Just by looking I would have guessed that this was a black. It is not but instead a higher oxidized oolong. Also, it no longer seems to exist on the Stash website. The dry aroma is rich. Somewhat fruity as in plums, or a somewhat musty fruit. The wet aroma is woodsy. Do not drink your tea while the infuser is in it. You’ll spill water on the floor and get tea leaves in your face. How long shall I leave it in? Probably longer. It is a darker oolong after all. After around 3 or 4 minutes I’m calling it good. There’s no astringency yet and I want to leave it that way. The liquor is a clear, deep dark amber. Very beautiful. I’m not quite sure that Get Jinxed is the song to match up with this but I have it stuck in my head. The flavor is woodsy. The only time I’ve had brandy was when my grandma put it in tea when I was sick. Have had it a few other times on the side but it’s definitely not something I seek out. Rather spend my money on tea. There is something about this that does remind me of brandy though. Oak. That lingering sensation of wet woods. Just licked a stick.

A decent green but you can tell it’s by a developing company with someone who (even though they are a tea master) just started a tea farm. The flavor is somewhat vegetal but a bit blander than one would hope. The mouthfeel is soft at first but then feels astringent without the tang.

Stepping out of my purist comfort zone to try this flavored, powdered version of the latte I generally adore. If it’s flavored and powdered I generally only trust 3 Leaf to make sure it’s not full of crap. Preparation is whisking in hot water and then adding warmed-up vanilla oat milk. But first! Let’s talk about the dry aroma. It reminds me of the Banana Foster dessert. Roasted banana. Caramelized banana. Delicious BANANA. So much banana. The flavor felt a little off at first but as I’ve gotten further into the session I’ve really taken a liking to it. The roasty / toasty notes of the hojicha mix incredibly well!

Only a few sips in and I’m already regretting this. When I first opened the package the smell reminded me of something medicinal. It’s almost leasing to the nose, in a strange way. Actually my sinuses are feeling pretty good after sitting here and smelling it. That being said it’s not really a good smell. Same with the wet aroma. Smells like something I should add to curry. It doesn’t remind me of cola. Maybe a little bit. to be honest I haven’t had any soda in a long time. The flavor is so weird. Slightly astringent, kind of gingery. If you like soda you will most likely enjoy this but I just don’t.

There is no easy way to say this. Actually, there is. I’m not looking forward to trying this tea out. Maybe I feel bad saying so because it was a gift. But I’ve had my share of loose leaf whites and this is…. the bottom of the pile. It literally looks like the bottom of the tea leaf pile. Everything else was harvested but they didn’t want to just toss this. Harvesting and processing is hard work you know! But still, the coloring is dull. It’s so broken. Might as well be in a bag.
Sorry. Let’s taste.
The aroma doesn’t do it any justice either. Dull. Though with slight orchard notes. So not a complete waste. The wet aroma is very earthy. Compost, wet leaves, musty wet wood. But you really, I am really, have to stick your nose in the leaves to get the aroma.
Let me clean my nose off.
So now we taste. The liquor is much darker than I would expect for a white but considering the color of the leaves, it doesn’t surprise me. Clear, dark, amber. The taste is not pleasant. Drinkable but I am not enjoying this session. It is bland. Medicinal. Meh…

I enjoy a good cup of brisk black tea, no cream, sugar, or milk. I enjoy the partial astringency. Also enjoyable as a mid-morning cuppa. It works well with oat milk. Though it is better when the oat milk is already warm. This is a perfect cross-over tea for those stuck in tea bags. All that being said it lacks some of the deep earthy and woodsy notes I love in other Assam’s I’ve had.

A very pleasant surprise. The powder is very smooth and blends perfectly for someone on the go. I did blend it as one would matcha as I was curious and it frothed up nicely! The liquor is a nice color and the powder stays suspended quite well. The flavor is perfect. Nice, round umami with no silt and barely any astringency. There is a pleasant, slightly grassy after taste as well.

Renegade is fairly new. This is very evident in the appearance of their tea. I’ve tried their black, green, and oolong; and each is very similar in its impression. Though there are plenty of heavier oxidized oolongs this one more closely resembles a black before steeping and a green after. Which makes sense because oolong is supposed to be in the middle as far as oxidation goes but it still looks darker than your usual oolong. It has a soft taste, somewhat woodsy with earthy notes and little astringency. Bare mineral notes and some unique green pepper hints.

This smells like Windex. Or that commercial cleaner they use in some hotels. I’ve never had moringa before and I’m not much for herbals so… this will be interesting. The liquor color is dark, clear, yellow. Kinda pretty in its own way. Steeped for about four minutes. Couldn’t take that smell any longer. The flavor is highly citrus with what I am assuming is the herbal flavor that comes off smooth and lightly medicinal. Cleansing.