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Ah, the almost perfect nightcap. Sweet with a tart bite. The aroma is joyful. Like a bunch of berries playing in a field (Yes, I am thinking of Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs). Cherries, and strawberries. But… then comes the stevia. It isn’t incredibly strong but once you taste it, it’s all you can think about. Then it lingers on the palate. Besides the stevia the rest of it is great. I just don’t think it needs it.

Mandala. Every time I think I’ve tried your best tea you throw me through another loop and I taste something even better. (Granted I still find it hard to beat your Milk oolong) Though I’m not much of a fan of pu er, I find this one astounding. I truly feel like I am drinking sticky rice. The mouthfeel is incredibly silky. If steeped for too long the earthy notes become a bit overwhelming. Make sure to try this gong fu style.

A sumptuous and dazzling raspberry-colored jewel sits before you. It is a gift from her highness. She calls it razzle dazzle because it reminds her of her favorite tea. With ‘lemony’ hints and raspberry whispers. Her mother, the Queen, also enjoys this one for its slightly grassy that hide amongst the fruit. To be honest it’s not my favortie. I wonder if this is a Ceylon green. Would be better steeped cold. I will try that next.

Generally, if it says green tea and mint in the same sentence I run away. But Longevitea teas are more than mint and green tea so I decided to give it a chance. As soon as you open the packet the herbs assault you, pleasantly. I feel as if my nose is cleansed. The flavor is good. mainly mint but many of the other herbs also make themselves present. I’m just glad the hibiscus doesn’t get crazy.

I’m sure everyone else who reviews this tea would agree and has in previous posts, that this is a unique blend. I’ve seen genmaicha mixes. I’ve seen bergamot mixes. But never have I seen a bergamot/genmai mixed together. It is calming and smells nice. It has a bit of umami mixed with roasted notes and a bergamot citrus finish. It is good but I’m not overwhelmed with the goodness.

Almost reminds me of a genmaicha in a certain ricey sense. That dry leaf smell is incredible. Slightly mineral, roasty, toasty notes that show superb craftsmanship by the tea maker. Some of the notes make me think of taiyaki or hojicha. I could sit here and smell this all day. But I’d rather drink it. Very mineral initial aroma. 10-second steep si sweet, mineral. It’s so good. Making my mouth water as I’m drinking it. Color is light amber to slightly darker amber. Depending of course on how long it’s in the Yixing pot. The second steep is even more amazing. I let it go longer than I meant but it’s still so sweet. Mineral sweet. Clean feel on the palate.

Beautiful rose gold liquid color. Fishy dry aroma. First steepings at 20 seconds reveals fish and earth. Mainly fish. I love fish. But not in my tea. Started a transcription and forgot about it for 3 minutes. Dark amber now. No fish but very earthy. Like licking a lacquered bed stand, in a forest, when it’s raining. Each session brings out interesting earthy notes. The mouthfeel is thick. Almost syrupy.

Had a bit of anxiety going into this one. The leaf looks amazing but the scent is chocolatey. Me thinks it was next to something it shouldn’t have been. Though the initial aroma did have a slight scent of chocolate as well it quickly switched to mineral notes, renewing my hope. This is definitely a deeply roasted oolong. I can almost taste charcoal it was roasted over. You can tell that whoever roasted this tea is a master. The minerality bursts forth like a child licking a wet rock.

I have no idea what three of the ingredients are. This makes for an educational cup of tea, but also for too much going on in my mouth at once. Gynostemma is a vine kind of used like ginseng. But not with it’s taste or after taste. Eyebright powder? Huh, apparently it " contains several beneficial plant compounds". Horsetail. Very interesting. " It was used traditionally to stop bleeding, heal ulcers and wounds, and treat tuberculosis and kidney problems." Guess I got in all my good stuff tonight. My palate still doesn’t like it though.

Busting out the aroma cup set for this session. The only steeping guidelines on the bag are for western-style but I prefer my oolongs gong fu style. Experimenting with tea gives you a better sense of what parameters the tea is best suited to. It’s harder to do that with western style unless you have a cupping set made for tasting. The inital smell is full of lilacs and orchids. While the wet leaf is reminiscent of a rainforest after a light rain with slight butter. My first steeping wasn’t long enough. Only did about 30 seconds, which usually is enough to decipher something but the hot tea didn’t give me much. Ah, now that is has cooled it begins to shine. Vegetal and little butter slight mineral in the aftertaste. The second steep is better and ripe with heavy orchid aroma from the aroma cup.