Shui Xian Wuyi Oolong

A tasting note, wrapped in a story, wrapped in an event.
This may be my most difficult review to date. It will be off the cuff, unbridled and from my heart. If this is not to the liking of everyone, there are other reviews and no need to read mine. I’m not preaching my religion either, but it is who I am and I’m not ashamed.

How do I write a review when there has been another tragic death on a day when we are still mourning the losses of 9-11?
In my own lifetime the assassination of John F. Kennedy, Bobby Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Vietnam and Desert Storm, bombings and kidnappings of U.S. Citizens. I’ve learned that you can’t ever let the bad things that happen in life win by turning you into a hateful, bitter person.
Life goes on. There’s always good in the World even though good news doesn’t get much time in the Press.

This Tea and My Story

The Oolong tea leaves were so large (and almost black) that I held them in my hand, juggling an amount that was almost 1.5TB. That was just enough for the Finum tea basket and mug method of brewing.

The steepings are so short, 3-5 seconds and increasing 1 second each steep, making sure to control the timing.

I brought my electric kettle filled with spring water to the boil, rinsed the leaves once and began the first steep.
The aroma of the wet leaves were like roasted short ribs with caramelization on them and everything! (Now of course I wanted some ribs…they smelled so good!)

I put my nose down close to the liquor and inhaled.
The scent was like incense in an old Church when the wood has been permeated with candle soot and resinous incense.

Then I took a sip of tea, curious about how this incense scent would taste.
The flavor was sweet deep mango and floral incense (but not bitter), vibrating in my mouth with intensity. I was having a difficult time pinning down the floral notes because the complexity and power of the tea was distracting me. There was great robust flavor and smooth softness at the same time, then a cool camphor-like vapor, arriving after some time of contemplation.
The scent and flavor made me think of the All Night Vigil during Holy Week (Easter). I signed up to read a portion of the Psalms usually at 1 or 2AM.
I entered the Church which was completely dark other than 1 Vigil light on the Altar and 1 light on the Readers Stand. The whole Church was filled (even petals on the floor) with the scent of roses, gardenias, carnations, laurel and flowers from services held every day during Holy Week. And of course INCENSE! (All incense is natural such as the one this tea reminds me of, ancient Ethiopian Frankincense…which is in little light pinkish pellets.)

As I would stand reading the Psalms until the next person arrived, all was quiet and intensely fragrant. My mouth was reading out loud, but my heart was praying. It was tranquil and beautiful.

When I was drinking this tea through several additional steepings, and began to taste a little of the cinnamon flavor (not sweet cinnamon or bitter but the dry kind), fuzzy textured fruit and floral honey, I could not stop remembering standing in the church smelling the incense and flowers.

The Vigil wasn’t mournful. It was hopeful.
With every tragic event that has happened and will continue to happen in the world, the choice we each have is to be angry, seek revenge, be depressed or, be wise and love each other in the face of it all.

I pray that we are wise enough to love each other.

http://flic.kr/p/dadfAs (Here you can see some of the flowers and on the floor)
http://flic.kr/p/cqY2rG (the outside of the Church)
http://youtu.be/iCgIswP7jPY Music also

Holy Heaven!!! LOVE THIS!
It’s like drinking honey wrapped around honey comb and laced with more honey. Only on the first steep now.
Underneath the honey, I can taste a faint green Oolong note which I suspect will come up more as my infusions grow in number. That mineral aspect is there as well but given that I haven’t got much experience describing it, I’ll have to wait til I am more familiar.
I love that this is such a complex tea. Mineral and honey and green oolong, mixed with that rich base that combined makes me think of sitting on a porch with a view of the snowcapped mountains and a green meadow beside me.
Now I just need to find a way to mainline this…
Rating: TBD but as it stands now, 98

Holy teaeuphoria! The aroma of this tea! It is so autumnal: dark fruit and cinnamon and wood and everything that is good on this earth! And the taste? Wow! Just… I’m speechless and down right giddy!

I get the vanilla and cinnamon and wait… the description is insinuating this tastes like a banana split sans syrup with the addition of a waffle cone and I while I actually agree, there is something much more familiar here. Something in the stoney nature of Wuyi oolongs that is more than just the sweet mineral note. I can’t describe it but I know it, yet I never have I tasted it this intense. Mind blown, lovvve!

I’m going to have to spend the day with this and report back with more detailed notes. I’m starting out with quite a bit of leaf, water at 208 and steeped for 3 secs. And yay for tea arriving at the doorstep just as I’m putting the kettle on, glad I grabbed this one!

What a delightful Oolong!

The first two infusions start out so soft, very light… but do not remain light for long. Within a moment the flavor of vanilla blankets the palate like sweet, vanilla bean infused heavy cream. After the flavor of cream subsides a bit, I start to notice a smoky/roasty/toasty kind of flavor in the distance, honey-esque sweetness (somewhere between honey and pollen!) and a fruit flavor. The description from Verdant suggests mango, but, I find it to be more apricot than mango… perhaps a melding of these two fruits.

In the second two infusions, the apricot emerges. The smoky notes become more of a nutty flavor, still quite toasty but less charcoal-y now. The tea has lost the creaminess in texture, it is more mineral-y, but, the vanilla tones remain. A cinnamon note also comes through and I find the combination of the cinnamon taste and the mineral-like texture to be very compelling.

With my third and final cup (fifth and sixth infusions), I find that the flavors have become more unified, softer … but still very complex. The sweet honey-esque tones of the first cup have become more of a caramel tone … perhaps because the flavor of honey and smoke have melded together? It tastes sweet, fruity, and smooth. Less mineral-y now, it is more like a thin brothy texture, very soft and smooth as it glides over the palate.

I know it’s been awhile, been busy, but I have to share this one. I don’t like darker, roasted oolongs, but Verdant has me changing my mind with them. Their darker oolongs have more than just roasty notes that smack you in the face that I highly dislike. There are tons of different flavor profiles within these oolongs, the complexity always amazes me.

So, I brewed this one gaiwan style, 5 oz ceramic-ware, with boiling water. Sorry, no info on how many grams of tea used…I don’t have a scale so I just eyeball it.

The dry leaf is very dark brown with a purplish cast to it, very pretty, and slightly twisted. It smells like vanilla. There are some roasty notes but it’s nice and soft, no smack in the face! I get something floral, but not like roses or jasmine, more like orchid. There is a farmers market a few blocks down the road from me that sells wildflower honey (it’s heavier and darker than clover honey), I smell that in the tea too.

The wet leaf kind of looks like a mix of browned fall leaves mixing with mulch. I smell that soft roasted note, creamy vanilla, and green bananas (?) don’t ask!

The infusions are a dark amber color with all the notes mentioned above but later on I smell a nice sweet cinnamon coming through.

The first steep was 8 seconds. I got the soft roasty notes, vanilla, creamy texture, a nice floral note…again I’m going with orchid, and wildflower honey. The aftertaste caught me by surprise…I had the texture of a green banana in the aftertaste! It was weird but not off-putting.

The next several steeps were relatively the same in taste profile as I worked up to 15 second steeps. The floral notes grew stronger and the weird green banana texture faded. The tea started to settle into itself with dominant notes of orchid, vanilla, and soft roastiness. After that I started to get sweet cinnamon notes coming in. Oh how it was lovely!

Again Verdant always amazes me in the complexity and quality of the teas they find.

I got a sample of this in my first Verdant order, & am finally getting around to trying it. Dry, it smelled like Wakame (a sea veggie). I followed the instructions on the Verdant site:
1. It looked like Coca Coca, & tasted of toasted rice, like a really nice Genmaicha, with a hint of carmel.
2. The wet leaves have a deep charcoal & smoldering sweet grass scent, & I picture a pile of leaves burning in the fall. The taste has expanded to include a hint of cinnamon.
3. Now the flavor is sweeter, with a resinous quality that reminds me of a substance I used to smoke (back in the day). I’m also getting a bad case of cotton-mouth. Tannins or dejavu?
4. Bananas Foster with Vanilla ice cream & a sprinkle of cinnamon.
5. The wet leaves now smell like banana leaves, roasting over a bed of charcoal. A juiciness is rising (cotton-mouth is gone), with a bright hint of mango.

This was a really tasty tea! I’ve been re-steeping all day,lost count, interspersed with a few other teas as counterpoints. The leaves are seriously sturdy, & willing to continue to release their flavors each time.

Hybrid, eyeball estimation style steeping:

The dry leaves remind me of waffle cones: light and dried out, with a sugared vanilla sweetness. Whereas the dry leaves smell like stale, woody “waffle cones”, the hot water makes them come to life. It tastes buttered and fresh from the baker. Light waffle malt first steep.

Second steep: feels lighter than the first “awakening steep”. The honey notes are so very sweet and moist. There’s a roasted rice taste that reminds me of genmaicha. Delicious, like crispy grain goods with syrup drizzled across. Aftertaste is a fruity honey with a somewhat buttery lingering sensation.

Third steep: Lots of sweet butter and cream that pairs magically with the toasty note. Vanilla and caramel notes too? This is the best! Fourth steep is similar. The finish reminds me of Butiki’s Sparrow Tongue- where does that even come from!? I think I’m going to stop on my fifth steep today but this has at least another few left in it.

The tea has transitioned from roasted sweet malt to a rich, honey-infused, buttery cream. I’m getting the impression that Verdant Tea doesn’t deal in the simple and static.

I would’ve never picked this out for myself as I’ve not been a huge fan of the darker oolongs I’ve come across in flavoured blends. I’m grateful Verdant Tea threw this one in as my sample, though, because my preconceived notions were wrong.

Teas like this in my gaiwan are the reason I convinced my mom to get me an electric kettle for Christmas.

I only had two steeps and I’ll probably go back to it later.

First steep was 10s, second 11. I probably should have had the water a bit warmer so I’ll make sure of that next time.

First, I am not a fan at all of darker oolongs like this, but I actually like this one! My problem is usually that they taste of wet wood with all these other flavors bouncing around. This one does not do that.

On these two steeps so far I mostly taste honey. I didn’t get much of anything else. It does have that woodiness, but not in a bad way at all. There was also just a hint of floral.

Ok, steeped 4 more times and it really never started to taste any differently. Maybe it got creamier. I just really need to try again when I have a kettle that makes this easy. Even with a gas stove it took forever to get just a bit of water to reboil for a second steep after the first I’d do.

Now I have to drink water because I ate a giant slice of cake. Ugh.

Oh, Sebastian turned into seed. http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_me4kbi69vG1qz5e5oo1_1280.jpg He is a growing bird though, but this was his 8th meal of the day (my mom kept calling him Bigfoot because he’s so small compared to them)! Also he finally chirped at home, to a Formula 1 video, a German video at that. He is very smart already.

This tea arrived while I was on vacation. I knew I had to check this one out because I love wuyi oolongs and shui xians are one of my favorites. I steeped this up in the yixing teapot I have reserved just for wuyi oolongs.

First steep: around 30 seconds. I get the burnt caramel flavor that I love about these teas. There is definitely an aroma of mango somewhere in the nose as well as a nice raisin in the flavor. I think this steep is a little light for me.

Second steep: one minute, 15 seconds. The aroma of the tea is incredibly fragrant sitting next to me. I like the longer steep quite a bit better. Now I am picking up on the bit of banana referenced in Verdant’s tasting note and the sweetness I am used to in Shui Xians is starting to unfold.

Third steep: one minute. Some notes are coming through like dried apricots and creme brulee. Still very warming and soothing with a lingering aftertaste. A very nice shui xian. I’ve had a few I liked better but I will enjoy finishing off the bag.

Quick rinse

I am really starting to love my little gongfu mini teapot and tiny double walled cups.

2-4 seconds
Steepings 1-4: Roasted honey notes with a thick mouthfeel. The aftertaste is woodsy.

5 seconds
Steepings 5-8: Now I am getting the waffle cone notes. It is sweet and smooth, but not too strong. Some vanilla is peeking through as well. This group of steepings is my favourite.

8 seconds
Steepings 9-12: These steepings are not as sweet as the previous ones. The vanilla is still present. I am getting a slight cinnamon hint, but no banana like the website suggests.

The first steepings of this tea are almost a little bit too strong for my taste. The later steepings shine though!

Been enjoying a lot of this. Drank it again before going into work this morning. A few hours ago, I received an email from a certain lady that I’m very fond of. She asked me to send her a haiku. It happens that Shui Xian is her favorite of all the teas I’ve shared with her. On the bus home from work, I was thinking about the brief time she and I enjoyed with each other last night, and about the experience I had drinking Shui Xian alone this morning. The haiku came to me:

What could make this tea
more lovely? One thing. Your smile,
here, sipping with me.

Ummm… so for the first time, I’m guilty of not remembering who gave me this tea! I think it was Indigobloom? But there’s a small chance it was Sil. Thanks, whoever! :D

Anyways! Felt like a pick-me-up this morning, and some black teas seem to upset my stomach a bit (or at least the thought of drinking anything astringent/bitter is offputting), and I saw this baggie sitting around and figured, why not! I’m having a lazy morning inputting work data at home after an AMAZING night last night seeing Wicked (OMG!!!) with the boy.

I only saw gongfu-style instructions for this tea on Verdant’s website, so opted to go with a slightly modified version. I used my whole little baggie of leaves (so maybe 3 or so grams) with probably a bit less than 8 oz. water, and bumped up the infusion times a little from the recommended 10 seconds.

First infusion (20s, somewhere near boiling): I’ve not had much success with the darker oolongs from Verdant, so wasn’t sure what this first infusion would leave me with. The wet leaves in the brew basket smelled quite strong and almost burnt, so I was a bit worried! Luckily, however, for no reason! If anything, this is a little weaker than I would have liked, but is an absolutely lovely oolong! A bit sweet, creamy, and characteristically woody. Quite delicious!

Second infusion (15s, approx boiling): Unfortunately I didn’t save any of the first infusion to test this one against, but it tastes similar, only perhaps a bit stronger, more creamy and flavourful. There’s perhaps a bit more creamy honey sweetness this time.

Hopefully I get to a few more infusions later in the day! I think I’ll try 30 or 45s next to see what I can coax out of these leaves.

Thanks again, sample-giver! :P

ETA: Third infusion (near-boiling, 45 seconds) – I’m drinking this one cold, and got a interesting chocolatey flavour from it. Pretty tasty. Fourth infusion (near-boiling, 1 min) isn’t that great to me. Perhaps it needs a longer infusion. Nice oolong aftertaste, but the rest is rather lacking.

I guess you could call this blog post a “review”, but really I’m just linking it for the pretty pictures of this gorgeous tea!

A REAL tasting note coming soon – this tea took me just over the edge into lala land I think ;)

http://www.daisychubb.com/review-shui-xian-wuyi-oolong-by-verdant-a-broken-heart/

Pretty sure this as a sample from kittena? But might have been indigobloom. Either ay I’m happy to try this one even if it doesn’t knock my socks off like laoshan black does :) I did multiple short steeps and while I can appreciate the variety of flavours that came from the different steeps, it just wasn’t my favourite. It’s a lovely cup of tea, don’t get me wrong, I would recommend this to those who enjoy their oolongs.

I bought a mini-kitchen scale specifically for this tea. I was going to by those little craft ziploc bags for future swaps… but then I realized how sketchy I would look buying a scale and tiny bags. :S
I have recently come to love oolong. Out of the three teas I ordered from verdant I was most excited to try this one, but also the most nervous to mess it up.
So, I broke out the tea paraphernalia, aka scale, measured out four grams and dumped it into my steeper. I need a gaiwan.
The website said 10 seconds max as a first steep, so that’s what I did. This tea went VERY dark, VERY quick. The scent is sweet.
I keep trying to sip the tea and swish it to pin point the flavour, but it seems every degree it cools it shape shifts. It’s bold and astringent, then sweet and fruity. Very excited for the next steeps.

well work is trying to screw me over because I’m going back to school. all of a sudden my years working there (since 2009) mean nothing, and I only have until Monday to think about their current offer. I’m sooo not impressed. Anyways onto the tea, I don’t think I did a good job rinsing it or something because it reminds me of cigarettes… (I’ve never smoked) I think I’ll redo this one.

Anyone that knows of me knows I generally write extravagant reviews in great detail. I’m without a computer and on my phone, so this is going to be short. I will rewrite it later.

This is absolutely the best roasted oolong I’ve experienced. It is that…. an experience. I read verdant’s description and think that it is a little over the top and extremely suggestive with what it smells and tastes like. It taste like fantastic oolong…. nothing more, nothing less. The crop itself is gorgeous and has the smell to accompany it. In short, this may be my new favorite tea.

P.S. Stop hiring poets to do product descriptions. _

I got home about an hour ago from a Florence + The Machine concert (amazing), and having a cup of this before I pass out asleep. More notes later, but for now: it tastes creamy, sweet, with a hint of spiciness. Love this.

Backlogged from last night; this tea is soo much goodness! Again from Verdant! Think I did first steeping 10 secs, and increase by 5 each time, but I can’t quite recall :P oh, and prettty sure I rinsed it..anyways, I did a few steepings, first were so buttery and creamy, almost like a milk oolong to me? So good! The later steepings were more floral, a delicious, sweet flower. Also, quite a bit of honey present, but not as much as the Mi Lan Xiang I tried the night before. Overall, delicious!! May have to put both of the oolongs in my yixing pot, as it may be too tough to just pick one!

I got this with my Black Friday shipment, and I finally had time to try it out today.

I opened the smaple bag, and I could already tell that it was going to be good. IT had a very satisfying roasted smell, reminding me a bit of vanilla which, while a bit weird, is actually lovely. The flavor of the tea wsa just perfect: It is an amazing example of a Wuyi yancha. The delightful sweet-yet-roasted vanilla of the aroma is also a major part of the flavor, with a nice smooth mouthfeel that transitions into the characteristic yancha mineal aftertaste. It’s a bit early to be talking about the subtler flavors, since they are fairly indistinct, but this tea has a lot of promise for development. Oh yeah, I steepd this for 15 seconds.

The second cup was steeped for about 10 seconds, but was actually less interesting than I expected. I thoguht that the flavors would develop a bit faster, but this was pretty much the same as the first cup, except it was smoother. Actually, smoother isn;t the right word, it’s more like it’s a more refined taste, but the point is that it hasn’t developed as much as I expected. The tea still is very complex, so I’m not too disappointed, and I can’t wait to see what comes next.

Third cup, 15 seconds. This is it, the legendary third cup, the one that is usually the best. It lives up to the hype. The flavor has made a small yet importnat transition from smooth to creamy, yet still makes the transition into mineral-smooth for the aftertaste. The vanilla is tempered by the beginings of spice, and something sweet as well. Right now, this tea has acheived perfect balance. Of course, I’m not realy sure where the flavor will go next, since this is just so much different than my other Shui Xian, which leaves me very excited to see what comes next.

Music of the Day – Cello Sonata in A minor by Edvard Grieg, performed by Martha Argerich and Mischa Maisky.

Link – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z72yOcLmOOE

Whenever Argerich and Maisky play together, you can always expect an expressive and riveting performance, and thisvideo doesn’t disappoint.