75
drank Blackwood Green by Simon Levelt
59 tasting notes

I haven’t commented on this tea before, as I found it hard to discribe. When I received my order of Dragon Well yesterday and brewed a cup, I realized that the Blackwood Geen has a character that – in certain ways – is very similar to the Dragon Well. So I figured I could write a taste note on this one after all, by comparing it to the Dragon Well.

These teas are similar in the smooth, vegetal and nutty characteristics. The Blackwood Green however has a more grassy freshness to it than the Dragon Well, which is smoother and mellower. The Blackwood Green has a somewhat pungent/sharp quality. At some point I even thought to detect a slight – although not unpleasant – bitterness. Overall the flavour is much ‘bolder’ than the Dragon Well, the latter being decidedly more delicate.

The aftertaste is also more brisk than the Dragon Well. At times I seem to catch a hint of something floral and nearly soapy. But perhaps that’s me? I tend to find fresh floral scents and tastes to be(come) soapy quite quick.

I brewed this at 85 C and for 5 minutes. The Dragon Well was brewed at 82 C for approx. 2 min 30 sec. Both according to the instructions of the respective vendors.

Preparation
185 °F / 85 °C 5 min, 0 sec

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Bio

What to say about myself and my tea drinking habits? I’ve been staring at the screen, reading other’s bio’s and still can’t come up with something worthwile. I’ll just stick to the basics.

I generally prefer white, green and oolong teas to black teas. As I read a scientific report that stated that black teas lower the level of stress hormones in the blood, I try to add a few cups of black tea every day.

Overall I prefer black teas to be flavoured. The white, green and oolongs may be flavoured or straight.

I brew my teas per cup, mostly in my – much loved – Kati mug with Cha Cult strainer. I’m rather a stickler for brewing time and temperature, so I use a tea timer and watercooker with temperature indication.

I also love a good cup of coffee and especially cappuchino. As far as I’m concerned, a good cappuchino requires a real milk/foam topping, not something made with skimmed milk, powder or the like. Unfortunately a lot of cafes still haven’t caught on to that one and serve low quality coffee and tea (type vending machine and bagged fannings). I hate it when, on a cold winter day, the choice is restricted to bad coffee, bagged fannings or a cold softdrink… :-(

As for rating teas, I more or less make the following distinction:

100:
Nothing is perfect. Probably won’t be using it ever.

98 – 99:
Nearly too good to be true.

90 – 97:
Exceptional.

80 – 89:
Excellent.

70 – 79:
Good. May rebuy depending on price and availability.

60 – 69:
Ok I’ll finish the cup and maybe even have a second, but probably won’t finish the entire package as I have other – (far) better teas in my cupboard.

< 60:
I feel cheated. I won’t ever be buying this again.

< 50:
This really is no good.

< 30:
I hate this. I want my money back.

1:
Beyond horrible!

PS: Recalibrated my ratings according to this index on 23 feb 2013.

Location

The Netherlands

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