40 Tasting Notes

23
drank Rose Tea by Lupicia
40 tasting notes

I love black tea flavored with rose, but this is not it. This is hot rose water with the barest hint of tea color and flavor. This tea is more than 3/4 rose petals, and I couldn’t find enough of the black to to look at and figure out what kind of black tea it is. It tastes ok, but it is really dissapointing. This is my first Lupicia experience. :(

I brewed with double the amount I normally use, and still couldn’t get much tea from it. They would be much better off using less actual petals and instead using oil. I’ll go back and try them again at some point, but it will be a while.

Preparation
Boiling 5 min, 0 sec

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60

This tea is complicated and high-class. I rated low because, to be a bit cliche, iti s not my cup of tea. I don’t usually go for the floral blends, and the lavendar in here throws me off. Also, I am not a huge fan of the citrus.

That said, the vanilla pulls thruogh nicely, and the tea underneath is clear and vibrant. I can taste the ceylon a bit, but whatever the Chinese black is, it comes through stronger. The first waves of flavor are the vanilla tones, followed by a quick burst of lavender, followed by the tea flavors, then some more lavendar. It is smooth and buttery, and the lemon really finishes strong.

I rated a bit lower than I might have because I don’t like it as much, but higher than I might have because it is clearly a nice tea.

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

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73

After being scolded for using boiling water on a high-quality Assam, I am moving down to 195 degrees. Let’s see how it works!

The dry leaves are not just broken, but ripped. Lots of little pieces, but not dust like fannings, just small pieces. They are a nice dark brown, with lovely golden tips scattered throughout. Very pretty. They smell faintly of cooked peaches and berries. The wet leaves smell of your standard damp tea, with the barest, faintest touch of an indiscernible fruit.

The liquor is a deep, brownish copper, and gives off even less of a scent than the leaves. This is a remarkably smell-less tea for some reason.

It’s a quite smooth taste, almost more like a Chinese black than an Assam. It really doesn’t need any milk or sugar, which I normally use for my Indian blacks. It’s got a smooth start, almost slightly metallic, with a tiny bit of astringency in the middle tones, finished by that cooked-peach flavor. The aftertaste is smooth and buttery, with only a touch of the astringency following through. It’s got nice, full body.

This is a lovely tea. I would recommend it for those with a bit more experience in the tea world, because it is very, very subtle.

With a little milk, just for fun: the milk brings out softer notes of honey, completely removing the astringent pucker and helping me to find the earthy, malty, chocolaty Assam flavors I know and love so well.

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 4 min, 0 sec

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25

I’m sad to say I’m not too pleased with this one. It has a lovely flavor, but it is too mild! Maybe my water should be hotter, maybe I should steep longer…I’ll try again later with some different circumstances and see.

It was very smooth, and had that nice, earthy Assam taste I love so much (malty with honey-notes), just not enough of it. I’ll update once I try it again.
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I tried it again at a rolling boil for 5 minutes, and it was marginally better. I think this tea is old! I can’t help but wodner if my friends at SpecialTeas (whom I normally trust and who usually send me GREAT teas) sent me stale tea from last year? It is just plain ol’ lackluster, with little flavor and none of that Assam POP that I love so. Sigh.

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 4 min, 0 sec

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76

The dry leaves are slender and long, just like in the picture, and very dark. They don’t have much of an aroma beyond the normal black tea scent. Once they are wet the leaves unfurl nicely.
The liquor is orange-copper, opaque, and has a sweet bouquet. Very mild, very smooth. It sips very well. The first wave is immediate and strong, with just a touch of bitter astringency on the front end. The middle notes are mildly buttery, and the end notes are honeyed and sweet. Throughout the whole sip the overriding, strong “tea” flavor is present. This is a great cup of tea.
As always, I rinsed first with near-boiling water, but just for a few seconds. The above notes are without cream and sugar. After sampling and writing, I tried it with cream and sugar: the bite is gone and replaced with just the highlights that I associate with Ceylons. This is a great tea, especially for the price.
I’d recommend this cup for anyone, from new to seasoned.

Preparation
200 °F / 93 °C 3 min, 0 sec

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95

This is the second brew:

It had lost much of its flavor, and has much less of the strong Assam taste (malt and honey and good, clean earth), but it is still better than most of the teas I have tried. I brewed it long, and could have brewed it longer, but since it is so expensive I wanted to get the most bang for my buck. All in all, still a great tea, even on the second brew. When I grow up and have lots of $$, I will get this tea on the regular.

Preparation
Boiling 8 min or more

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90

The leaves are long and slender, and very fluffy. They are green and white with yellow hues, and covered in fine white down. They let off little to no aroma, though the smells that do seep forth are light, fruity, and very pleasant (observed before my stuffy nose).

The wet leaves are a little less fluffy, and the down is gone, but they retain the beautiful range of light greens, light yellows, and whites. I can’t describe the smell too well today, because I am stuffed up, but I bet it is nice!

What a pretty liquor! It’ a pale, delicate yellow. Very transparent. The flavor is very subtle. As with many of the lighter whites and greens I’ve tasted, the first thing I notice is the flavorless water base. Then, right as I think, “hey, is this tea or water?” the flavors blast in through the mid-tones. I’m not sure how to describe it other than earthy. It’s like the smell of rain, but in flavor, with freshly turned dirt. There are hints of sesame on the backside of the middle, and the sip finishes with an almost fruity essence and an aftertaste of backed apples. This is a crazy tea, and I love it. I would advise that more seasoned tea veterans go after this one, as it is a bit pricy, hard to track down, and is very, very subtle. I’ll definitely stock this again, if I can find it.

Preparation
185 °F / 85 °C 4 min, 0 sec

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95

What can I say to describe this tea? The leaves are beautiful, like lightly toasted, spun gold. The liquor is a deep, rich red. I am a bit sock, and can’t describe the smell too well, though I recall the dry leaves smelling malty and earthy.
I normally take my Indian black teas with milk and sugar, and although this tea is no exception, I needed less sugar. It is naturally light and sweet, and almost airy for an Assam (somehow it is both airy and earthy…). This tea is a real treat, and I am happy to have had the chance to taste it. Thanks Harney and Sons!
I would say that this is a tea that even novices could appreciate, but that only experienced tea lovers could really understand. Maybe don’t go buy a ¼ pound, but I’d recommend that everyone try at least a sample pack of it.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 5 min, 0 sec

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90

First off, the temperature is not precise, which I know it needs to be for such gentle tea. Hopefully the experience wasn’t compromised.

The leaves are very pretty; they look just like the photo: delicate green needles coated in silver down. The wet leaves are a bit greener, and give off a faint bouquet of roasted nuts and peas. The liquor is pale yellow.

The tea itself is surprisingly sweet. It is very subtle. The first waves are blank, and the flavor doesn’t kick in until the middle tones. From there it very smoothly picks up into a barely vegetal taste, somewhat reminiscent of peas, which is rounded out with a sweet finish and aftertaste like I just finished a bowl of especial sweet peas. I like it a lot, and I am looking forward to comparing it with other silver needles.

This is a good tea for everyone, even novices, but I think that it would take a true connoisseur to appreciate the complexities of this cup.

Preparation
175 °F / 79 °C 4 min, 0 sec

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72

First off, the temperature is not precise, which I know it needs to be for such gentle tea. Hopefully the experience wasn’t compromised.

The leaves are light green with some white down, though not as much as the silver needles. They are rather large and long. The dry leaves have a strong spell of canned fruit salad, and the wet leaves give off a damp apricot scent.

The liquor is a very light green-yellow, and it smells a lot like the dry leaves, but with added layers of freshly ground nuts. It is heady.

It starts off a bit stronger than I expected, though I may have brewed it a touch hot. The first notes are nutty, giving way to a mildly sweet apricot or citrus flavor, though without the tang, and finishes with a gentle grassy aftertaste almost like the edamame flavor of my most recent Lung Ching.

I’d leave this one to those who are new to tea and are interested in white tea, or to the sippers of other cups who know what they are looking for.

Preparation
175 °F / 79 °C 4 min, 0 sec

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Bio

I am from Atlanta, Georgia, and I used to live in Japan. I love tea. Indian blacks are my favorite, though I am learning a lot about Chinese greens and, ultimately, I love all tea.

Location

San Francisco

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