189 Tasting Notes

8

Loose
Appearance: Curled long leaf, whole spices noticeable
Aroma when Dry: sweet, fragrant spice
After water is first poured:. Buttery, sweet, hint of spice
At end of steep: light green
Tea liquor:
Staple? No
Time of day preferred: afternoon, evening
Taste:
first notes: buttery, sweet, light spice, velvety, slight powder.
Without milk:
After adding milk: notes blend, tea gets milder, sweeter
As it cools? Notes open up, to almost a icing desert sweetness
Additives used (milk, honey, sugar etc)? Yes, a few oz milk, added at the end of steeping and first tasting.
Lingers? Yes, plain the sweetness stays, gets sweeter by the sip. almost floral notes.

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 5 min, 0 sec

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21

Loose
Appearance: long twiggy looking leaf, stems and rose petals prominent
Aroma when Dry: Desert sweet, slightly buttery, floral
After water is first poured:. Desert sweet, floral, powdery
At end of steep: lighter sweet (western) powdery notes mildly floral
Tea liquor:
At end of steep: Med spring green
Staple? No
Time of day preferred: Unsure, first tasting
Taste:
first notes: floral blend, jasmine and rose more noticeable, but all three floral notes are present
As it cools? Gets dryer, and sweeter. floral notes get almost soapy
Additives used (milk, honey, sugar etc)? No
Lingers? Yes, the sweetness is cloying and builds with each sip

Preparation
190 °F / 87 °C 5 min, 0 sec

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30

Loose
Appearance: med crinkle leaf, sparse blue grey lavender buds
Aroma when Dry: faint but distinct citrus, dusty
After water is first poured: bright citrus floral, Bergamot is very noticeable.
At end of steep: dusty, sour, floral
Tea liquor:
At end of steep: yellow– green
Staple? No
Time of day preferred: unsure, first tasting.
Taste:
first notes: lavender then the citrus kicks in
As it cools? Notes blend, lavender all but disappears into the earl grey dusty, citrus
Additives used (milk, honey, sugar etc)? No.
Lingers? Yes, the lavender fades a bit, but Bergamot sticks in the mouth

Preparation
190 °F / 87 °C 5 min, 0 sec

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59

Bagged
Aroma when Dry: Fruity, earthy
After water is first poured: slightly fruity, dusty
At end of steep: fruity, dusty, sweet
Tea liquor:
At end of steep: med red brown
Staple? No, would drink again
Time of day preferred: any
Taste:
first notes: dusty, dry, bland general floral/fruity.
As it cools? tea mellows, notes blend, darken slightly,getting a bit earthy.
Additives used (milk, honey, sugar etc)? No
Lingers? With Slight fruity notes

Preparation
190 °F / 87 °C 5 min, 0 sec

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44
drank Jasmine Tea by Joy Luck
189 tasting notes

Bagged
Aroma when Dry: Dusty, sweet, floral
After water is first poured: sweet, floral
Tea liquor:
At end of steep: yellow brown
Staple? No.
Time of day preferred: any
Taste:
first notes: dusty, slight buttery note, weak jasmine floral
As it cools?
Additives used (milk, honey, sugar etc)? No
Lingers? Floral notes linger faintly

Preparation
190 °F / 87 °C 5 min, 0 sec

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61

Bagged
Aroma when Dry: Bright, nutty
After water is first poured: Warm, bright, nutty, faint grass
At end of steep: sweet, buttery, nutty
Tea liquor:
At end of steep: light mossy green
Staple? Type yes, prefer loose, will look into if brand carries this type in loose leaf.
Time of day preferred: Any, daily go– to tea.
Taste:
first notes: creamy, nutty, buttery, roasty with minor hint of grassyness
As it cools? Notes mellow out slightly, tea stays roasty and buttery, sweetens (eastern) a bit
Additives used (milk, honey, sugar etc)? No
Lingers? Yes, notes blend slightly, but all linger with character.

Preparation
190 °F / 87 °C 5 min, 0 sec

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60

Loose
Appearance: curled dark grey-brown leaf light blue -grey lavender buds noticeable.
Aroma when Dry: sticky sweet, syrupy, earthy, floral
After water is first poured: dusty sweet floral.
At end of first steep: balanced lavender with slight earthy undertones
Tea liquor:
At end of first steep: purple hued brown
Second steep(about 3 min) flavor: Balanced floral lavender, light woody notes, no sour tang.
Third Steep(2-3 min) flavor: floral. slight bitterness, woody notes deepen again slightly.
Staple? No
Time of day preferred: unsure, likely evening.
Taste:
first notes: floral from the lavender, slight woodiess, followed by an odd tang…then slight sourness
As it cools? Notes mellow a bit, tea gets dustier.
Additives used (milk, honey, sugar etc)? No.
Lingers? Yes, both the sour/tangy quality, and the lavender stay, but the floral fades quickly.

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 5 min, 0 sec

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100

Loose
Appearance: twiggy, many shades of green, large leaf and stems
Aroma when Dry: Nutty, woody, slightly floral.
After water is first poured: Buttery, nutty
At end of steep: buttery, nutty, sightly floral
Tea liquor:
At end of steep: Light grassy green
Staple? Yes
Time of day preferred: unsure, first tasting.
Taste:
first notes: buttery, rosemary brings a foresty touch. Light floral finish
As it cools? notes mingle, but do not blend into hiding. gets earthier, with a slight sweetness.
Additives used (milk, honey, sugar etc)? No.
Lingers? Yes, slightly woody, bright hints of floral.

Preparation
190 °F / 87 °C 5 min, 0 sec

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100

Loose
Appearance: gunpowder curls, green/grey hue
Aroma when Dry: cooling minty, slight dust
After water is first poured: Bright, light minty
At end of first steep: foresty, minty bright
Tea liquor:
At end of steep: light green
Multiple steeps? Yes, at least 2, but resteeps present only gunpowder, no mint.
Staple? Yes
Time of day preferred: first tasting, but likely any
Taste:
first notes: green tea first, mint chases
As it cools? Notes blend, flatten into foresty goodness
Additives used (milk, honey, sugar etc)?No
Lingers? yes, both notes balancing

Preparation
190 °F / 87 °C 4 min, 0 sec

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47

Loose
Appearance: med curl leaf, deep black, paper fine choclate shavings
Aroma when Dry: bittersweet, slightly smokey
After water is first poured: dusty, salty sweet
At end of steep: sweet, musty
Tea liquor:
At end of first steep: powder brown
multiple steeps: not likely, did not attempt.
Staple? No
Time of day preferred: evening
Taste:
first notes: flat, bland, and at same time, silky, creamy buttery, black tea chases slight smoke.
As it cools? Gets dustier, nutty.
Additives used (milk, honey, sugar etc)? No.
Lingers? No.

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 5 min, 0 sec

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Profile

Bio

Drink your tea slowly and reverently,
As if it is the axis on which the whole earth revolves
Slowly, evenly without rushing toward the future.
Live the actual moment.
Only this moment is life.

-Thich Nhat Hanh

If man has no tea in him, he is incapable of understanding truth and beauty.” ~Japanese Proverb

Tea is a cup of life.” ~Author Unknown

Tea is liquid wisdom.” ~Anonymous

tea leaves
tea loves
loves tea
lives tea
leaves tea?
never.

~Uniek Swain

You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me.” ~C.S. Lewis

Divinity is a smile or a tear drop; or yes, even a cup of fresh green tea.
-Chinese Author unknown

Tea…is a religion of the art of life.” ~Okakura

I am Chajin. A 98% Loose leaf gentleman.

When in practice, and with access to loose leaf tea, I drink tea daily. With Loose leaf, often I will stay with the same tea for 2-3 days. With Teabags I flit around between kinds a bit more, though if I am restricted to only teabags due to any kind of lack of access, I often reduce my tea to a few a week, get bored easily, and as a supertaster I am very sensitive to quality.

Being of Japanese, English, French, Welsh heritage(Southern, Texas),I have had a lifetime’s experience in true teas, in one way or another. Growing up, my mother’s cupboard was rarely without a daily go-to quality genmaicha, and a matcha for cooking. My father loves blacks, and his mother was never without a box of Red Rose Tea. My Aunt and Uncle usually had Greens,Pouchongs and Oolongs around the house. Due to location and accessibility issues, I have gravitated towards bagged tea recently, but grateful to find more options opening up for me, and it is a relief to restructure my loose leaf stash!

I think of Teas as friends…exploring new relationships, deepening established ones…having a strong circle of solid support to stand alongside you through life…I have found some of these kinds of relationships with individual teas, I am hoping to find/build more along my journey courting my current circle of acquaintances, and not get sidetracked by frivolous dalliances flirting too long with a newcomer along the way.
(Due to this point of view, I will often taste a tea at least twice before fully evaluating enough even for a first rating.)

I drink true teas, and tisanes. Among Tea,
I love my Japanese Greens, and more recently love exploring whites and oolongs, and want to rediscover Pouchongs. Mixed results so far with pu-erh and also blacks, but use blacks for chai, as well as medicinally. Limited exposure to (Chinese)red teas, but interested. No experience with yellow or purple teas.

Among herbal and floral notes, my favorites are (Seaweed) Kombucha, Mints, Ginger, Honeysuckle,Yuzu, Jasmine, Lavender, and Rose.
After all this time, I still understand unflavored Matcha, jasmine or rose fragrance in tea to be a sweet tea.

The flavors I Treasure in my Tea are the Classics/Orthodox blends, I gravitate most towards the layered and nuanced teas.
Of those I always return to Scented and “Plain”…while I do enjoy some classic flavored tea also. I feel strongly that life is to short to drink bad tea.

Ingredients you will not find in my tea stash: 1. Stevia, 2. rooibos (red or green), 3. Fermented kombucha, or more accurately, kōcha kinoko.
I am attempting to avoid any artificial flavors as well.

My permanent stash consists of mostly varieties, teas I know I enjoy at any temperature( at least 1-2 each of Houjicha, Genmaicha, Sencha, Moroccan or other Green tea/Mint Blend, Thai blend, Silk Oolong, Jasmine, Chai, and White, Matcha, Darjeeling Black..

Ginger, Lychee, Lavender, Mint, Rose, Rosehips, Hibiscus, Mugicha, and Japanese Konbu-cha (both plain, and Ume flavors) and Yuzu are among the tisanes/blends ideally in residence) I chose based on overall quality as well as how a tea’s flavor and texture holds up over various temperatures(as in can it cool and keep my interest?).
I try not to be too brand loyal, in case of discontinuance, or lack of common availability.(Of course I do have my further favorites, but I try to find a few qualifying faves to rotate through.)
I have a small collection of tea ware, collect some lines of Wade Rose Tea figurines.

Rating Legend:

100 = What I will restock first and most likely always have on hand

90-99 = Where is the Tea IV again? Soul Nourishing Teas I never want to be without.

79-90 = Daily Drinker Teas, comfort teas must haves.

66-78 = Specialty stash. Seasonal must haves, Medicinals, Teas that I love that are too expensive/rare to qualify for unrestrained consumption, or that I have to “be in the mood for”

65-50 = Acceptable, 2nd choice brands or types of of my staple kinds of tea, teas that may need reconsideration.

30-49 = Will drink if only tea around. Won’t buy personally.

48-20 = Might finish a tasting cup…For Research only.

20-1 = Why am I drinking this?….Just…NO.

1= also often a tea where the smell of it, dry, or brewed makes my physically react badly, before tasting

Rated, but No tasting note?
I have tried it prior to joining, and rated from memory. If it is in my stash, or something that got a high enough rating to revisit, I will get to an update with a formal tasting note as well. OR: The first smell or sip made me ill enough, I did not proceed with the tasting.

Favorite Companies So far:
Numi
MAJANI
Shang
Tealet
Butiki Teas
Nature’s Tea Leaf
The Persimmon Tree
Steven Smith Teamaker
Japanese Green Tea Shops
Mellow Monk
Blue Lotus Chai
Red Leaf Tea
Hibiki-an
Yuuki-Cha
O-Cha.com
Maiko
Den’s
Hojo
Aiya
-
the minimalism of tea

“Tea is a an act complete in its simplicity.

When I drink tea, there is only me, and the tea.

The rest of the world dissolves.

There are no worries about the future.

No dwelling on past mistakes.

Tea is simple: loose-leaf tea, hot pure water, a cup.

I inhale the scent, tiny delicate pieces of the tea floating above the cup.

I drink the tea, the essence of the leaves becoming a part of me.

I am informed by the tea, changed.

This is the act of life, in one pure moment, and in this act the truth of the world suddenly becomes revealed: all the complexity, pain, drama of life is a pretense, invented in our minds for no good purpose.

There is only the tea, and me, converging."


Thich Nhat Hanh: Tea Ceremony

Location

Oregon, USA

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