38 Tasting Notes

75
drank Houjicha by Samovar
38 tasting notes

Interesting tea. Quite malty with hints of roasted nuts. For me it has a similar flavor profile with Ryokucha, with little less punch.

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

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77

Great herbal blend. The hints of licorice linger on the palette long after you’ve taken a sip. The rooibos does have that warm-tingly feeling that makes it a great pre-bedtime blend. Unlike most herbals, this blend is not an “In your face” kind of deal. The flavors meld well together and don’t overpower each other.

Preparation
200 °F / 93 °C 5 min, 0 sec

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83

Alright. After a little bit of advice from Takgoti, I decided to steep this stuff much longer. After about 5 minutes, the depth and character of this tea is much more accessible. The smooth and lingering sweet profile is definitely there now.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 6 min, 0 sec

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83

My first true pu-erh experience. So far I’m fairly satisfied. I just received a small tin of this along with Samovar’s small Yixing clay pot. Right off the bat, the smell is out of this world. Very earthy and sweet. However, I’m a bit concerned that I brewed this pu-erh incorrectly. I can’t seem to get much of a taste out of this so far. I’ve been through about 6-7 resteeps and I only get a miniscule amount of taste/mouthfeel and just a tiny bit of sweetness. I used about a tablespoon of leaves with boiling water each time, including the quick rinse at the beginning. Steep for about 30-45 seconds each time, about 60 seconds on the last steep. Any recommendations on how to nail down the preparation on this? Maybe I’m just used to the full on flavors of their black/oolong blends. Or am I missing something?

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 0 min, 45 sec
Keemun

…I just wonder who comes up with those names? Maiden’s Ecstasy…can one drink it if below 18?

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67
drank Silver Needle by Ito En
38 tasting notes

This tea has been sitting around in my collection for awhile now in it’s airtight bag from Ito En. I decided to open some of it up this morning and try it out. The leaves are beautiful, consistent, and very floral. They brew up a nice light yellow liquor that is mildly sweet and interestingly, less floral than I had expected. The other silver needle I have on hand, Octavia, is definitely more floral/earthy than this. No complaints here…

Preparation
185 °F / 85 °C 7 min, 0 sec

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62

Nothing particularly special about this Lapsang. For me, it lacks the small nuances that other high quality LS’s have to offer. This LS is straight up smoke with just a hint of sweetness as it cools. I tend to get a more robust flavor profile from other LS’s that provide a multitude of flavors and scents. This tea definitely lacks that quality. So overall I would rate this tea just so-so.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 4 min, 0 sec

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67
drank Silver Needle by Ito En
38 tasting notes

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77
drank Keemun by DAVIDsTEA
38 tasting notes

Having breakfast on my way back to school at the Aeronuove bar at JFK’s Terminal 5. Not unlike most of the other breakfast blends I have. Maybe a little more floral/sweeter than usual.

Preparation
200 °F / 93 °C 5 min, 0 sec

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91
drank Ryokucha by Samovar
38 tasting notes

Finally got the brewing down on this blend. Glad I did! I got in touch with some of the Samovar people and got the inside scoop on how they prepare it in house. They typically use 1 1/2 tablespoons of tea with 14 ounces of water at 170 F for about 3 minutes. A lot different than the boiling water, 1-2 minute, small amount of tea routine I found on their store. The result was an extremely rich and creamy full-bodied brew that I had heard about. Great stuff.

Preparation
170 °F / 76 °C 3 min, 0 sec
takgoti

That’s awesome. I’ll have to pay more attention to this tomorrow morning and see if I notice a difference.

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24

Nothing special. Usually fairly tasteless in my opinion. Shame starbucks carries this stuff.

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