Camellia Sinensis

I haven’t been reviewing lately because I’ve been sipping down old teas, although I still don’t seem to have made a dent in my stash. This is the penultimate session of a spring 2018 Dong Ding, which I bought as part of a Taiwanese tea sampler. I steeped 6 g of leaf in a 120 ml teapot at 195F for 25, 20, 25, 30, 30, 30, 45, 60, 90, 120, and 240 seconds.

The first steep has notes of toasted grain, honey, and mild char, while the second adds cooked pineapple, rock sugar, and roast. While I wouldn’t describe this tea as astringent, the body is drying, with little of the fruit I noticed in the 2017 version. In the next couple steeps, the cornhusk note from 2017 emerges and the honey, char, and toasted grains still predominate. There’s already a faint grassy aftertaste.

As the session moves along, the roast becomes more prominent, the tea gets a nutty quality, and the fruit disappears. By steep ten, it’s mostly roast and minerals.

This is a comforting, easy-drinking Dong Ding that keeps missing being great by a hair. Last year it was fruity but too smoky and astringent, while this year it was smoother but not as interesting. However, it’s interesting to see how the same tea can differ so widely across harvests, and I won’t be surprised to find the 2019 version in my cart once I can justify buying tea again.

This is a nice, toasty dong ding for fall. I loved the batch I bought last year, and decided to get the spring 2017 version as part of a Taiwanese oolong sampler. This is what I’m reviewing here.

I steeped 6 g of leaf at 195F in a 120 ml teapot for 30, 20, 30, 45, 60, 90, 120, and 240 seconds.

The dry leaf smells like cereal, char, and a hint of pineapple, all of which carry over to the first steep. This dong ding is almost too sweet, and the aroma at the bottom of the cup is fruitier than the tea itself. The second steep brings more pineapple and even some berries as the Camellia Sinensis website promises, but I don’t like the level of roast. It kind of tastes like charred corn, which is a weird juxtaposition with the fruity flavours. The liquor is also very drying.

The third steep, which I brewed at a slightly lower temperature, is more integrated, with less pronounced char and more grilled pineapple. The tea, however, still smells better than it tastes, and there’s already some grassiness creeping in. The next few steeps follow this pattern, both the good and not-so-good elements fading concurrently.

While this dong ding had some decent moments when steeped gongfu, I think it does better Western style, or perhaps this batch is just not as good as the spring 2016. This is too bad, as it smells like it has a lot of potential.

Gongfu Sipdown (1334)!

I know I’ve had this tea before, but to be honest it wasn’t very memorable in the past. The leaf is gorgeous though, and the steeps that I didn’t forget about and over steep were nice as well. More overt malted honey and bread notes, with jammy red fruit undertones and finishing notes. A little bit too astringent at times, but that was arguably mostly from my lazy & un-timed brewing. The liquor was really rich and thick, with a velvety fullness – even when it was accompanied by harsher astringency. It was a nice tea; though I feel like I’ve got some others from CS in a similar style that I find more impressive…

Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/CMA5TTrgQiF/

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zn-TECkDH2k&ab_channel=SummerSalt

Gong Fu!

So recently I decided to treat myself a get a few new Gaiwans from Camellia Sinensis, as well as some other teaware from both Bitterleaf and Teaware House. I’ve bought a lot of Western style teaware this year from DAVIDsTEA but not a lot of traditional stuff for Gong Fu, and I think getting some shiny new pieces could really help me get back into Gong Fu brewing on a more regular basis…

Along with my two Gaiwans, CS also sent along a sample of this tea! Jin Die is completely new to me altogether, so I thought it’d be something nice to explore today. Besides, it’s almost as if CS is going “New Gaiwan? Break it in with this tea”. I can’t argue with that, right? So here are my stream of consciousness notes from the session:

Dry aroma of the leave is very sweet; coming off as notes of caramel/cocoa and lots of fruity undertones. Stonefruit in particular, but orange/fresh citrus too. Really inviting and aromatic! Leaf if visually stunning as well; very golden, and delightfully pretty little curls.

Steep 1/Five Seconds:
- Really sweet right off the bat!
- Top notes of caramel/malt/sweet potato
- Body and finish are fruitier: strong orange notes, hints of stonefruit in a generic way
- Actually almost a candied orange peel kind of flavour?
- Orange zest/candied orange lingers well after the swallow

Steep 2/Seven Seconds:
- Aroma of the dry leaf is INSANE! Very sweet, fragrant with tons of citrus/orange
- Top notes still largely malt dominated
- Also notes of sweet rolls, honey, caramel, sweet potato
- Body is SUPER fruit heavy: a mix of full bodied orange, raisin, dates
- Also Grand Marnier liquor (which I know is orange too, but still…)
- SMOOOOTTTHHHHH

Steep 3/Ten Seconds
- I’ve started snacking on plain, unsalted/flavoured pecans in between infusions
- This adds a different sort of sweetness to the top of the sips; pleasantly nutty addition
- And almost a “maple” quality
- LOTS of malt to the top of this infusion, sort of ‘spilling’ out into the body too
- Less of the honey/caramel sweetness of the first two infusions
- Body of the sip is equal parts malt/raisin/stonefruit
- And then TONS of orange that coats the whole surface of my mouth
- And lingers for such a beautifully long time

Steep 4/Fifteen Seconds
- A little bit tannic at the start of the sip
- This small degree of bite/astringency is the first I’ve experienced thus far
- Otherwise the flavour profile remains the same from last infusion
- Though perhaps a hint more raisin-like taste in the finish

Steep 5/Fifteen Seconds
- Less tannic/astringent, and less malt notes as well
- In fact, this is pretty much only the fruitier notes I’ve experienced
- In the same proportions as the last infusion, though
- And then a hint of complimentary nuttiness from the pecans I’m snacking on

Steep 6/Eighteen Seconds
- Steeped leaf smells like orange, honey, sweet potato, bread, and cinnamon
- In that order
- Infusion is less pleasant; very astringent/bitter which is disappointing
- And feels like it’s coming out of nowhere?
- Almost has a finish that tastes like the pithy part of an orange – bitter!
- Also a little peppery in the body and finish

Steep 7/Twenty Seconds
- Even more bitter/pithy tasting than the last infusion!
- Literally took a sip for my cup and did that kind of choking/gagging thing
- The one people in sitcoms do when they eat/drink something gross
- Only nice thing is that the finish is a little sweeter with floral orange notes
- The rest is TRASH
- Dumped it…

Steep 8/Twenty Seconds
- Still a little bitter/peppery but better; didn’t feel the need to dump this one
- Otherwise the same as last

Steep 9/Twenty-Five Seconds
- It’s not bad, but it’s kind of boring now?
- Not really bitter/astringent though but the present flavours are dull/flat
- Orange, malt, cinnamon, black pepper, raisin
- Yeah, calling this one as my last steep even though it’s not totally brewed out yet

Honestly, I’m probably never going to be a twenty steep kind of person. I just hit a point during my session where I either don’t like enough of the infusions back to back that I don’t want to continue brewing or I simply get bored. Today, it’s a little bit of both?

I also skimmed CS’s website description of this one and I found it very interesting they described it as vegetal ’cause at no point during this session did I really associate the flavour profile with those sort of notes. The closest I think you could get would be the peppery quality I experienced late into the session, but for me I was definitely thinking something more inline with like black pepper…

I don’t know where I want to rate this one overall; I greatly enjoyed the start of the session but the end of it wasn’t so great. I think that probably averages out to a just sort of mediocre session? I’m gonna hold off on rating though until I get a chance to revisit this one either Gong Fu again or just Western style. This session was a pretty nice way to kill a few hours of the afternoon though! Just very relaxing overall.

This tea is one of my absolute, all time favorites. First of all, the price for an organic tea of this quality is amazing. But mostly… the taste. This tea is perfect.
I like to drink green tea and white above all others. The subtle flavors mixed with the strong antioxidants properties have really got me hooked but whenever I feel like having a more flavorful afternoon tea, I turn to this little gem. Its taste is an acquired one I think: it’s very deep, much more intense than your typical sencha, yet it has none of the matcha bitterness to it. It hits you with a burst of spinach-like flavor and at the same time, has a sort of sweetness to it. The ending note is kind of wet (this is very hard to explain!), like seaweed perhaps, but without the saltiness.
The taste really lingers in the mouth. I especially like to use my senchado for this. It gives a much stronger liquor, of a beautiful, dark green color.
I assure you, you cannot regret this tea. It will leave you wanting more!

I bought 25g of this tea at the end of 2015, and this is my last session with it. In the past, I steeped it Western style, with infusions of around 2, 4, and 6 minutes, and got tangy apple cider notes that made it perfect for colder weather. This time, I steeped my remaining 4g in a 120 ml teapot for 30, 25, 30, 50, 90, and 240 seconds.

Gongfu’ed, this seems more like a black tea than it did Western style. I get apple, sourness, tangy sweetness, and black-tea-like tannens on the first steep. It also has that gaba flavour I’m still not sure I enjoy. The second steep intensifies the apple and reduces the sourness, adding some floral and nutmeg touches.

Nothing much changes in the third and fourth steeps, though the spice note gets slightly stronger. It fades in the fifth steep, and by the sixth, the tannens are the dominant flavour. It’s worth noting that I don’t feel any effects from the GABA.

I think this tea works better Western style. Although it’s been compared to Bai Hao, possibly because they both have fruity flavours, the sourness makes it less appealing. I’ll probably go with Guei Fei instead if I want a less expensive alternative. Still, this was better than some other gaba teas I’ve had and it’s a decent easy drinker.

Received a sample of this one from a teafriend in a swap! I failed to take particularly detailed notes, but the tea displayed nutty, coco flavors and sweetness, with very light fruity flavors in some steeps. It was a nice tea, but not my favorite aged oolong I’ve had. Nice stuff and a sample I definitely appreciate – always cool to have a birth-year tea.

I received this tea as a free sample in my last Camellia Sinensis order. I followed the instructions on their website, steeping 4 teaspoons of leaf in 120 ml of 175F water for 30, 20, 40, 70, 120, 160, and 300 seconds.

These downy white buds are unique. The first steep is herbaceous, with notes of sage, basil, and other cooking-type herbs. There’s an underlying earthiness and sweetness that sort of balances it out, but the herbs are the dominant flavour. The second 20-second steep is quite like the first, but the third introduces more complexity as the sweetness increases. As a previous reviewer mentioned, the creaminess and sweetness make it taste kind of like marshmallows.

By the fourth steep, I can understand why the website states that this tea is spicy. The sage and other herbaceous notes, however, are still pretty overpowering. The tea peters out by the seventh steep, though I suspect I could pull a couple more out of it.

While I won’t be reaching for this tea regularly, it was fun to try. It has a much different taste profile than other white teas.

A lovely late night cuppa since I’ve been craving mint in the evenings for the last few nights. This is gentle and soothing with a simple and straightforward note of wintergreen. A little less aromatic than I’ve experienced in the past, but the bag I’m working on finishing off is a bit older and some of those essential oils that give the tea both it’s aroma and taste have definitely faded. Just means I need to compensate with a touch more leaf. Still wonderful tasting, though!

Geek Steep S2E15 – Lord Of The Rings: The Fellowship of The Ring

We’re pretty open about the fact we batch record episodes and so, when we recorded this episode, it was the last of the day and I was coming down from an intense caffeine buzz. It was also during advent season so I had consumed all of my advent teas earlier in the morning plus the teas from recording.

I needed something soothing/calming and caffeine free in that moment and this is one of my favourite simple tisanes to turn to. The leaves are massive which make it gloriously no frills to steep. Literally just chuck a handful of leaves in a cup without a strainer and you’re perfectly well set to sip on a tasty tea.

The second tea from my Camellia Sinensis outing, as a follow up to the pu’erh.

I split this one with the person I was with, and it really nice. Nothing out of the ordinary, just that sweet and cooling distinct wintergreen flavour that I love so much! This is a herbal tea staple, for me. It was actually very good though as an digestif, which is basically the function of how we were drinking it.

Recently transferred my bag of this over to a tin, and there was more in the bag than could fit in the tin so I decided to bring the rest of it to work to share with coworkers – wintergreen is so delicious and deserves all the love!

After I finished my latte this morning I switched over to this – a big hearty handful of the leaves in a glass mug (because she is STUNNING to watch steep) which I’ve been having grandpa style for a few hours now. It takes a lot time for the flavour to steep out of the leaves, so this is actually a tisane that really benefits from this style of brewing. After about a half hour of patience I’ve been rewarded with a sweet, flavouful and rich mug of crisp wintergreen tea! I feel so refreshed!

This tea also steeps essentially the colour of water, so even though I’ve been topping up my mug for a few hours and have been going strong and steady with my brewing this is still so pale – looks as if I’m just drinking hot water with a handful of leaves in it. Just means I get to appreciate the visual of the leaf being steeped even more, though.

Sipping on some of this, Grandpa style, while making my ME to WE India sugar candy…

This is delightful; and as I was sipping on it I got to thinking that it might also make a really nice flavour for a sugar brittle candy – so if I figure out what in that recipe needs tweaking to eliminate the tacky quality of the candy I think this is what I’m infusing into it next!!

Hot in a travel mug, back from last week during that streak of mint themed teas.

Like I said in another tasting note, I seem to gravitate towards mint teas when I’m physically sore and have headaches – and this is the mint tea I’m drawn to the most. It’s just sweet and flavourful while still being natural (has a grassy and herbaceous undertone beneath the sweet mint) and cooling. I felt like drinking it in this lock top travel mug, in particular, tempered some of the grassy elements and really drew out the sweetness of the leaf. It’s weird how something as simple as a change of vessel can effect the taste of a tea so much.

I’ve been working a lot lately; and I’ll be honest putting in such long hours without days off has been really taxing on me physically. The worst has just been getting constant headaches and not really knowing what to do to make them feel better.

Aspirin, water, caffeine… I’ve tried all of them but none really do the trick or provide relief.

The only thing I’ve really found that makes me feel more comfortable is drinking very, very strongly steeped mint teas like this one. This one’s sweeter than a typical mint tea because it is Wintergreen and that’s just a sweeter kind of mint. Really though, anything with that menthol punch has been a relief to me as of late. Definitely makes a HUGE difference to my overall day.

Another late night herbal option.

I do really like the taste of this one (when it’s over leafed) but I don’t think it’s possible to replicate the even more delicious, and entrancing aroma it gives off both dry and steeping/steeped. Like, it DOES taste like wintergreen but a grassy and more herbaceous version with less robustness of flavour than the aroma. How frustrating for there to be such a disconnect between the aroma and the taste. I know it happens, but…

Also – reminder to myself that I want to eventually try this one as a tea bath!

Song Pairing: https://youtu.be/wXUloVYbchg

Tea Press!

Ok, I’m learning! Last time I thought this was way to weak/watery tasting so this time around I doubled the amount of leaf I originally had used, and gave it about three more minutes of steep time. The resulting brew was way more satisfying! Very sweet with, in my opinion, quite a distinct winter green flavour without that kind of harsh minty/menthol finishing that sometimes winter green flavoured things, like candy or gum, have. I also thought it had a touch of a herbaceous sort of undertone, which does make some sense to me since this is actual wintergreen leaf and not just a wintergreen flavoured tisane/blend.

I shared it with some coworkers too, without telling them what it was. Both agreed it was minty, but likened the flavour to bubblegum as well. I definitely didn’t personally see that beforehand but after having it pointed out to me I can see where they were coming from.

Song Pairing: https://youtu.be/oTgYqm76ILo

So I think I first saw this on CS’s website about two years ago, and at that time I distinctly remember going “Oh, that looks wonderful! I must have it!”. However, for the next two years everytime I went to place an order it was out of stock…

That is until about a month ago, when I was finally able to add a bag of it into my cart! It was a very satisfying moment, since it was a long time waiting. That means there was some pressure for the tea to live up to the anticipation of getting it, though. Would it be as wonderful as I hoped it could be!? The answer to that question?

Mostly.

The smell of the dry leaf is fucking INCREDIBLE. Wintergreen is easily my favourite of all the mints, and this is rich and intense – just so, so, so lovely. The part that was lacking a bit for me was the flavour of the steeped up tisane; it was really mild/light. The flavour that was present was smooth and relaxing with a perfect amount of sweetness and cool, crisp finish. Very clean and lovely. I just wanted a lot MORE of it. That said, I have a feeling I may not have used enough of the leaf in my infusion. I did give it a solid steep time; I just think I needed to be more heavy handed measuring it out.

So, hope is not lost yet for that delicious, robust Wintergreen flavour – I’ll try again with double the tea leaf and see if I get something more in line with the intensity I’m craving. However, even if this is all that the tisane is able to produce flavour wise it’s not bad at all.

Sipdown (582)!

Just so beautifully smooth and flavoruful with really distinct notes of raisins/muscat and a great malty finish to the sip with just a bit of bite/crispness to the finish. It was a VERY good cup; arguably the best that I’ve had all week if not month. Deeply satisfying.

One of the more forgettable Darjeeling teas in my collection, which made it a good choice for my morning cuppa this morning. I knew I wanted a black tea that I could add some pumpkin agave to; and this was as good a choice as any.

I’m actually loving the combo because the Darjeeling itself has a nice warming raisin bread taste to it and that lovely “autumn leaf pile” flavour that is very much a thing but also really hard to explain flavour wise as anything else but the taste/smell of autumn leaves. Point is, both of those things kind of scream “autumn vibes” in terms of flavour – and so pumpkin is just a nice pairing with those sort of flavour notes.

Good for this time of year, and has made an otherwise kind of weird and boring Darjeeling a lot more interesting.

First tea of the morning; but a pretty forgettable cup if I’m being honest. A mix of malt, floral, and bread notes – reminds me more of an Assam than a Darjeeling for some reason? But it’s a pretty old tea, so it’s probably just aged poorly.

Grabbed this one from one of my many sample boxes downstairs.

My flavoured samples are a bit of a mess right now, but the straight tea ones are actually really organized for the moment which is why I’m a little frustrated with myself for pulling this one out tonight! I don’t know why, by CS really likes giving me Darjeeling samples in my orders, so I’ve got a few from them with really similar packaging. I had actually meant to grab one I’ve already tried but they all look and sound the same at a glance. I just feel like I wont do this one justice tonight; my nose is REALLY stuffy and it’s definitely affecting my ability to taste flavour nuances pretty badly tonight…

Yeah; this is weird. I need to revisit this when I’m not feeling well because what I’m tasting is pretty odd/muddled and unclear. It kind of reminds me of vegetables/yellow bell peppers? But also malt, and… something else? The something else isn’t pleasant though; the more I sip it the more I think of, like, cardboard? I’m sure the tea doesn’t taste like cardboard though. I’m just not at top game/tasting capability right now.

Even bell pepper feels weird to me though; but skimming the company description for this one… maybe not? They don’t specify bell pepper, but CS does describe this as tasting like vegetables. I don’t know; personally it doesn’t remind me of a Darjeeling AT ALL right now. Everything is a little bit ‘bleh’ currently, though.

No rating for now.

This was the highlight purchase of my first trip to Camellia Sinensis. Leaves are even, unbroken, well cared for. They show a mostly even darkness with occasional greens, signs of a good aging. Scents are light on the dry tea, nothing damp nor anything very green.

Overall, has a really pleasant Sheng flavor with some age on it but nothing major. Begins with a pleasant sourness, some bookstore-funk, some salt on it, brothiness, eventually sweet aromas, more vegetal (burdock, licorice root, dandelion root). Not majorly energizing, nor sedating, soothing if anything.

1.5tsp – 8oz

Rinse+rest

30s/210 – Hay, corn husk, oily mouthfeel initially, with a slightly sweet smell like nectar, oddly it makes you salivate like crazy. A background of beautiful aged Sheng – no must, basement, damp, only rich, deep, beautiful profile. Brothy, def. has a savory element early on on the back of the palate. Fall, Ocean Air, camphor salty, age on the back end then ends with a savory/sour note that lingers and moves forward in the mouth. Salt, savory, umami flavors linger long after you swallow.

30S/210 – Strong smells of umeboshi, young sheng, sour, bookstore in a good way, a fresh roll of seamless paper or cutting open a new watercolor block, sweet cream, slight notes of smoke and vegetables coming off. It is astringent in this cup, even at a slightly shorter steep time, with more age apparent on the tongue, flavors of black pepper, barley, saffron, again slight sour, still has the brothiness but becoming more Shu tasting vs savory. Beautiful nose. Cooling in the mouth, not full on camphor but in the direction. Still salty and rich.

40S/210 – On the nose – plum, honey, Dongfang Meiren, again bookstore in a good way but lesser than first 2 pours, wood, wet rocks, mountain air, salt is there but fading. No sweetness yet on flavor. The astringent flavors are lesser, still drying to the mouth though, a lot like the more alkaloidal root herbs (burdock, dried dandelion root, oak bark, and white willow bark.) Vegetal like green peppers meets dry hay meets dried burdock root. Deeper, muskier smells have given way to a cleaner, more nuanced aged flavor. Sour is fading too.

2m/212 – really let this steep go on but the rich fresh Sheng flavor came back and the sweetness arrived, so some kind of sugars dissolved that hadn’t yet and it definitely improved as I tasted it (a spoonful) at 1 minute. By minute 2, it was much more complex and pungent. Astringency is the same but sour is gone. Aged flavors still present but subdued. Aromas of wildflowers with flavors of fresh light leather, licorice root, celeriac, still a little salt oddly enough.