Mountain Stream Teas

Sipdown 8-2022

Found a sample of this in my sample box. Yay sipdowns! Super roasty, with a bit of a charcoal note that lingers. More sweet and caramel than I would have predicted, but the roastiness is still the focal point. A bit vegetal in the aftertaste- like roasted artichoke.

2022 sipdown no. 1

Thanks Cameron for this tea!

This roasted oolong is pretty tasty. A lovely sweetness up front and almost none/none of the minerality flavour I find in roasted oolongs. I’ve been steeping this twice and both steeps have great flavour.

If I ever decide to keep more roasted oolongs around, this would be a great addition.

Sipdown! (8 | 8)

The last of my yummy samples from a previous Mountain Stream order…

Another lovely red oolong, which is possibility my favorite kind. Probably because I adore Taiwanese black teas, and this is sort of like an oolong pretending to be that. :P

Very sweet and rich, with lots of dark brown sugar and honey mixed among hints of red and golden fruits. A generous sprinkling of cinnamon as well, which is a note I only tend to find in oxidized Taiwanese teas. This one actually has a bit of malt as well, and could probably convince me that it was a black tea if it was so inclined…

Yummy, sweet, cozy goodness. A perfect tea for fall and winter weather. :)

One lotus flower was what the sunny day requested.

2021 sipdown no. 121

Thank you Cameron for sending this my way!

The immediate taste is a creaminess, followed closely by a vegetal taste mixed with a bit of a hay. It’s a nice cuppa, but perhaps not necessary to order. Nonetheless, always happy to have the opportunity to try new teas!

2021 sipdown no. 119

Thank you Cameron for this tea!

This is the third red oolong I’ve now had the opportunity to try, and the first two were divine. This one has a small amount of that oolong minerality that I’m not fond of, though it’s a smooth cup overall. Sadly, it does seem to be lacking in the magic I found in the other red oolongs. There’s nothing inherently wrong with it, but it’s not one I need for my cupboard.

2021 sipdown no. 116

Thanks to Cameron for this tea! :)

This tea smells fairly strongly of honey, but in a delightful way. There’s also a typical breakfast tea scent, but the taste is so breakfast tea luxury. It’s hard to describe!

There’s not a stitch of astringency, which I love. There’s a typical Assam flavour, but with a lightness to it and not as much maltiness as I might expect. Like a Taiwanese high mountain mixed with an Assam.

Edit: As this cools, as incredible sweetness comes out. Just another reason to love this tea!

This is a must order for me.

2021 sipdown no. 113

Thank you Cameron for all of these delightful oolongs to explore!

This one actually has a bit of a roasted scent, despite being unroasted. And I noticed the leaves were darker than I anticipated before steeping as well.

There is a roasted flavour to this tea with plenty of delightful sweetness (but none of the minerality I’m not fond of). I’m having a difficult time accepting this as unroasted. I’ve only had one other Dong Ding Mr. Chang (from Camellia Sinensis), which I noted was vegetal and floral. This one mentions notes of “strong floral, deep vegetal…” and I’m not getting that at all.

Okay, okay. I’ve had to search the Dong Dings on the MS website because I just couldn’t accept that the label on this tea was correct. It looks like the 35% oxidation (as is labelled on the tea in front of me) is matching the Charcoal Roast Traditional Dong Ding Oolong, along with the flavours I’m tasting, but the production date is not the same.

Well, I’m not sure what else to do, save for enjoy this tea regardless of what it may be!

2023 sipdown no. 69

This one is much rosier than the initial harvest I tried of this tea (though still lovely and creamy). The honey is behind all the rose/floral that’s at the forefront. It’s still tasty, but not my favourite cup of tea. Sending what remains off to Kaylee to enjoy!

This harvest was picked Spring 2022

Well, this one smells delicious. Similar to Yuchi Wild Mountain Black with the sweetness emanating from the cup.

The flavour is very honey-like. Wow! I often find honey has such a strong flavour of it’s own, I would struggle to add it to much else than peppermint tea when I’m not feeling well (if I ate it!). However, it’s delicious as a unique flavour found naturally in this tea.

1st steep: 1 minutes
2nd steep: 2 minutes 30 seconds

Thank you to Cameron for all of these wonderful teas to try!

This harvest was picked either 2020 or 2021

Another delicious tea courtesy of Cameron!

This one has a mix of dates and maple sweetness and even a subtle scent of cinnamon. This is a very smooth tea as well and it comes across as an oolong mixed with a black almost — not quite fully oolong. I’m really enjoying this one. We’ll see what a second steep brings!

2021 sipdown no. 112

Wee sipdown of this tea from Cameron!

I have determined I quite enjoy an Alishan (Ali Shan). Well, the two I’ve tried haha! Perhaps I will eventually pick up a more oolong appropriate tea-drinking apparatus (can you tell I’m not sure where to start here?).

1st steep: 1 minute
2nd steep: 2 minutes 30 seconds

A wonderful surprise from Cameron — I’m so excited to try these new-to-me oolongs!

I have an exam at 6a tomorrow, so green oolong is where it’s at this evening. Something about a green oolong and it’s soothing qualities just lends itself to better concentration.

I really enjoyed the Ali Shan from CS, so I was thrilled to have the opportunity to try this one too. I love the mellow flavour here, with the most subtle hints of bitterness intermingled with floral-ness.

1st steep: 1 minute
2nd steep: 2 minutes 30 seconds

Thanks Cameron :)

2022 sipdown no. 28

I ordered 25g of this for myself in March and ripped through it far too quickly. This tea is really great, really great. It’s silky and full of flavour. Almost like a cross between TTC Yuchi Wild Mountain and Teavivre’s Bailin. I really love it and must have more soon!

I resteep this once as well and it retains a significant amount of flavour.

2021 sipdown no. 124

My word, this tea is tasty. Like a baked fig syrup against a smooth black base.

Even the second steep still has plenty of flavour. This is a must order.

1st steep: 1 minute
2nd steep: 2 minutes, 30 seconds

Thanks Cameron for introducing me to this company!

A wee surprise was waiting for me in the post, courtesy of the wonderful Cameron!

Naturally, I chose a black tea I thought would be the similar to Yuchi Wild Mountain XD. The dry scent is very similar to Teavivre’s Bailin, and the steeped scent reminds me of prunes!

There is a light, yet syrup-like sweetness. A prune sweetness, which I’m enjoying. The tea is light overall, and smooth.

I will try to resteep this to see how it goes!

What a lovely introduction to this company! Thanks Cameron!

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I’m not generally a floral person, but I love osmanthus, and this tea is no exception. The baozhong base is light yet creamy, with a silky texture. It has a lovely soft mineral flavor that makes me think of a clear mountain stream. The osmanthus is sweet, nectarous, with a beautiful apricot flavor that melds perfectly with the hints of stonefruit found naturally in the oolong. There’s also an additional floral note here, reminiscent of honeysuckle.

I should really keep an eye out for osmanthus teas, they’re always so lovely…

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Another small sample from my Mountain Stream sampler order a couple of years ago. Probably not a tea I would have chosen for myself, as yancha isn’t usually a favorite of mine. I don’t dislike it, but I tend to prefer bai hao or “red” varieties when I want a more oxidized oolong.

That being said, this is a very tasty tea. It does have that characteristic “autumn leaf” sort of flavor that I associated with oxidized and especially roasted oolong, along with a gentle woody character and plenty of minerality. The gentle roast is noticeable but it doesn’t overpower the other flavors, instead it adds a warm coziness. There’s a subtle sweetness and hints of honey and dried stonefruits. A floral note appears in the aftertaste, but it’s quite light and airy without any perfumey quality.

Not something I would order, as I still prefer my sweeter oxidized oolongs, but I enjoyed sipping down the little 10g packet. :)

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Wow, mixed reviews on this one lol! I wonder if it’s because of the differences in individual harvests.

Anyway, I think this is a scrumptious tea. It’s incredibly smooth and rich with oodles of deep caramelized maple brown sugar and syrupy sweet dried fruit. I’m thinking along the lines of dates with maybe some fig and a bit of golden raisin. There’s a gentle honey note as well, which adds a nice aromatic, nectarous sweetness. All of this rests on a comforting base of crisp autumn leaves, baked sweet potatoes, and lightly toasted nuts and grains. Perhaps a hint of caraway that reminds me of a Fujian black tea? At the end of the sip, there’s a whisper of lush-yet-sweet floral, and it tends to build slightly as I sip my way through the cup. A clear spring water sweetness lingers on my tongue.

A lovely tea, and so so perfect for Fall with its supremely cozy flavors. It reminds me a bit of a Bai Hao combined with perhaps a Fujian black tea. Definitely one I will consider reordering in the future, as the price seems fairly reasonable to me at $26/100 grams.

an absolutely wonderful tea. I wish they had a sample set to go through all of the roasting options available

November Sipdown Prompt – an oolong tea

Sipdown

We have had this twice lately, western style. It definitely gets a chance to show off more when prepared gong fu but is a very good tea either way.

On the first sip, I found myself singing “the last cup is the sweetest” to the tune of Rod Stewart’s “The First Cut Is The Deepest.” Anyone else experience that phenomenon where you are finishing a tea and the last bit is so good you want to re-order it immediately? I will restrain myself a while as I am not even close to my cupboard goal for the year. But there will have to be some Dong Ding ordered before next fall.

We haven’t had a gong fu session in quite a while. I began to have trouble sleeping so we stopped having caffeine in the evening and we just haven’t made time during the day on weekends, plus it has been in the 90’s and humid so not the first idea that springs to mind on a Saturday after mowing.

Derk gave this tea a glowing report and I was intrigued because Ashman and I love the Dong Ding from Tin Roof Teas, and when I buy it we tend to speed through the 100 gram bag because we make big pots of it for breakfast.

This was the perfect tea to renew our gong fu sessions. It was everything I love about Dong Ding plus so much more.

The wet leaf after the very quick rinse had little aroma. It was saving it for later.

Ashman jokes about his inability to make notes on tea, saying, “This is hot and tea-ish.” For this one, he sniffed and said it reminded him of the smell of wood. I agree, and all Dong Ding smells of wood and toast to me. He agreed it was toast and not smoke.

The first sip was a mind bender. Creamy? Was that creamy? Not milky, mind you, but creamy. Yes, yes, it was. Then fresh wood aroma and fruit, and a flitting of sweetness through the cup. The sweetness lay on the tongue a moment and I was startled to be reminded of fruity gum. I think it was what others more accurately called roasted sugarcane. I need to try some real sugarcane.

Steep two was magnificent. All the flavors increased. I can not say that the woodiness took a back seat and the fruit stepped forward, rather EVERYTHING stepped forward. In fact, I felt there was more fruit and Ashman said he thought there was more wood. The flavor overall increased, and it stayed that way for all five steeps.

Magnificent. Worth the price and worth the wait. I can hardly wait to try the others, including the exciting free sample that was sent. I ordered enough to get free shipping and the package came quickly, registered mail. A good experience start to finish.

First time had, it was so pithy bitter. Second time had, so sweet! Too sweet? How did I brew it the first time? I don’t remember. Second time was western with a strainer in a mug. Equal parts pomelo rind both times. So why so sweet this time? Roasted honey sweetness and a hint of raisin from the black tea balanced well by dark, citrusy-medicinal taste of the pomelo peel along with mild pithy bitterness and the vibrant sweet-n-sour pomelo note from the pulp mixed in with tea during processing. Minglemingle. The sweet and sour interplay is dynamic. Would make a great wintertime boiler on the stove.

Complex layered and intense roasted sugarcane-caramel and floral sweet top/mid notes with a seamless transition into equally complex, mild nutty mid/base tones. Mouthwatering fruity peach finish with a long-lasting returning sweet fragrance. And look at that leaf!

This Spring 2021 harvest is structured in depth of taste, sweetness and feeling. Had two early (430am) mornings in a row and this evening during Mandarin class, this tea suited both situations so well. The way the tea melded with my constitution astounded me — the subtle complexity, the way it drank and how it felt with each swallow; it traveled with a light touch and with its heaviness, nudged itself into all the right nooks and crannies of my being. The 10g freebie made 3 bowls that absolutely changed my mind about Dong Ding.

Bravo, Old Master!

Wow!