Taiwan Tea Crafts

still loving this and glad i have lots to eventually share with VariaTEA

looks like steepster is back to not being a shitty time to update things. sadly since i’ts been several days, i’ve forgotten anything i wanted to say about most of the teas i dranks. lol

still in love with this one

yes. yes and did i mention yes? Loving this one from TTC and so glad i have 250g of it haha

Trying to catch up on things, had this the other day…it’s tasty but it’s not that honey taste.

Another one from a week or so ago. Will capture proper notes later.

last little bit of this is packed for VariaTEA. I don’t often have many teas to share with her as her purchasing vs mine is a little stacked haha but every now and then i get to share a few straight teas with her:)

need to try this again. Recent purchase but drank it a week? ago. I do remember enjoying it, which is good since it won an award lol

When I open the bag, I get hit in the face with wintergreen but it’s nonexistent in taste. It’s mostly autumn leaf and mineral with honey sweetness and florality that are muted, a hint of malt. Can’t place the flower — it almost reminds me of baby powder, maybe gardenia past its prime? Flamboyant this tea is not. It would be good when I’m in the mood for an understated brew. Regardless of its lack of overt character, this makes a fine autumn cup. I’ll have to come back to this one, and I will because I have a whole cake, haha. Stuff the tiny teapot and see what it has to offer. It seems ashmanra had some success 9 months ago.

this is supposed to be removed from my cupboard but i’m leaving it in in case they need to troubleshoot with it. Doesn’t appear in the most drank/logged view but does in the recently added view. wheeee

Fall 2017 Harvest

I seem to be on a roll with eating a food and tasting the food in the tea. Pear meet pear note in tea!

My first steep was probably too short (1min30s) so I’m attributing the initially light flavour to that. A lot of typical red oolong flavours are coming through though: baked bread, stewed fruits, the aforementioned pear, blueberries (also pretty distinct), vanilla, brown sugar, nuts, and a hint of sweet spice… Despite thinking this a weak and watery cup to start, the typical mi xiang sweetness really smacks me one near the end. Sugar crush!

The second steep (3min30s) cooled down quite a bit before I payed attention to it. It tastes strongly of cherries, and is complimented by vanilla, brown sugar, and bread notes. There’s a bit of tree resin too. I initially thought it was citrus-like, but it’s woodier (pine, cedar, or even eucalyptus). The sweet, cherry-like aftertaste is strong.

Third steep (over 4min) is a smoother version of the second steep. It tastes of cherries, resin, vanilla, and sugar, verging on floral honey. It’s still extremely sweet, with a hint of cinnamon to finish. Maybe even a slight return of the blueberry and pear.

Steep Count: 4, Western Style. This tea also deserves a gongfu session at a later time.

Spring 2020 Harvest supposedly.

For breakfast I had a slice of toast, with butter and pineapple coconut jam. Now, I only bring this up because if I didn’t know better I would think that some of that butter and jam slipped into my cup while I wasn’t looking!

This oolong is relatively buttery, floral, extremely tropical (tangy pineapple, coconut), with a pleasant jam-like sweetness. Like my pineapple coconut jam, which contains a hint of rum, this also has a faint, subtle “bitter-sugar,” flowery undercurrent that adds depth to this first steep. It reminds me of sarsaparilla (vanilla, licorice, green note, etc.) or just straight up bitter vanilla. This vanilla quality softens to a silky fineness in my third steep; the tropical, butter, and floral notes are well balanced here. It’s my favourite cup so far.

This oolong is almost perfect for me, although I do prefer more butter, and less tangy flowers. Still, it tastes like Hawaii in a cup – or maybe it’s fairer to say it’s Taiwan in a cup (there’s a lot of subtropical and tropical goodness in Taiwan too)!

Steep Count: 5 @1 minute each, western style.

Next time I will try it gongfu or grandpa style. My gaiwan hasn’t seen use in years but this tea makes me think it’s time!

This wasn’t as good as the Shibi teas of yesteryear. It had those familiar mouthwatering aromas of wildflowers and syrup, and it starts off just as I remembered it: bright, fresh, and floral. But it goes south quickly. It develops a savory flavor with this odd oats/toasted grain edge to it. Tried different brewing methods but alas, could not rescue this tea. Ah well, better luck next season.

Posted for the wrong tea. See my updated tasting note.

Backlog.

This is one of the teas from the great Steepster freeze of 2020 that I’m getting around to logging now. My memory is a little hazy because I only had a couple of sessions with it, but I remember it being a solid SLX with the usual alpine florals and tropical notes. A little lighter and lacking the full mouthfeel of previous harvests. Good for 6-7 steeps.