Zen Tea

A review of Tie Guan Yin (Oolong Tea) sampler by Zen Tea

Date: 10/15/2012
Company: Zen Tea
Tea Name: Tie Guan Yin Oolong Tea
Tea Type/Varietal: Oolong
Region: China
Steeping Vessel/Amt. Leaf: cup/ loose leaf
Plucking Season:
Liquor Color: pale green
Leaf Characteristics:

1st Steeping:
Water temperature: 200 Fahrenheit
Time: 2 minutes

Note: I received this tea sample from the folks at Zen Tea and it is a delight to finally be able to sample such fine tea. I cut open the tea pouch to find small pellets of leaves which smells very grassy. I take one teaspoon and put this in my mug and I add the boiling water into the cup and leave it to steep for only two minutes.

When I remove the saucer, used as a lid from the cup I find that the leaves have unfolded and as I scoop out the leaves, their color is green and the aroma that permeates the air is that of green leafy veggies. Once having scooped the leaves from the tea, I am now able to notice the teas’ color which is a very pale green color and the aroma is of veggies and green.

2nd Steeping:
Water temperature: 200 Fahrenheit
Time: 3 minutes

Note: Using same tea leaves I steep this time for few minutes and the teas color is still a very pale green color. I must say it is one of the lightest tea color that I have come across. I scoop out the tea leaves and sip the tea slowly while trying to discern the taste which is very complex with a layered combination of vanilla, violet and orchid flavour.

I am sorry to say, I am not getting this at all. There is faintness of honey once one is passed the leafy/veggies and to finding the creamy smoothness of this oolong. And yes, one can say there is a slight orchid flavour.

I like this Tie Guan Yin and I realize I must experience it many times more to find the hidden complexity that’s offered.

This tea had a very strong roasted oaky taste that was different than the other monkey-picked oolong I tried from Teavana, but I could tell it was of a better quality as it retained its flavor even through the 6th infusion unlike Teavana’s weak version. I normally don’t like a roast this dark, but the flavor slowly grew on me and it tasted good with meals. So if you like a roasted taste combined with the light floral notes of an oolong, you would prefer this over Teavana’s.

This smells like coconut candy. Which is amazing right now because I seriously need something sweet and relaxing.
Actually… it really smells like buttery coconut shrimp. Which sounds weird but is, again, amazing. I seriously love oolongs.
I was a little disappointed with the flavor – it was kind of thin. I added a little extra leaves anyway so I think I would need to brew this longer, closer to three minutes to really get the flavor – I was missing the lilac notes too.
It does smell amazing though.

I was looking for something that would taste a little like Irish breakfast tea. it has a dense smooth flavor with hints of malt. taste good with a dash of honey. its is a good tea warm up in the morning. if zen tea ever decides to produce an Irish breakfast blend it should include this tea.

Finishing off the last of this sample this morning. This is a nice strong morning tea. I wish I had time to make some pancakes to go along with this one. It really makes me think of hot maple syrup.

I steeped the leaves again this time for four minutes, threw it in a tumbler with half and half and sugar and plan to take it to work with me. I need some energy this morning! I just have to get through today and I have two days off. I plan to spend them with some pu-erh…

On another note, I think today is going to be the day I’ll put up my beloved Christmas tree. It’s almost time to get out all the Christmas decorations for the rattie cage too.

http://flic.kr/p/dtgFMz -—- A picture of my Fintan when he was just a little baby! Isn’t he just a ham?

I feel like I’ve really been slacking on leaving reviews for the various samples I’ve recieved, but that’s going to change today. Yup. I’m inspried today. I’ve got all day to myself to spend with the new Coheed and Cambria album and tickets to the show on tuesday and so this is possibly the greatest thing that’s happened to me all year. dkalfjioeahfenl =).

Okay so onto the tea. This is a pretty nice black tea. Not bitter at all really, but it does have a little edge at the end of the sip which I do appreciate. There’s a great rich flavor here, I’m actually getting maple. This is a great breakfast tea and it would go awesome with pancakes. This experience is exactly the reason I switched from coffee to tea. Every tea I taste has a completely different mood to it and I can always attribute it to something I’d like to be doing while drinking it. It’s inspiring in a way. Very happy with this sample.

With this being a good morning tea I just had to try it with a bit of cream and sugar (sometimes my coffee addiction does come out). I really did enjoy it much more without any additives. All they do is dull down the feeling I was getting from the tea. I’ll be sure not to add anything to it in the future.

“Your selfishness has robbed you of the man you could have been. I wouldn’t change a thing about you. I love you dearly, my friend”

Because I just had to.

I resteeped the leaves and am loving the second pot of tea as much as I enjoyed the first. The flavors taste even smoother now than the first time, and the first time it was remarkably smooth.

This tea is incredible. Definitely one worth checking out.

These leaves are gorgeous! And they brew up the most beautiful, pale green colored liquid. So very pale … like a color blending of alabaster and the softest, palest green. So beautiful!

The flavor is unbelievably good. So sweet and it seems to sparkle on the tongue… it’s almost effervescent. The flavor starts out with a very, very subtle vegetative tone – almost barely existent – tasting of the mildest, youngest steamed artichoke heart. Buttery and rich, but with only a hint of vegetative taste. As I continue to sip, the vegetative tones develop somewhat, but they never become a really STRONG taste. Everything about this tea is very soft, delicate, and almost white tea-like. I mean that to mean that it tastes of such an exceptional quality, something that is in the furthest reaches of green tea (I like green tea, but, this is like a step beyond green tea, even).

I really love this. A truly remarkable tea.

A review of Coconut Oolong (Oolong tea flavoured) by Zen Tea

Date: 10/10/2012
Company: Zen Tea
Tea Name: Coconut Oolong
Tea Type/Varietal: Oolong
Region: China
Steeping Vessel/Amt. Leaf: cup/ leaf
Plucking Season:
Liquor Color: light brownish / amber
Leaf Characteristics: tea leaves appeared to be withered then fried perhaps when I open the tea packet. It smells strongly of the coconut.

1st Steeping:
Water temperature: 175 Fahrenheit
Time: 3 minutes

Note: I took one teaspoon of the leaves and put this in my cup and poured the water that began boiling and let to cool into the cup over the leaves and left to steep for a few minutes. After the set time, I strain out the tea leaves and pour the tea into another cup and the color is light brown and smells strongly of coconuts. I find this a bit over powering because I tend to not like coconut. When I taste the tea it is very sweet as if sugar is present but I have not added a thing to it.

2nd Steeping:
Water temperature: 190 Fahrenheit
Time: 3 minutes

Note: I decided to boil the water longer and using the same tea leaves I pour the water over the tea leaves in my cup and left to steep for 3 minutes. I want less of the coconut this time; or I am hoping to not smell it as much. With the first cup of tea I had I thought I smelled something like vanilla but it may have been the lilac, but I am not sure. There is a faint scent underneath the coconut which makes me think of vanilla bean.

The teas’ aroma is lightly coconut and floral like with sweetness to it as well that permeates the air. It is like candy / sugary. I don’t smell the coconut as much now; it is not as annoying I should say.

I will have to leave this oolong alone for a while. I am happy to review oolong teas but this one seems a bit too strong in aroma.

LAST DAY for Zentealife.com’s super sale 50-60% off all of their teas. Inventories limited to make way for the new harvests. Coupon code: Steepster

Sipped this one down today. Still delicious! Also sipped down Davidstea’s Root Beer Float (mixed the last with some of Adagio’s Caramel tea!)

Thanks Zen tea for sending me a sample of this one! This was my first matcha! I may be a bad judge of matcha, since I’ve never had any before. It intrigued me that it was blended with genmaicha though, which is a favorite. I waited for the water to cool a while so the matcha wasn’t bitter and steeped for a minute thirty. It’s kind of hard to tell where the genmaicha ends and the matcha begins, since I’m not exactly sure what a matcha should taste like, but this was good! The genmaicha is a delicious base and was dusted with matcha powder to make it an even brighter green. The steep color was a cloudy bright green. The flavor has that toasty roastiness of a perfect genmaicha. I feel like I keep using the same words to describe genmaicha (toast, roast) but are there any others, really? I love the balance with the fresh & clean sencha. I just wish I could tell how good the matcha is compared to others. I wasn’t planning on it, but I infused the leaves for three cups, I loved it so much. The other steeps were for a bit longer, but other than most of the matcha powder disappearing, the genmaicha flavor was still as strong as the first cup. This is three for three with amazing samples from Zentealife.com. I’m looking forward to trying more and will be placing an order when my tea stash is depleted a bit… that may be a while though!

Thank you to Zen Tea for this sample! This and the Monkey Picked I drank last night are like night and day! This is a green, floral oolong like I’m used to, nice and smooth (though not quite creamy) and very spring like. None of the dark cloying charcoal. In fact if it was up to me I would switch the names, the dark roast has more “iron” conotations to me. And yet, this one still created a slight buzzing sensation on my tongue like I’ve been experiencing with the medium roasts… hmm perhaps it’s just something I’m starting to tune into. Personally I would prefer something in between the two and will continue to seek the light and medium roasted traditional style tieguanyins.

Edit: Enjoying the second half of the sample today, following the company’s brewing parameters rather than gongfu style. I didn’t care for the first infusion so I tossed it but the second was very nice, I actually got the vanilla and gardenia notes. The third starts off with a bit of umami then turns… fruity. That’s interesting.

This is a very dependable Tie Guan Yin, buttery and floral. It doesn’t have any roasted flavor like some tie guan yin’s and the buttery brothy flavor is more subdued. Like others have said this has a strong grassy taste, it’s not bad it just reminds me more of a green tea at times. Further steepings lost the floral aspect and added a little more buttery taste followed by grassiness. I think I’ve had more tie guan yin’s then any other kind of oolong and I love the myriad variations that can be found among the different companies or even the same company but different times of year. There is something nice in the unevenness of quality among tea from purchase to purchase. It reminds you that tea is produce and not like other dry goods that are replenished without any change.

Arggg, I got a long day today with a crazy jitz class and making lots of filipino egg rolls (lumpias) for my wedding. UGGG.

Thanks to Zen Tea for a sample of this tea!

STEEPED: Light brown tea, coffee like smell.
TASTE: Light oolong taste, smokey roasted nutty flavor. I didn’t get much of the vanilla / creamy taste.
Sweetened, the nuttyness comes out more. I even get that nut skin taste. I think I prefer the unsweetened tea more as it seems more sophisticated in taste.

COMMENTS: This is a great alternative to someone who doesn’t want a black tea, but wants a bold nutty taste. Overall really good for hazelnut lovers. However, this wasn’t creamy for me and I felt this needed another dimension for me. Maybe a longer steep would bring out more of the oolong?

It’s funny how my taste in teas has changed over time. I find that now I am more drawn towards straight teas, but somehow most of the ones I own are flavoured. I am so happy that I ordered this as one of my samples! It is naturally sweet and actually reminds me of my favourite aspects of Nepal Black.

I steeped this one twice, and I think it would be good with or without a bit of milk. It doesn’t really need sweetener but my boyfriend put some sugar in his and it was definitely tasty!

I’ll keep this one in stock!

Prior to this I have only have tried bagged chamomile and I’ve heard from other people that lose version taste different. So I took my first sip expecting it to be different and was delighted to find it to taste like chamomile I knew. Of course it taste different but there are many hints of sameness. It has a plain but pleasant taste that just make me want to relax. In a way it is kinda boring but in a good way. It is a cup of tea you drink when everything is going to fast. The taste reminds you to take a breath and think about simplicity.
Note: do not try to steep in a mesh ball; it is a pain to clean out.

Ashmanra’s sipdown challenge – June 2023 Tea #4 – A minty tea

Well, it’s a mint tea but not a true sipdown.  Nothing new to say on this cupboard classic — mint and chocolate. 

Additional notes: Finished my first ever giant pouch of this lovely and I’m glad I bought more. Can’t be without it! (Psst… there is still some available on zentealife.com and I think the sale is still on!)

Additional notes: Sipping this one today for my headache (mint) with 52Teas Smaug tea’s cayenne helping my sinuses. Unfortunately, not enough cayenne or mint. My little cat buddy Rambo passed away last night and it is rough. He was an almost 18 year old champion and took a big chunk of my heart with him.

Additional notes: So this is the new batch from my recent Zen order. This one wasn’t available for a while, so I was happy to see it back. And I’m very happy to note… it’s exactly the same! I’m so thrilled. I think it might be my favorite mint blend. Somehow it tastes the same as my pouch that is years old. It’s almost like it magically doesn’t change flavor as it ages. Awesome. I might add some cocoa shells next time to make it more chocolatey.

Additional notes: Sipping this one I keep thinking “This is soooo gooood”. Even though this batch is from around 10/2012 it still tastes like the day I bought it! I have no idea how. It is the most magical mint tea. So much mint. Really perfect at a teaspoon and a 1/4 or 1/3 but one and a half teaspoons is almost too much mint. I REALLY hope that the new batch I just bought from Zen is as good as this one. It must be my favorite mint blend.

Additional notes: There will probably be quite a few short tasting notes from me about old favorites. Have to drink those! This one is almost shockingly too much mint with a teaspoon and a half and I like a lot of mint! It’s shocking because this blend is kind of ancient. But Zen uses great pouches to package them in. I would definitely reorder this one (getting low!) It’s one of my favorite mint no-caff blends.

Additional notes: I had this last night because of a headache that I had since I woke up. It seemed to make my headache disappear! I love minty teas for that, and this one is certainly a favorite. The new teabags I bought just make this a pure chocolate, minty cup. No tiny rooibos pieces! Since my headache was gone I stayed up later to watch the movie ‘Another Earth’… I liked it!

I adore this one! Wow! It is probably my favorite minty tea I’ve tried. It’s the perfect blend of chocolate and tons of mint leaves on a rooibos base. The mint is so cooling. I’d say the mint has more of a presence than the chocolate. But that is because there is tons of mint here. I thought I’d try this one since I have a headache and I’ve heard mint helps those dang things. It’s like those Andes candies or thin mint cookies! But honestly, I’d prefer this tea to the cookies, though those are good too! It tastes great when I let the last bit of the cup cool too. Thank you Zen Tea (zentealife.com) for the samples! Zen’s samples are very convicining. I’d love to buy some of this and the Energizing Chai I’ve tried from them. My stash has to go down a bit first! This will be my go-to mint tea FOR SURE, and I usually prefer spearmint to mint anyway. Like I said though — this is the best minty tea!