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Spring 2019 harvest. I’ve already reviewed this once before so I won’t get into the details of every steep. Like the winter harvest, this was an excellent gaoshan with heady aromas and luscious florals. Notes of narcissus, hyacinth, and wildflowers interspersed with hints of green apple and tropical fruit. Rich and buttery throughout with a candy sweet finish. Went 10 steeps deep with new layers of flavor unfolding with each steep.

Despite being bored with green oolongs as of late, this one really grabbed me and I finished it off within just a few days.

This tea kinda reminds me of that dress color optical illusion the Internet was arguing about a few years ago. As I drink it, I internally debate with myself whether it’s really an oolong or a black/red. I lean towards it being a red tea but like Darjeeling, it straddles the line between oolong and red. This is the Spring 2019 version which is new and improved according to Mountain Stream Teas.

Judging from appearances, the dark balled leaves certainly look like an oolong. The dry leaves have a very oxidized but sweet aroma. On the nose I get cherries, honey, and rose. The taste is more delicate than your typical black for sure. It’s smooth with a gentle malt and a prominent rose flavor that I really dig. Later on I get woodsy oak notes. Nothing tannic or harsh here, just a mellow and pleasant drinking experience.

Got this as a sample with my last Taiwan Sourcing order. This is a light and sweet oolong with gentle notes of dates, toffee, and caramel. Roasted plums and cookies appear as the flavor of the tea settles. Gongfu wasn’t all that impressive so I was content to grandpa steep this one. When cold brewed, it’s greener with honeysuckle and more mineral sweetness.

Backlog.

This was another Spring 2019 Laoshan green tea sample. The downside of buying so many samplers is when you do come across a really good tea, you don’t get to enjoy it for very long. I managed two sessions with this and consider it one of their better greens from this harvest with a flavor distinct from other Laoshan varietals.

The dry leaf smelled of spinach and lima beans. A pine nut aroma emerged after letting it sit in a warmed shiboridashi. Wet leaf smelled like cabbage and spice. The first couple of steeps were light and cooling with a clover like sweetness and notes of toasted pumpkin seed. The next 2 steeps had a zucchini-like vegetal flavor with light spice, broth and balanced with a soft sweetness. Absent were the soybean and anise flavors that characterize most Laoshan teas.

Teabag tea.

It’s that time of year again. Seasons are changing and I’ve come down with the sniffles, a sore throat, and all that good stuff. Since my sense of taste and smell are inhibited, I decided to skip the more delicate teas and sip down some of my less loved ones. I’d been sitting on this teabag sample my dad gave me for a year or so. He shops at TeaGschwender often but only drinks black tea so all his non-black tea samples gets passed down to me.

I brewed this in an 8oz mug for 90s at 170 F and a second time for 30s using 190 F water. The liquor was light amber in color with the barest tinge of green. Not the vibrant green that’s characteristic of sencha. A sign that this tea was past peak freshness. The brewed tea was decidedly savory; smooth and lacking any astringency. Vegetal with a cashew like creaminess and smoky flavor that reminded me of roasted eggplant. It didn’t have the typical grassiness or oceanic taste that most Japanese green teas do. Despite the atypical flavor and lack of freshness, it was still decent for a bagged tea and helped calm my sniffles.

Spring 2018.

Hmm, this one was just above ‘meh’ for me. The flavor hardly bore any resemblance to the oolong tea that its derived from. Leaves smelled like cocoa and tobacco. The brewed tea was slightly earthy and tasted of yams and cocoa powder. Lighter and less malty than your typical black. I didn’t taste the floral honeyed notes they described nor any of the fruitiness of Mi Lan Dancong.

Spring 2019 harvest.

To be honest, I was a little bored by this tea. This is a middle of the road kind of Li Shan. It has a generic high mountain flavor and lacks the depth and fullness of better Taiwanese oolongs. It’s not a bad tea by any stretch, but I’ve been spoiled by some really amazing Li Shans in the past.

The tea offers enticing aromas of flowers, tropical fruit, and pine. The brewed tea had a lilac-y character with fruity hints and a mild sweetness. Starts off light and slowly builds up to a buttery mouthfeel. It gives at least 6 infusions and on occasion, I’ve pushed it to as many as 9 steeps.

Spring 2019 harvest

I was torn about how to rate this tea. I love it cold brewed but not so much prepared hot. Cold, or rather ambient brewing, was able to extract the best flavor from this tea. It had this almost ethereal floral flavor of honeysuckle and perfumey lilacs, punctuated by occasional bursts of hyacinth, and sweet grass notes in the background. Tastes like drinking perfume but in the best, most delicious possible way. Easily a 95+ rating for the ambient brew.

However, this tea was not as successful hot steeped. It produced a somewhat uneven flavor, more savory than flowery. Vegetal with a lemongrass sharpness.

I’m sure there is a way to bring out those luscious floral notes by hot steeping but I couldn’t quite figure it out. That’s okay though, I’m content to ambient steep as long as this warm autumn weather we’re having continues.

This was a lovely cold brew. Very refined and succulent peachy flavor. Reminds me of the fruitiness of a good quality dan cong. Natural tasting and not overly strong. White peach was the dominant flavor here; I couldn’t really taste the blackcurrant. If it’s there, it’s subtle and doesn’t try to compete with the peach. Mind you, I always blend my flavored teas with a straight so that could be why it was so faint.

Although I love peaches, it’s been a while since I’ve actually had a peach flavored tea. Teavana’s Peach Tranquility was a favorite of mine back in the day. It was good but had a lot going on. This tastes more similar to Lupicia’s Momo Super Grade oolong, a baozhong subtly scented with Japanese white peach. It’s got a purer flavor that tastes just like ripe summer peaches.

Spring 2019 harvest

My dragonwell tasting flight continues. I have to say, I’ve never really been into Long Jing until this year. Turns out it wasn’t my tastebuds, but operator error. Having now learned to brew it properly, I’ve started to gain a newfound appreciation for this tea.

I steeped it grandpa style: 1.2g of leaf in 10oz of 180 F water. The aroma of the leaves is sweet and vegetal. The dry leaf smells of spinach, edamame, and chestnut. The brewed tea has the aroma of sweet peas and honey. On the first sip, I tasted warm grass, sugar snap peas, and green beans. Fresh, crisp texture with a thick mouthfeel. Underlying this is mild bitterness that grows ever so slightly as I drink down my cup but doesn’t become overbearing.