Featured & New Tasting Notes

Oh, now this is the best tulsi! Pungent, herbal-sweet, clove-dominant. That’s incredible. There are strong peppery-cinnamon and licorice-basil notes, too. Really tingles my tongue. In fact, the citrusy aftertaste and tingle feels like Sichuan peppercorns.

Saying this isn’t going to do any favors, but something about it reminds me of working at the bowling alley. The shoe disinfectant?

Inhaled this (like usual). No memories except that it delivers on the maple, coconut, and rice flavours.

Vallhallow Trade #4. Oh, the earthy goodness! Slightly smoky (which increases with steep time). Smooth mouthfeel with barely any astringency. Hardwood notes. There is a bit of bitterness that pops up as you steep longer. It is not unpleasant but I can’t say I enjoy it either. I need to go smell more wood because I can’t quite put my finger on what this reminds me of. Probably closer to oak with a bit of cedar mixed in. Walnut maybe? And a hint of malt. The leaves are gorgeous. Dark brown when dry, chocolate brown with hints of red when steeped. There’s a slight briskness to it that would pair well with milk drinkers.

(52teas (Anne) 2022: 273)

Didn’t really get too much peach, but a nice mix of spices – I particularly noticed the cardamom. I did oversteep slightly, I think, as the tea was just a touch astringent. Hoping that will go away next time, and maybe it will help bring out more peach? Also of note, I’d had a lot of garlic sauce when I drank this, and sometimes that has some lingering effects. Withholding rating because of that; it would be mid-high 70s for now I think.

Resteep brought out a really nice creamy/umami flavour that was likely from the base tea (it reminded me of a flavour that comes out with oolongs). Still not really peach, but that flavour was nice.

A sad sipdown. May prompt – a tea flavored like a favorite baked good.

So rich and caramel, smells like Birthday Cake Oreos but doesn’t taste like them. Tastes like rich, delicious cake but has a strong, resteepable base that makes it also pair well with sweets, something not all flavored teas can do well. Elegant tasting.

Vallhow Tea #3. Whiskey? Vodka? Kinda… GIN! As the tea cools it reminds me so much of gin it is uncanny. But when hot the citrus notes of the Yuzu fruit mesh really well with the wood notes. If you are looking for a gin alternative you just found it. While it is good hot because it really brings out the woody notes, I actually like this one more cold. The wet aroma is incredibly perfumy. Like some lady who overdid it just a little bit too much but is mellowed out with deep wood notes. The liquor color is clear, amber.

A Hong Shui with very light oxidation and a superb roast that never takes over the experience. It is very tasty and might just be the best Hong Shui I’ve ever tried. Due to the super smooth texture and not overly full body, it is very easy to drink. I also noticed an elevated mood for hours after drinking it.

Dry leaves smell of chocolate cookies, fruit orchard (pear, apple). Wet leaves then have an aroma of fenugreek leaves and cooked fruit such as red plums.

The taste is initially quite fruity with woody undertones and a hint of walnut shells. Later, it gets more savoury and even reminds me of salmon. The aftertaste is cooling and has a particularly strong character of mountain flowers.

I am having a really off day and posted my very brief review as part of my Instagram caption. Then I got confused where my review went to I am copy/pasting from that:

I ordered syrups and am back to experimenting with sweet creams. Today I made a toasted marshmallow sweet cream and paired it with this tea. It was mostly a sweet vanilla marshmallow tea, with the spice and toasted element not coming through strongly but keeping this from being overly sweet

Tea swap sample from vallhallow! I added some oat milk and it brought out the chocolate and cream very nicely! This seems like a good “first thing in the morning” tea for me. I think I may actually have some of this stashed somewhere that I haven’t broken into yet, so thanks for the inspiration to go find it!

Couldn’t ask for a better tea to have post-surgery. So mellow and easy-going, gentle and nourishing. Thanks, Mandala :)

Trade with Vallhallow. #2. Tea experiences take a pivotal role in the lives of many Steepsters. They can range from tea shop experiences to something as simple as being blown away by the first sip of tea. That was me with this tea. Something about that first sip just made me go, “Whoa I need to write a note righ now.” Malty flavors surrounded by chocolate and woodsy notes. Maybe a bit of rosewood and a slight smokiness as well. This is after steeping it a little longer to see what I would uncover. The first sip had some lighter fruity tones. No astringency as of now. In a way, this somewhat reminds me of the Laoshan Black from Verdant Tea. The dry leaf has great coloring. Dark choclate/ umber tones with specks of golden threads. A sign of high quality and well-processed leaf. And cute tiny trichomes sticking to the inside of the bag.

I am not a big fan of Long Jing, but if they were all as exciting as this one, I would certainly change my mind. I particularly like its tingling, warming and sandpaper-like moutfeel as well as the unique bitterness present, which is stronger than in many shengs produced these days.

The dry leaf aroma has hints of sponge cake and instant cocoa, while wet leaves smell of thistles, seaweed, snowdrop flowers, and cabbage.

The taste is mineral and peppery. There is almost no astringency and flavours include a quite well-defined sake bitterness, almond skins, morel mushrooms, seaweed, and sunflower oil. The aftertaste is crisp with an additional green pepper note to it.

I hurt my back a few days ago, probably by sleeping funny. Maybe that is why I am craving tea for the last few days, to get that bit of comfort.

During the winter I steeped this in hot apple juice for a sort of mulled apple cider. Today I wanted a quick and easy late lunch so I just made it in water.

It is a decent tea but it is nothing compared to Cuppageek’s evening blends like Baked Apple Pie and Spiced Fall Evenings. But it made a nice cuppa to go with a quesadilla.

I did the easy quesadilla where you just put some cheese, fold the sides in and fold the bottom up. Instead of putting it in the oven, in a panini press, or in a pan, I put it in a sandwich cage in my toaster. See how quick and easy?

And if you haven’t tried putting a smidge of Sweet Baby Ray’s bbq sauce in your quesadilla, I highly recommend it. If I am not going for quick and easy, I put sautéed onions and chicken tossed with bbq sauce, but as I said, I am going for quick and easy today!

Grabbed this very old sample from the final “Here’s Hoping Teabox” which occured right around the time I joined Steepster (thanks to all participants that added tea and tea-sipper for organizing!) Finally drinking this for my “one gong fu session a month” goal.

80ml (shiboridashi) | 4.15g | 205F | Rinse/10s/15s/20s/25s/30s/35s/40s/45s/50s

I gave the tea a pretty long rinse while I was getting all the gong fu stuff ready. The leaf had a very sharp and somewhat bitter wet hay aroma afterwards, which presented in the rinse liquid. My first infusion is more mellow, though (which I prefer) so maybe a long rinse is to my benefit. There is a bit of that grassy/hay quality in the aroma, but it is very floral, and lacking the sharpness. It tastes like a pollen-heavy floral nectar, chased by a little grassy/hay note, and just a hint of bitter melon. The second infusion smells delightfully floral with a bit of a fruity undertone, and a new gold raisin flavor is presenting in the flavor, with an apricot/nectarine sort of stonefruit aftertaste. A green tea sort of beany/smoky note lingers on my tongue, as well. Went through nine infusions before the liter of water I’d heated was out so I wrapped up there, but I think it could’ve given even more.

Another restock of an old favorite! This one is full of large coconut shavings and smells just like gingersnap cookies. It’s nice to have it back in my tea cabinet again. If Satori ever goes out of business, I’ll be so sad. They have so many good blends!

(I think I have the 2020 harvest of this tea, but I’m not certain of the year.)
I love a complex black tea. This one is both fruity and smoky without being overwhelming, reminds me of applewood smoke. Moderate body. Carries a variety of flavors that are all distinct but blend together really well, I’m struggling to describe it – it’s like the brushstrokes in a Turner painting, individually they’re fuzzy and muddled but together they form a clear picture. Towards the end the tea becomes pleasantly bitter in a way that makes me salivate. This one deserves paying attention to.

Coldbrew is soooooooo the way to go with this herbal tea. I wish I had a decent coldbrew bottle for it, and am tempted to use my amazon gift money on a Hario Filter. They always look so pretty. I really shouldn’t because two of my tumblers do have cold brew filter capabilities, and one of the ones I am getting will, but they are a pain in the butt to clean. Anyone have any experience with the Hario Filter bottles? Easy cleaning is the big draw in for me, and if having one means I go through my loose leaf like this faster because I’m cold brewing, all the better.

I will try it again hot, but it’s so much creamier and sweeter cold. Instead of overripe near rotting fruit for me, it’s fresher cold and I really like it. Now to see how the Pandan waffle does.

I can definitely taste the caramel here, but the black base isn’t very good. Once it cools, the caramel flavor becomes quite strong and tasty at first, but then it settles into a sort of weird fake tang. It’s still decent with milk, and it genuinely tastes like salted caramel. Thanks tea-and-cats!

Reaching for a favorite today. Its chocolatey goodness never fails. So reliably good.

Another from Kawaii433! Thanks so much! I was curious why ‘Duck’ happens to be in the name for this, and it looks like the description says that ducks like this rice? hmm. So it’s a decent genmaicha then, with a memorable name. :D A balance of popped rice and green tea. It was never astringent for me, but I was really being careful with the parameters. Everything here that I love about a great genmaicha. I wanted that toasty comfort yesterday, on probably one of the last cooler days of the spring. And for my no caff choice today, Bird & Blend’s Figgy Pud for that same reason. Now it will be hot out today!
Steep #1 // 1 teaspoon for a full mug // 50 minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep
Steep #2 // 30 minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep

This is so good. I don’t like coffee, but this blend somehow takes the best things from coffee while leaving out the worst. So it’s totally like having a coffee latte, but the perfect version for me. The hint of spices could be snickerdoodle – they’re certainly desserty and tasty. Thanks for introducing me to this company tea-and-cats! I will almost certainly have to purchase more.

From Kawaii433 a couple months ago now.  From my wishlist!  Thank you so much!  The first of the new ones that Kawaii sent over that I’m trying. I hope both you and Pachinko are doing okay, Kawaii… 
I love a good banana tea and this is that.  However, I was wondering about the fudge part of the name… I can’t really taste any chocolate, so I started to wonder if they meant not a chocolate fudge, but like a fudge that only tastes like banana… you know, how sometimes a fudge isn’t actually chocolate and there are different flavors, for example: maple fudge.   The only time I really experienced fudge was during a vacation in the Adirondacks, and tried many odd flavors of fudge, so I know different flavors are a real thing!  So maybe this is just straight BANANA fudge… but no.  After reading the description, Arthur Dove does mean chocolate.  ANYWAY, who needs chocolate flavor when this banana flavor is so so good?  Not quite candy banana, but also not quite plain natural banana. But this is one of the great banana teas if I’m not aiming for also chocolate!
Steep #1 // 1 heaping teaspoon for full mug // 29 minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep
Steep #2 // 2-3 minutes after boiling // 3 minute steep

Sipdown!
As others have said, this a pretty nice strawberry chocolate tea. Sadly, not much hazelnut and no pancakes at all.

After seeing all of the rave reviews for Wang Family Tea on this site, I finally pulled the trigger and placed an order last November. Picked up 25g each of Gangkou, Lishan, Shan Lin Xi, and Long Feng Xia. I’m happy to report that all of them were outstanding and having experienced these teas, I get the hype for this vendor now.

Gangkou is the first tea I tried and the sole low elevation tea of the bunch. Wang Tea’s website describes it as having five flavors: sour, sweet, salty, bitter, and spicy. Indeed, this was the wildest one of the bunch as the flavors are all over the place. The website recommends a high leaf to water ratio and “heavily boiling water“ to steep. Despite my better judgement I followed their steeping parameters initially.

Overall, this was a complex and enjoyable tea although a bit challenging at times due to how unpredictable and inconsistent it is.