Tie Guan Yin Competition Grade "Monkey Picked" Oolong

A lovely tea, thank you so much Indigobloom! I did three steeps out of the leaves and the third was definitely my favourite. The first was lovely, with just a hint of vegetal notes and something else I still can’t identify. The second wasn’t quite as flavourful, despite me letting the leaves sit, but the third? delicious. The third is everything you could wish in an oolong. Slightly milky, slightly buttery, and just oh so perfect.

I was pretty surprised to see that this one truly does live up to the hype. This is creamy, buttery, floral, mildly vegetal, smooth, silky, rich, sweet, and keeps going and going. I followed CTG’s brewing parameters exactly and was pleased with results. Also, I have to agree with fellow taster, Adham and say that the first infusion kinda does taste like rice pudding! Good Call on that one Adham! The only downfall is that it is a bit pricey and requires a lot of leaf to give up the optimal results.

Purchased this through the Steepster promo, and I must say that it lives up to the anticipation :) The color, aroma, and taste are fantastic – really high quality and the tea never tastes bitter. My favorite part may be, though, seeing the tea leaves in all their glory as they unfurl in my cup. This tea confirms for me that oolong is my favorite, and this is one of the best oolongs I’ve had. Thank you Chicago Tea Garden!

By far the best oolong I’ve had in years, need to order some more – soon. Put a bit in my travel mug and I’m able to just keep resteeping it all day. Love it!

Wow—just wow! If one needs proof that tea can be an amazing experience, this is it. This is the best oolong I have tried—beautifully floral, sweet, complex—wow!

I’ve had four or five sessions with this tea, two at tastings, and still haven’t sat down and written detailed notes of this, but thankfully there is plenty in my tin. Still it needs logging, so here we go. This is nice and light and bright and so very spring. I never thought to steep an oolong for 30 secs but it brings forth some interesting results (I tried it with Teavana’s Monkey Picked Tie Kuan Yin and it brings out a perfumeyness that seems almost artificial, though that fades after a three minute steep). It is greener both in leaf and cup than Teavana’s as well. There is a creaminess and a sweetness and it is very enjoyable. In later and longer steepings it doesn’t shine as much, it translates sure, but it just tastes like oolong. I will have to experiment with steep time more though. It wouldn’t really be fair to compare this to Verdant’s autumn harvest, though it is the freshest, due to being well, literally the freshest (more recently picked) and there are so many other weather, soil and growing factors. But yes very enjoyable.

After careful thought and consideration I decided to dedicate my new Monkey Yixing Pot to this Monkey Picked Oolong. I am so glad I did. This is a wonderfully vibrant, fresh, and slightly vegetal. After all of that the first thing I noticed was just how sweet the flavor was on my first sip. Simply exquisite!

Rinse and smell. The quick smell is buttery, creamy, with a whiff of very strong “oolong.” The long smell is more on the vegetal side, almost spinach-like.
The first steeping smells clean, buttery, and smooth. It’s a very pleasing scent, when most tie guan yin does not get to this point for a few infusions. But seeing the “competition grade,” I did not expect this to be “most tie guan yin.” My first sip hits me strongly, the delicate aroma belying a strong, yet still smooth flavour. Something reminds me of pizza, and I cannot shake that feeling, though I know not what.
The aroma of the second steeping is far more subtle, and very nearly not-there. The flavour has calmed down and holds its delicate floral tie guan yin taste.
Delicious. This is some of the best tie guan yin I have ever tasted.
I look forward to the next couple steeps.

I salvaged the tea leaves after I excitedly spilled them all over the kitchen counter. I couldn’t wait to try this tea!

First Steep: I’m honestly not tasting too much with this one. It’s a little bit floral, but very light. Hopefully the flavor improves with each infusion!

Second Steep: Grassy and slightly sweet. The floral notes linger on the tongue at the end of the sip.

Third Steep: Flavors are a bit bolder this time. Still sweet and vegetal.

Overall, I feel like I need a bit more time with this tea to get a good grip on what I’m tasting. I will rate next time I have another cup.

Tried another oolong today, hoping for another homerun. This one is pretty good. At first, I steeped according to the directions on the side of the canister. 195 for 30 sec in the Breville. Either I didn’t add enough tea, or the time wasn’t right because it was weak, weak, weak. So, I plunked it down for an additional 30 seconds and the color improved significantly.

Okay, aroma… nice, clean, promising. Kind of toasty smelling. After brewing, it smells woodsy, roasted, somewhat vegetal. Taste… enjoyable. I can taste the roasted, vegetal scent that I had been smelling. It’s pleasant, but not creamy and not buttery.. I was hoping for a fuller taste in my mouth. Still, it’s very nice and very light.