237 Tasting Notes

85

I don’t have much experience with white teas, so I’m really looking forward to seeing what I can learn from this one. On first look, the leaves are beautiful – furry and very soft. They smell wonderfully fresh. The liquor is touted as being champagne-colored, but I think it’s a little too dusky for that; I’d say it’s more like a very light ginger ale or cream soda: a very light yellowish tan.

The flavor is light as well, but more complex than I had anticipated. There’s grassiness, but not in the same way as a Japanese green; more like a straw-grassiness, akin to chewing on a dried piece of sweet hay. There’s some sweetness and absolutely no bitterness or astringency, though there is a high note I’m having a hard time putting my finger on. Almost like pine, in a very subtle way.

Second steep: It’s funny, I’m getting almost as much of the flavor in the aftertaste as in the sip itself. I’m not used to teas that are so quiet – it’s kind of throwing me off my tasting game! There’s enough going on that I know I’ll be able to appreciate it, it’ll just take a little reprogramming of the taste centers to get there.

Preparation
175 °F / 79 °C 2 min, 0 sec

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85

Another of the Canton Tea Co sample packs to try out! Once I opened this up, I was immediately reminded of the Tie Guan Yin from Chicago Tea Garden – it has a similar look: glossy dark green chunklets, and scent: fresh and grassy. I’d say this particular tea has more in the way of vegetal in the scent however; it’s reminding me more of sencha in that way.

The first steep at one minute, 190 degrees: the leaves have started to expand, and I’m left with a clear, light golden liquor with just a hint of green in there. The aroma is very light, encompassing fresh mown grass and something just a little savory/buttery. The flavor is very nice; there’s some of the sweetness I associated with the Tie Guan Yin, though not to such an outstanding degree. There’s also a degree of rich mouth feel to it, which may be what others characterize as milkyness (that’s one descriptor I don’t think I would have come upon on my own).

2nd steep, 190 degrees and 1.5 minutes: The liquor comes out a little more greenish yellow this time, and the leaves have mostly all unfurled now. The aroma and flavor are more vegetal, but there is still some of the overall sweetness that I like so much. I’m also getting a little fruitiness in the background, which is quite yummy.

3rd steep, 190 degrees and 2 minutes: Still a strong golden/green color, but the flavor is markedly more subdued now. Still getting vegetal and small sweet tones. Pleasant enough, but it’s lost most of its shine by now.

Preparation
190 °F / 87 °C 1 min, 0 sec

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91
drank Bai Lin Gong Fu by Canton Tea Co
237 tasting notes

Excited about the Canton Tea Co sampler which arrived over the weekend! I’ll start my Monday morning with what sounds like a good breakfast tea. The dry leaf is pretty, with orange highlights in the long brown strands, and their aroma is very nice – there’s a sweetness there which reminds me a little of Darjeeling. We’ll see what comes out in the steeping…

Mmm, this tea smells really, really yummy – I’m definitely getting the caramel that other tasters have noted. The liquor is a medium-brown and on first taste is great. The caramel is there, and the natural sweetness of it means I won’t be adding any sugar to it. In addition, underneath that flavor, I’m getting something akin to fruit flavors; peach and nectarine are those which come to mind. This one’s a keeper.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 4 min, 0 sec
RachanaC (Rachel)-iHeartTeas

Would you buy more based on the sample? Just curious. :-)

Adham

If I didn’t, it would only be because of some reason unrelated to the tea (exorbitant shipping costs, for example). It was one of those teas that made me notice each sip for its tastiness, even I’d begun the sip focused on something else. In short, yes!

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81
drank Chamomile Citrus by Mighty Leaf Tea
237 tasting notes

One of the Mighty Leaf teabags I picked up on the road trip. They’ve definitely got the aesthetics down, with the attractive fabric mesh bag stitched along the sides, providing a gauzy view of the whole chamomile buds, chunks of orange peel, and other bits and bobs (looks like lemongrass and rose hip?) inside. This smells very fresh and citrus-y during the steep, and after five minutes comes out a pretty orange-rose color.

It’s funny, I like chamomile but am only getting very slight hints of it in this cup. Most of the space is taken up by the orange peel and lemongrass, with the chamomile coming through as just a warmth and sweetness in the background. I’m having it in the middle of the afternoon, but I imagine it would be very calming as the last cup of the evening.

Preparation
190 °F / 87 °C 5 min, 0 sec

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83
drank Dragon Well - Lung Ching by TeaFrog
237 tasting notes

I’m sticking with green teas today – Japanese in the morning and Chinese in the afternoon. Don’t know if it was coincidence or subconscious, but both of them feature nutty/roasty flavors in significant measure, so it’s been nice to contrast them on the same day. I think I may have had the water a touch too hot for this though – it was noticeably more bitter than the last time I had it. Still enjoyable, but I’ll be more careful next time.

Preparation
190 °F / 87 °C 2 min, 0 sec

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78

Felt like a toasty morning tea – it was between this and Den’s Houjicha, and this one seems to be hitting the spot. I’m tasting less of the vegetal element this time around than last, though it is still there. Since trying this the first time, I still haven’t gotten around to ordering a straight matcha to experiment with, but tasting this is renewing my determination to do so. I went to a great little shop in San Francisco when I was there a few weeks ago that specialized in all kinds of Japanese things (just had to pick up some forms for making sticky rice into star and heart shapes!) and they had some nice looking teas – unfortunately I didn’t take the plunge and buy any of them. I know there is matcha in my future though…

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 0 min, 30 sec

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90
drank Chocolate and Cream by TeaFrog
237 tasting notes

Another cup of this for the afternoon. Unfortunately I haven’t had the chance to bring any milk or cream into work, so I’m having it straight up. Not quite as yummy as it is with milk and sugar, but still quite good. There’s a really nice balance between the tea and chocolate flavors. I let it go a minute too long in the steep so there’s more astringency than last time I had it, but it’s still a very good afternoon tea.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 6 min, 0 sec

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79

This one caught me with its name alone, so let’s hope I like it! Fortunately, it seems I do. I did four steeps, starting with 45 seconds and eventually making it out to 2 minutes. Each steep produced a very dark brown liquor with a red tinge. The most remarkable thing I found about this tea was how soupy and savory it seemed to me. It has a very full, chewy mouth feel, and I can’t help but feel that I’m getting lots of nutrients from it. It’s not one I’ll have everyday, but I do like it and am glad I have it in my cupboard.

Preparation
Boiling 0 min, 45 sec
RachanaC (Rachel)-iHeartTeas

This name cracks me up eveytime I read it.

Cofftea

Wow you’re brave:) I start at 20 seconds and very rarely increase the steeping time.

Adham

I think my taste buds are getting burned out over time…

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76

Back from my road trip and ready to dig into some things I have waiting to try…I’ll start with this, which was a free sample with my order. I like tuochas because they remind me of little tea cups themselves, and there’s something charmingly self-referential about that. I’m used to going straight to a long steeping on pu-erhs, but I decided this time to follow the steeping guidelines and start with 30 seconds.

I’m glad I did. Still plenty of flavor there, though I can’t say as I detect a noticeable trace of the chrysanthemum. There’s the characteristic earthiness, and plenty of natural sweetness. I’m looking forward to comparing this with the camel’s breath which came in the same order!

Preparation
Boiling 0 min, 30 sec

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60

From the coffee and tea bar at the Hotel Monaco, Salt Lake City – looking forward to trying this as I’ve read a lot about Mighty Leaf here but never tried their offerings. I’ve been drinking a lot of undistinguished iced tea during the long days of driving, so it was about time to have something with a bit more character.

This one is very mild in flavor – orange is there, and a rooibos base, but that’s about it. It’s warm, soothing and pleasant but not overly complex. I’ll try some of the other varieties on offer and see how they fare.

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 5 min, 0 sec

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Bio

Grandma introduced me to tea as a kid (lipton with milk and sugar; a bit poured into the saucer to cool it down and then sipped from there), and I’ve never looked back. Still have a slight preference for teas that go well with milk (or even better, cream) and sugar, but since Grandma’s day I’ve branched out to appreciate green and white teas, rooibos and pu erh. Absolutely love Mariage Freres!

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Washington, DC

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