1445 Tasting Notes
This is another one from the limited selection of teas that I’ll drink a pot of. Floral notes, and coconut flakes are touching upon milky today. This is why this tea gets “permanent” status in my stash. It goes along perfectly with the lengthy “A Beautiful Mind” and some episodes of Downton Abbey (thanks, Cavo).
You know what’s a really big fish? The Atlantic Bluefin Tuna.
Preparation
Glad you’re enjoying it!
I forgot this one was on my desk tonight, and I had the one from Soko. I’m putting that one on your list, CrowKettle. You should try it too.
I had some last night, but I was in such a funk from the Wild Purple Buds Pu Erh, that it just tainted the whole taste of this one.
Another poorly written paper and another pot of this. It’s almost customary now. I can’t believe how much this tea calms me down. Thanks for the fantastic blend, Stacy; it’s becoming a favourite.
Preparation
It’s rapidly becoming a favourite of mine. If you want to go in on an order, and get a gigantic amount of this, I wouldn’t say no. ;p
Crowkettle, have more confidence in yourself! And you know what? I saw screw it. Let’s just get this term out of the way already. And never look back. :)
if i can help, let me know. i paid for university the first time round as an editor. =0)
but OMGsrsly said something true awhile back: the people that say they’re doing badly usually do the best because they keep the pressure on. maybe not healthy (i do it too) but effective.
Haha. Keep the pressure on, but don’t overdo it folks, OK? You all need to be in one piece for tea-sharing after exams! Or maybe Boxing Week, since I have 9 days off work. O.o
Might you have time to come over during your 9 days off?
I was thinking! :)
I don’t remember how I ended up with a bag of this as opposed to a small sample (maybe from my one time tea of the month trail?), but I’m glad for the larger amount. I usually don’t go for the browner looking oolong types, and it took me by surprise how much I like this one.
There are notes of cream and orchids, which remind me of my greener oolongs, but there’s also a sharper note of sweet orange in the finish and aftertaste that add an extra dimension to this. My empty cup after the first steep has an aroma like orange chocolate liqueur with a dab of honey, chocolate cherries, or something dark like that. This tea is smooth and easy, but not an everyday thing.
Preparation
I think this was one from Verdant’s 5 for $5 promo. I finished mine yesterday, and OMGsrsly drank hers then too do it caught my eye. That’s probably why you bought it.
I haven’t ordered from Verdant in the last seven months but maybe? I think this came with two other oolongs- a tieguanyin and a phoenix mountain dancong. I should start writing dates on my teas.
I’m totally drinking it today because I saw you/OMGsrsly drink it the other day, however. I honestly forgot I had it.
I think the promo was 8 months ago? I realized I’d had it sitting there for ever so I wanted to try it. And Oolong Saturday seemed appropriate. :P
I started adding all my teas into a spreadsheet so I could track when I bought them and who gave me the samples. It’s been handy but I’m always updating data. Tea logs. Spreadsheets. Good reads updates. Fan fic pins. Pinboard pins. I spend so much time cataloging my life – I can’t forget to live it. :P
I love this one. Sadly, I think it’s gone for good…but who knows what might pop up to replace it, right?
I wasn’t aware that oolong Saturday was a thing, but I’ve spent the last +10 hours drinking up this sample, so I sort of participated unknowingly?
This oolong isn’t bad- it’s characteristically floral, with a good dose of sweetness and a peppery aftertaste. The first empty cup had a distinct brown sugar aroma. There’s something kind of malty about it too, with some notes you’d find in a barely or wheat tea. Eating oat bran while drinking this magnified that note. The second steep tasted like oil had been mixed in. Bouts of creaminess come through in some of the steeps.
The third and forth steeps were enjoyed (I use that term loosely)cold in a juice-flavored travel mug my mom insisted I take with me to the movies today. She even poured the the tea using the glass gongfu herself- the first time she’s ever used it. She was extremely excited to do it too, which was sweet. That’s one good memory I’ll have with this tea.
Edit: I’m still drinking this and every once in a while I get banana peel. Is that strange? I guess it’s the tea’s way of telling me I should stop drinking it.
Second Edit: Things are starting to get interesting. The floral and wheat notes have receded somewhat, allowing for more sweetness. It’s mainly brown sugar but there’s something fruity too.
Oolong saturday? Is that a thing?
I was unaware too and was wondering why OMGsrsly decided to drink five oolong teas today. Then I saw this thread: http://steepster.com/discuss/6437-oolong-saturday-anyone
Because I’m ridiculous? :D
I’d say you’re special and determined. I like oolong quite a lot but I don’t think I could do what you did today :)
You resteeped this one 5 times, didn’t you? That’s determined too. I will resteep once or twice but that’s usually all I will commit too. And if it’s from Davids or something like that, I’ll toss it after.
Yeah, I’m a little tea-drunk. If I stay home to do laundry tomorrow, I’ll drink even more of them. If I go to my friends house, she only has a microwave as her stove is broken. Haha. No tea there.
I’ve actually technically resteeped this 10 times now, with two separate batches in different temperatures today, but I’m trying not to count and gave up writing about it in my note..
That is seriously amazing.
I probably fixate on oolongs in an unhealthy way. I want to know when they’ll stop tasting like “things” but I usually end up with a headache before I get close to that point.
I though the post was so funny, start an Oolong Saturday to follow up Black Friday! Should we start a Green Sunday ???? Oh, why not!
My sister brought me back this herbal from Slovenia. I had a lot of fun trying to translate the ingredients with the help of Google (shudder). Roughly, this herbal blend consists of a bunch of berries, berry leaves, and tiny pink flowers. The easiest flavours for me to pick out are the blackcurrants, and the pomegranate. It’s a very juicy tea with a subdued floral note. I think this would make a nice iced tea.
My sister brought me back some strange, but fun, stuff from her travels this time, including some chocolate with tea leaves on top. It gives me a good case of wanderlust. I want to go places too!
Preparation
Backlog: after making some of this without really having time for it the other day, I opted to pour it in my timolino travel mug and hope for the best.
Turns out this fairs amazingly well in the timolino (at least, it was a lot better than I expected it to be). The plastic didn’t drown out any of the subtleties- The rose is the dominant note, with some amaranth and cream. This made a comical archaeology lab awesome. Looking forward to having many more amazing timolino adventures with this tea.
Preparation
Don’t you know that archaeology is srs bsnss? :D (How to freak your classmates out: If your tongue sticks to dry “wood”, it’s bone. I swear this is legit, although it sounds absolutely preposterous.)
I actually tasted rocks in the rock lab too. My prof just shook his head at me. I guess that’s what happens when you take mineralogy BEFORE point identification.
I wish I could also “like” OMGsrsly’s comments too. :P
:)
I agree with Heather (I’ll have to find the right time to test that), although I’d probably abuse the ability to an annoying degree.
I’ve gotten to the point where I’m just drinking the same tea over and over again. I want more old friends around (in manageable amounts), as opposed to non-committing strangers (which I’ll take by the cup where I can). I’m sure I’ll change my mind and move on, but I need to get sick of some of favourites first.
This citrus-cream rooibos will forever remind me of summer, family feuds, cheap, “Motel 8-esque” style accommodation, Disneyworld, and.. Butiki’s Taiwanese Assam. Yes, this tea reminds how much I love a completely unrelated tea; it’s part of the pleasure in drinking it.
Flavors: Cream
Preparation
I just went through this phase. It’s always good to have the favourites. So comforting :)
I’m glad to hear others go through this. :) I feel like I need to get back to my basics.
I’m trying to get back to basics. Really. I think I’m at about 195 again, but have to go through every single tea to check.
Oh, and that number will go up even more when I bring you your Bellocq teas.. and potentially some matcha. :)
And after I order this weekend, although about half of what I’m getting will be going to my parents and brother as gifts. Still. That leaves half for me!
Basics are nice. I’m leaning more towards big quantities of great teas, and less of the risky samples. That makes it easier to restock too. :D I’m not opposed to trying new teas, but I no longer feel OMG I NEED IT TOO like I used to.
There’s never enough of this tea.. so hello Friday sales. No. 29.
This guy comes out better when the temperature is exact but it doesn’t taste completely terrible if I miss the mark by a degree.. or 20. Ok, there’s probably more tart “citrus” notes then there should be but it’s still good.
I wish my favourite types of teas (dragon well, silver needle, tieguanyin-like oolong, and this) weren’t specific lower temp. steepers. It makes it hard to get by without a fancy kettle, or something, for measuring temp.
Preparation
This one takes me back! Alpine Punch was probably one of the first rooibos blends I ever tried, back in 2011 (that’s when I still bought giant tins of everything I tried). In hindsight, buying 136g of this wasn’t the smartest idea. While it was delicious during the winter months, I lost interest when things started to warm up. RIP, 100-some grams of this tea. I have no clue where you are now.
Er, so this is a new tiny batch from this year. It’s full of as much Christmas-y coconut goodness as I can remember. Fruit cake and angel food cake vibes galore. The rose and the pepper are new for me, and I quite like what they bring out.
Yeah, I’m OK with this seasonal blend. I think we have some nice days ahead of us this cold season.
Also, yay for Doctor Who! I’m going to watch that very shortly. Maybe with a cup of this (or maybe a couple cups of this because it’s over an hour long).
Preparation
It’s funny how we all bought a lot of everything in the beginning. I remember dexter3657 telling me not to buy 100 grams of everything and I remember thinking “why not? I’ll drink it all the same” . Oh the foolishness of “youth”!
Hahha. Yeah, it took me a year to get rid of my 100g tins. /0\
I haven’t had any this season yet, but it is one of the few rooibos I like.
lol, Cavo, now you’ve moved on to 10oz, right? :P Although, there are a couple of teas I’d do that with too..
Your description makes it sound so… perfect. But it’s too artificial for me, unfortunately.
I’m finding it to be a bit too flavoured this time around too. I wish the natural oolong notes were more pronounced, and that there was less of this (the kind of pudding I’m thinking of): http://i.walmartimages.com/i/p/00/04/30/00/04/0004300004421_500X500.jpg
Oh yeah, I remember it tasting similar to that kind of pudding, but even more chemically. I just wish it was a natural vanilla bean.
Haha. Yeah. I have some that I’m trying to persuade myself to drink. Any mixing ideas? What could tone down the vanilla? Maybe a latte?
I definitely found it more tolerable as a latte. Or maybe mix it with an unflavoured oolong that’s been sitting around?
Hmm. I think I’ll try it as a latte. That way I don’t have Even More vanilla tea to drink up!
Warm milk and flavoured oolong.. hmm. Another thing to try soon.
It’s good with coconut oolong!