113 Tasting Notes

60

Not very good – I guess it does kind of have a “toasty bean” aroma and flavor as described, but not very much depth or nuance to it. It does smell good in the bag, though. Pretty boring.

Preparation
175 °F / 79 °C 2 min, 0 sec 5 g 16 OZ / 473 ML

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75

Yunnan Sourcing included a generous sample of about 16.3 grams of this tea with my recent order. Dry leaves don’t seem nearly as green as what is pictured, and what I have here is more a mixture of green and brown. It is now roughly 10 months after harvest, so maybe the leaves have oxidized more in the packaging? I don’t know. There are quite a few white tips evident in the dry leaf. At first I thought a lot of twigs were included in the mix, but I think this is mostly due to the “large leaf” nature of the Yunnan tea – the stems are larger and more prominent as well, maybe? There are some rather large twigs.

Brews to a nice clear amber color, with the wet leaves giving me a smell reminiscent of Darjeeling black tea. The flavor is kind of similar to a second flush Darjeeling, too, with muscatel notes, but also with a pleasant oakiness. Much lighter in body than a typical black tea, of course. It is pretty nice, and a good value for the price.

I prefer the much greener bai mu dan I purchased a while back from English Tea Store – It had more delicate but delicious flavors including hints of mint, pine, apricot, green grape, etc – But was also a bit more expensive.

On the other hand, I would prefer this to the “pai mu tan” I purchased from Harney and Sons not too long ago – That one was kind of blah.

Seems to me to be down the road a ways and somewhere between a bai mu dan and a shou mei. That is pretty much alright with me, as I like a good shou mei. Never purchased a proper one, but maybe this is more akin to a gong mei?

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 2 min, 0 sec 5 g 16 OZ / 473 ML

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90

Another winner from Yunnan Sourcing. I am drinking the Spring 2023 version of this tea, and find it to be quite nice. It is reminiscent to me of the Spring Pouchong I tried from English Tea Store, but also has its own unique characteristics. Dry leaves are beautifully formed and very much as pictured.

I think the ideal brewing temp might be around 185°, but works very well with the insta-hot water dispenser at my office, which I suppose is around 195°. I notice honeydew melon, (lilac?) florals, and a touch of creamy lemon curd in the flavor. Also pleasant hints of grassiness. I brew western style, first steep 2 min, second steep 3 min, and third steep 4-5 minutes seems to work well with this tea. I notice the flavors seem to pop more on the second steep, so might try adjusting my first steep to get similar results. Awesome tea!

Preparation
185 °F / 85 °C 2 min, 0 sec 5 g 16 OZ / 473 ML
Keemunlover

I might be tasting the grassiness more because I brewed at 195°. Brewing at home at 175°, there was no grassiness present. Like I said, though, to me it is a pleasant grassiness. Not like I am chewing on lawn clippings or something.

Keemunlover

Definitely presents some “mineral” qualities too, typical of an oolong rather than a green tea.

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100

Just beautiful – Glad I chose to go with Yunnan Sourcing for my latest tea order! This is everything I want in a black tea – Strong, assertive taste without bitterness, orchid florals, nice peachy notes (like a good dark formosa oolong), honey-like sweetness, and some nice chocolate-y notes (without going too far in that direction). And all that without breaking the bank. The dry tea leaves are beautifully formed, clearly reflecting the one leaf/one bud picking. And I can’t believe they offer a higher “imperial” version of this one – That is definitely going on my list next time I make an order. This tea is magical.

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 2 min, 0 sec 5 g 16 OZ / 473 ML
Keemunlover

Forgot to mention – I am commenting on the Spring 2023 harvest of this tea.

ashmanra

I haven’t had a Golden Monkey in a while. Once my buying ban is lifted I need to try this one!

Keemunlover

Well, I have limited experience with “golden monkey” teas. But this one definitely has my approval. Usually I have to drink a tea quite a few times before I decide how I feel about it and maybe write a review. This one, though, I knew it right from the first cup that I had a winner here.

Keemunlover

To clarify – This is everything I am looking for in a breakfasty-type black tea. There are other classes of black tea which are quite a bit different, for example a Darjeeling 1st flush, from which I would desire some different characteristics. But for a nice black breakfast tea, this is the tea for me!

ashmanra

It sounds worth trying, for sure! Is it sweet potato-y? I find some Golden Monkeys have that note.

Keemunlover

Ashmanra, I’ll have to try it again tomorrow and let you know! I find sometimes the “sweet potato” element in black teas is similar to the “chocolatey” element. When it is less intense, it might feel more sweet potato-ish to me, but when it is stronger it moves into the chocolate spectrum.

Keemunlover

Ashmanra, I’m drinking another cup of this tea right now, and I think it is firmly on the side of chocolate. More of a milk chocolate or a lighter dark chocolate, and not nearly as chocolatey as some teas I have tasted. On the other hand, I do still get a few sweet potato notes, but they aren’t so noticeable and definitely on the lighter side as far as that goes. I have a Yunnan “pure bud” bi luo chun black tea which has a much more pronounced sweet potato flavor by comparison.

ashmanra

Good to know! Thank you for the update!

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I won’t give this tea a rating because not sure if my taste/smell came back fully from my bout with Covid. I bought this mainly out of curiousity, wondering what one of these “dragon pearl” teas would be like on its own without the addition of the jasmine scenting. Honestly, I was expecting not to be too thrilled by it, as I suspect that maybe an unspectacular tea selection is perhaps why these pearls are usually jasmine-scented in the first place.

I guess I am pleasantly surprised, then, to find this a somewhat interesting and enjoyable tea. There is some sweetness, but I seem to notice this tea taking a bend towards some savory qualities. I even get some hints of bacon. For the price, I think I will continue to choose other teas I enjoy more at a lower price point. But good to have the experience.

While the leaves are impressive in their neatness and clearly higher quality based on their beautiful fuzzy buds and intact leafsets, on the other hand I suspect this style of tea is overvalued because there is also a lot of stem included when compared to other premium green teas. The intact stems are needed to make sure the leaves are lengthy enough to be rolled into the tight pearls. You pay more for the rolling process and end up with a lesser amount of leaf.

Preparation
175 °F / 79 °C 2 min, 0 sec 5 g 16 OZ / 473 ML

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90

This is a really nice basic roasted oolong. Great value for the price, and I could see this being a staple tea. Roasted flavor up front, but not offensive. Caramelized sweetness, orchid florals, and a touch of oak round out a tea which has perhaps a black plum fruitiness at its core. A great combination!

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 2 min, 0 sec 5 g 16 OZ / 473 ML

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90

I was very surprised at the quality of this tea. Mighty Leaf seems to pick some good ones! It was nice to find beautifully formed larger pieces of leaves instead of the usual more finely broken grades of leaf you typically find in this price range. This one delivers on the muscatel flavor and florals typical of a decent 2nd flush Darjeeling and follows through with a pleasant lingering aftertaste. I am really enjoying it.

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 3 min, 0 sec 5 g 16 OZ / 473 ML

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90

Purchased both this tea and “Flowery Jasmine Before the Rains” from Mark T Wendell. Both are wonderful teas. The Yin Hao has a mellower take on the jasmine scent I think, with a lovely base tea. The Flowery Jasmine has both the jasmine and the base tea on full blast. I think I prefer the Flowery Jasmine, so I rate this one a bit lower. I am sure there a many who could just as easily favor this one.

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 2 min, 0 sec 5 g 16 OZ / 473 ML

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85

Unbelievably smooth tea, and a nice overall jasmine experience. Personally, I prefer a pouchong tea base, I think – This green tea base is a little too smooth and, for my taste, I don’t feel enough presence from the tea. The jasmine fragrance and taste is beautiful, though!

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 2 min, 0 sec 5 g 16 OZ / 473 ML
ashmanra

Grace Rare Tea uses a pouchong for their Flowery Jasmine. But my favorite is still Teavivre’s Premium Jasmine Dragon Pearls, which I like even better than their more expensive Downy Jasmine Dragon Pearls.

Keemunlover

That’s cool – I’ll have to keep that one in mind to try! I think my next order is going to Yunnan Sourcing, though – I am due for a second visit to that place! I’ve only ordered there once (back in 2017 or 2018), but I enjoyed their products quite a bit. Lots of hard-to-find and unique stuff.

Jasmine offerings there look pretty weak, though – They all have a significant amount of blossoms in them, which I understand is a sign of low-quality jasmine tea. Regardless, the “Jasmine Dong Ting Bi Luo Chun Green Tea” looks intriguing to me, so pretty sure I will snap some of that up.

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80

Great lower-priced oolong! Has a nice buttery caramel sweetness to it, with orchid notes. The roasted notes are not prominent at all and stay very smooth throughout. The tea is medium-bodied and has some mineral notes as well. Not my favorite, but nice to have it around once in a while.

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 2 min, 30 sec 5 g 16 OZ / 473 ML

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Bio

I love tea. Mainly Chinese teas, such as Keemuns, Shui Xian oolongs when I can find them, Yunnan golden buds, and delicate spring greens. With so many options, though, I keep trying new teas.

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Las Vegas, NV

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