413 Tasting Notes

91

When I made my recent order from Cha Yi, they had an option where you could let the owner pick teas for you up to a certain amount. I decided to go with it, and this is one of the teas he gave me. It also turned out to be a repeat from my last Cha Yi order. I steeped 6 g of leaf in 120 ml of 195F water for 25, 20, 25, 30, 30, 30, 45, 60, 90, 120, and 240 seconds, plus some long, uncounted steeps.

The dry aroma is of pineapple, pastry, and orchids. The first steep tastes like pineapple pound cake, just as the vendor’s notes promise, along with cream, orchid, sweet pea, and grass. The second steep tastes even more like a pineapple pound cake, with maybe some coconut mixed in. (My cup disappeared in about a second.) There’s more of the pineapple coconut awesomeness in the next couple steeps, though with faint hints of vanilla, spinach, grass, florals, and herbs. Hints of pine and freesia show up in the next couple steeps, with the pineapple pound cake starting to fade but still being the main element. In steeps seven and eight, the pound cake is more prominent than the pineapple, and the florals, herbs, spinach, and grass start taking over. The tea ends predictably with grass, spinach, and florals, with some pineapple popping out occasionally.

The last time I had this tea, it didn’t map onto the pineapple pound cake profile the vendor described, but this time, it was incredibly accurate. It also wasn’t due to the power of suggestion because I looked up my previous note after drinking the tea. This vendor doesn’t have the equipment to vacuum seal his teas, so the last batch may have been exposed to the air for too long. I have 3 g of this tea left and will be drinking it ASAP. This harvest is truly amazing!

Flavors: Coconut, Cream, Floral, Grass, Herbaceous, Orchid, Pastries, Pine, Pineapple, Spinach, Vanilla, Vegetal

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 6 g 4 OZ / 120 ML

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87

I indulged in some retail therapy over the stressful pre-holiday period, and this tea was included as a free sample with my order. I remember enjoying this tea a few years ago and am happy to revisit it. I steeped 6 g of leaf in a 120 ml porcelain pot using 195F water for 10, 12, 15, 18, 20, 25, 30, 40, 50, 60, 90, 120, and 240 seconds.

I opened the sample bag to sniff it before reading the label and mistook it for a Bai Hao, which is a compliment in my books. The dry aroma is of apricot, plum, muscatel, cocoa, and honey. The first steep has lush notes of apricot, peach, plum, muscatel, honey, pastry, osmanthus, and malt. The honeyed fruit continues into the second steep, with some malt and wood. The next couple steeps are heavy on the apricot and plum, with a nice pastry and floral background and some wood and malt to balance things out. The honey is particularly noticeable in the next couple steeps, along with the pastry and fruit. The tea doesn’t change too much, but wow, do I like these flavours. By the eighth steep, the malt and gentle tannins become more prominent. The final few steeps emphasize honey, malt, earth, grass, and tannins.

This tea is as pleasant as I remember it being a few years ago. It’s an excellent substitute for fruit cake for those who don’t actually like fruit cake. I gave it an extra point over my previous rating because I like this flavour combo so much.

Flavors: Apricot, Cocoa, Earth, Floral, Grass, Honey, Malt, Muscatel, Osmanthus, Pastries, Peach, Plum, Sweet, Tannin, Wood

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 6 g 4 OZ / 120 ML

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96

This is my last Song sample from Derk. I’m always a bit wary of roasted teas, but I’ve had decent luck with them lately. I steeped 6 g of leaf in 120 ml of 195F water for 25, 20, 25, 30, 30, 30, 45, 60, 90, 120, and 240 seconds, plus some long, uncounted steeps.

The dry aroma is of chestnuts, ginger, cookies, florals, and vague fruit. The first steep has notes of toasted rice, chestnut, butter, honeysuckle and other florals, ginger, cookies, and very pronounced mango. I’m impressed by how many dimensions this tea has instead of knocking me over the head with roast. The next steep has more of that Dong Ding nutty/buttery/charcoal/toasted rice profile, but with mango, orchid, pine, and ginger. It has a thick, silky texture and an aftertaste that lasts for minutes. Steeps three and four give me green banana (thanks, Derk!), mango, chestnut, florals, and toasted rice. That mango aftertaste is especially lovely! More mango shows up in the next couple steeps, though the roast is slightly more apparent. I get some grass, banana, toasted coconut, and the caramelized sugar sweetness that Derk mentioned. The next couple steeps are a bit drying, but still have that lovely chestnut, butter, and mango profile. The tea starts to lose its florality and acquires more toasted rice, grass, and nutty notes, but the mango is very persistent, lasting well into the long, uncounted final steeps.

As I mentioned, I haven’t had much luck with roasted teas, but this one is exceptional. I love the mango, but even without that, it has lots of nuance and texture while letting the roast play out in the background. Whoever roasted this tea is a master of their craft! It’s also $45 for 30 g, although price doesn’t always equal quality when it comes to roasted teas.

Flavors: Banana, Butter, Caramelized Sugar, Charcoal, Chestnut, Coconut, Cookie, Floral, Ginger, Grass, Honeysuckle, Mango, Nutty, Orchid, Pine, Roasted, Silky, Sweet, Toasted Rice

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 6 g 4 OZ / 120 ML

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89

This is my four hundredth tasting note! It’s been a fun ride! Given the state of my tea museum, I might be able to reach five hundred tasting notes without buying any more tea, though I expect to continue supporting the tea economy with my impulse purchases indefinitely. :)

Thanks again to Derk for the sample! I was drooling over a pomelo Dancong on White2Tea (or maybe somewhere else), so this is especially welcome. I steeped 6 g of leaf in 120 ml of 200F water for 10, 12, 15, 18, 20, 25, 30, 40, 50, 60, 90, 120, and 240 seconds.

The dry aroma is of pomelo, tangerine, orange blossom, honey, and roast. The first steep has notes of honey, roast, pomelo, orange blossom, tangerine, and wood. The next steep adds more honey, apricot, minerals, sap, and cream. I can definitely taste the roast behind the fruit and florals, though it’s not unpleasant. There’s more honey, citrus, orange/pomelo blossom, and roast in the next couple steeps, plus a nice apricot aftertaste. Steeps five and six are a bit softer, with almond, gentle orange and apricot, cream, florals, and roast. The tea seems well integrated and not overly roasty. In subsequent steeps, the roast starts to take over, with honey, pine, minerals, almonds, florals, and hints of orange and pomelo. I steeped this tea out for the pops of orange and florals amid the honey, minerals, wood, and roast.

Derk mentioned that this tea has lost some of its flavour, though that’s hard to believe given how much complexity it has now. I like the very distinct pomelo, orange, honey, and orange blossom flavours and aromas, which persist throughout the session in spite of the roast. This is a more balanced, appealing Dancong than some others I’ve had recently.

Flavors: Almond, Apricot, Citrus, Cream, Floral, Grapefruit, Honey, Mineral, Orange Blossom, Pine, Roasted, Sap, Tangerine, Wood

Preparation
200 °F / 93 °C 6 g 4 OZ / 120 ML
derk

So glad you enjoyed this one! I think my nose broke this year so maybe that’s I perceived flavor loss since the first time I tried it.

Leafhopper

I hope your nose broke metaphorically, not literally (which would be painful). Also, judging from your tasting notes lately, your nose is just fine! :)

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94

My scale arrived today and it seems to be working okay, but I’m on a roll with these samples from Derk. I steeped 6 g of leaf in 120 ml of 195F water for 25, 20, 25, 30, 30, 30, 45, 60, 90, 120, and 240 seconds, plus some long, uncounted steeps.

The dry aroma is of orchids, honeysuckle, other florals, and cream. The first steep has notes of orchid, honeysuckle, narcissus, cream, and grass. The orchid really blooms in the second steep, and I get lots of cream, butter, and pine. You know an oolong is good when you start thinking about misty high mountain forests. The butter and cream are very apparent in the next couple steeps, as are the pine, honeysuckle, and lush orchid. The florals continue in steeps five and six, with a little more grass but no bitterness. The grass and spinach get stronger near the end of the session, but the orchid holds its own and makes these final few steeps quite enjoyable.

This is a beautifully floral, creamy tea that doesn’t evolve much over the session but does a few flavours really well. It has an ethereal, high mountain elegance. I imagine it would do very well bowl steeped, and while I’m not as enthusiastic about it as Derk, this is an excellent oolong.

Flavors: Airy, Butter, Cream, Floral, Grass, Honeysuckle, Narcissus, Orchid, Pine, Smooth, Spinach, Sweet

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 6 g 4 OZ / 120 ML
Marshall Weber

Love the misty notes! Would like to try Song at some point, but the price is too much for me right now.

Leafhopper

Agreed, Song is expensive. I actually got my three samples of their tea in a swap with Derk. For me, I’m not sure this tea is worth the high price, but their Ruby 18 might be something I’d splurge on. I haven’t tried the Dong Ding yet.

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86

Thanks again to Derk for this sample! Following Derk and the vendor’s instructions, I steeped 3 g of leaf in 150 ml of boiling water for 5, 8, and 15 minutes. I hope these long steeps don’t make this tea into a tannin monster!

The dry aroma is of tangerine, berries, cream, rose, other florals, malt, and wood. The first steep has rich aromas and flavours of blackberry, raspberry, vanilla, rose, and orange. In the mouth, I get the fruit plus cream, rose, orange blossom, malt, wood, thyme, vanilla, earth, and restrained tannins. The blackberry and raspberry are more pronounced for me than the orange, though it’s a nice background note. There’s blackberry, orange, and peach in the lingering aftertaste. The next steep is a bit more malty and woody, but still has lots of fruity and floral goodness. The final steep has minerals, wood, and malt with faint berries, cream, and orange, and it’s quite a bit more tannic.

This is an excellent black tea with wonderful fruity, creamy, and floral notes. It doesn’t have great longevity, but I also did very long steeps. The tannins never get overwhelming. I’m enjoying these TDJ teas more than I expected to.

Flavors: Blackberry, Cream, Earth, Floral, Malt, Mineral, Orange, Orange Blossom, Peach, Raspberry, Rose, Tangerine, Tannin, Thyme, Vanilla, Wood

Preparation
Boiling 5 min, 0 sec 3 g 5 OZ / 150 ML

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I feel guilty about these generous Thés du Japon samples from Derk. I wasn’t sure how to steep them when I received them and I’m equally clueless now, but instead of figuring it out, I accidentally shuffled them into the tea museum. The box is out in the open now, so there should be more TDJ reviews soon.

I’m excited to finally try this floral green oolong from Japan! I steeped 3 g of leaf in 85 ml of 195F water for 25 seconds, then lowered the temperature to 190F for 15, 20, 25, 30, 40, 60, 90, 120, and 240 seconds.

The dry aroma is very floral and Baozhong-like: lilac, lily, sweet pea, gardenia, honeysuckle, and grass. The first steep has all these florals, plus strawberry, peach, citrus, cookies, and grass. It’s also quite astringent, though the peachy aftertaste is amazing. I lowered the temperature to 190F in subsequent steeps, which really brings out the butter, lilac, sweet pea, grass, and strawberry. The star here, however, is really that super-ripe, realistic peach, like one you’d have to eat over the kitchen sink. The next couple steeps are still very peachy and floral, with apricot, orange, spinach, umami, and strawberry. The fruit is a little less pronounced in the next few steeps, letting the florals back in. The tea peters out into grass, spinach, and faint florals soon afterwards.

If you don’t mind astringency, this is a beautiful tea. I was even more impressed by the fruit than by the florals, though both are lovely and indeed reminiscent of a Taiwanese oolong. (Did I mention the strawberry and peach?) The flavours are strong even after two years in storage. Lower temperatures tame the astringency somewhat. I hope these farmers keep experimenting with these Taiwanese-style oolongs because this one is an excellent start. Thanks again, Derk, for the chance to try this tea!

Flavors: Apricot, Astringent, Butter, Citrus, Cookie, Floral, Gardenias, Grass, Honeysuckle, Lilac, Lily, Orange, Peach, Spinach, Strawberry, Umami, Vegetal

Preparation
3 g 3 OZ / 85 ML
derk

You’re welcome. I was really surprised by the intensity of these Japanese oolong!

Leafhopper

I agree! I would have rated this in the nineties if not for the astringency.

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78

I’m nearing the end of the Nio samples that aren’t matcha. It’s been an interesting experience trying all these green teas! This sencha sample does include matcha powder and they suggested cold brewing it. I steeped the 5 g sample in 150 ml of room-temperature water for three hours, and then twice more to extract all the flavour.

The dry aroma before steeping is of sweet grass and spinach. The cold steeped tea is quite thick, with notes of spinach, kale, grass, broccoli, umami, and something fruity in the aftertaste. The longer I hold it in the mouth, the more punch it has. I did two additional steeps, which were not as aggressively vegetal. The third, longest steep even had some earth, cream, and melon.

I think cold steeping these senchas is a good idea. I enjoyed this tea, particularly the later steeps, and might have appreciated it even more during last summer’s many heat waves.

Use the code LEAFHOPPER10OFF to get a 10% discount (I get a small commission when you use this code). It stacks with any ongoing sales.

Flavors: Broccoli, Cream, Earth, Grass, Green, Kale, Melon, Spinach, Sweet, Thick, Umami, Vegetal

Preparation
5 g 5 OZ / 150 ML

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70

The Black Friday box from Skysamurai arrived yesterday and I couldn’t wait to dig into it! It’s always fun to try a new-to-me tea company. I steeped this teabag in 350 ml of 205F water for 4, 6, and 8 minutes.

I can’t smell much before steeping. The first steep is surprisingly elegant, with notes of malt, honey, smoke, raisins, prunes, and restrained tannins. It’s a little coppery from the Ceylon and a bit drying in the mouth. The next couple steeps focus on malt, hay, and tannins and are brisk, as the website states. There are definitely tannins, but it never gets undrinkably bitter.

I’d say this is a nice, full-bodied black tea that does its job. It might be softer with milk, but I didn’t drink it that way.

Flavors: Copper, Hay, Honey, Malt, Prune, Raisins, Smoke, Tannin, Tea

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 4 min, 0 sec 12 OZ / 350 ML

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drank Bancha Masudaen by Nio Teas
413 tasting notes

This bancha is another first for me. I’m still waiting for my scale, so these generously offered pre-packed samples are proving to be very helpful (though to be honest, I wish I had more black teas and oolongs). I steeped 5 g of leaf in 150 ml of 160F water for 60, 20, 30, 40, 60, 90, 120, and 240 seconds.

With its collection of twigs and leaves, this bancha definitely looks like a rustic stem tea. The dry aroma is of grass, honey, butter, and roast. As another reviewer mentioned, this tea tastes a lot like genmaicha, with grass, roasted grains, honey, hay, and seaweed impressions. It reminds me of something served at a sushi restaurant. The next couple steeps have flavours of toasted rice, saline, spinach, and butter, along with grass and gentle roast. The final steeps have notes of earth, metal, popped rice, and grass.

This is a pleasant tea that I probably steeped too many times. I think it would go well with food and am craving sushi now. :)

Use LEAFHOPPER10OFF to get a 10% discount (I get a small commission when you use this code). Their holiday sale is going on for a while, and the code should still be good in 2024.

Flavors: Butter, Earth, Grain, Grass, Hay, Honey, Metallic, Nori, Roasted, Saline, Spinach, Toasted Rice, Vegetal

Preparation
160 °F / 71 °C 1 min, 0 sec 5 g 5 OZ / 150 ML

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Bio

Since I discovered Teavana’s Monkey Picked Oolong four years ago, I’ve been fascinated by loose-leaf tea. I’m glad to say that my oolong tastes have evolved, and that I now like nearly every tea that comes from Taiwan, oolong or not, particularly the bug-bitten varieties. I also find myself drinking Yunnan blacks and Darjeelings from time to time, as well as a few other curiosities.

However, while online reviews might make me feel like an expert, I know that I still have some work to do to actually pick up those flavours myself. I hope that by making me describe what I’m tasting, Steepster can improve my appreciation of teas I already enjoy and make me more open to new possibilities (maybe even puerh!).

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