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I’m alive! I promise! It has been a crazy and tea-deprived month for me, aside from a huge tea evaluation project I did for a company recently, sampling a bunch of teas of one specific type and getting really burnt out on that type.

This is my first tea to try from Living Tea. It is also the first red tea I’ve ever bought that is shaped like rolled oolong. It is also bug-bitten, so this should be an interesting experience!

I put the leaves into a hot gaiwan and it has a really nice, warm malty scent with generous notes of chocolate and a lot of the wild prairie grass aroma that I associate with Fujian white teas, particularly white peony. Sniffing the wet leaves after the first infusion, I’m getting really heady plum and honey notes.

Either this tea is very light in color for a red tea, or I didn’t use enough while brewing it, but because of its shape being similar to rolled oolong, I’ve only covered the bottom of the gaiwan, as I’m anticipating it will open up a lot in later infusions. Despite the light color, the flavor is rich, really sweet and very smooth. It’s got tangy notes of plum and fig and a long lingering sweetness accompanied by a cooling sensation in the mouth. It is very clean tasting.

These leaves sure can take a pounding without opening up. The second infusion is also a golden color rather than red, and the leaves have begun to open up somewhat, though not a lot. If the leaves weren’t so dark brown with bright red tips I would think this is actually a more oxidized oolong, not a red tea. Now the flavor is even more rich, really sweet, honestly bordering on one of the sweetest teas I’ve ever drank, and has a good helping of the honeyed fruit flavors, maybe even a bit of floral this time. Man the sweetness really lingers. I could compare the blend of flavors in it to sweetened oatmeal with fruit. There’s a bit of dryness on the tongue and mouth after drinking, but it seemed to only show its head once all the lingering flavor had faded away.

Third infusion, the leaves have opened quite a bit, not fully yet, and not filling my gaiwan to the lid yet. I may have used a little less than I should’ve. It looks like it may not fill up the space after it opens. The flavor this time is similar to the second infusion. The mouthfeel is actually not so much drying… not sucking the moisture out of me, but it makes the surfaces of your mouth feel friction when rubbing them together, so in that regard, the texture isn’t as clean as when I started. I am really into this flavor though and think I’ll enjoy quite a few infusions out of this!

On the fourth infusion with the leaves fully opened, almost filling my gaiwan, I let it steep a bit longer. Same flavors, much more rich and sweet, almost cloyingly so! Still golden infusion. Such a rich and sweet tea this is.

Flavors: Fig, Floral, Honey, Malt, Oats, Plum

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 0 min, 45 sec 4 g 3 OZ / 100 ML

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Bio

Hi there, fellow tea lovers.

My name’s Lion and I’m a Gongfu Cha practitioner, so I usually brew with a gaiwan for reviews unless there’s a more suitable brewing method, like using Japanese teawares for Japanese teas. I tend to stick to straight loose teas and scented teas in general, seldom dabbling in herbal and flavored teas. My favorite tea is Kenyan Silver Needle.

Aside from tea, I’m a generally creative person. I love to cook, write fiction, draw, decorate, garden, and do just about anything creative I can get my paws on.

Animals are really important to me. I’m a lion at heart, and I strive to better understand, respect, and appreciate other animals as best as I can. I advocate for better stewardship of wildlife and captive animals. We’ve still got a lot to learn.

For a long time I rated every tea I tried, but these days I don’t rate them unless they’re exceptional and deserving of a high rating. Here’s my rating breakdown for my reviews with ratings:

0 = Unpalatable, harsh
25 = Unenjoyable
50 = I’m indifferent
75 = Enjoyable, average
90+ = The best, would buy more
100 = Incredible, a favorite

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Kansas City, USA

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