TheTeaFairy Send Message

Sorry Steepster, I’ve been in such a blah mood lately, I kind of deserted everything around me, even my dear Steepster friends, so sorry :-(

Today was a YAY day as I received my Verdant order. I was impatiently waiting for the new Laoshan Black. For sure, it was going to be the first one I try. But I had to open the box first.

I don’t know what type of “tea box un-wrapper” you are:

Type A) you carefully open the box with a sharp knife, and take out the pouches one by one, checking and matching everything with the packing slip, then, happy with yourself, put everything away in a very tidy manner. You WILL NOT open the pouches until you decide to drink your new tea, which might be in a couple of weeks or even months from now.

Type B) you literally rip the box open, I mean with your bare hands. You fetch everything out in a very frantic manner. You don’t care if it matches the packing slip or not, it’s new tea and it’s all you care about. You gather all the pouches in one big pile and you circle them with your arms, eyeballs out of their sockets, you whisper to them “all mine, all mine, my precious!!”
You will not wait any longer to open all the pouches, no method whatsoever to your madness, you just go from one to the other, trying to figure out which one smells best and which one should land in your cup as of RIGHT NOW! By the end of the evening, you’ll be tea drunk and will have tried them all.

Well, maybe you guessed already…I’m type B. This is how I roll and I won’t apologize for it.

Now back to the order and my tea choice. After a spectacular type B grand opening, I throw myself on Laoshan Black Chocolate Genmaicha cause the smell, oh my, the smell…freakin unreal!!!

It’s so chocolate, so Laoshan Black, so nutty and crispy toasted rice, it’s the bomb people!
It,s like having Laoshan Black with Rice Krispies squares, just in a more fancy and sophisticated way, so yummy!

Enough said, just try it for yourself :-)

P.S. Thanks again Verdant for such a pleasant shopping experience as always, you guys are wonderful!

I got a big “Phatty” sample of this pu’erh from Dexter3657. Used the whole thing in a little gongfu glass pot so I could watch the particles break apart.

This is pu-pu-nom-nom goodness. It’s everything I love from a shou pu’erh! A little earthy, a little sweet, with a minty fresh finish.

The truth is, mini gungfu shots are just not doing it for me tonight, cause I want mooore of it right now!!!

Sorry for the “pu-rists”, but I dumped everything into a large infuser and steeped in a 16oz mug. Let me tell you, I am now unapologetically gulping it down as if there was no tomorrow. A satisfied fairy, that’s what a I am…sorry Mandala for such an incomplete review but sometimes, you need to keep things simple and just let the tea shine for you :-)

Thank you so much Dexter for sharing this with me!

I have only a few more samples left from the wonderful bunch Sil sent me back in Decenber…it seems that I saved the best for last.

This has an amazing aroma…it really came as a burst as soon as I removed the lid of the gaiwan. And guess what? It tastes even better!

It’s floral but not in a bouquet kind of way, just a delicate linger…also fruity, fig like.

Some caramel as well and a subtle nuttiness that wraps and ties everything together.

It feels round in the mouth, thick and voluptuous. I think it’s one of the finest Wuyi I have had for sure.

I stopped reading just to make sure I would fully focus all my attention to it. It’s that good. I had 4 delious steeps and will now cold brew the leaves for tomorrow…

Thanks Sil, this was lovely :-)

Dog and tea story…(skip if not interested)

My dog Dexter is a snob. I always say he’s an “AristoDog”, basically he acts like he’s Royalty. He doesn’t like to get messy, spring time, he tries to avoid stepping in mud, and if he does (which inevitably is bound to happen), he licks himself till he’s got no more saliva.
And Dexter likes his comfort. Yes, he’s allowed on the couch. He has special cushions that he grabs and carefuly places at stategic spots so he can morph into a sophisticated potato couch. This is a typical illustration of his concept for comfort:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/laafeevertee/13451905514/in/photostream/

There’s one thing missing though: his “doux-doux” (French prononced “doo-doo” in English). “Doux” means soft. In my family, we’ve been calling our favourite special throws/blankets a “doux-doux” ever since we were little children. I still love special blankets, have several all over the house and ready to be used when sitting in front of a fire, or just to lounge on the couch, a book in one hand, a cup of tea in the other. Dexter has his own doux-doux, the same one since he was just a puppy. He carries it with him pretty much everywhere. When I wash it, he looks for it everywhere.

Today was a lounge doux-doux day for the both of us… I grabbed mine, he grabbed his, and we had a cup of this wonderful tea. I say “we” cause while I was sipping, he kept trying to get into my cup, literally…totally unlike him!

But there’s something about this intoxicating aroma that tantalized his canine nostrils it seems…well I don’t blame him, this stuff is irresistible!

You know when you place an order, there’s a point when and you realize your cart is really getting full and you need to slow down…but there are so many good ones that you just can’t leave behind, right? Then you think sample size. Yes! Yes! That’s the answer, give yourself the illusion you’ve got your act together, you’re NOT out of control, not at all. You suddenly feel much better about adding 10 more teas, seems like the reasonable thing to do. (Not!!)

That’s how I came to order this tea. I should have been less reasonable and order a larger quantity…That’s the other thing about large orders. Somehow, the full size pouches are the ones I wish I had ordered in sample sizes, and the sample pouches end up being the ones I should have ordered in full sizes. Ugh???

Not a secret, I love pretty much all types of oolong, and the aged ones fascinate me.

Don’t let the Ginseng part keep you away from this if you’re not a fan, (coughDexter) this has nothing to do with regular ginseng oolong. If it wasn’t for its name, I wouldn’t even know it’s supposed to be there.

This is not smoky at all, but roasty and caramel like. If you’d smell the infusion without knowing it’s tea, you would think it’s a dessert, very creme brûlée, custard like. There’s that faint mineral taste in the background I have come to appreciate. The ending has a cooling effect in the mouth, fresh, but not in a minty kind of way, just like when you inhale and it’s cold outside. That might be the ginseng part. But it has non of the eucalyptus notes traditional Ginseng oolongs have.

I had to basket brew cause there wasn’t enough for me to use the gaiwan. It will be interresting to try short infusions when I get more of it.

And yes, I will definitely buy a larger quantity next time.

Thank you Angel from Teavivre for sending so many samples, you truly are an angel!

I like things that are unusual. I could not wait to get my hands on this tea, and I see I’m the first one to log it, so I’ll try to do a good job at it…

It came in one of those little sample pouches Teavivre uses. I’m having the full sample, I really want to get lots of flavour. There are several large pieces of orange peel mixed with the pu’erh leaf, it’s really pretty to look at.

It is recommended to brew 6 to 8 minutes! That scares me a little but I go for it.

The liquor is coffee dark. Surprisingly, that much leaf and such a long seep time did not produce an overly strong infusion, it is just perfect!

«Meet this creative pu-erh tea: it is made of ripened pu-erh tea leaves with Chenpi. Dig out the pulp in the orange, then fill in the empty space with aged ripened pu-erh tea leaves. After drying and shaping, the Chenpi tea was made in the appearance of tangerine, with unique taste».

Honestly, I’m not tasting much of the orange, it’s there but very distant. It does have a unique taste though, very unusual. It’s not “fishy” at all, very smooth and chocolaty. There’s a molasses feel to it. It’s bready, in a rye bread kind of way.

I think this would please a lot of coffee lovers, it is such a rich flavourful cup it could easily become a favourite of the morning.

As it cools down, I can now taste a lot more of the orange, a light and fresh astringency is emerging, nothing unpleasant, on the contrary.

The leaves have a lot more to give and I will sip on this tea for the rest of the evening…

I’m so grateful I got to try this very special tea, thanks again Angel!

This morning, I’ve been sipping on Special Dark. It’s my second review of it.

You know a tea is good when at the end of your cup, just to make sure you’re not leaving one tiny drop behind, you make a slurping sound that could totally compete with your vacuum cleaner.

I was in the mood for a decadent cocoa mouthfeel and that’s what I got. I like to steep it longer than suggested, not that there’s anything wrong with the predetermined parameters, but just because I can achieve a more bittersweet dark chocolate taste that way.

I still get raisiny notes as well, dried fruits.

I broke 3, yes, 3 Yixing clay pots in a short while. (Expensive habit).

Now that I have replaced them all, I’m very carefully preparing for the seasoning. One will be dedicated to oolong, one for Sheng and one for Shou. This being my favourite shou pu’erh of the moment, it’s been elected to serve as my seasoning tea. It brakes my heart to sacrifice it, but it’s an investment that will pay back I’m sure :-)

(Have to remember to order more than one once next time!)

I love music. All kind of music. I can start the day with The Black Keys and end it with Nina Simone. But my universe on Sunday morning usually gravitates torwards classical music. This morning, I chose Erik Satie. I love the odd atmosphere found in his pieces, Gnossienne no. 1, one of my favourite piano number ever. This slow movement version is the best in my opinion:

http://youtu.be/7harFCylWNQ

This tea has put a spell on me, I’ve been enamoured with it since I’ve tasted it for the first time. Sadly, I’m almost done with the year 2009 pouch I’ve ordered. But Garret also sent a generous sample of year 2013 to try so it will be interesting to compare the two.

I know I’ve reviewed it only 9 days ago, but it’s so special, I feel compelled to review it again.

This morning, what’s in my cup still reminds me of spring maple water and it’s even more appropriate with the bright sunny day we’re having so far. This beautiful tea helps me believe that spring might be on its way after all…As I look through the window, even the birds and the squirrels look happier today!

First sip and my mouth is invaded with sweetness and roundness that feel almost like pudding! But I’m immediately getting a faint woodsy earthiness, which reminds me I’m actually drinking pu’erh. Floral notes emerged today, more than I’ve tasted before, reminiscent of a light fragrant rose water. It’s very subtle though, I would never qualify this tea as being “floral”.

I like how this is complex but yet so accessible. I think any tea lover would enjoy this cup, whether they are white and pu’erh tea lovers or not.

Thank you Mandala for such a wonderful experience, it delivers time after time. I will have no choice but to restock on this :-)

Once upon a time, we used to cherish a month called March. After a long and cold winter, we’d get all excited to see March arrive and bring along the promise that spring was well on its way.

Yes, spring, remember that? Used to be one of our four seasons…but nowadays, winter seems to be the only season left…On March 4th today, it’s freakin MINUS 20 CELSIUS!!!

Thank god I have this tea to remind me what spring season is like.

Mmmm, Darjeeling, with its fresh citrusy notes. A beautiful first flush this tea. Sweet but slightly astringent and very juicy. It’s what I call a sunny tea :-)

Thank you so much for sharing this “sunshine in a cup” with me Sil. Such a good pick me up on this cold winter day!