a Tea story

Pretty one dimensional, non offensive puer. Not terrible or fishy like cheap shou tends to be, but also not all that interesting. A good introduction shou for someone who has never had any experience before and wants to avoid the fish taste/smell. More experienced shou drinkers will likely find it boring as far as cheap gong ting grade loose shou goes,

The infusion was almost transparent, with an strong aroma. The flavour has a natural sweetness, herbal and nutty notes and a bit buttery. Two good infusions and a weak third in my gaiwan.

It’s not bad, nothing special, but good.

The leafs are broken and predominates a roasted aroma.
I brewed this Big Red Robe in a gaiwan with a good tea/water ratio. The first infusion was like 20 seconds to test the strength of the tea, and it was a weak, with subtile aroma and roasted and acidic taste.
For the second steep brewed for 1 minute. The tea gained a bit of body, but the taste notes didn’t evolved, nor even increased.

Maybe this is a tea that works better in a western brewing style (big mug and long steeping time).

It didn’t impress me, not a big deal.

The leaves are small and appear broken.
There is good typical warm, roasty flavor, but the tea is thin bodied and doesn’t give more than one steep. Sadly, disappointing.

Free Sample from a Tea Story – thank you so much for sharing. I’ve had this type of blend before, so it wasn’t a shocking new thing for me. What i can say about this particular blend is that it hits the spot. this is light, refreshing and i am a fan of the slight orange that comes through. I think this would be particularly delicious with a dash of honey. Thanks for sharing!

Recently came in the post. When dry, it smells a little on the smoky side. The flavour is still a little smoky, but otherwise rather mild. Not a Keemun I prefer, but thanks for the sample.

Review based on Free Sample from a Tea story.

Small bag of small pieces of leaves. Description says leaves are ‘cut’ but looks more like broken leftovers.

Brewed with just off boiling water, steeped for about 2 minutes. Tea was bland, certainly nothing special. No distinct flavors besides a slight metallic edge. No real aroma.

A disappointment for both the wife and I. We didn’t finish our cups.

Thank you, a Tea Story, for the sample!

The dry leaf is delicate and fine. Steeping, the aroma is buttery spring green vegetables: tender baby spinach, asparagus, peas.

In the first steep, the taste is more of steamed veggies. Clean and more crisp than buttery. Flavor builds with each sip, gaining in body. As the cup progresses, I am catching a hint of parsley and maybe mint. This tea is gulpable.

In the second steep, I forgot to let the water cool enough (around 175 was my goal and it was more 200), and bitterness is present. This tea cannot take higher heat. As I sip, a sense of cheer comes over me.

The third cup is a bit drying. There is a cooling sensation – maybe more mint.

I think I would have gotten more steeps had I not used such hot water at the second steep.

Overall, this tea was very enjoyable and was truly Spring.