Liquid Proust Teas

Started my morning with a cup of this one.

I thought the toastyness of the tea would be the perfect hug this morning for the weather; and the sweetness of the chocolate notes creeping it fit perfectly as well. It was very much a cup of tea for pensive reflection and engulfing yourself in the surrounding environment.

It’s been raining heavily all week, and is expected to do so for the rest of the week as well and while my roommates are heavily complaining about the rain I’ve been loving every second of it. At the very least, I’ve been hanging out in the living with the balcony door open just listening to the pitter patter and soaking in the smell of the petrichor.

However, this morning I was actually on the balcony during the storm with a hot cup of tea, and Eilert behind the gate with a bowl of spinach just soaking everything in and enjoying it all. My roommate Cathryn got up to make breakfast/head to class and saw me out on the balcony – and of course I had my laptop propped right inside the balcony door so it couldn’t get wet and I could listen to my obligatory music whilst enjoying my cup of tea. It just heavily tied into the overall mood and aesthetic of not just the cup of tea but the rain storm as well.

Today’s song pairing was this one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G10fjK9bUJk

But holy shit, I didn’t expect it to lead into the conversation that I wound up having with Cathryn. She very happily came outside to tell me that “I know that song!”. Which, honestly, kind of excited me too ’cause we have such different tastes in music. So, this was a rare occurrence.

“Yeah, isn’t Fleetwood Mac great? I mean, I’m especially partial to this song but they’re just great in general”. This got a very puzzled look from her.

“No, it’s a Dixie Chicks song. I should know, I just went to their concert over the weekend. It’s one of my favourites and they sang it there. But yeah, this is a decent cover I guess…”

“No, Cathryn, this is the original. The Dixie Chicks version is the cover…”

“I’m running late for class – so I’ll just let you have this one.”

“But… I’m right…?”

So that was a thing that happened this morning. I’ll admit that it made me feel quite old; and Cathryn and I only have two years of age difference in the first place. Well, we almost agreed on something music based. I guess that’s something.

Cold Brew!

Honestly, this is such an incredibly rich tea and I’m really feeling that as I’m drinking this now. I know, I know: caffeine before bed… It’s not that it’s bad; it’s just maybe a little too much for me right now since I don’t have the biggest sugar/sweet craving at the moment. Kind of tastes like chocolate on chocolate on chocolate. Or, to be less abstract, like I just ate a big mouthfeel of Devil’s Food cake batter and chased it with a bigger spoonful of creamy chocolate frosting.

Of course there are more dimensions than just chocolate; a roasty element and a sweeter nutty flavour that personally I think tastes like walnut. Chocolate is just the most dominant one in every way. Maybe I’d enjoy this cold brew better were I in a different mind set currently?

It just felt much more balanced as a hot tea.

This is a queued tasting note.

So, I actually think I like LP’s version better than the original.

Personally, I thought that this just delivered more in every regard. The roastiness of the blend was more intense which is great because I love roastyness in my tea. The more roasty, the better. The chocolate seemed a lot more rich as well, without overwhelming the other flavours or tasting really artificial/fake/chemical/cloying. It even had a bit of a creamyness to it, that swept me off my feet. However, the best part in my opinion was the nuttyness that this blend delivered: to me it read as walnut, and it was prominent and sweet with that subtle maple-y flavour that walnut has. I remember the first time I tried Verdant’s version I noted the nuttyness as being very drying – and that wasn’t the case here. It’s all just so very decadent. Like, the best piece of perfectly moist, sticky, sweet and chocolate filled puffed wheat cake with little slivers of walnuts mixed in.

Yes please!

Backlog

I’ve been bad at reviewing everything anymore via Steepster. I found some notes from several sessions that I had with my friend who has taken the tea world very seriously recently. He’d have tea sometimes when he would come over (prior to my turning the spare room into a tea room/study). However, I’ve molded him into a “tea person” as my wife tells me…

Anyway, we sat down for a cup of Rummy Pu. He has wanted to try this ever since we went to LP’s months ago, but I wasn’t sure if I had any leftover. As we were going through the sample section of my tea cabinet, we came upon a whole (unopened) bag of this! We brewed and sipped…and quite frankly, the notes were different than I had remembered them to be….All thanks to my friend who I’ve discovered has a fine palate when mine is lacking (he’s more detailed in describing flavors).

Notes (very short): Purple grapes/grape skins. Tastes more like a sweet grape-y wine than it does rum.

That was all we had written. I had noted, too, that we ought to let it sit a bit longer to see where it’ll go from here.

First off, this is the tea that allows you to get drunk (not the type of drunk that’s inappropriate whilst driving) without the hangover the following morning. It’s the type of drunk that leaves you satisfied & hyper; focused and giddy.

Now, I love pu-erh and rum. I love pu-erh a little more these days, but this allows me the satisfaction of having both. What can get better than rum infused pu-erh goodness?

Nothing.

Allow me to say that Liquid Proust, you are a master at tea blending. I mean that. This is a solid tea. I had to call my rum-loving friend over to try it.

He said, “Woah, son, give me more of that liquid.”

I had a total of 3 sessions with this yesterday. About 8 steps each session. I like the first three steeps the best due to the high amount of rum that comes through the tea. However, 5-8 has a nice smooth and rich pu-erh note to it, that it is still good without the rum. No astringency to it.

If you’ve yet to try this, I’d suggest getting a few packages. I’m going to look into getting stocked up after I return from North Carolina.

Maybe then I can get a kayak, too, and call myself a River Dwelling Pu Pirate.

That’d be sweet.

Sincerely,

Capt. Pu-Head

Interesting.

The dry leaf smells like barbecue potato chips. The liquid tastes like a Mediterranean chicken marinade. So, this is a cooking tea. I appreciate the uniqueness, but not something I’d get.

I have to say that this isn’t at all what I was expecting. From the smell of the dried leaves, I was expecting a strong vanilla flavor and the sweetness of a maple syrup perhaps. It’s my first dianhong, so perhaps it’s not fair of me to review a flavored one when I haven’t tried it plain.

Once brewed, the tea smells and tastes very strongly floral, with hints of vanilla lingering on the edge. Is it rose? Lavender? I don’t know. The base seems nice and light, and I can taste a bit of malty chocolate if I try to penetrate the floral. Every once in a while, I can kind of taste the eggy toast in the background, but it’s faint.

Now that I look at other reviews, I can see that some people experienced this, but most didn’t. I’m a little sad that I didn’t get the sweet, syrupy custard flavor that the others tasted. I still enjoyed this tea, but as I was in the mood for something desserty, it wasn’t what I would have picked for this afternoon.

Edit: Oooh, chocolatey third steep, but still very floral.

As much as I hate ctc teas… I had to figure out a way to play with one to get it to be acceptable. Eventually I learned that there was semi golden dianhong that was made into ctc which drew me in. I decided that since it was already a dry like tea, why not add some more to that aspect. Well… this happened: https://liquidproust.wordpress.com/2016/06/16/unusual-approaches/

and in 10 days the leaf had taken on the smallest amount of smoke which comes off like a semi smoked chocolate you would taste from a bar that has smoked taste to it; but this is quite dry so it’s more of a cocoa.

It took awhile to figure out how to get this to brew correctly to taste the way I want others to taste it as. Turns out that this is quite strong so 3 grams is plenty and 45 seconds to 60 seconds is the time to keep it at; used a teapot for this brewing. Came out quite smooth, but dry like I described. Being that I’m not a fan of ctc, Assam, or Ceylon, this tea is getting a harsh review from me but it passes. I’m going suspect that someone else will find it much better than I do.

I’m hoping this slight smoke doesn’t completely fade within 3 months; that will be something I test out.

Ah, tournament time! Today and tomorrow is CEO, one of the big tournaments in the FGC and the last big one before Evo. Currently I am enjoying the finals for Killer Instinct, a game where I occasionally play a Raptor. Killer Instinct was a game I really disliked when I was younger, but the remake has really earned my respect, and not just because it is the first fighting game I have played in a while where my hands don’t lock up with tendon cramps. Not sure if they just got better or what, but it makes me happy.

Today I am looking at Liquid Proust’s A Dark Kitchen Sink, a blend of: golden pu’erh needles, loose ripe pu’erh, dianhong black tea, sunmoon lake black tea, vanilla bean (with flavor residue),roasted oolong, roasted pecans (unsalted), caramel (cane sugar, vanilla extract), cocoa nibs, Indian oolong ,honeybush (very very small amount)…it really is everything but the kitchen sink! The aroma of this tea is, to use fighting game slang, godlike. It smells like pecan pie, fudge, and a tiny bit of earthy loam. It is immensely sweet, caramel and chocolate dance with vanilla. and blissfully it is sweet but not grossly so thanks in part to the loamy notes and nuttiness. I might have drooled just a little, or a lot…either way, it smells really good.

I decided to gongfu it, the tea might be a blend, but it has tea that I frequently gongfu, so why not? I am almost at a loss for words describing this tea’s aroma once steeped. The notes are as expected, strong vanilla, caramel, pecan pie, fudge, loam, and malt…but trying to convey how mouthwatering sweet and rich it is, that is a challenge. The aroma of the liquid is also pretty intensely sweet, strong notes of vanilla and fudge with underlying pecan pie and loam. Super sweet and rich!

So, this is possibly the best blend I have had….ever. Seriously. It is dessert in a cup, like liquid Better Than Sex cake (making me calling it orgasmic not really an exaggeration) bringing in notes of fudge, vanilla, caramel, pecans, toffee, and a finish of earthiness and marshmallows…this is an intense tea. It hits all the right notes for me, it is immensely sweet and rich without being cloying, smooth as all get out, and just wow. Ben, being more diplomatic and not wanting to say it is orgasmic, says it is an epiphany in a cup.

You know, one of the things I love about being a person who has a sensory disorder, is how my strongest sensory input comes in the form of taste and smell…it is why I do what I do…sometimes I get overwhelmed by a taste or smell, it washes over me and drags me under, much like the undertow of an ocean wave. I don’t necissarily like the intensity of some of my other senses (looking at you sound and frequently touch) but I would not trade my sense of taste and smell for the world, especially when presented with teas like this! The second steep is pretty identical flavor wise, no real change in notes (except…I think the marshmallow finish turned into meringue) but the taste has become more intense.

Around steep three the rich fudge and vanilla notes, while still intense, are mellowing a bit, especially the vanilla. Now I get cherry notes (probably from one of the Hongchas) yams, still very rich nuttiness, and a richer loam note. Towards the finish I get a bit of molasses toffee and pie crust, with lingering sweetness. I got four good steeps out of this tea, and two moderately good steeps as I try to drag any bit of flavor I could from this…and then I needed to buy myself a pouch because delicious. Honestly, Andrew, this was one powerful concoction, bravo!

For blog and photos: http://ramblingbutterflythoughts.blogspot.com/2016/06/liquid-proust-teas-dark-kitchen-sink.html

Awe man, someone reviewed this before I did!

My first tasting of this had some funk to it, but I have retasted it a few times and find that fresh roast needs some time to settle; probably going to be true about all processes of any tea.

I kind of described it all on Instagram by replying to someone with:
“yeah… It is a tricky one. What I like most is how the texture of buttery sticks through the roasting of the jin xuan. The coffee, Brazilian one picked out by someone here locally, is already on the light side but my roasting at a SUPER light level keeps it mild and in the back but on the sides of the tongue. The roast comes through both lightly with that hint of warm nut, even though there is no nut taste. The oolong taste sticks with the mountain oolong taste upfront and changes a bit throughout. Its certainly like having a watered down coffee injected into a semi roasted mountain oolong with some texture. It’s not the best thing out there, but it’s quite unique and different.”

I was left with a few options on different ways to brew it as well so I look forward to playing around with this even more :)

https://wordpress.com/stats/post/256/liquidproust.wordpress.com

Edit I find it funny how all of my teas scores go down when I assign no point value :p

I really don’t remember just what the Verdant version of this tasted like. This is tasty. I seem to be getting a note I would describe as burnt sugar. The chocolate is there too. This is quite good. I would definitely buy more when I run out of this, which even though I didn’t buy a lot will probably take a while at the rate I go through individual teas.

I steeped this one time in a 16oz Teavana Glass Perfect Tea Maker/Gravity Steeper with 3 tsp leaf and 200 degree water for 3 min.

Sipdown! I’ve enjoyed this one – it’s minty and chocolatey with a malty black base and the creamiest vanilla I’ve come across in a while. There might be many chocolate-mint-vanilla black teas out there, but this is one of the really good ones.

I first tried this one on Saturday in my Timolino, but it didn’t make too much of an impression for reasons I don’t quite understand. It smells amazing! Rich chocolate, mint, and vanilla. Made in a cup, it also tastes great. This is the second time I’ve said it recently, but I think I’m getting to the stage with my Timolinos where they just need to be replaced.

Anyway, the tea. I used 1 tsp of leaf, and left it for 4 minutes in boiling water. I added a splash of milk, just because it’s first thing and it brewed up pretty dark. I can actually see tiny black vanilla seeds on the surface of the tea, and the flavour of the vanilla is very prominent in the initial sip. It’s so creamy and rich, it’s actually reminding me of very high-end vanilla ice cream, or maybe even creme anglaise. So intense.

The chocolate is largely a flavour contributed by the Fujian black base, as far as I can discern. It’s a very cocoa-like chocolate, a little on the dry side, but not at all artificial. It’s also quite gentle, but it pairs well with the vanilla to create a very decadent, dessert-like effect. The mint is also very subtle, but it’s identifiable as a fresh, cooling sweetness in the background.

Chocolate, vanilla and mint are flavours that work well together, and I don’t think that can be disputed. Most of the debate comes down to whether the tea in question balances them well, and I think here it’s a definite yes. It’s pretty heavy on the vanilla, so it’d definitely help if you like your tea rich and creamy, but it certainly makes for a delicious cup! Another win from Liquid Proust.

I received a sample of this tea from Liquid Proust (all the thanks yous!). I was excited about this one in particular since I really enjoyed the similar Razzleberry Genmaicha from 52Teas. Genmaicha in general pairs so well with sweet flavours.

There were big pieces of dried strawberry in my sample – big enough that I actually broke them apart into smaller pieces in order to measure better. The green tea is very green indeed; when the leaves are wet they look like fresh young spinach leaves. The flavour is wonderful, the malty, roasted flavour of the rice pair well the the berry flavours. I’m mostly getting strawberry but there might be a bit of blueberry in there too.

I’ve gotta say this knocked 52Teas version right out of the water. And if you’re reading this Liquid Proust, keep making more genmaicha blends with this base, you’ve got a winner. :D

I could have sworn there were more reviews for this tea. Well, looks like I’m the second one on here.

Andrew did a pretty nice job with this one, and like the previous review said, all of the flavors were nicely balanced out. The light crisp body remains throughout while bouncing with the cinnamon and the apricot. I could get several solid brews out of it, and it more or less stayed the same. I think I would have enjoyed it more if I didn’t drink it on the summer solstice. If only my everyday decisions were so brilliant.

I’m also biased to his other teas like the Watermelon Baozhong and the French Toast Dianhong. With that said, the white tea used for the base did please me.

This tea also reminded me of how much tea I have. Lord.

I’m drinking this cold with ice. It’s very enjoyable, especially with the high heat here. The flavoring is nice and not overpowering. Another tea that I’m grateful to be drinking. Thanks, LP!

It was recommended to me by Liquid Proust that I cold brew this as an iced tea. So I cold brewed it overnight in my 32oz Lupica Handy Cooler. It is quite good iced , especially with a little sugar syrup. The watermelon flavor is really nice, kinda pops out at you. The base tea, the oolong, at least I think it’s an oolong, comes out good too, comes out somewhat creamy in nature. You get a very nice blend of the watermelon and the tea base with a cold brew of this. There is no bitterness to speak of either.

I cold brewed 32oz of this overnight in a 32oz Lupica Handy Cooler with approx 4 tsp leaves.

Sipdown (206)!

Made this one as a latte at work a few nights ago. It was really good, but I felt like I actually tasted more stonefruit in the flavour than the rum itself. I never did get around the Gong Fu brewing this – I just fell in love with it as a latte too much.

If this is something that LP decided to revisit, I know I’d definitely buy more.

Gotta wrap up these tasting notes quickly, ‘cause my room is fucking freezing and I’m slowly losing some of the feeling in my fingers which is making typing very challenging right now…

Anyway, it’s latte season! Even better than that though, it’s eggnog latte season! So when I got home yesterday afternoon from work, I made Rummy Pu Eggnog Lattes for myself and for Trey. I knew I could easily lure him into trying them with the promise of rum infused tea…

They were DELICIOUS, by the way. I mean, everyone knows that rum works well with eggnog; that’s essentially what spiked Eggnog is. I don’t know about you guys, but aside from tea, spiked eggnog is my go to holiday drink. So this was really the best of both worlds. Aside from the obviously rich, sweet rum/eggnog pairing, the strong earthy notes from the pu’erh also came through well and complimented the drink. This felt very indulgent/decadent and PERFECT for the holiday season.

Classy and adult, but also still fun and innovative.

You know how you can tell I’m quickly getting tired? My tasting notes are getting shorter and shorter tonight…

I had this one as my ‘before bed’ cup of tea a few nights ago. Normally I’m pretty caffeine conscious when I have to work in the morning but Pu is actually one type of tea that I generally find relaxing enough to put me to sleep before the caffeine woes set in. That and a good, smooth white tea… Everything else is a bit of a battle right before bed.

I don’t actually remember a lot of my impressions of this particular mug. I know I made a note on my laptop spreadsheet before calling it a night that when this one was really hot it had more of a “rubbing alcohol” quality than a rum one. However I also noted that as it cooled down/settled that note definitely subsided and this was more of an actual rum flavour. Apart from that the only other thing I recall is that there were fruity undertones.

Drank this one on the way to work today;

I greatly want to sit down and try this Gong Fu in a larger/longer session, but the curiosity of trying it finally just got to me and I brewed it up for myself for the commute to work – Western style, of course, ’cause I had to bring it in a travel mug.

I think the dry leaf of this Pu smells amazing. I definitely currently live in a ‘rum household’, by which I mean me and my roommates drink a lot and the household alcohol of choice it typically something with rum in it. Personally, I have a strong preference for very dark rum, while Trey and Cathryn both favour spiced rum. I showed this one to Trey and he cracked open the package, deeply inhaled and then refused to give the tea back for half an hour while he just breathed in all the yum. The aroma is just so potently and richly like rum with this marvelous, deep earthy baseline scent.

The taste is fascinating to me; the first flavour is absolutely, 100% the rum but it’s so incredibly amazing how accurately that flavour comes across. It would be wrong to say I’m “surprised” how dead on the flavour is; and impressed isn’t the right word either but what I’m looking for is somewhere in that wheelhouse. You can tell this is real rum though; it’s got that distinctly alcoholic taste to it instead of the overly sweet artificial rum/“rum flavouring”. And trust me, the authenticity of the flavour is hella appreciated.

One thing I imagine would be a pro to Gong Fu brewing this would be having the rum flavour fade out and there being more focus on the Pu base; I think it brewing this Western I’m getting quite the focus on the rum flavour with less really stand out notes from the Pu’erh. That said, there’s definitely an earthy/muddy undertone to the rum notes. Also a little bit of sweetness that presents in the finish; I noticed it a little more as the tea was cooling. When this was still close to piping hot it was hard to taste anything but the rum; but at more of that lukewarm temperature there were definitely some fruitier notes and almost a bit of baker’s chocolate dull sweetness/bitterness.

Such a fascinating tea, honestly. I swear, only LP would be crazy enough to try aging Pu’erh in a rum barrel – but bless him for it because this is delicious and divine and quite unique!

Just got my first order from Liquid Proust Teas in and wanted to try this first. This is a tasty tea with a nice berry note to it. It also has a slightly burnt note to it. All popped rice teas seem to taste like that to me. Maybe with a shorter steep time that burnt note won’t come through. Still, it was good. I will also have to try this cold brewed and see how it is iced.

I brewed this one time in a 16oz Teavana Glass Perfect Tea Maker/Gravity Steeper with 3 tsp leaf in 175 degree water for 3 min.

This tea is fantabulously delicious. I’ve only had a few ounces of it warm—I put the rest in two mason jars in the fridge for myself and a friend for drinking later today.

It tastes like brown sugar and watermelon. Not artificial watermelon either. Great tea. I will have to see if I prefer it cold.

After a morning of a minty marshmallowy Laoshan Black, I moved on to this one while snacking on too much bittersweet chocolate and too many almonds and brazil nuts. You see, I am on a roll.