Mei Leaf

Generally I try to stick to buying this cultivar from Wang Family Tea but I think it is also important for our palates to try the same teas from different vendors of different areas. I will have to do a side by side comparison after trying this one on its own. This one has some menthol notes I don’t remember in my other Ruby 18 tastings.
Long, dark chocolate colored dry leaf with a drying aroma. Woody.
Smooth mouth feel.
The wet leaf is unique. A mix of eucalyptus and raisin bread.
Liquor aroma reminds me of camphor and eucalyptus. Also dry desert wood. All of this can also be found in the flavor.

An appropriate name. Some companies use names that are so appealing. While I understand the marketing behind it, it also drives me nuts unless the company gives more info like Mei Leaf does. This is fitting. I can taste a mix of forest berries. Though namely northern forest. Blueberries, gooseberries, musty decaying wood, and the forest floor beneath it. The mouth feel is smooth. Slight cream with hints of old wood in the liquor aroma and apricots, bready, and woody hints in the wet leaves. The aroma packet has taken most of the dry aroma but I will update this (If I remember once the aroma comes around) Think I might be slightly tea drunk.

Neti pots get a bad wrap but I tell you guys, if you use them correctly (like anything else) they work. That and a good night’s sleep helps. The dry aroma alone is worth the buy. Caramel, roasted marshmallows, roasted rose petals, plain rose, cherry liqueur. Oh the fascination! The initial aroma coming from the steeping leaves! So unique! Heavy cream, cream of wheat, marzipan?, my mouth is watering. At the suggested ten seconds I am getting hints of desert wood, rose, a bit of oat milk. Very nice. Oh now steeping 20 – 30 seconds. Chocolate notes. Chocolate milk, hot chocolate. Holy cow. At… what time is it? 1 minute? 2? I have no idea. It’s so thick! I feel like I’m drinking hot cocoa with a bit of a woody aftertaste. The wet leaf aroma is slightly bready and a bit woody. Silky mouth feel.
Second infusion. Too hot. Almost spit it out. Didn’t want to waste. Owie. Much of the same notes to be found. A bit more rose though.

This one I will have to explore with multiple sessions. Though it is a green, to me it tastes, looks, and smells more like a yellow. The dry leaf is slightly glossy and olive green. These are the sharpest-looking tips I’ve seen yet. Some silver hairs. Mine appear a yellower color than the picture. Almost like a yellow tea.
The flavors for the infusions remained fairly consistent though the third infusion is a bit sweeter. Vegetal. Green beans. Slight whole milk. Bit of fresh asparagus and spinach. The mouthfeel is silky with an ever-so-slight hint of astringency. It’s good but not one I would buy again. I need to revisit this one a few more times before I give my final say.

I was going to open up something new this morning but I couldn’t get this one out of my head so I’m revisiting it. This may be somewhat weird to say, but maybe not for those who are in the pu er/dark tea community, I want to age this tea and see if it changes anything. Right now I am getting a lot of overcooked peas with a bit of astringency; which I am finding myself somewhat insatiated by. Gong fu brewing at 180F.

Happy New Year! After following Mei Leaf and listening to their Youtube talks for many years, I’ve finally put my foot down and bought some tea. Oh boy, does that smell good! There is some serious sweetness flowing off these leaves. Stone fruits, mangos, some passion fruit, peaches. Ooo peach cobbler. And those buds are just amazing. Silver hairs, soft, and light green.
My first thought was slight white pepper. Sweetened pepper like you’d find in a chai. Pure cane sugar. But I like that it still has those traditional (in my opinion) white tea notes of barnyard in the background. Piled leaves, bales of hay, and tall summer grass. Smooth mouth feel. The aftertaste is incredible. Like I ate a sugar cube. I’ve never had such a sweet sensation without eating actual sugar.
Now just a note for the new year. It’s good to hope and look for the best but also important to realize that… sh*t happens. And how we handle that sh$t is just as important. I say this because I see more and more people losing their selves while driving to things that are so silly. Seen too many die because of it too. Let’s stop this now. Raise a glass to patience.

TTB Review #14: Reminds me of dandelion tea with prominent notes of honey. Very average, not a huge fan.

This is a very nice silver needle. Is it worth the price point? I don’t know. I’ve tried my sample once, now I want to compare it to other silver needle teas including Mei leafs before I decide if it’s worth springing for.
Prepared mostly as directed, 4g to 100ml 205 degree water, with a 30 second first infusion after a short rinse. Added about 5 seconds to each infusion after and got 9 infusions.
Very creamy and nutty. I could def taste the soy milk note they talk about. A bit of a grassy note in infusion 5, but mostly, creamy, nutty, and slightly sweet with a very pleasant aftertaste.

This is the best tea that I have ever had (so far). This ripe PuErh is buttery smooth, and really takes me back to Fall with it’s maple flavor and vanilla undertones that increase with every infusion.

Above average Green Tea. I am usually more of a PuErh/Oolong person, but this tea was a nice change of pace. Very broth-y with flavors of herbs and vegetables. Very fine tea for the Spring as the plants begin to bloom. Each infusion brought out a sweeter undertone that was fun to explore.

This tea is nothing short of incredible. It is the best soothing experience I’ve ever had, and could bring down my migraines to a manageable level. The soothing from the GABA is almost immediate, and keeps getting deeper with each infusion.

Earthy, yet sweet, with a very deep and robust flavor.

My initial review (further below) is pretty scathing, and I will be updating my notes soon after letting a few months pass and will try the tea again. I have since tried more Mei Leaf teas that I really enjoy, and I want to give Rendez-Vous another chance. The problem is that the higher a tea’s price point and hype, the greater the potential disappointment. To be continued….
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Initial Review:
I bought this tea based on Don’s selection of it as one of his Teas of the Year. I wish I could get a refund. I do not see this as a pinnacle tea at all. I am truly surprised and feel disappointed, as I put my faith in Mei Leaf. In my opinion, this tea is way below average. For me, it is weak in mouth feel, taste, smell, and body sensation. I tried to convince myself the tea has merits. I let the cake rest for over a month. I waited two weeks between first tastings. But each time the tea just did not deliver. I would give this away. With the heavy marketing about Mei Leaf teas being pinnacle, I cannot understand how this tea even remotely upholds that standard. And it was not inexpensive. I feel duped.

Weak tea. I got this tea from my recent Mei Leaf order, and it really just lacked potency and a fair bit of nuance as well. Beautiful leaves with a nice proportion of buds, decent aroma but could be more potent, as well as a decently vibrant liquor. Flavour is weak with a slight typical white tea nuance of hay and florality in it. Texture is decently okay, nice smooth and slightly juicy. Character is poor to average as the session is very unidimensional and uninteresting. Finish & aftertaste is average to decent, slight lingering hay note with a bit of a spice finish. Cha-qi is almost unnoticeable and steep longevity is poor to mediocre, lasting up to steep 7-8.

Overall, a weak tea that isn’t worth the price. Unless you’re a fan of hot water, I wouldn’t recommend buying this tea. I’ll be experimenting more with this tea though, as maybe I’ve missed something out for what it’s worth. Maybe I’m just too critical of potency, as I could see someone who likes something light become acquiescent to this tea.

Relatively disappointing. I got the 2021 harvest of this tea from my Mei Leaf order some time ago, but as far as I remember this tea hasn’t provided the greatest of sessions. Beautiful leaves with a slight golden sheen, rich yet nuanced aroma both in the dry and wet leaf, and a beautiful deep liquor that portrayed its golden ring slightly. Flavour was average to decent and I really had to brew it hard to bring out a nice and complex flavour, texture was smooth but nothing else to note of it. Character was lacking as the session was pretty one-dimensional, the finish & aftertaste was average to mediocre, the cha-qi was unnoticeable and the steep longevity is not very good either. Overall, spend your money elsewhere as this unsmoked lapsang isn’t worth your time in my opinion.

Middle of the road. A good ripe pu’erh for the cost, heavily nutty as the name implies. I got strong flavors of roasted brazil nuts, red skinned peanuts, hay, and some strong earthy tones as the infusions went on. Has a somewhat intense flavor; probably not a good starter ripe for newcomers to the style. Brewed Gongfu.

Tastes like stewed or baked cinnamon apples. Has a woody overtone, with a minty tingle on the tongue in earlier gongfu infusions. One of my favorites.

brewed Gongfu style. First infusion is heavy on the tangerine flavor. It’s pleasantly sweet, like a woody orange hard candy. The woody flavors stay, while the sweeter notes fade with later infusions. Overall a pleasant experience.

An okayish white tea! I got the 2022 harvest of this tea from my Mei Leaf order, and it is decent, but not good enough. Beautiful budded dry leaf with a very nice dry and wet leaf smell. Liquor was full of trichomes and the longevity of this tea was surprisingly good. This tea had a okayish flavour that lacked a bit of potency and nuance, and it didn’t really have much going for it in terms of cha-qi, finish, and texture. Not a bad tea, but not good enough.

A decent, delicate white tea! I got the 2022 harvest of this tea from my Mei Leaf order, and it really is quite nice. Great aroma with a decent flavour and nice longevity. I wish this tea had more complexity, character and texture, which would elevate the tea drinking experience further.

A disappointing sheng. I got this tea from my recent Mei Leaf order, and everything about it was just lacking. This tea had beautiful leaves and a decent cha-qi, but the flavour was weak and one-dimensional, the aroma was weak as well, and the finish & aftertaste was just not good enough. The texture was surprisingly unpleasant, with a bucket load of dryness and a slight “throat lock” ensuing in my mouth. Other than that, this tea really wasn’t “offensive” or downright bad in anyway, but just bang average and definitely not worth your money.

A mediocre yellow tea! I got the 2021 harvest of this tea from my Mei Leaf order, and unfortunately I still haven’t found a yellow tea that I love yet. Beautiful leaves and liquor with a decent texture and character. Flavour was delicate but a bit lacking, especially when it comes to nuance. Finish and aftertaste is almost non existent and so was the cha-qi. Average longevity and an okay aroma to boot. I’m still looking for a yellow tea to really shout for.

An okayish meh green! I got the 2022 harvest of this tea from my recent Mei Leaf order, and while the tea was quite good on the first steep, it really just went downhill from then on. Very nice, complex and potent aroma with a decent aftertaste. The tea had beautiful leaves with a vibrant and active liquor. The first steep provided a unique and complex flavour with high and body notes. However, the flavour didn’t last long and gave way to slightly bitter vegetal staleness by the third steep. This tea needs to offer more in its texture, finish, cha-qi, and character for it to be something I’d recommend.

A lackluster tea. I got this tea from my recent Mei Leaf order, and there’s not much to say other than it’s mediocre and disappointing. This tea had a really strong and complex aroma between the wet and dry leaf, as well as the empty cup. It also had a smooth texture with a nice medium thickness. The flavour however was weak and shallow, lacking body even when steeped for longer. Little aftertaste and finish, with a lack of character as well as cha-qi. Worst of all, this tea only really lasted for around 5 steeps, unlike the 10 steeps advertised by Mei Leaf. While the tea is not offensive in nature, it is a poor representation of what Rou Gui and Wuyi Yancha is.

An amazing green tea! I got the 2022 version of this tea from my recent Mei Leaf order, and it honestly was pretty darn good. A beautiful, deep and complex aroma, paired with a nuanced yet delicate flavour. Smooth texture with a very nice slight arresting astringency for the finish. A beautiful character with a potent calming cha-qi. A lovely tea that would’ve been even lovelier if the flavour held up for more steeps, and if it had a more potent and longer lasting aftertaste. Another qualm I have is that the leaves look a bit staler and less vibrant compared to the photos provided by Mei Leaf. All in all, a really good tea for a good price that I would recommend to all.

Mediocre at best. Got this tea from a Mei Leaf order, and while the aroma was really nice and complex, and the first steep was pretty good. The subsequent steeps were quite disappointing.