Tealyra

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Recent Tasting Notes

87

Here’s another tea I have been working my way through over the past several days. I only have about 6 grams left as of this time and expect to finish the remainder tomorrow morning. Overall, I found this to be a mild, pleasant first flush Darjeeling.

I prepared this tea in the Western style. I steeped a fairly heaping teaspoon of loose tea leaves in approximately 8 ounces of 194 F water for 5 minutes. I did not attempt any additional infusions.

Prior to infusion, the dry tea leaves produced a slightly floral, grassy, nutty bouquet. After infusion, I noted stronger floral aromas reminiscent of a combination of dandelion, chrysanthemum, and marigold, as well as touches of almond, hay, grass, malt, and pine needles. In the mouth, I picked up notes of lemon zest, herbs, grass, straw, pine needles, wood, malt, almond, and flowers underscored by subtle impressions of Muscatel and something of a butteriness. The finish was grassy, nutty, and malty with lingering pine needle and floral tones.

This was kind of a different first flush Darjeeling. It was very malty, nutty, and floral with less of a Muscatel presence than a number of others I have tried. I’ve noticed that a lot of folks list orange, mango, jasmine, and honeysuckle aromas and flavors when they describe the teas produced by the Oaks Estate, but I did not get any of that here. Truthfully, I let this tea go for some time and I could tell that it had perhaps lost a little of its luster, but overall, I still found it to be very enjoyable.

Flavors: Almond, Butter, Dandelion, Floral, Grass, Herbs, Lemon Zest, Malt, Muscatel, Pine, Straw, Wood

Preparation
5 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML
teepland

I may have to try this one. I had a bad experience with other teas from this vendor, but might have to try them again based on your experience!

eastkyteaguy

Teepland, in my experience Tealyra tends to be pretty hit or miss overall. I think part of the problem is that because they don’t identify their sources or consistently identify years of harvest, you can never actually be sure of what you’re getting. You can also not be certain that their teas come from the same sources from year to year, so it’s a crap shoot really.

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91
drank Orange Pekoe Ceylon by Tealyra
1048 tasting notes

I know I have been missing in action for a couple of days, but I wanted to take some time off in order to recharge after a stressful week. I also wanted to finish off some of the older teas of which I still had larger amounts. This was a tea I started last month, but never got around to finishing for whatever reason. I have been working on finishing it up the last couple of days. I don’t normally drink many Ceylonese teas or tea blends these days, but I must say that I greatly enjoyed this one.

I kept my preparation simple for this tea. I steeped 1 full teaspoon of loose tea leaves in 8 ounces of 205 F water for 5 minutes. If memory serves, Tealyra recommended an infusion of 3 minutes, but I tend to like black teas of this type brisk, strong, and tannic. That’s what I was going for here.

Prior to infusion, the dry tea leaves produced subtle aromas reminiscent of a combination of molasses, sweet potatoes, honey, and wood. After infusion, the rich orange tea liquor produced strong aromas of malt, toast, roasted nuts, molasses, caramel, wood, and sweet potatoes. In the mouth, the tea liquor was lively and moderately astringent, offering pronounced notes of honey, brown toast, malt, wood, brown sugar, molasses, caramel, cream, sweet potato, orange rind, leather, and roasted nuts (chestnut and black walnut). The finish was smooth and satisfying. I noted nice lingering touches of malt, roasted nuts, toast, molasses, and honey.

This was a very nice Ceylon Orange Pekoe. It had plenty of character on the nose and in the mouth while avoiding the pronounced astringency and mild bitterness of some others. In my opinion, this would make an excellent morning or early afternoon tea. If you are a fan of straight Ceylonese black teas and/or black tea blends, I am willing to bet you will be satisfied with this one.

Flavors: Brown Sugar, Brown Toast, Caramel, Chestnut, Cream, Honey, Leather, Malt, Molasses, Orange, Sweet Potatoes, Walnut, Wood

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 5 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML
Daylon R Thomas

So you’re saying “I don’t always drink ceylon, but when I do, I prefer Orange Pekoe.”

eastkyteaguy

Yep, that’s exactly what I’m saying.

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94
drank Assam "Black Beauty" #8 by Tealyra
23 tasting notes

I was excited to try this tea, partly due to the description (it sounds exactly the kind of tea that I like), and partly due to the fact that I had great success with Tealyra’s Brandy Oolong, which is currently my favourite tea. In fact I had ran out of Brandy Oolong and placed another order especially to get some more, and I added this tea to the order as well. It wasn’t long before it arrived that I was brewing it.

Appearance-wise it looks fantastic, brewing up a wonderful rich amber colour. The smell is slightly sweet and very inviting.

As for the taste… just wow. It delivers as per the description. It shares a creamy, caramelly smoothness with the Brandy Oolong that I love so much. This is like no Assam that I have tried before; if anything I would say that it is closer in taste to Golden Monkey, which I love.

I find that it holds up to multiple steeps relatively well. I went for 2 minutes, then 3m 45, then 8m (basically as long as you want, you’re just extracting any remaining flavour here). Even at the last steep it wasn’t bitter.

A little expensive perhaps, but I imagine that I’ll be treating myself to some more of this before long.

Flavors: Caramel, Cream, Sweet

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 2 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 350 OZ / 10350 ML

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83
drank English Breakfast by Tealyra
1048 tasting notes

This has been my go-to morning cuppa for much of the past week or thereabouts. I have long had an attachment to English breakfast blends, and I am happy to report that this one has consistently struck me as being a good one. It is an organic blend and is comprised entirely of Chinese material. I’m not certain what the teas used in this blend are, but I am almost certain that Yunnan black teas make up a healthy percentage of it.

While I normally prefer to gongfu Chinese teas, I am not accustomed to gongfuing blends, especially breakfast blends. I opted instead for my trusty one step extended Western infusion process. Hey, if the vendor insists on labeling this an English breakfast tea, I am going to treat it like one. Anyway, I steeped 3 grams of loose tea leaves in 8 ounces of 205 F water for 5 minutes.

After infusion, the orange tea liquor produced aromas of toast, malt, wood, caramel, and sweet potato. In the mouth, the liquor was brisk, astringent, and tannic, offering notes of wood, malt, cream, roasted nuts, brown toast, sweet potato, caramel, molasses, and bitter chocolate. I got hints of camphor, orange rind, and smoke as well. The finish was mostly astringent, woody, and nutty. I found the caffeine uplift to come on pretty quickly too.

For an English breakfast tea, this was very nice. I kind of wish I had taken the time to gongfu it once or twice, but I have so little left now that I may as well just plow on through the remainder the same way I’ve been doing. It may sound crazy, but this kind of reminded me of a budget version of The Jabberwocky. I would definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a strong, consistent black tea blend to get them through the day.

Flavors: Astringent, Brown Sugar, Brown Toast, Camphor, Caramel, Chocolate, Cream, Malt, Molasses, Orange, Roasted Nuts, Smoke, Sweet Potatoes, Tannic, Wood

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 5 min, 0 sec 3 g 8 OZ / 236 ML
Daylon R Thomas

Budget Jabberwocky? Dang that’s a statement.

eastkyteaguy

Yeah, I knew that might get some people going. To be honest though, there are some similarities. The Jabberwocky is 100% Yunnan black tea (a blend of Wildcrafted Dian Hong, Yunnan Gold Tips, and Ailaoshan Black if memory serves) and I’m pretty sure this is mostly, if not entirely Yunnan leaf material. Some of the aroma and flavor components are going to be very similar to say the least. Obviously, the leaf quality here is not as high as The Jabberwocky nor is this blend as complex and refined, but there are just a few similarities.

Daylon R Thomas

I’m guessing there’s got to be some Yunnan in this blend then

eastkyteaguy

It kind of threw me at first too. I’m aware that research suggests that classic English breakfast teas were 100% Keemun. Looking at the thin, wiry, jet black leaves, I expected this to be mostly Keemun. Now, I grant that Keemun and some Yunnan blacks can be very similar, and this blend did have the chocolate and smoke notes I get out of Keemun, but I kept looking for those telltale stone fruit and leather flavors and never got them. This was decidedly soldier and nuttier.

eastkyteaguy

*woodier. I hate autocorrect. I really hate autocorrect.

Henk

It makes for a good guessing game: ‘What did he type before autocorrect hit?’

eastkyteaguy

Woodier. Autocorrect believed and continues to believe that I mean soldier.

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83
drank Aloha Sweet Guava by Tealyra
4169 tasting notes

Tasting note #2,300. Yowzas. Can I just say I appreciate how much work the Steepster team puts into Steepster — thank you! I’ve been meaning to mention this in a tasting note and now seems the time. I hope all the Steepsterers had a fantastic long weekend. I got this as a sample in my order… a very generous sample and there were two samples! This is a lovely herbal blend with NO hibiscus so already it’s a win. Oh my gosh, the flavor is like a Snapple fruit drink or something. Like the strawberry kiwi drink. I could have swore there was kiwi in this tea but there is not. I’m not too familiar with guava but I would probably love it. Otherwise the ingredients lend to a perfectly tart, fruity, thirst quenching, sweet cup. I love the other extra ingredients: sunflower blossoms and rose. I can’t decide what would be making this blend so tart (is guava tart?) but it’s a very delicious blend. The brew is actually a yellow color (not deep red for hibiscus — but a little beetroot could have turned it pink!) and the lemongrass hardly makes an appearance, possibly because there wasn’t much lemongrass included. Otherwise, I think the ingredients are well thought out. I’d buy this blend! I think Tealyra knew what they were doing sending a sample. :D

Arby

Happy #2300! That’s an impressive number. :D

tea-sipper

Haha yep. Steepster commitment :D

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86

I recently did a tea swap with kim and the Japanese blacks and this white had caught my eye. I’ve only ever really had green tea from Japan before. From the selection of teas from the swap to try, I picked this one, because I was not in the mood for a pu erh or a black, and some I wanted to use a gaiwan for, but I was not in the mood for a session. As it has been a decently warm day, I also wanted something lighter. So, I picked this. I may do the rooibos one later, but I have to get 2 cups of my medicinal herbal tea in as well.

So I went to the website to grab some steeping parameters, because I am totally unfamiliar with Japanese whites. The directions said to use 1-1.5 tsp per 8 oz/200 ml with 190F/85C water and steep 3-4 minutes. I was using a 10oz cup, and my sample was about 2 tsp, so I opted to use the whole lot. I steeped 3 minutes because I thought I might have used too much leaf, but then thought I could add water if it was still too strong with the 3 minute steep.

The tea brewed up darker than I was expecting, which might be the amount of leaf used, but might also be this tea, as I don’t think I really overdid it with the leafing. One of the other tasting notes says that this tea is almost like a darjeeling, and I can agree. I almost feel like it is a mix of a darker oolong and a white, because it does still have a hay type of taste, but it is heavier and a bit more bodied than a normal white (possibly closer to a white pu erh). Despite the word heavy, the tea feels a bit delicate at the same time. This tea is not bitter or astringent, and it is smooth. It is like a contrast of tastes, almost.

I’ll probably try to get one more steep out of the leaves and see how that is. This is a very pleasant tea to drink…it is very easy to drink, and I am grateful for the chance to try such a rare tea.

Preparation
185 °F / 85 °C 3 min, 0 sec 2 tsp 10 OZ / 295 ML

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78

Getting back into all of these green teas has proven extremely rewarding. They provide me with a prolonged energy boost and a fresh, clean, pure feeling that I have been missing for months. After polishing off the last of the 2016 Cui Ming, I turned my attention to a 25 gram sample pouch of this tea. Prior to trying this tea, I had read about Liu An Gua Pian, but had never tried it. I’m not sure how this tea compares to some of the others on the market, but for the price, I found it to be enjoyable.

For this session, I chose to utilize my trusty gongfu method. I gave the tea a super quick rinse and then steeped 6 grams of loose tea leaves in 4 ounces of 175 F water for 5 seconds. This infusion was chased by 13 additional infusions. Steep times for these infusions were as follows: 7 seconds, 10 seconds, 15 seconds, 20 seconds, 25 seconds, 30 seconds, 40 seconds, 50 seconds, 1 minute, 1 minute 15 seconds, 1 minute 30 seconds, 2 minutes, and 3 minutes.

Prior to the rinse, the dry tea leaves emitted mildly vegetal, nutty aromas. After the rinse, I detected clearer aromas of chestnut, hazelnut, grass, hay, asparagus, and seaweed. The first infusion introduced a subtly sweet nectar-like aroma and a hint of indistinct fruitiness. In the mouth, smooth notes of grass, chestnut, seaweed, hay, asparagus, and hazelnut ruled the day, though I was able to make out faint hints of some kind of fruit and nectar in the background. Subsequent infusions introduced parsley, cilantro, leaf lettuce, buttered kale, roasted sunflower seed, zucchini, and mineral impressions. The fruitiness increased and began to kind of remind me of a mixture of apple and cantaloupe. The nectar-like note also remained. The later impressions displayed a fine minerality and subtle lingering impressions of nuts, grass, hay, kale, lettuce, seaweed, and roasted sunflower seeds underscored by hints of cilantro and parsley.

This was an interesting tea and I do not feel that my description does it justice. Honestly, I kind of doubt that this would compare all that favorably to some really high grade, ultra fresh Liu An Gua Pians (for a supposedly high grade tea, I noticed plenty of broken leaves), but for what this was, it was rather tasty. I could see this making a good introduction to this particular type of green tea.

Flavors: Apple, Asparagus, Butter, Cantaloupe, Chestnut, Coriander, Grass, Hay, Hazelnut, Kale, Lettuce, Mineral, Nectar, Parsley, Seaweed, Zucchini

Preparation
175 °F / 79 °C 6 g 4 OZ / 118 ML

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91
drank Cui Ming Green 2016 by Tealyra
1048 tasting notes

While doing some routine cleaning this weekend, I decided to take stock of my tea hoard. Initially, my plan was to organize everything by type, but that quickly fell apart. While I failed to accomplish my goal, I did make an important discovery. I have considerably more green teas left over from 2016 than I thought. All of them were still sealed, so I doubted I had to worry about any of them being stale, but I decided that it would be best to check one to see if it was worth drinking at this point. After some deliberation, I selected the 25 gram sample pouch of this tea and got on with it.

I prepared this tea gongfu style. After a quick rinse, I steeped 6 grams of loose tea leaves in 4 ounces of 180 F water for 5 seconds. This infusion was chased by 13 additional infusions. Steep times for these infusions were as follows: 7 seconds, 10 seconds, 15 seconds, 20 seconds, 25 seconds, 30 seconds, 40 seconds, 50 seconds, 1 minute, 1 minute 15 seconds, 1 minute 30 seconds, 2 minutes, and 3 minutes.

Prior to the rinse, the dry tea leaves emitted intriguing scents of chestnut, damp grass, hay, and sorghum. After the rinse, I detected emerging aromas of hazelnut, lemon, grain, and corn husk. The first infusion produced a layered bouquet with superb integration of the previously listed scents, though I did catch touches of lime, smoke, and malt in the background this time. In the mouth, notes of chestnut, hazelnut, grain, grass, hay, citrus, corn husk, and sorghum were significantly stronger than anticipated. Subsequent infusions better brought out the maltiness and smokiness while also introducing minerals, orange rind, beechnut, sour plum, and raw spinach to the mix. The later impressions were dominated by minerals, malt, nuts, grass, and citrus, though oddly enough, impressions of buttered greens (kale and leaf lettuce) pushed through at the last minute.

Well, this tea was still viable. That much should be obvious. It probably mellowed a tad since I purchased it, but it still had a tremendous amount of life to it. It was also surprisingly good. Actually, scratch that. It was more or less excellent, even at this point in time. I’m definitely glad I chose to end my weekend with this tea.

Flavors: Chestnut, Corn Husk, Grain, Grass, Hay, Hazelnut, Kale, Lemon, Lettuce, Lime, Malt, Mineral, Nuts, Orange, Plum, Smoke, Spinach

Preparation
180 °F / 82 °C 6 g 4 OZ / 118 ML
Evol Ving Ness

So, initially, you were planning on organizing by type and that didn’t work out. How did you end up organizing them? If at all?

Because that is my challenge. I tend towards organizing by brand and then within the brand by type. I keep my unopened teas apart for shopping in my stash days when I really need something new. Lately, I’ve begun pulling and culling samples and older and almost finished teas into a basket for more immediate attention.

This is roughly the framework, of course. That said, it tends to fall apart when I raid my stash to gather for swaps and such.

eastkyteaguy

Evol, I just saw your comment, but my original goal was to organize everything by vendor and type. Once the sheer enormity of this task set in, however, I resorted to picking out things I felt the need to finish in the immediate future.

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94
drank Brandy Oolong, Ruby 18 by Tealyra
23 tasting notes

Well, now I love Oolong too. Crap. This means that I’m going to have to spend more money!

Up until now I’ve been heavy on the golden-tipped teas and Assams, but this throws something slightly different into the mix. Still smooth and caramelly like golden-tipped teas, but with a slightly more complex undertone to it. I don’t know quite how to describe it, and it’s pretty early, so I’m just going to enjoy my cuppa and revisit it many, many times in the future :) It just has a certain “something” that makes it so incredibly delicious and moreish.

Also, I can’t wait to try this tea out Gong Fu style. I bet that that’s going to be delicious.

Flavors: Caramel, Sweet

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 2 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 12 OZ / 350 ML
TeaEarleGreyHot

Yes, this tea is heaven.

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92

Once again Tealyra make a tea sound extra-amazing in the description, and once again they’re right.

On the nose and the palate it delivers exactly what is promised: sweetness, maltiness, and a touch of caramel. There is zero bitterness. This tea is a joy to look at, smell, and drink. Even opening the packet, the aroma is amazing… I could huff that all day.

It’s no secret that Golden Monkey / golden-tipped teas are probably my favourite type, but this is an exceptional (and pricey) example of it.

So far Tealyra have been impressing me. Let’s hope that they keep it up as I go through the rest of my order! :)

Flavors: Caramel, Malt, Sweet

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 2 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 12 OZ / 350 ML

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85

I finished off of what I had of this tea. To think that I raved about how Guanyin visited me the first time I tried it in a delirious slew of gong fu and grandpa brewing in my dorm room. I’ve graduated from MSU with a degree in Social Studies ed. with a history ed. minor, and I wait for placement for student teaching.

Guanyin needed to visit me again. I brewed this in a triangular tea pot and brewed it over and over. I did not time it precisely, but I sprinkled a little bit of water in my tea cup to test it, then decided when to pour it based on the color and taste of the liquor. I went for a fragrant aroma and a very light, lemon chiffon yellow. The florals were popping and so bright that it made me think of cucumber and hops, and they changed with every brew. I believe that this tea is also used for Spirit Tea Co., which used “Notes of Honeysuckle, Cucumber, and Fresh Hops.” in their description. I happen to agree with that description for the most part, but the honeysuckle was more of a strong background with a different floral in the front. They did not mention the watercress refreshing quality it also had, nor its heady lightness. It’s somewhat creamy in texture, but it has a rising green quality that was almost eucalyptus-ish for me-though I would not said it had that flavor. The cucumber thing got stronger over time, almost becoming overwhelming at brew 8 after three minutes.

I’ve come far and have so much farther to go. I wait anxiously for placement so that some semblance of a career can finally begin as I wait for a new gaiwan and two new oolongs from a company that has intrigued me. I’m also very close to trying THE O DOR, but I also need to save what money I have left over for a good daily drinker oolong. I know now that Tie Guan Yin is not the daily drinker I am looking for, but it is one that I will never shun if it comes my way.

Crowkettle

Congratulations, and good lucks with placement! :)

I keep eyeing THE O DOR too, but those bulk prices

Daylon R Thomas

Yeah, I know. If only I could at least sample the Blue Oolong Lotus, The De Loup, and the T.E. Milky Oolong without the hefty price.

Fjellrev

Awesome, Daylon, congratulations! I hope you can snag a placement with a snap of a finger.

hawkband1

Congratulations on graduating! And good luck with placement.

Evol Ving Ness

Congrats, Daylon! Here, placements are a long long slog of contract work. Hopefully, things are a bit easier there.

Also, I can just picture you in a delirious slew of steeping in your dorm room. It made me smile.

Daylon R Thomas

Thanks guys! From what I heard, a lot of the schools that MSU has contracts for in Southeast Michigan have yet to decide on their interns. My friends in Lansing/East Lansing have the process done for them by March, whereas the schools contact me directly and I pick the placement from the options that call me. I know of cases that are as late June. Here’s to the waiting game. Meanwhile, I’m gonna sub around home and drink LOTS of tea over the summer.

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94
drank Yunnan Golden Special by Tealyra
23 tasting notes

Well this is just delicious!

Tealyra really make it sound amazing in the description on the web site, so my expectations were high (I wondered if they were embellishing a bit?) – but wow, they are pretty much spot on.

Golden Monkey / Golden-tipped tea is easily one of my favourite styles, mostly due to how caramelly and smooth it is, and this tea is no exception.

On the nose you get sweetness, caramel, and the slightest whiff of hay. I don’t like golden-tipped teas that taste too much like hay, but here I’m in luck, because when tasting you get a very high amount of natural sweetness, some caramel, and very little hay.

This is a lovely tea. I would say that it’s very sweet, and I’m not always in the mood for that, but the fact that it’s a natural sweetness is pretty amazing. I’ll be dipping into this one until it runs out.

Flavors: Caramel, Hay, Sweet

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 2 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 14 OZ / 400 ML

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96
drank Lemon Souffle by Tealyra
4169 tasting notes

I really shouldn’t have looked at Tealyra’s website because I realized they had a ton of teas on sale/ discontinuing that are some of my favorites. sigh. I figured this would be like Della Terra’s Lemon Chiffon and I’m pretty sure it is (and I’m one teaspoon away from being out of that) so this tea alone inspired an order. But they have so many good blends. And the sale teas were only in 100 gram pouches so now there will definitely be some more teas up on my sale list a few weeks from now (including this one.)
In case anyone missed those magical days of Della Terra, this one is a rooibos base with PLENTY of lemon and cream flavor. I love it. It’s basically a cupboard essential. I think this blend might have lemongrass though and I don’t notice that in DT’s blend. The lemongrass doesn’t seem to change the flavor. Otherwise they both have cornflowers. I don’t know why Tealyra would get rid of this one! More Steepsterers should really give this shop a try. They almost always have a 20% off coupon code.

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60

Well, I have continued to mow down Darjeelings. I am currently about halfway through a 50 g pouch of this tea and figured now is as good a time as any to post a review. To this point, I have struggled with how to evaluate it.

I prepared this tea Western style. I steeped 1 fairly heaping teaspoon of loose tea leaves in 8 ounces of 194 F water for 5 minutes. The vendor recommended a water temperature of 205 F for this tea, but I have lately discovered that somewhat lower temperatures work best for me when it comes to reviewing Darjeelings, so I stuck with the 194 F water I have been favoring in recent weeks. I can say, however, that I have tried a 5 minute preparation of this tea in 205 F water and did not detect much of a difference.

Prior to infusion, the dry tea leaves emitted a mild bouquet of Muscatel, grass, and straw. After infusion, the aromas of Muscatel, grass, and straw remained, but were joined by scents of malt, almond, herbs, and dried flowers. In the mouth, I detected delicate, subtle notes of straw, hay, grass, lemon balm, malt, almond, nutmeg, minerals, Muscatel, and dried flowers. The finish was mostly nutty and malty with slight floral, grassy, herbal impressions and a lingering hint of Muscatel.

This was not really what I was expecting. I assumed this would be a fairly fruity Darjeeling (not sure why), but I found it to be more nutty, malty, and vegetal. I read something about this estate being located at a lower elevation than many other estates, so perhaps that terroir gave the tea its unique aroma and flavor profiles. Whatever the case, I can say that this was a pleasant, easy-drinking Darjeeling, but I was hoping for something more robust, flavorful, and complex. In the end, I didn’t particularly mind this tea, but I doubt I would seek it out again.

Flavors: Almond, Flowers, Grass, Hay, Herbs, Malt, Mineral, Muscatel, Nutmeg, Straw

Preparation
5 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML

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77
drank Magic Moon by Tealyra
15006 tasting notes

i always struggle with green/black blends. This sample is from Evol and it’s not bad, but it’s also just a little weird. I can taste the fruitiness in this one, but i’d rather just have a green tea or a black tea heh.

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64

Alright, I am finally back with another review. I took a break from the oolongs I have been working on to polish off a sample pouch of this Darjeeling. I have made it no secret that I am a huge fan of the teas from Margaret’s Hope Estate, so I had very high expectations for this tea. Unfortunately, this tea did not meet those expectations, but it was not a total waste. I found it to be a perfectly pleasant, serviceable Darjeeling.

I prepared this tea Western style. The first couple of times I prepared this tea, I only used a single teaspoon of leaf material and it tasted horribly flat and thin with virtually no aroma whatsoever. I began upping the amount of leaf I was using from there and found that 4 grams worked best for me. If you do not like stronger, heavier flavors, you can cut back on the amount of leaf used a little bit. Either way, a heaped teaspoon should do the trick. Anyway, I steeped 4 grams of loose tea leaves in 8 ounces of 205 F water for 5 minutes. Since I normally do not conduct additional infusions with Darjeelings, I did not do so here.

Prior to infusion, I did not pick up much of an aroma from the dry tea leaves. After infusion, I picked up delicate aromas of wood, straw, smoke, toast, nutmeg, and Muscatel. Given the name of this tea, I was expecting more of a recognizably grapey character. In the mouth, delicate notes of wood, straw, rose, toast, butter, malt, lemon, nutmeg, and smoke were underscored by minerals and a hint of Muscatel. The finish was buttery with mild malt, grape, and flower impressions.

As mentioned earlier, I was expecting more, so this tea was kind of a disappointment. I seem to not be the only person who feels this way either, as a cursory glance of previous reviews (when this vendor was still called Tealux) does not reveal warm feelings towards this tea. Still, there are worse Darjeelings out there, and I found that I could get decent results out of this one by playing around with the brewing parameters a bit. In the end, it didn’t blow me away, but I could still find some positive qualities in it. The name, however, still puzzles me. Why was it necessary to highlight such a minor component of this tea’s aroma and flavor profiles? I don’t get it.

Flavors: Butter, Lemon, Malt, Mineral, Muscatel, Nutmeg, Rose, Straw, Toast, Wood

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 5 min, 0 sec 4 g 8 OZ / 236 ML

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65

Sipdown

Thank you eastkyteaguy for this sample!

I’ve finally been drinking down more samples in the past month than I’ve had in the past year. I had a note on the bag to let this one sit for a while since it had a strong charcoal flavor to it. I realized after having this tea that it’s the type of tea that needs to sit around for a few years, not months, to lose some of those strong flavors. Although the mineral notes were fine, I had to quick rinse after the first initial steep to help rid the tea of those stronger charcoal notes, but even then it was brewing strong.

Overall, I think this tea would smooth out nicely over time, but it’s a bit much in its current stage.

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A little while back I was on a earl/lady grey and jasmine teas kick. I finished off the last of my EG from Tealyra and decided to reorder, along with the ‘lighter’ Lady Grey.

I’m not sure if it was because their batch of flavoring was bad this time or if it was a heavier hand, but this tea and my order ‘grey’ teas that I ordered at the same time were very very heavy on the bergamot, and thus very artificial tasting. Needless to say, I was not very happy.

This Lady does seem a little more tempered when made into an iced tea, but still very aromatic. Like the old ladies where you can smell their perfume a half block away. Other than the scent, it’s not a bad tasting tea, but maybe I should save this for when I have a cold and can’t smell much. Even now though, my nose is slightly stuffed with allergies and this is overwhelming.

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60
drank Black Dragon Pearls by Tealyra
105 tasting notes

This is the second time I’ve made this tea. The first time I made it, I followed the supplier’s instructions and used approximately 1 tsp of tea (8 balls) for 8 oz — this was a bit too weak for my liking. This time, I used approximately 3 tsp (24 balls) for 16 oz — a slight increase, but enough to make it much better. I’d recommend using this amount if you prefer tea which is slightly stronger.

When fully brewed, the tea has a rich, dark brown color. The tea leaves unfurl from the ball shape as they steep, becoming elongated and thin. The tea itself has a cocoa or malty chocolate flavor, with a slight earthy flavor in the background. It is good but tastes a bit tired. I am sure I will enjoy the rest of the batch I purchased and might eventually buy some again — it was slightly cheaper than other black dragon pearl teas I have purchased but the quality isn’t too diminished with that cheaper price. Overall, a decent, mellow tea, but still seems to be missing something to make it one that I’d drink regularly.

Flavors: Chocolate, Cocoa, Dirt, Earth, Malt

Preparation
Boiling 6 min, 0 sec 3 tsp 16 OZ / 473 ML

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60
drank Black Dragon Pearls by Tealyra
105 tasting notes

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61

This is a review I have been dreading. To be honest, I had a lot of difficulty working with this tea. Unfortunately, I was never able to get to a point where I was happy with my brewing method and my approach to reviewing it. The only impression I can confidently offer is that this struck me as kind of an odd tea.

I prepared this tea several different ways, but as mentioned above, never got to a point where I was satisfied with my results. For the purposes of this review, I will simply detail the results of the brewing method that worked best for me. I steeped 1 rather heaping teaspoon of loose tea leaves in 8 ounces of 205 F water for 5 minutes. I did not attempt any additional infusions.

Prior to infusion, the dry tea leaves emitted mild lemony, herbal aromas with a hint of nuttiness. After infusion, the golden tea liquor emitted intriguing, yet very subtle aromas of grilled lemon, Muscat grape, malt, toast, almond, and oddly enough, peanut brittle. In the mouth, I initially detected notes of grilled lemon, almond, toast, malt, cream, and honey roasted peanuts. I was disappointed because I was really hoping the aroma of peanut brittle would ensure the delivery of a comparable flavor, but unfortunately, it did not. Further inspection revealed more distant notes of lemongrass and nutmeg, but that was all I was able to find.

Compared to the other first flush Darjeelings I have tried over the course of the last year, this one was an odd bird. It was very awkward and came off as being too timid, yet it had a few redeeming qualities. I actually enjoyed its lemony character. The pronounced nuttiness was kind of appealing too. I just wish it were a little more complex, a little more robust, and that it displayed a crisper, clearer Muscat presence. I would cautiously recommend that others try it. I, however, would not be surprised if it divides opinion or confounds on some level.

Flavors: Almond, Cream, Lemon, Lemongrass, Malt, Muscatel, Nutmeg, Peanut, Toast

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 5 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML

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84

I finished the last of this tea this morning, so my journey through Tealyra’s Japanese black teas has reached its conclusion. Each tea was different. They all had different strengths and weaknesses in my eyes. The Wakoucha was smooth and approachable, but also a little too timid and simplistic. The Makurazaki displayed a lovely fruity, syrupy character, but also had a habit of turning astringent quickly and was a little over-the-top. This one had a nicely balanced set of aromas and flavors, yet had a habit of developing a biting astringency on the back end. I liked all three on one level or another, but to be honest, none of them were the type of black tea I would want to drink regularly.

I prepared this tea Western style. I steeped 1 teaspoon of loose tea leaves in 8 ounces of 205 F water for 3 minutes. As with the others, I did not attempt additional infusions. I found that with this tea I had to not only measure the amount of leaf used very precisely, but also time the infusion very precisely. If I failed to do either of these things, it would turn woody and unpleasantly astringent.

Prior to infusion, the dry tea leaves emitted mellow aromas of malt, toast, wood, and plums. After infusion, the dark amber tea liquor emitted aromas of malt, toast, pine, cedar, and plums. In the mouth, I picked up a mix of toast, cream, malt, pine, cedar, cocoa, caramel, and plum notes. The tea gradually became drier and somewhat more astringent as it moved from the entry to the swallow.

Compared to the other two Japanese black teas from Tealyra that I have consumed recently, this tea was more balanced than the Makurazaki and both more aromatic and more flavorful than the Wakoucha. Still, it lacked the sweetness that I found so appealing about the Makurazaki, and like the Makurazaki, it turned astringent fairly quickly. Much like that tea, I found this one to be highly enjoyable overall, yet I did not see it being the type of tea I would want to consume regularly. I’m glad I had the opportunity to try it, but for me, this would grade out as a solid B and nothing more. It was a type of tea that I found easy to appreciate, but difficult to love.

Flavors: Astringent, Caramel, Cedar, Cocoa, Cream, Malt, Pine, Plum, Toast

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 3 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML

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drank Creamy Mint Ayran by Tealyra
15006 tasting notes

Sample from Evol. So i’m for sure “off mint” at the moment. However… i’d like to try this one again in the future when i’m back on speaking terms with mint. Because the aroma of this one and the base tastes seems like i’d enjoy it.

Evol Ving Ness

I quite like this one and plan to have it around, so if I have some handy when you are back on mint, I’ll happily share.

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96

Got this one to try in my last TeaLyra order. The description sounded exactly like something I’ve been craving lately, and the tea did not disappoint. I usually prefer the stronger black teas, with rich flavor and malt. This tea, is very well balance, it is low in bitterness, Very aromatic and flavorful. The aroma is Rich! I smell honey, caramelized sugar, malt, and stone fruit like peaches and cherry. I had this tea with some tart dried cherries and it was just delicious. It has floral notes to it which come more pronounced with later steepings. But in general it is a delicious, aromatic brew. I’ve been drinking it all day today and even now (steeping 5-6?) I’m still getting a lovely nose from the cup sitting on my desk and its makes me smile, Ahhh Yuuum. I am really enjoying this one and it will definitely be one of the favorites on the list.

Flavors: Caramel, Floral, Honey, Malt, Peach, Stonefruit, Sugar

Preparation
165 °F / 73 °C 2 min, 0 sec 3 tsp 10 OZ / 295 ML

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