The Jade Teapot

Number two in the tale of three vanillas. I discussed its various merits in an earlier note. The purpose of this one is to compare this as a vanilla flavored tea with number one in the series, Black Orchid by Mariage Freres.

It’s fascinating to me how two teas with similar flavor profiles can taste so different, and each be so enjoyable in its own way. Where Black Orchid was symbiosis between the tea flavor and the vanilla flavor, this one seems to have a stronger tea presence in the beginning of the sip, follows by the vanilla, which lingers in the finish. There’s also an odd, almost green note in this one which I didn’t notice before but do in comparison to the Black Orchid. It’s odd that it’s present in this tea, but not an odd flavor. It’s rather refreshing.

Both experiences are pleasurable and lovely in their own way. This tea seems to have less depth than the Black Orchid, but that’s not such a bad thing depending on what you’re in the mood for — stew, or salad.

I feel Erin’s pain. My sample didn’t have any stars either, and that was the main reason I wanted to try this. I wanted to see the stars.

That said, this is quite tasty. The tea base is smooth and deep, almost a little chocolatey. The vanilla is substantial and rich, and smells and tastes natural and of high quality. I have a number of vanilla flavored teas at the moment and I may readjust the rating after I try more, but so far if I was to order one of the teas I sampled from The Jade Teapot, it would either be this or the White Peach. Right now I’m thinking more likely this, simply because it’s an oil painting of a tea.

3 tsp, hot spigot water 16 oz, paper tea filter, a very long time and left it in
see prior notes for flavor etc

bumping up a little as i tweak with it more
fast note at work, no real time for a blog
kati loose tea system (http://amazonv.blogspot.com/2010/04/kati-review.html)
12 oz hot spigot water
3 tsp (heaping) leaf
5 min steep (http://steep.it/5 minutes)
delicious red color
smells like orange hibiscus
tastes like hibiscus, orange, pineapple
coconut is a hint at 5 min
yum yum

Steep Information:
Amount: entire sample
Additives: none
Water: 6 ounces filtered boiling
Tool: Mesh basket strainer in cup
Steep Time: a little over 7 minutes
Served: Hot

Tasting Notes:
Dry Leaf Smell: i forgot to sniff!
Steeped Tea Smell: hibiscus
Flavor: hibiscus
Body: Full
Aftertaste:
Liquor: deep dark ruby red

I like hibiscus, and this is a hibiscus drink. I can’t find the other flavors. perhaps I over-brewed it?

I was hoping for a bit of pineapple hibiscus tea or maybe pineapple coconut hibiscus tea. Instead it was all delicious juicy and tart hibiscus.

I think I need to order some of this, once my other others I have arrive and I drink some space into my cupboard. Then I can fiddle with the amount and times more.

It is very nice to look at with all the orange peels

Post-Steep Additives: German rock sugar
sweeter, less tart, more delicious

Resteep: 7 minutes was a weak hibiscus pineapple – so close!
gave it a bit longer, orange – pineapple – hibiscus DELICIOUS but still weak, but it shows me the potential of this tea!

images: http://amazonv.blogspot.com/2010/04/jade-teapot-loose-leaf-herbal-tea.html

If I didn’t know better I would think this is a herbal tea. The oolong is really not present and the taste is a really fruity. This is overall good, but I think I would prefer the tea to have more of a presence.

I now understand what people mean when they say that white tea takes up a lot of space. The five samples I got from the Jade Teapot are all in bags the same size, but this one is a white whereas the other three I’ve tried so far are greens. The samples are easily two cups worth for the green. For the white, I have about enough left after weighing this out for another half cup. The grandeur of white leaves is something to behold. In general I think they tend to be the prettiest dry leaves, though there are always exceptions; the curliness of oolongs, the various geometries of greens and even the classic look of plain black leaves can be quite becoming.

These are pretty — though in color they’re not all white. They range from silvery to brown to green, with some light brown which I suppose is the osthmanthus. The smell in the little sample bag is, interestingly, pretty similar to the smells of the others from Jade Teapot. Cough syrup. It must be something about how the aromatic oils used for flavoring interact with the plastic of the little bags.

The steeped tea smells peachy, sweet, and a little creamy. It’s not a full, deep smell, but I hesitate to call it light as that seems to connote weak. And that doesn’t seem appropriate as this tea is a water color, not an oil painting. At least that’s the difference that occurs to me between this, and, for example, the Blood Orange Pu Erh that I had earlier. This is painted with a much more translucent palette. There’s a very slight “planty” smell, a little floral, a little green. The color of the liquor is yellow, with a tinge of pinky peach. And it tastes pretty much exactly as it smells.

It must be my current mood. Perhaps I’m in need of comforting. But I’m finding oils more satisfying than water colors these days. I might order some of this, though. I can see it being a nice spring time tea.

So after much careful rationing, I’ve finally come to the end of this little sample. I’m so sad that the Jade Teapot is no more because this was a lovely Tie Guan Yin and I wish I had bought more when I had the chance.

The second steeping (4:00) has most of the notes and characteristics of the first steep, only fuller and more developed. The third steep (4:30) has a smooth, slightly buttery quality to it, and the floral notes are toned down several notches with a bit of a vegetale note starting to creep in.

The fourth steep (@5:15) is starting to taste a bit thin. The floral notes are mostly gone and oddly enough there isn’t really anything that seems to have taken their place. Some oolongs get that strongly vegetale taste after the first few steeps, but this doesn’t seem to have much of one (yet).

I usually get bored of a tea after the first two steeps or so but this one just encourages me to keep on going – so it must be doing something right! But I think it’s time to put this tea (and myself) to bed. :D

The writing on the package is all in chinese which I can’t make head nor tail of, so I looked at how everyone else was steeping this tea. Since this is a green oolong I went for the lower end of the temperature spectrum and it seems to have turned out well.

The first steep was a very pale yellow shade with an extraodinarily flowery scent that made me think of lilacs after a spring rain. There’s some of that in the taste aswell, though the dominent flavour makes me think of honeysuckle blossoms instead. It isn’t all floofiness though, there’s substance to this tea that keeps it from being too light or perfumed.

This is now the third tea with this general flavor profile that I’ve tried. The other two were bagged, from Tazo and Numi, respectively, and neither was anything to write home about.

This one, on the other hand, has something going for it that the other two did not: the tea. You don’t have to search for it — it’s right there, mild, juicy, and green, without any bitterness at all, knitting the other flavors together. It’s successful enough in this respect that I don’t even realize I’m drinking lemon myrtle. Bless you, dear tea.

The ginger and lemon are nicely balanced as well. There’s nothing harsh or artificial tasting about them and there’s no single flavor running away with this tea, which is what I appreciate most in a well executed blend.

I am coming to realize that though I thought I liked ginger pretty well, having survived on the dry version of it during the early months of my pregnancies and appreciating it with sushi, I am not sure it’s my favorite ingredient for a green tea blend. I think I appreciate it more in a tea as part of a baked goods flavor which tends to belong more in the black tea blend genre. That said, if I were going to partake of a ginger/lemon green tea blend, this would be the current frontrunner.

2/4 leaves – i think with some fiddling with amount and time it can get to 3/4

Steep Information:
Amount: 3 tsp
Additives: none
Water: 1 cast iron teapot full of filtered boiling water
Tool: Cast Iron Teapot with Mesh basket strainer
Steep Time: a little over 2 minutes
Served: Hot

Tasting Notes:
Dry Leaf Smell: strong lavender and bergamont
Steeped Tea Smell: mild bergamont and a hint of lavender
Flavor: smooth black tea with some bergamont and then a floral end
Body: Medium
Aftertaste: floral
Liquor: translucent light brown

This came in a cute tea tin with clear labels including the name and ingredients. I wish it had included steeping instructions!

Next time I might do 3 minutes and / or 4 tsp as it’s a bit lighter than I’d like, but with all the over-steeping and burning of leaves I have been doing lightly I wanted to start light.

Instead of awakening I find it soothing.

Post-Steep Additives: none

Resteep: 3 min, weak and bitter, bleh! ok so next time 4 tsp and stick to 2 min

images: http://amazonv.blogspot.com/2010/03/jade-teapot-loose-leaf-black-tea.html

Received this in a swap from silvermage2000. It’s dry leaf smells and looks lovely I brewed up some hot water and steeped it and completely forgot about it for I’d say about 5-7 minutes or more! I can’t believe it but it’s not bitter YEA I’ve never had another pineapple flavored tea so I don’t have much to compare it to but it is a nice cup. Very subtle.

Thanks Silvermage 2000!

I like this a lot! When I added sugar to it, it almost brought out a taffy-like taste. The aroma matched the taste quite well, which I liked. I think this would make a perfect cup of tea to be sipping on while relaxing in the morning or afternoon.

This is the last of this! No more tea leaves. At least I’ll get a good number of wonderful steeps out of this. It’s probably a good thing, because I’ve held onto this tea far past its prime. I just didn’t want to finish it off because I still really rather like it. And the Jade Teapot’s closed now.

I think I need to put an order in at Life in Teacup. They have a wonderful selection of Tie Guan Yins. Plus, I’ve been eyeing a few of their handsome little teacups… The one with the fish pattern mostly. Although I like the semi-glazed one they’ve just released, but I actually came home with a SET of teacups very similar to that from Value Village. I also want to order a few teas based off of the samples I got. I’d have to look up which ones… I’m forgetful when it comes to names.

I am a collector of things, it’s very bad.

But yes, the tea. A bit different from how I remembered it, but it has been a while, and it’s on the greener side of the scale, so I know it doesn’t last as long. Still, light and delicious to sip, and makes me want to break out a book to read.

I went to pick out a tea to sip today and kept getting drawn to an oolong. So I decided to go with this, since I haven’t had it in a lengthy amount of time, and I’ve still got a good few scoops left.

The liquid appears greener than I remember, and the smell is faintly of jasmine. Or at least something a touch floral in with the usual cooked vegetable scent. Steeping this in sets of half a cup of water per steep. About four ounces.

The taste is how I remember it. Very light and green, touches of floral. The greeness is more refreshing, less baked. I think this is a good Book tea. I’d sip it while I read. I’m pretty sure I mentioned that last post. I’d have to go back and reread it.

Second Steep: Seems sharper, I suppose, a little stronger and less floral but still very smooth, almost butter in the back of the throat.

Third Steep: Starting to take the hot water through it, I think. No floral whiffs left at all. Sharper taste, but still very pleasant.

Fourth Steep: Pretty much like the third steep.

I let the leaves sit out and dry overnight.

Fifth Steep: May be because I left the tea to cool as I made toast (I remember Jillian saying something about oolongs becoming sweeter as they cool), but it did taste slightly sweet. And not as sharp. I think the jasmineish floral taste might’ve been making a slight comeback as well.

Sixth Steep: The colour has yet to weaken. Still getting a sweetness, even though I’m drinking this one much hotter. A slightly sharp, vegetal sweetness. Mmm.

Seventh Steep: Holy crap still going strong. Still a sweetness, and the smooth vegetable taste. I’m not getting any more original with my descriptions here.

Eight Steep: It seems the taste is finally starting to wane. Still smells strongly, though. No sweetness this time around.

Finally getting around to trying this. It’s very pale—when I was pouring it it looked like just water. But it’s a very, very pale green. Based my steep temperature off of a general average of others I looked at on steepster, and did one half a teaspoon to three ounces of water.

Leaves didn’t really unfurl completely.

The taste is very light—sweet but vegetal. I actually like it. It’s green, but not extremely so. At least it doesn’t taste like just hot water. There’s an almost nut (not really nutty—maybe a nutty buttery) taste.

Second steep, the leaves’ve opened up a bit more. I think I need a smaller pot, to give the leaves room to open up a bit more, since I’m using such a small amount of water. The water’s maybe slightly greener in colour, and in smell. The taste’s stronger, more sharply green. Not much different from the top otherwise, I think.

Steeped for three minutes this time. The colour’s the same. Stronger taste, vegetal, a faintly nutty sweetness. Reminds me of Murchie’s magnolia oolong, but fainter and sweeter. I actually kind of like this. I could see myself sipping this in the evening.

Fourth steep—same colour, hasn’t gotten lighter yet. Three minutes again this time. There’s a stronger floral note. Overall it’s been sort of milky. It’s still sweet, but I don’t think I’m really tasting any changes with the steeps. Then again, I’m pretty experienced, so.

Fifth steep, I think it’s starting to get paler finally. Maybe? Hmm. Getting a slight ‘water’ tang taste now, less milky. I’m pretty sure I could continue drinking this for MANY more steeps.

Sixth steep, still not any lighter. The taste is less milky again, slightly more metallic/tangy.

I would go for a few more steeps to see how long it’d last, but I don’t really feel up for it. I decided to take a look at the leaves instead. The edges are a bit degraded, and there are some leaf-halves and stems. The smell isn’t spinachy, it’s just faintly vegetal in a nice way.

I’m breaking out the Jade Teapot samples I received the other day. I thought it would be interesting to compare another pineapple green tea to the one I had from The NecessiTeas.

This tea is visually lovely in a heartwarming way. There are pretty red-tipped gold dried blossoms which I would guess are the safflowers, and blue dried blossoms which I would guess are the cornflowers, mixed in among the green tea. The dried leaves smell slightly pineapply, but oddly, the aroma I get from them mostly is rather like cough syrup. This does not, however, play out in the steeped aroma, which is very subtly fruity but green at the same time.

The rating I’m giving here reflects several things. First, and perhaps most importantly though obviously most subjectively, I am enjoying this more than I did either the tropical green or the pineapple upside down cake from The NecessiTeas. The reason is, I think, primarily because of the green tea. It is mild, slightly sweet, and slightly vegetal, with not even the slightest bitterness. The fruit flavors are subtle, as they were with the other tropical green, but the blend is harmonious. There’s nothing forced about it, there are no gaps to it, and though the taste is subtle it has some substance to it. It doesn’t feel pale.

I have enough for one more cup and I’m going to try steeping a bit longer next time to see whether the flavors will come out a bit more. Even if they don’t, it’s a very nice blend.

This one is another free sample from The Jade Teapot. This cup smells like a honeyed version of Adagio’s TKY. It is very green, sweet and floral. The taste is very similar to the smell – sweet, floral, green and a bit honeyed – but it has an added heavier, more substantial note hiding under all the sweetness. I’m assuming this is the ginseng addition but that’s just a guess since I don’t actually know what ginseng tastes like. This tastes a bit like a raw, fibrous vegetable or root (in a pleasant way). But it is just a hint so it might actually be an under note in the tea. Regardless, the tea has a nice full flavor that made my cup disappear quickly.
3g/6oz

One of the great joys of being happily married nearly 25 years is getting to walk up, stick something under my husband’s nose, and say, “Smell that!” Which is what I did with this little sample because I couldn’t quite place the scent. I’m a teetotaler, so I couldn’t accurately place whether it was a beer smell or not. It wasn’t. One whiff and he said, “Honeysuckle!”

Which is intriguing, since there’s not a bit o’honey or suckle in this. But that’s IT. Nice, sweet, plant-y. Pretty gold color. Nice spring sort of flavor. Doesn’t get bitter after it’s set a while. Perfect for sipping under the cherry blossoms—-if I only had some to sit under.

Got a sample of this tea. I am comparing this tea to another plum oolong that I have in my cupboard. This sample from The Jade Teapot is full of plump looking mini plums. During the infusion, the plums let off streams of red! Looked really cool in my clear infusion cup. Compared to my other oolong, this one has more plums and less oolong. The taste is very fruity. The color in my mug is peach. The oolong taste is behind the plums. This left me very dry. Astringent…maybe too much so.

Very light green liquid. Aroma is reminiscent of freshly steamed spinach, overlaid with a mist of white flowers—like gardenias? Tastes like its scent—but more buttery? Hints of cream, even. As the liquid cools, the taste seems “thicker” — almost starchier — and richer flavors seem to appear — like newly boiled garbanzo beans and peas!

Interesting tea! I detected more flavors than I thought I would. A creamy medley of savory greens. I’m kind of hungry for some veggies now!

Edited to add: The white floral component really shines through, on the second steeping. It seems like the “veggie-ness” fades and becomes infused with gardenia petals!