Wang Family Tea

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Recent Tasting Notes

89

I’ve been playing around with this one, and got a cool tin. I had a hard time deciding on making my last big buy from Wang Family Tea between this tea and the Competition Gui Fei when it was discounted. I was determined to get more of the Jasmine Shanlinxi in larger amounts, but for nearly a year, I really wanted to try this one. My main issue was that it was an expensive competition grade tea that was only sold in amounts of 70 grams.

I made my bet, and I partly regret it on the opportunity cost of some of the other competition teas. However, this tea is definitely up my alley. It’s weirdly green for a roasted tea, and the taste is more on the green side, but the taste has more charcoal and nuttiness than vegetal tones. The roasted chestnut and orchid flavor are the most prominent through every session, whether I followed instruction or used shorter steeps and slightly more leaves. It does evolve in terms of sweetness. The flux from charcoal, to nuts, to florals with a bit of balsam finish reminded me of the Zealong New Zealand’s Aromatic Oolong, which was one of my favorite lighter roast oolongs. This one is more nutty and floral overall, and does have more complexity. The only little thing it lacks is my gaoshan preference for fruitiness.

So overall, this is a very unique tea that has more roast qualities in taste than it does appearance. I think I would have been really happy with 25 or 50 grams instead of the 70, but I got a great tin and a bunch of great bagged tea samples of ginger Sun Moon Lake Black Teas and Cui Feng Heavy Roasts. I would recommend it if you are really into Dong Dings and lighter roast oolongs though.

Flavors: Charcoal, Chestnut, Floral, Lilac, Malt, Orchid, Roasted, Sweet

Leafhopper

Sounds like I made the right decision not to purchase this tea, even though it seems solid. I bought the 2022 competition Bai Hao and Shan Cha. I almost went for the Shanlin Xi Tan Bei, but was concerned about the roast. I also bought 25 g of the Jasmine SLX you keep talking about. :)

Daylon R Thomas

yeah, I’m excited to see what you think about the Jasmine and the Shan Cha+Tan Bei

Leafhopper

I actually didn’t get the Tan Bei because it was $65 for 75 g, which seemed like too much of a risk to me. I’d pick it up if they offered smaller sizes. Looking forward to trying the Jasmine SLX!

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94

Backlog:

I actually recommended this one first to Leafhopper, but totally forgot to write it. I’m about a year or two behind. I think I got the 2020 or 2021 vintage, and I got it at the same time as the Dayuling. I immensely enjoyed this one, though Leafhopper got most of the notes out of the way.

Unlike a few other teas, this one had a much denser texture giving the egg yolk quality as the company described. Insanely viscous, being thicker than dew and raindrops in a sugary, peachy and floral form. I could manage to get a lot of flavor if I over leafed to 6-8 grams and did rinse brews, but I found 4-5 to be the sweet spot and varied my steep time depending on water temperature and the current climate in Michigan. I had to shorten the steeps on hotter days, but lengthen it on cooler ones.

Hotter brews tended to make the tea more vegetal, but could bring out more intense bursts of peach. Going softer on temperature made the peach more of an undertone of orchid, lilac, and mung bean.

Like I commented to Leafhopper, I would occasionally preferred this one to the Dayuling because it was more forward. It has nearly the same complexity, but the fruity peach is a lot more obvious despite a vegetal tradeoff. The Dayuling was better for a more pensive experience, whereas this one was more tropical orchard transportation in a cup.

So I highly recommend this one. I have almost gotten more of it and I will likely in the future when I can budget….after I get a house. Then again, I blew my Wang Family Tea budget on the Jasmine Shanlinxi and the Competition Grade Light Roast Lishan. I maybe should have opted for a different tea than the Lishan even though it’s still veerry good, but I do NOT regret getting more of that jasmine oolong.

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93

I’m nearing the end of the green oolongs I bought from Wang back in 2021, and I have to say I’ll be sad when they’re gone. Most of the previous Qilai Shans I’ve had have been very floral and not that memorable, but of course, I couldn’t resist picking up one more. I steeped 6 g of leaf in a 120 ml teapot using boiling water for 55, 45, 55, 65, 75, 90, 120, 180, and 240 seconds, plus several long, uncounted steeps.

The dry aroma is of orchid, pineapple, and grass. The first steep has notes of orchid, pineapple, mung bean, and grass, and there’s a little bitterness because it’s the last session’s worth of tea in the bag. The next steep adds peach, lemon, and other unidentifiable florals. Steeps three and four give me peach, apricot, pineapple, lemon, cream, and orchid, but are not particularly sweet because the tea is quite vegetal (beans, lettuce, spinach, grass). The vegetal notes get stronger during the next couple steeps, with the fruit diminishing into grassy florals. The pineapple and orchid last the longest, leaving a not unpleasantly bitter vegetal impression as the session winds down.

As with all of the green oolongs I’ve tried from Wang, this Qilai Shan conveys clean, simple flavours very well, with the added benefit of having unexpectedly fruity notes in some sessions. Its longevity is also great, as is the fact that without the tea bits, this vegetal tea doesn’t actually get bitter. It’s a little unpredictable and slightly more vegetal than I’d like, but I’d highly recommend it!

Flavors: Apricot, Cream, Floral, Grass, Lemon, Lettuce, Mung Bean, Orchid, Peach, Pineapple, Spinach, Vegetal

Preparation
Boiling 6 g 4 OZ / 120 ML

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86

I avoided Ruby 18 like the plague for a while because of a few very astringent examples, but What-Cha’s Yu Chi Red Jade made me more open to exploring this cultivar again. I received this as a generous sample from Wang last year, and was eager to finally try it. I steeped 6 g of leaf in a 120 ml porcelain pot at 195F for 10, 12, 15, 18, 20, 25, 30, 40, 50, 60, 90, 120, and 240 seconds, plus some uncounted steeps.

The dry aroma is of cinnamon, menthol, raisins, cream, malt, and wood. The first steep has notes of cinnamon, menthol, cream, raisins, camphor, malt, and wood, with a little astringency. The menthol and cinnamon are stronger in the second steep, and I get that sassafras note I associate with Ruby 18. Steeps three and four are full of mint, cinnamon, and sassafras, with some cream, grass, tannins, malt, sweet potato, earth, and raisins. The astringency isn’t off-putting, but it’s definitely there. Over the next few steeps, the distinctive Ruby 18 notes persist, but the tea becomes more bready, earthy, and tannic. The tea doesn’t change too much throughout the session, although grass and honey surprisingly emerge right at the end, along with the predictable tannins, malt, and wood.

This pleasant Red Jade has a lot of the cinnamon and mint that are typical of this tea type. These flavours persist over almost the entire session, though sadly, so does some astringency. Using the steeping parameters on their website (195F, 40/40/50 seconds) doesn’t tame the astringency, and produces fewer steeps. For me, this is a solid tea that I didn’t enjoy as much as the What-Cha version.

Flavors: Astringent, Bread, Camphor, Cinnamon, Cream, Earth, Grass, Honey, Malt, Menthol, Mint, Raisins, Sarsaparilla, Sweet Potatoes, Tannin, Wood

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 6 g 4 OZ / 120 ML

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94

I’m surprised not to see a note for this tea. Wang generously sent me a sample in my mega 2021 order, and I’m getting to it in preparation for my mega order in 2022. (Those Black Friday sales are dangerous, especially with all the new award-winning teas on the site!) I steeped 5 g of my 10 g sample in 120 ml of boiling water for 60, 50, 65, 90, 120, 150, 200, and 240 seconds, plus steeps of 5, 8, and 10 minutes.

The dry aroma is of linden, peach, orchid, and grass. I’ve never had the pleasure of smelling peach blossom, but I can believe the vendor’s claim that the tea has that aroma. The first steep opens with grassy, orchid notes, and then reveals white sugar, peach, grass, mung beans, orchids, and spring flowers. The next steep is quite peachy, with vegetal, grassy, orchid, and sweet flavours and a lovely, lingering aftertaste. The vegetal aspect detracts somewhat from the ethereal florals and stonefruit, but not enough for me to care. Steep three has a lovely combination of peach, orchid, sugar, lettuce, grass, and egg yolk, which I wouldn’t have identified if the vendor hadn’t pointed it out. The tea is both very sweet and very vegetal, with a peachy aftertaste. The next few steeps have lots of peach, cream, and florals, plus lettuce, spinach, grass, and beans. The tea never gets harsh, though it does gradually become more grassy. The peach hangs on until the end of the session, though only as an attenuated sweetness.

This is a stellar tea that I had to buy more of. It’s a bit more vegetal than the Da Yu Ling, but the peach won me over. It also has great longevity. I highly recommend this tea for anyone who likes sweet, fruity high mountain oolongs.

Flavors: Cream, Egg, Floral, Grass, Lettuce, Linden, Mung Bean, Orchid, Peach, Spinach, Sugar, Sweet, Vegetal

Preparation
Boiling 1 min, 0 sec 5 g 4 OZ / 120 ML
gmathis

Mega orders are fun once in a while!

Leafhopper

True, though this was the year of the mega order. My cupboard is fuller than ever!

tea-sipper

Egg yoke! That’s a new one.

Leafhopper

Yes, it was for me, too! I probably wouldn’t have identified it as such if the vendor hadn’t included it in their description.

LuckyMe

The flavor profile of this teais intriguing, especially the peach. On my list of teas to order next time from Wang.

Leafhopper

I fall hard for peach teas! :)

Daylon R Thomas

The peachy flavors were fairly prominent. There were times were I preferred this one over the Dayuling they sold if I wanted something fruitier. The trade off was that it could be more vegetal if I added too much time or leaves, but it was less finicky. I also realised I did not write my review of this one. That will be heck of a backlog.

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92

I’ve been looking forward to trying this Shan Lin Xi for a while, and finally finishing a 150 g pack of another Shan Lin Xi gave me the perfect opportunity. (I actually forgot to post a note on that tea, but fortunately, I have another bag.) I steeped 6 g of leaf in a 120 ml teapot using boiling water for 55, 45, 55, 65, 75, 90, 120, and 240 seconds, plus several uncounted steeps.

The dry aroma is of pineapple, orchids, and grass. The first steep has orchid, pineapple, coconut, woodsy, and grassy notes, with some other unidentifiable florals mixed in. The next steep has a touch of astringency and the sappy quality I get with many teas from Shan Lin Xi. I also notice cream, green beans, and sweeter florals (narcissus?), and as Daylon said, it kind of reminds me of a fabric softener sheet. The aroma at the bottom of the cup is particularly floral and fruity. Steeps three and four are full of cooked pineapple, herbs, orchids, sweet pea flowers, beans, grass, and veggies, with maybe a hint of citrus. The tea is becoming increasingly vegetal and green. The next couple steeps feature more coconut and pineapple in the aroma, but more spinach and grass in the taste. The final long steeps are mostly vegetal with hints of florality.

This is a highly drinkable tea, as shown by the fact that I’ve had three sessions with it in the past few days and will finish my 25 g bag shortly. I love the tropical fruit and sweet florals, but the strongly vegetal flavours and lack of longevity bring my rating down somewhat. Nonetheless, this is a tea I will consider buying again, if only because it’s substantially more affordable than the SLX Wild Garden.

Flavors: Citrus, Coconut, Cream, Floral, Grass, Green, Green Beans, Herbaceous, Narcissus, Orchid, Pineapple, Rainforest, Sap, Spinach, Vegetal

Preparation
Boiling 6 g 4 OZ / 120 ML

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92

This is part of the High Mountain Experience Set I bought from Wang back in 2021, and I wanted to try this tea before it became eligible for a spot in my tea museum. I haven’t had many Cui Feng oolongs. Of the two I can remember, one was not that great and the other was very floral. I steeped 6 g of leaf in a 120 ml porcelain teapot using boiling water for 55, 45, 55, 65, 75, 90, 120, 180, and 240 seconds, plus a few uncounted steeps.

The dry aroma is of orchids, cookies, cream, and grass. The first steep has notes of orchids, cookies, cream, honeysuckle, other florals, and grass, with faint peach in the aftertaste. Orchids continue to be the dominant flavour in the second steep, with cookies, grass, cream, citrus, peach, and other florals in the background. This tea is quite sweet. The next couple steeps have lots of orchid, honeysuckle, orange blossom, grass, cream, citrus, peach, and something I’ll call woodsiness that also recently appeared in their Alishan. Steeps five and six are a bit more grassy, though with plenty of orchids, other florals, cream, and fruit. The next few steeps become even more grassy and a bit vegetal, though I still get orchids, cream, and sweet florals. The final long steeps are floral, grassy, herbaceous, and vegetal.

This tea measures up to Wang’s high standards, though I was a bit distracted by all the grass. Steeping it in my clay pot highlighted its grassy aspects and toned down the fruit, which is why I prefer it in porcelain. The sweet florals and hints of fruit make up for any downsides, and like other teas from this vendor, it has good longevity. This isn’t my favourite tea from Wang, but I’d highly recommend it.

Flavors: Citrus, Cookie, Cream, Floral, Grass, Herbaceous, Honeysuckle, Orange Blossom, Orchid, Peach, Sweet, Vegetal

Preparation
Boiling 6 g 4 OZ / 120 ML
Daylon R Thomas

They have a 15% off sale. Really contemplating on getting more of the Jasmine Oolong, but I’m also interested in the Lishan Competition and the GuiFei…

Leafhopper

Yeah, I saw that and was tempted, but I have way too much oolong. I think that Lishan Competition oolong is roasted, but the Gui Fei and Red Jade sound good.

Daylon R Thomas

It’s lightly roasted. That’s why I’m on the border. I’d love a sample, but I’m not sure if I could commit to 75 grams of it.

Leafhopper

Yes, 75 grams is a lot. If only this sale was a few months from now when my oolong stash will be less extensive! I’m tired of opening tea that’s already a year old or more.

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95

Sipdown. A wonderful session marred only by my pocket pipe kyusu slipping from my hand during cleaning and shattering. Sigh. I love mini teaware for solo sessions especially with pricier tea like gaoshan. Luckily I have my 50ml shibo to fall back on which I’ll now need to be extra careful with.

This was the last tea from my Wang Family Tea order. I have to say, I‘ve really enjoyed all of the high mountain oolongs I tried from Wang. Not only were they all good but I noticed their tea didn’t go stale as quickly. Green oolongs usually deteriorate within a few weeks. I took me nearly 3 months to get through this one and it suffered only minimal loss of freshness.

Dry leaf smelled like pear and lily. Upon placing in a warmed gaiwan, kettle corn and magnolia aromas appeared. More florals and a scent of honeycomb following a rinse.

The tea starts off light and fresh, building body as it progresses through steeps. Luscious spring flowers with notes of orchid and daffodils. Not too thick texture or heavy body but elegant and understated.

It’s best when gongfu steeped but is also nice western style or when all of the infusions are combined.

Leafhopper

Sorry to hear about your teaware mishap. It’s always sad when that happens. I like Wang Family Tea as well, and their oolongs seem to be on the floral side.

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88

I’ve been neglecting my oolongs from Wang Family Tea, and wanted to rectify the situation a bit before starting on my spring 2022 purchases. This unroasted Alishan is from spring 2021. Following Wang’s instructions, I steeped 6 g of leaf in 120 ml of boiling water for 55, 45, 55, 65, 75, 85, 95, 120, 150, and 240 seconds.

The dry aroma is sweet and floral, with notes of orchid, gardenia, and honeysuckle. The first steep gives me heady orchid, gardenia, honeysuckle, pine, coconut, cream, grass, and other flowers (Daylon mentioned freesia, which fits). The florals are even headier in the next steep. Maybe it’s because of the pine, but I do get a sense of “woodsiness,” as the company calls it. The tea is also a little vegetal, with grass and lettuce in the aftertaste. Sweet freesia and lilac are more prominent in the next couple steeps, along with coconut, lemongrass, pine, lettuce, and that “woodsy” note. The next few steeps are full of sweet florals, but are becoming increasingly vegetal, with lettuce, spinach, and grass. The tea never gets bitter, but has a vegetal, floral fade.

This is a very nice Alishan that’s better than many others I’ve had. It’s definitely on the floral and vegetal rather than the fruity side, but as someone who likes heady florals, that’s okay. I’ll probably revisit another harvest of this tea at some point, though the Shanlin Xi Wild Garden is more up my alley.

Flavors: Coconut, Cream, Floral, Gardenias, Grass, Honeysuckle, Lemongrass, Lettuce, Lilac, Orchid, Pine, Rainforest, Spinach, Sweet, Vegetal

Preparation
Boiling 6 g 4 OZ / 120 ML

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90

Finished this one up a couple of months ago. Another very nice Wang family tea that offers a lot of florals that shift and evolve from steep to steep.

The rolled tea leaves are gigantic and dark green in color, emitting an aroma of apple and flowers. Following a rinse, coconut and tropical fruit emerge. The tea begins with creamsicle, flowers, and mineral accents. Lily of the valley and daffodils bloom in the second infusion. This is followed by more floral notes of gardenia, perfume, and a little honey. It begins fading after the 5th infusion but still offers a pleasant syrupy flavor.

I also prepared this by combining / stacking the infusions together. The result was a sweet and rich floral bouquet. Not as thick though and lacks some of the top notes. Nevertheless still full flavored and tasty.

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92

Backlog.

This was the second tea from my Wang Family Tea order. A few months ago when I was knee deep in studying, my tea consumption went way up despite having less time for leisurely gongfu sessions. Most of the time, I just wanted to be able to quickly fill up a mug or tumbler. So I resorted to compounding all of my gongfu infusions into one mug. And to my surprise, infusions often tasted better when combined than on their own. Such was the case with this tea. It expressed itself differently depending on how it was steeped yet was delicious no matter what.

I brewed it grandpa style the first time. Upon opening the bag, the tea leaves smelled of buttered flowers. First sip tasted like crisp, clean spring water with a lily floating in it. Reminiscent of baozhong with its lilac and light floral notes but absent the usual body and minerals of gaoshan. Refreshing flavor with a little fruitiness in the finish. After topping off, it had a more body along with sugarcane and vanilla notes.

Next session was normal gongfu where I tasted each steep individually. The leaves, which had been allowed to rest for a couple of days, now emitted a soft tropical aroma. A heady burst of orange blossom, coconut, and mango following a rinse. The flavor of the tea was sweet, juicy, and mineral rich. Full bodied with a bright, minty herbaceous note, and lingering florals.

The best result though came from combining all of the steeps. Using my 65ml mini kyusu, I stacked 4 steeps at a time and was shocked at how intensely fruity it tasted. It felt like a tropical cocktail in tea form. Fresh pineapple juice accented with with lychee and melon. Some top notes disappeared by the time I got to the later infusions but it was very fruity and delicious.

ashmanra

I will not buy more tea I will not buy more tea I will not buy more tea

ashmanra

I might buy some Wang Family Tea but I will blame it on Steepster

LuckyMe

@ashmanra lol we’re all enablers on this site :D

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88
drank Gangkou Oolong by Wang Family Tea
676 tasting notes

After seeing all of the rave reviews for Wang Family Tea on this site, I finally pulled the trigger and placed an order last November. Picked up 25g each of Gangkou, Lishan, Shan Lin Xi, and Long Feng Xia. I’m happy to report that all of them were outstanding and having experienced these teas, I get the hype for this vendor now.

Gangkou is the first tea I tried and the sole low elevation tea of the bunch. Wang Tea’s website describes it as having five flavors: sour, sweet, salty, bitter, and spicy. Indeed, this was the wildest one of the bunch as the flavors are all over the place. The website recommends a high leaf to water ratio and “heavily boiling water“ to steep. Despite my better judgement I followed their steeping parameters initially.

The dry leaf had aromas of flowers and freshly baked cookies. A rinse brought out cucumber and a little incense. The tea starts off with some strong vegetal notes and slight bitterness but eventually this fades and fruitier apricot and pear notes emerge. The bitterness wasn’t as bad as I feared but I decided to revert to my usual steeping method and kept the temperature below boiling which produced better results. Lowering the temperature and leaf quantity brought out gentle floral notes of jasmine, honeysuckle, and orchid intermingled with some sugar plum fruitiness. Along the way, there were hints of autumn leaves, toffee, spice, and perfume. When steeped grandpa style, it has a richer mouthfeel, mineral notes, and a sweet, lingering wildflower honey flavor.

Overall, this was a complex and enjoyable tea although a bit challenging at times due to how unpredictable and inconsistent it is.

Daylon R Thomas

How was the Long Feng? I’ve been meaning to get it, but I always pay too much for all their other goodies. I got a bunch of the green Shan Lin Xi Shui Xian (Chefs Kiss) and Jasmine Shan Lin Xi. Their roasts are also incredible too, though I usually move away from roasted teas.

LuckyMe

I’m currently drinking the Long Feng Xia. It’s quite good, tropical-floral flavor but less in your face than other gaoshans. I’m enjoying it more than some of the LFXs I’ve had from TTC.

Haven’t tried their roasts yet but plan to next time. I really want to order from them again this spring but unfortunately they don’t have baozhong which is one of my must-haves. I may end up splitting an order between Wang Tea and maybe Floating Leaves for the Baozhong.

Daylon R Thomas

I’m having the same kind of issue for the splits I’m looking for. I am desperate for some Lishan Black and tried Green Terrace, but they’re paypal isn’t accepting mine for some reason. No idea why. I’m also interested in some of Wang’s Shan Lin Xi White Tea. They don’t always sell it, but they’ve been really kind to give me some, and now Liquid Proust sells it. Leafhopper has talked a lot about Ethan Kurland on a tea forum that you buy directly from vendors and farmers. I haven’t done that yet, but I know he has some good Baozhong. Trident’s Baozhong is also insanely good.

LuckyMe

Green Terrace seems to bd all but closed. Their online inventory hasn’t been updated in a while. I know What-Cha has Lishan black but they’re sold out of it including a lot of other teas I want. Thanks for the tip about Trident, will check them out.

Daylon R Thomas

The Lishan Black was a limited summer crop sold later in that year, and there’s no 100% guarantee it will immediately return. I’ve been hoarding it while I can. Their Long Feng and Shan Lin XI are also good, along with their Darjeeling selection.

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98

Even just saying the name Alishan gets one excited. But then I opened the bag… Generally, when you have an absorber in there you don’t get much aroma but this one jumped up and popped me a good one. Floral with wet mineral accents. Big smile The wet liquor reminds me of being in a jungle and coming across a fresh bubbling brook loaded with flowers around the edges. Gardenias and orchids. Oh my. It is so soft on the tongue. The minerality increases the more steeps you progress into. Coconut. Fresh coconut milk. It isn’t strong but the mouthfeel and the taste are reminiscent of this. I love unraveling the wet leaf to see the beautiful pluck. A bud, one, two, three, and sometimes four leaves.

My four-year-old son is generally pretty good with knowing not to shake my arm while I’m drinking tea but this delectable brew and my keyboard were almost in big trouble when he grabbed my arm and hung from it. Good thing I’ve been working out.

The keyboard to my MS Surface is surprisingly durable. During a matcha workshop with Sooz of BeingTea.com I spilled at least a 1/2 cup of water all over the place. Half of which went into my keyboard. I unplugged and immediately tried to gently shake out what I could and then set it upside down in the sun. The first few days I thought for sure I’d need a new one. These things aren’t cheap T_T But now almost a week later it’s back to normal. Glad my son didn’t spill on it because that probably would have been the nail.

gmathis

Not that I am chuckling at your misfortune, but I love hearing other tea disaster and near-disaster stories simply because I’ve had so many of my own!

Skysamurai

Oh that gives me an idea! Gonna make a yea disaster story sharing thread!

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97

The Wang Family Tea company does not disappoint. Every one of their oolongs I have tried has been sublime. This one is another winner. Even at just 10 seconds you can immediately tell you are in for symphony of flavors. The beginning is mainly mineral flavors. Slightly sweet. As we let it steep longer the roast notes emerge along with some toast and some type of stone fruit I can’t identify. Steeped for too long and the heavy charcoal notes really take over. The first steeping was the best. The second I drank too quickly. The third has produced delicious roast notes with charcoal and slightly burnt wood but less of the sweetness found in the first steeping. The minerality remains but is a bit subdued by the charcoal notes. Now onto the fifth steeping. The water is color and the mixture of charcoal notes and minerality is fantastic.

Daylon R Thomas

I am going to buy from them as at least once a year. I’ve had other Wuyi style Taiwanese oolongs, but none of them were as balanced and flavorful as this one.

Skysamurai

Agreed Daylon! I definitely want to support them to keep them in business!

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96

Nothing like a good tea to blow everything else away. I was feeling annoyed. Okay, really annoyed. My FB profile was disabled. I posted something to sell in a garage sale group (marketplace and a few other groups) and for some reason, this group reported the post. After 30 days I received no review of the request I made and now I can’t get in…

Tightly rolled balls, with most still attached to the twigs. A darker shade, greenish brown. That first sip blew my mind. I should have written down more of what I was tasting but my mind kinda felt like it went blank. Superb. That clear, pale, golden liquor. That roasty, toasty, slightly butterscotchy, sweet, aroma. That flavor!! Good heavens. Each cup has produced different flavor profiles, one building on the next. Minerality and a smooth mouthfeel to begin. This third one is a bit more mineral with the light roast notes coming on stronger. The fourth cup is stronger on the roast notes. Charcoal. A bit of burnt toast. On the edges. Still edible. Slather it with butter. Dip it in your tea. Just kidding. Don’t do that. Especially not a tea like this one. A bit of burnt popcorn too. You used the popcorn button, didn’t you? I actually always use that button and have only burnt it once. That was only one steeping! One gong fu of water!!

gmathis

Welcome to FB jail ;) I got locked out about a year ago on a technicality (it WAS me logging in; I told them twelve times it was ME; and then got mad and gave up when they demanded photo ID). Took a while, but I don’t miss it much now!

gmathis

(I’d rather talk to you people anyway ;)

Skysamurai

I originally got off because I gave it up for lent. I wanted to see if it really was affecting me or if it was something else going on and some of the …withdraw? lol I experienced was strange. I don’t mind not being on it but what really gets me is that I can’t at least get to my photos and videos _

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98

Tried it tumbler, it works really well but I have to shoot for 3-4, moreso 5 grams for 12-14 oz and 185-190 water. It is also exceptional cold brewed after about 4-6 hours in my tumbler, and exceptional western in my kyusu. Gong fu is the most bang for you buck for finding each individual flavor, though western has a full texture and body that greatly retains floral and fruity complexity. I’m so tempted to rate this as a hundred at this point. I crave this one and never get tired of it.

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98

March and April has consisted of impulse purchases of teas that I don’t need. Frustration, extended work hours, positive changes, and my motivating birthday were the catalysts.

I hovered over this one during the Chinese new year. I waited for my paycheck, and then it was sold out. Luckily, it was restocked on the site, and took a slight gamble getting 75 grams. I don’t regret it at all. Shanlinxi is among my top favorite terroirs, Wang has some of the best oolong I’ve had, and I am one of those basic tea drinkers that likes good jasmine.

I’ve mostly done it western and semi gong fu, but matching more the 50-60 second initial parameters. Shorter steeps makes this tea last longer in bursts of juicy fruit flavors and jasmine, but longer steeps round out the texture and complexity. I didn’t take detailed mental notes with it because I was head over feet. Dryleaf smell is alpine, sweet, grassy, peachy, and jasminey, and so was the tea. Jasmine dominates the most under a very refreshing body and thick mouthfeel, bordering on voluptuous. Flavor fades by steep four though, and some lustre is lost but texture stays.

This one hits every thing I like about oolong tea, and nearly gets an instant 94. I need to tumbler and properly gong fu before I settle my score.

Flavors: Apple, Floral, Fruity, Green, Jasmine, Juicy, Lychee, Peach, Pine, Sweet, Thick

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This is my three hundredth tasting note! Let’s hope there will be many more to come. Even without the swaps, Steepster is a great place to explore new teas and hone my tasting skills. I appreciate you guys!

When I ordered from Wang Family Tea last summer, I got every high mountain oolong except for Dayuling, which only came in a 50 g bag. Fortunately, Daylon remedied this situation with a generous sample. I steeped it according to the vendor’s instructions using 6 g in 120 ml of boiling water for 60, 50, 65, 90, 120, 160, and 240 seconds, plus 4, 5, and 10 minute steeps.

The dry aroma is of orchids, veggies, and sugarcane. The first steep has notes of fresh veggies, including lettuce and green beans, plus orchid, peach, cookie, and sugarcane. The sweet orchid aftertaste goes on for minutes. The second steep gives me even headier orchid, veggies (I get cabbage in this steep), white sugar, peach, and other flowers I can’t name. There’s a green, sappy, “plant-like” quality to this tea. The next steep is quite similar, with orchid, peach, plants, cabbage, green beans, and sugarcane sweetness. Daylon detects hyacinths, and that might be the flower I’m also getting. The aftertaste is almost as good as the tea itself. The peach has bowed out by the fourth steep, though the veggies, florals, and sweetness are still prominent. By the seventh steep, this tea is mostly grassy and vegetal, though there’s no hint of the astringency that plagues most green oolongs in their final steeps. This seems to be a characteristic of Wang’s teas.

This tea is elegant, elusive, and ethereal while still having lots of flavour. I don’t claim to taste misty mountain forests, but I understand where that’s coming from. This tea deserves careful attention, and I’m going to hold off on rating it until I do a couple more sessions.

Flavors: Cabbage, Cookie, Floral, Grass, Green, Green Beans, Lettuce, Orchid, Peach, Plants, Smooth, Sugar, Sugarcane, Sweet, Vegetal

Preparation
Boiling 1 min, 0 sec 6 g 4 OZ / 120 ML
Michelle

Congrats on your 300th note. Its about the tea journey, not the number of notes(so I tell myself as I don’t write one very often)

Martin Bednář

But the tea journey is wonderful one and swaps are fun!

Leafhopper

Thanks, Michelle! Indeed, it’s about the tea journey (I don’t write many notes either).

Martin, absolutely, swaps are fun, and you get to try all sorts of new teas! But even without them, Steepster is a good place. :)

derk

Congrats, always happy to see your notes and do swaps :)

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91

The initial scent rising as the water hits the leaf is amazing. Caramel, sweetness different roasted candies, woodsy. Oh. My. Word. So good. The dry aroma isn’t there because it was tightly packed with an aroma eater. This is okay though. The flavor is superb. Charcoal notes. Crystal clear and no astringency. The longer you let it steep the more charcoal comes out. Almost to the point of feeling like I stuck a lump of coal in my mouth minus the grittiness of how that would feel. But the sweetness that hits before it gets to that point is sublime. The wet aroma of the leaves is very unique! I feel like I know what it is but my mind can’t quite pinpoint it. Roasted nuts, maybe chestnut. And wet woods in summer.

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92

WARNING- LONG LONG LONG NOTE FOR AN OOLONG.

My stash is the 2020 lot, but it has the same notes as they used in their description for 2021. I actually ordered 50 grams of this last year but got 2 10 gram samples; I contacted the company and they sent me the 50 grams that I ordered.

Reviewing this one, it’s an extremely clean and thick high mountain oolong. It can handle high temperatures and it usually lasts at least 6 steeps for me when I brew it in the 20-30 sec increment scale, but I also follow the parameters on the website rinsing the tea, then going for 60, 50, 65, 90, and then long steeps ahead. The shorter steeps bring out more of the florals you smell in the aroma into the taste, but the longer steeps gong fu give you a more rounded mouthfeel. Boiling water amps up aroma, cooler temperatures make the tea a little bit sweeter in my experience.

The notes on this one are interesting because it really hits you more in feeling, while the tea is not lacking in flavor. It’s a lighter tea that I can see red tea drinkers snubbing, and it’s not as fruity as other Dayulings. While it’s definitely floral, the florals are harder to pin apart other than orchid, some hyacinth, and other more subtle white flowers. Snowdrops kept coming to my mind. It is definitely sweet having a white sugar note in the first two steeps, even in the rinse, and it’s got a refreshing vegetal creamy mouthfeel. The site describes the vegetal notes as being like mountain cabbage, and I can see it in the teas refreshing crisp quality. Sometimes it’s got a white egg quality in texture, and there were times where I get peach in steep 3, but not too often. Orchid, sugar, white flowers, and cabbage are the main notes I get.

Like most Dayuling’s it’s effervescent, and it feels like your drinking a mountain mist cloud in overlooking a forest kind of like the way the describe. Like a cuifeng, it’s got some alpine notes too which I usually don’t get. They were describing petrichor, but I am getting something like drinking dew and misty fog. This tea is the essence of moisture, and moisture is the essence of beauty……(mer-man high pitch pitiful coughing)
Comment if you know the movie reference!

So yes, this is leaf water, but it’s good leaf water that comes from mountains with water falls and mist. Basically, it’s what a Dayuling is supposed to be. I’ve only had one other Dayuling that I’ve liked a little bit more in terms of flavor, but I highly recommend this one mostly because I recommend Wang Family Tea period. Their customer service is awesome and none of their teas disappoint me. If you are looking more for something flavor forward and fruity, then the Fushou Shan might be a better bet or one of the specialty Shanlinxi’s. The cuifeng is also exceptional if you are looking for something cheaper but just as good.

I’m just glad that I finally got to reviewing this one. I know a few of you are probably tired of the constant high mountain oolongs I review. They are becoming a specialty at this point. Leafhopper, if you want me to save some of this for you, I will. Just let me know.

Flavors: Butter, Creamy, Floral, Lettuce, Orchid, Peach, Rainforest, Smooth, Sugar, Sugarcane, Sweet, Vegetal

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 1 min, 0 sec 5 g 5 OZ / 147 ML
derk

I’m not tired of your reviews! You stop with that nonsense.

Mastress Alita

I would NEVER miss a Zoolander reference. I’ve had that whole movie memorized for years!

tea-sipper

Not tired of them either!

Leafhopper

Keep those high mountain oolong reviews coming! I have a bit of the Foushoushan but none of the Dayuling, so I’d be delighted if you could keep some for me. We could do another swap in the fall when my stash is a bit more manageable.

Daylon R Thomas

Sounds good!

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Daylon kindly sent me this Dong Fang Mei Ren as an introduction to Wang Family Tea. I had a session with it early in June, and just finished the sample a couple days ago. Following the vendor’s instructions, I steeped 5 g of leaf in a 120 ml teapot using boiling water for 20, 20, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 90, 120, and 240 seconds, plus several long brews at the end of the session.

In my first session, the dry aroma was of honey, autumn leaves, apricot, citrus, and flowers. The first steep had notes of honey, candied orange, autumn leaves, wood, and flowers, with an aftertaste of honey that lasted for several minutes. There was a touch of not unpleasant astringency. The second steep added a sappy note, which the vendor describes as hinoki cypress (yes, I had to look that up), but it was mostly about the honey and florals. This was one of the sweetest bug-bitten teas I’ve ever had. The third and fourth steeps had more citrus, sap, osmanthus, orange blossom, butter, and lots and lots of honey. I stopped taking notes here for some reason.

I used more leaf in the next session to finish the sample, which might have been a mistake. As well as the honey, apricot, citrus, and florals I experienced in the previous session, I got wood, Graham cracker, lemon, and tannins. Unfortunately, a thunderstorm came along and I had to turn off my computer for a while, so the notes for this session are spotty as well. I got lots of honey, flowers, sap, and apricot, but the tannins, wood, and autumn leaves never went away and got stronger as the session progressed.

I wish I’d taken more care with this tea and kept better notes. This is a quality Dong Fang Mei Ren with lots of apricots and honey, though it’s a little too sweet for me. It also requires careful steeping.

Flavors: Apricot, Astringent, Autumn Leaf Pile, Butter, Citrus, Floral, Graham Cracker, Honey, Lemon, Orange, Orange Blossom, Osmanthus, Sap, Sweet, Tannic, Wood

Preparation
Boiling 5 g 4 OZ / 120 ML

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95

I’m amping up the rating because I keep on coming back to it. It was fruitier today, maybe due to the Michigan humidity, but it was the perfect balance between lilac, hyacinth, chlorophyll, green apple, grass, and creamy green coconut water notes. I even grandpa’d the remainder on steep 8 in a cup, and it evolved from creamy, green, lemongrass, osmanthus to melon and snappeas. Soo soothing and clean. I know the notes aren’t that different from any Alishan, and it’s not quite as peachy as some higher grade stuff I’ve had, but this one strikes the right balance of vegetal/grassy with other profiles that makes it stand out, like it’s exceptional aftertaste.

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95

I’ve had this one for a while, and I yet again thought I already wrote about it.

I’ve actually had both the 2019 and 2020 versions of of this tea, but I don’t know which one I’ve just opened. I am dumb.

Anyway, this was an extremely easy going Alishan that I drank in under a week the first time I had it, and I see myself finishing it quickly again. The light roast version of it is fruitier, but this one is extremely refreshing. I’ve found that Alishans are either really vegetal, or very fruity, but always floral and creamy in texture. I usually prefer the other mountains, yet if the Alishan is on the fruitier end, I will go for it.

This is one of the first teas in the middle of fruity and vegetal for my palette, leaning more on floral and green. I get some lemongrass and coconut on occasion, but I mostly get subdued fresia in the florals, some very light magnolia, under a heavy and heady orchid flavor/aroma. Either way it’s sweet. I actually brewed this unlike how I typically do it. I didn’t rinse it, and brewed it close to a minute, and then shortened the steeps 10-15 sec each time until I got to a good 27 sec steep four and five, and then I amped the tea back up to a minute, 2 minutes, and so on….and it kept on going and the huigan kept on giving, becoming lighter like lettuce.

I’ll just quote the company for the notes:

“Dry tea leaves are bright green, and smell of chlorophyll. First round of brewing brings out a strong floral flavor and fragrance. The tea liquor is a beautiful amber color. This tea is already starting to impart a long lingering aftertaste; the flavor starts floral, and moves to the deeper taste of orchids. The second of brewing imparts an additional woodsiness of mountain forests. Think freshly sprung bamboo shoots and old growth pine trees. The florality of the first round grows sweeter. This sweetness makes the tea liquor seem almost thick in the mouth. The fragrance of the second round is sweet, woodsy, and has an undercurrent of grass to it. The third round enhances all the notes of this tea. The woodsiness, florality, and taste of orchids are especially pronounced here. The aftertaste is very sweet, and lasts for many, many minutes.”

I’m not sure about the woodsiness, but it’s not a dry wood by any means. I know I’m using “ocean air” in my notes, but it’s got the feel of the heights in tropical mountains that is almost hydrating to inhale. I usually rate Alishans that are fruitier higher; however, the feels and fresh quality this tea gives me is making me put it above just the 90’s number I hover around.

It’s got a little bit of pine compared to most Alishans, and it’s got this really refreshing morning dew/mountain air quality that’s super easy to drink. It’s not the most flavor forward Alishan I’ve had, but it’s one of the most easy going ones that has enough complexity to make me think about it. The tea has enough sweet florals to balance out the grassy notes. Wang Family tea tend to specialize in the Shan Lin Xi’s, but this one is very well balanced and surprisingly fast and easy for me to down.

Flavors: Coconut, Cream, Creamy, Floral, Freshly Cut Grass, Fruit Tree Flowers, Green, Green Wood, Lemongrass, Ocean Air, Orchid, Osmanthus, Rainforest, Spinach, Spring Water, Sweet

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 1 min, 0 sec 5 g 5 OZ / 147 ML
Leafhopper

Sounds like a tasty tea, and I’m glad I picked some up in my order. :)

Daylon R Thomas

You did?! I am so excited to see what you think!

Leafhopper

Yeah, I picked up basically all the high mountain oolongs, including the Li Shan, Cui Feng, Shan Lin Xi, and Chi Lai Shan. I even got a 10 g sample of the Fushoushan. However, I tried to save a little money by buying the High Mountain Experience set, which I thought contained 2021 oolongs but may in fact contain oolongs from 2020. I guess that means I’ll have to get to them quickly!

Leafhopper

I just heard back from the vendor and it looks like the oolongs in the experience set are from 2021. Good news!

Daylon R Thomas

Yay! And all of those are really good.

Leafhopper

Glad to hear it! :)

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93

I just got a big order from Wang Family Tea, and I couldn’t be more excited! This was one of the teas I was most looking forward to trying. I steeped 6 g of leaf in a 120 ml teapot in boiling water for the recommended 55, 45, and 55 seconds, then had to guess about subsequent brews because the vendor doesn’t provide any instructions. I chose to steep it for 1:15, 1:30, 2, 3, and 5 minutes.

The dry aroma of these big tea nuggets is of orchids, brown sugar, and stonefruit. The first steep is surprisingly sweet, with orchid, brown sugar, butter, other florals, lettuce, and lots of peach. I still don’t really know what osmanthus tastes like and haven’t knowingly had mung bean paste, though I have had red bean buns, which may or may not be relevant. The second steep has more orchid, butter, grass, that other flower that I suspect is osmanthus, beans, and lots and lots of peach, especially in the back of the throat and in the aftertaste. The next couple steeps have a little less stonefruit and more florals and beans, but are still very smooth. I also get a hint of sap that is typical of Shan Lin Xi. The sappy character continues in the next two rounds, along with peach, beans, orchids, osmanthus, and grass. Near the end of the session, the stonefruit and florals fade and I get grass, beans, and spinach.

As Daylon states, this oolong isn’t complicated, but the flavours come through beautifully and there’s virtually no bitterness. I value these things highly in green oolongs and my rating reflects that.

Flavors: Beany, Brown Sugar, Butter, Floral, Grass, Lettuce, Orchid, Osmanthus, Peach, Sap, Smooth, Spinach, Vegetal

Preparation
Boiling 6 g 4 OZ / 120 ML
LuckyMe

I’ve heard a lot of good things about Wang Family Tea. Gotta give them a try soon.

Daylon R Thomas

You’d like the High Mountain sampler if it’s available. I was really satisfied with all of them, and even the niche specialty ones are extremely good. I’ve been aching for their Shui Xian Shan lin Xi.

Leafhopper

You should definitely check them out! They have great service and I’ve enjoyed the teas I’ve tried from them so far.

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