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The first steep was so sweet I felt like I was drinking fruit juice, later on more of the tannins come out. Nice and complex, with a variety of different fruit and floral flavors and a long aftertaste. Medium body, not very sticky. The wet leaves smell smoky and earthy, but I’m not really picking that up in the liquor. I prefer second flush Darjeelings overall to first flush, I find them more flavorful.

Good stuff. Really smooth texture with a lingering cooling sensation. I’m not picking up fruit here, more coffee and dark chocolate, but not too bitter at all.

Pleasantly sticky with nice fruit undertones. The leaves are durable and hold up well to several steepings. More bitter than I like, though, I might prefer this with some age on it.

Not certain which year I have of this, but it tastes pretty young so I’m guessing it’s the 2024. Not particularly thick in texture, but nice and flavorful, getting some fruit and floral things going on here. Easy to brew, easy to drink.

Thickly textured and refreshing, but the flavor is milder than I prefer – brewing it strong just makes it bitter. I’d like to see some age on this.

I’ve been trying to save some money by not buying new things so it’s been quite a while since I tried a new tea to review! This was actually a free sample with a white2tea order. I’m not usually a huge fan of sun-dried dianhongs but I liked this one, maybe it’s the lighter oxidation. Pretty sweet, a little bit malty, some of that funky vegetable matter flavor I associate with Yunnan.

Downside to living in a humid region: the state of my walls
Upside to living in a humid region: this tea has aged well in the several years since I bought it with little to no work on my part. The liquid is now more orange than yellow and the bitterness is much reduced, replaced by a mildly sweet autumn-leaves kind of flavor.

This is the first time I’ve tried balhyocha so I can’t say how typical it is, but this is an exceptionally good tea (as well as one of the more expensive teas I own). The leaf aroma is all dark chocolate, but the tea initially sips up fruity, a little pleasantly astringent, before leaving a long-lasting sweet-savory aftertaste of chocolate and barley. Sticky and complex but easy to brew, there’s really no downsides here.

This one tastes greener than most of Old Ways’ teas, with some interesting vegetable funkiness. Nice and thick and warming, with plenty of yan yun. Unlike some yancha, this is good in a thermos – when brewed for a long time it becomes very strong without being bitter. I recommend a snack first or it’s tough on the stomach, though.

A tea that unfolds its flavor over time. It doesn’t taste like very much on the first sip, but leaves a strong sweet aftertaste. Later steeps are soupy and savory, with lots of suspended tea particles in the liquid.