Daylon R Thomas Send Message

I’m hesitant about dark roast Tiegaunyins because they typically taste like char and wood stain. This one had a little bit of a char taste, but only when it was oversteeped. That’s why I was afraid to try this one, but Brenden was generous enough to include a sample with my order. It is by far one of the best oolongs he has given me. Again, I followed instructions on his website, and got the following: caramel, spiced coffee, barley, oats, brown sugar, and cocoa. Translation of the tea notes: a really nicely roasted tea with a dark element to it. The second time I brewed was not as good as the first, but I was having issues with the water. Unfortunately, this tea does take care to brew, though not quite as finicky as other oolongs can be. The only other criticism is the price-if I wasn’t over budget already, I would buy 4 ounces of this and replace my morning coffee with it. This tea really does appeal most to coffee drinkers because of it’s roasted character and pleasant caffeine boost.

One of my hit list targets, and one of my favorites from Whispering Pines. I’ve never had a Pu-Erh that has relaxed me. The scent is like a twist of cocoa, leaves, walnuts, cream, and desert mushrooms if that is possible to describe. The taste resembles the scent, but with a stronger cocoa, moss, and hinted caramel note. When I brewed it lighter, the taste distinctly reminded of agave or maple syrup in later steeps Gong Fu. The times I’ve brewed it, both were 5-6 ounces, one time with 3 grams, the other 4 -closer to five. The more of the blend, the more chocolate. The less, the more pu-erh and the more maple and mushroom. And of course, I followed the instructions both times at a 10 sec rinse (which was really chocolaty!), 15, 15, 20, 30, 45, 1 min, 2 minutes.

I highly recommend this for Pu-Erh newbies. This lacks the fermentation odor that many do, and is incredibly smooth. Again, there twisted desert mushroom is there, but it is a smooth, fall forest sweetness.

Wow. The reviews on here were right. This is oolong is as good as a loose leaf. It definitely has some of the smoother nutty notes of a Shui Xian or a Phoenix Yancha, a little bit more malty like a black tea but without astringency. Some wood is present, but little. There’s some peach and apricot notes too, though very subtle as a hidden sweetness. So it’s really your standard solid quality oolong, but with a few complex notes that really seperates this bagged tea from others. Also, drink it as it steeps-the notes do change.

WHAT.

Thank heavens my steeping was off from last time. I actually got a pretty strong caramel note with raw cocoa hidden in the tiniest of drops. I used fewer leaves and less water in my new Xiang Fu travel set. The pot makes SO much of a difference in brewing. Anyway, there will be a lot of back logging after this review. I recently took a midterm, wrote a paper, and now writing two more papers. I need the cha qi very, very badly. So, my orders from Berrylleb, Whispering Pines, Liquid Proust and my trade from Nichole will be the next few up. Expect around seven notes about the following eventually.

Back to this tea, I used two pinches of the leaves, not quite measuring them with accuracy. The pot I have also has a 6.5 ounce carrying capacity as it does not have a lid, and the cup in companion holds three to four sips. Petite indeed. Because I used less leaves and a Gong Fu specific tea pot, I was able to enjoy the Shui Xian so much more. I also admit that my ratings depend entirely too much on my volatile moods. This time, instead of a smoked up woody and leathery drink, I got something more nuanced, sweeter even, and complex. There is a slight floral scent now with the wood notes turning something closer to a roasted nut. Chestnut maybe? This was after a minute at most in steeping. I sipped it gradually, and the notes came in between 45 and 64 seconds. It also had a bit of a creaminess to it. Amanda, is this typical of Shui Xian’s or am I imagining it? Steep two, and even in the aroma, there’s a vanilla scent sneaking through. Sipped it, and it was even in the taste. It needs to brew a little bit longer. If only the water was a few degrees hotter.

There were even certain similarities to Whispering Pines Dark Roast Anxi Tie Guan Yin, though you could definitely tell them apart. I recently had that one today, and holy crap I didn’t expect to like it as much as I did. I really want more of that now, but I’m spent! This is also really good. Glad to have the amount that I do. A single dunce in steeping makes a difference. And brewing darker oolongs lighter is a must for me.

Brenden’s description of it sold me yet again! Though, I think the “even a hint of plumeria” might have had deeper intentions…Anyway, the notes that Brenden used were precise and accurate, especially in the smell. It reminded me so much of Ko’Olina. The plumeria and cream scent accented by the fresh grass matched the scent on the lagoons air. I also drank coconut milk and ate pineapples by the gallons back then. The taste is the same brewed gong fu. It also was very similar to Mandala’s Milk Oolong, which is a powerful achievement. The creamy aspect is almost identical, though Mandala’s is much thicker. The color blooms into a vibrant, golden yellow glowing with green under hues. Absolutely gorgeous.

My main criticism is over the tea’s delicacy. As with any milk oolong, or most of Whispering Pines Tea for that matter, a lot of attention is required in the brewing. When I brewed steep two four seconds over what was supposed to be ten, the vegetal notes overwhelmed the others entirely. Again, gong gu is something to be mastered-“skilled art” for a reason. The tea would have been significantly better if I brewed it correctly-and it was when I did-but it demands so much care and attention to minutiae. Many people would like this tea because it’s so good, but someone with expertise and or a great attention to detail would be able to fully enjoy this, or be able to serve it.

This tea is so high maintenance, but it could potentially be one of my favorites from Whispering Pines. I need to try it again.

Had to try this one first. It reminded me of the babe. Anyway, one teaspoon in eight boiling ounces after 2 minutes and 45 seconds. Peach, apricot, malt, and sweetness primarily come through. I could partially taste the other ingredients, but the ones I listed were dominant and mildly astringent. The peach was intentional, and any fan of the movie would know why. It was so smooth and so sweet on its own-no need for sugar whatsoever. Can’t say that cream, sugar and honey wouldn’t compliment it though.

It certainly made my day. Little obscure references are too few. I needed a reminder of one. Thank you Nicole, and thank you Geeky Teas!

I think almost anyone would enjoy this, but the audience is obvious. Some oolong lover might enjoy this one if they brew it lighter to get the same type of apricot note in their tea. Newbies would certainly like it, and certain connoisseurs might make an exception for flavoring this once.

Thank you Teatulia! Okay, so this leaf has a strand of holy basil. The ginger helps my bloating stomach and the holy basil strand helps slow me down, but the taste is not so great. I like the ginger and appreciate the basil. Unfortunately, sour notes dominate with an unpleasant lime feel and cannabis like grass taste. I was going to get this one, but now I’m thankful that I just had a sample.

A great smelling tea, but a pain to get the flavors to brew right. I only got the right balance of flavors after 5 minutes, one tea spoon of the material, and eight ounces. Then, it turned into a sugar almond cookie, fruity herbal pink tea. My main criticism lies within the teas faintness and finicky brewing flavors based on which dried fruit piece or nut you select unintentionally when drinking. The other main criticism was price: over $9 for 3 ounces of an herbal tea with a weaker flavor…But hey, it’s still good. It is naturally sweet, but if you do sweeten it, use rock sugar or regular sugar to preserve the flavor. Honey or cream overwhelms it.

I brewed this one for about two minutes at first with boiling water. Malty, smooth, sweet, with a little bit of tannin. Steep two for about 2 min and 30 sec and water at 190 degrees. Still malty, smooth, and sweet, but more cocoa and sweetness coming through with sweetness. Steep three at three minutes, and a stronger surge of malt, cocoa, sweetness, and a sneaking fruitiness.
I stopped, put the leaves in the fridge over night, and steeped it again at three minutes and fifteen seconds. Stronger fruitiness-almost citrus like hinting the dominant malt and cocoa, almost dashed by caramel. Steep four at about four minutes, and even sweeter with the same notes, but a more recognizable fruit. Cherry? Steep five at four minutes and 10 seconds. Something like chocolate covered cherries or raisins. I’ll stop here. Stored in the fridge again. The adventure to be continued another day.

I gotta say, I liked this black tea way more than the handmade one, though I need to sample that one again. This one was considerably smoother and sweeter. The first steep was okay, but as you can infer, I enjoyed it more and more as I steeped it. Maybe the fact that an ambrosia apple and an orange were close to the leaves in storage had an effect, but this tea has been one of my favorite samples so far from What-Cha.