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This one continues to be good. The blend borders on grassy from the other green tea bases, so I am following my two to three minute rule with it. I’m still not sure what to rate it. Flavoring and combo of flavors is in the 90s because it highlights what I like about Green teas. None of the flowers clash, and it remains heady and fruity without cloy. I’m going to have to pick it apart some time.

Backlog:
Here I thought I’d drink more oolongs during spring, but I’ve carefully plowed my remaining black tea stash lately. I still have a decent amount of this one, while blaspheming it as tumbler fuel for work. I know I should gong fu it more to really appreciate it; however, the balanced rosy bread and chocolate notes are perfect for easing me into the school morning. Cheers to enjoying luxury as a public servant!

Sipping this one down. I had it western yesterday, and gong fu today. Gong fu will always be the best way to enjoy the complexities of this tea. I’m so happy Leafhopper liked it so much. Sad goodbye, such a great tea. Fortunately, I have too much more to consume that I will drink all of timely.

Surprisingly pleasant note: the tea reeaally works tumbler style. The water was a little too hot to drink, so I actually poured what I had in another cup. Same notes, but balanced and evenly layered. Beginning lilac, pineapple, cream, and finishing the typical qin xin grass milk taste. I did it again, let it sit well over 5 minutes, cooled down and….not astringent. Or bland. OR BITTER. Just smooth pineapple, creamy milk in the roof of the mouth, grass and fuller texture. I am very happy with it so far. It’s not super complex or as dramatic as my other Qin Xins, but we’ll see how this tea does in other methods.

I only have 5 bags left. My mom, girlfriend and I have gone through this one fast. Ordered more impulsively, but it’s officially a top tea from Steven Smith.

Paired incredibly well with a peach bourbon garlic butter trout I broiled.

I didn’t expect this one to be a hit. I expected good and unique. Instead, it’s a tea on the levels of good as Rose City Genmaicha. The smell is incredible, fruity and floral with some household freshening spice hints. Having cardamom and ginger with a jasmine tea would probably clash badly, but the flavoring, rose, and osmanthus smooth this out. I actually didn’t really taste the jasmine that much. First brew is primarily jasmine, nectarine, and rose. As it cools, the ginger is a little more prominent with the osmanthus. Second steep was more cardamom, but it’s not dominating. It enhances the rose and nectarine in a skittles like effect. Got it to the third cup, more ginger. Good hot or cooled way down.

So yeah, in short, it tastes like skittles. Taste the rainbow this spring. I will likely down this soon.

I’ve wanted to try this one since Oolong Owl posted about a few years ago either at a World Tea Expo or a West Coast One. It’s also a floral fruity pineapple kind of oolong, so up my alley. I originally didn’t buy it as a limited tea because they were charging close to $40 for two oz originally, maybe less, but too much for something I could get cheaper. This time, I got it at about $27 for 3.5 oz and a tin with a new impressive seasonal release.

I gong fu’d it, and had trouble with the first steeps. 10, 20, 20, 10, 15,20, 25, 45, 55, 65 were the brews with 7 grams. Initial 10 sec rinse was creamy, milky, floral, and lilac leaning, though extremely soft like a Jin Xuan. Second was much the same, but third was floral, bordering on bitter, but again soft. Pineapple crept in profile, then bloomed in steep four making the tea more fruity and Qin Xin like as rebrewed it.

I am impressed with what the tea was able to do and has its Taiwanese flavor, but more of a Chinese tea’s texture. Since I had to coax the leaves, it was not quite as forward as I hoped. I don’t think I’ll have trouble figuring it out. I’m not sure if I’d get a full 3.5 oz again, but I won’t mind having it around nor a tin I can store my other oolongs in.

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.

Does it tumbler? Yes it does!

I’ve kept coming back to this one, and can’t decide if I want more…..which is insane. Spring and fall are my spending months. Oh well.

It works western, but it’s best gong fu. I tried doing it grandpa in my gong fu 2 go tumbler, and it was crystaline grass water with some sour apple qualities, that turned into a very tart sour sheng like second and third mug after refills. I used less leaf in a more standard brewer, and I got the apricot, apple, crispness, snap peas, and grassy notes smoothened over by a little bit of honey and coconut viscosity.

It’s a forgiving tea, though the shorter steeps realise each flavor further. It’s tumbler performance makes me want to rate it a little lower, but it’s hovering between an 88-95 for me. I’m going to be very sad when I finish it off, but I don’t have the same obsession with other oolongs yet. Key word: yeeeeettttt…