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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…

Probably not the same tea since mine is the standard white one without glitter, but I got a whopping 50 grams because I wanted higher end silver needle. I should add the tea to the database, but I want to write a quicky note. Don’t worry, I’m not writing a book or a novelette.

I like it. Jasmine and the cucumber, stone fruit, and light tea base are really well balanced, the needles are super furry. It makes a decent western or tumbler style tea, but best gong fu so far. You really have to abuse it for bitterness. Oddly enough, it became more bitter with sugar after a western steep for my mom, so there’s more to explore. I am a tea purist, but I’ve rarely had that happen.

A part of me wishes I got a little bit less of it, but I won’t have a problem sharing it and drinking it down this spring.

Backlog:
Roswell inspired purchase. My Jin Jun Mei collection kept on increasing, and I wanted to see if it stood up to White2teas.

I over leafed it a few times, but it’s got strong qualities. The profile swings between being close to a Keemum breakfast black to a softer Fujian one, balancing between dark chocolate and bready rye notes to dense malty but floral ones. Although a little too malty for me every once in a while, it’s forgiving and flexible. More importantly, it’s not boring for this tea snob. Not bad as a tumbler fuel tea either, though the subtle florals get lost in the malt that way.

I’ve only had one gong fu session, but I’ve mostly used it for work or on the move. I’m curious if I get more out of it if I take my time. Quite good, and a credit to Kiani’s sourcing.

I’ve felt bad because I kept spending on tea samples, nevermind there’s going to be a swap soon. All the money I could have spent on the suggested teas I’ve spent on new ones, nevermind I do not regret any decisions for a minute so far. Avarice salivates my curiosity, and I will continue to explore the world in my cup, one or thirty at a time.

Hugo Tea has shifted more into tea snob territory lately with some exclusively cultivated teas. Lin’s black is actually from a mi lan xiang bush processed as a black. I’m always up for experimentation in varietals, and the pistachio description was a signal to try it out. I got the other Dancongs from the same producer, and splurged on samples.

Trying it out, it’s not as fruity as other Dan Cong Blacks I’ve had. The tea doesn’t lack sweetness at all, but it’s got texture in mouthfeel and flavor. I am definitely tasting a nutty profile, and I may have gotten pistachio clearly, but it leans heavily into the medium roasted heavy salt direction with hints of sweet honey depending on how I brewed steeping to steeping.

As I have been drinking tea lately, I’ve slopped it up between western and gong fu for my first sample, which I’d guess was closer to 5 or 6 grams. I brewed it, sipped a little after 20 seconds, really liked it, then let it steep for what I thought was 20 seconds that actually was likely over a minute. The shorter steep was heavy with honeyed pistachio, salt, mineral, roast, and fructose, but the heavier one was dominated by a sweet dense malt and tannin. The shorter steep was better, but the longer one was interesting because it kept the flavors.

Aroma and taste reminded me of Turkish delight I got near the border of Egypt and Sudan near Abu Simbel from a gas station, specifically used honey and lemon for the base while the surface was covered in pistachios and powdered sugar. There are times where I want to say rose for the tea, but I’ve used that word at least four times for the past four black teas and oolongs. It’s spring after all, so it’s on my mind concurrently with the other memory of Turkish delight that was rose flavored.

Later steeps lose some sweetness and lustre, but not layers. Tannin, some wood, more roasted nuttiness, and thinning body viscosity. I pushed it for four more steeps, and I got a little bit of lychee slurping the leaves sitting water.

Obviously, I like this one. I got two samples, but wish I got three. It is a weaker more floral black with enough body and umph to balance itself out. I am not quite sure about the allspice notes other than texture, though the tea tastes like a cross between Hugo’s staple black tea in roast and their nutty Qilan. I enjoy this one more than the Hugo mainstay black so far, but it’s more of a purist tea may or may not stand up to cream and sugar. If only I had more for certainty.

My next note will be shorter, though it will probably be some time before I decide how I want to brew the next sample. Tumblering it could bring out too much tannin, it’s good western or gong fu, though probably better for gong fu. Either way, I recommend this one. I also realise I tend to like grassier blacks, and this one is a bit more in that category than others. The intention to make it more like a Fujian black is also another quality I’d check off in what I like, so of course I’m into it and would recommend it if that’s what you’re looking for.

I also have way more notes to do….and way more tea I didn’t need to buy.

Backlog: This one is elusively light. I’ve put off writing about it to properly describe it, but doesn’t usually last passed the 3rd or 4th cup. It’s smooth, sweet, floral-vaguely rosey, balanced, and honeyed in a bright amber liquor, but then it fades to a light orange or yellow. The second steep is kinda in the chocolaty category of blacks, but honey dominates. I haven’t really pinned it down-it burst in flavor once then becomes weak.

I’d say it’s a good one, but a more subtle tea overall unless I gong fu it at a ratio that is just right. Over leafing it muddles the flavor gong fu or western, but it’s way too weak with too little leaf, and too malty tumbler.

I’ve tried this twice, and I hesitated on whether to get more than 30 grams because it’s up my alley, or staving off because shipping prices and my need to go through my oolongs…which I inevitably will. Quickly. No doubt. Don’t speak.

I know what you’re thinking, and I don’t need no reasons, don’t tell me ‘cause oolong. Anyway, my memories, well this tea is inviting, though price is altogether mighty frightening. As I sip, the tea is pretty close to TheTea’s description:
" Fruity and milky, made from Jin Xuan bush with zero astringency typical for many high mountain oolongs.

Here you will find: grassy freshness, almonds, strawberries, yogurt, cream and notes of white flowers (lilly of the valley, lilly). And something fresh and vivid you can literally name: mountain breeze."

It’s got the trademark milky smoothness of a jin xuan, and it’s very fresh like a Maofeng or Baicha, maybe even a Cuifeng, but of course, smooth as only an oolong can be. The florals weren’t surprising, but the fruitiness was. Aroma has a stronger sweetness than the actual tea, but the tea has a weird creamy strawberry yogurt aftertaste that’s refreshing. I get it both gong fu and western, though I still think I need to crack the tea.

The lily of the valley, cream, and grass are the most prominent, yet the strawberry brushes the aftertaste. Aroma is more pronounced gong fu, but flavor has been more rounded western in longer steeps. Despite all of that, the tea has been pretty forgiving of my mistakes.

I’ve done this too many times, but I’m going to come back to it even though I’ve shoved enough purple prose into the review. I’m sold on it being a tea I like and something for people looking for a cleaner quality Jin Xuan or greener style tea. It’s more grassy than spinachy having more freshness than most of the straight Jin Xuans I’ve had, and I like it actually has more forward fruitiness instead of “hints” of fruit. I was exaggerating a little on price because it’s not the most expensive tea they have by any means, but it’s a step up from the usual price of a Jin Xuan deserving of more discriminating buyers.