32 Tasting Notes
So no tea for me yesterday, as I was home and all my awesome teas are at work. Something i am changing today. I packed up about 20 teas to bring home. Anyway, The oolong streak is over and it looks like I have gone black. This tea is really nice to look at in the bag and in my infuser. The smell doesn’t give much away.
I brewed for 3 minutes in my ingenuiTEA after a 30 second rinse. It is a dark tea. It smells really nice, I am thinking it is a Ceylon base. There is a spicy sweetness coming off the steam. There is initial bitterness on the first sip, and the spices are there. There are subtle hints of vanilla, but finding the ginger and cardamom is tricky. I wonder if the rinse had something to do with it. There is definitely a spice profile but separating them out is proving difficult. An enjoyable cup I know I will be revisiting.
Preparation
It is apparently Oolong week for me. Today serves up this earthy, woody leaf. I took a note from some r/tea submissions to “rinse” the leaves to remove debris/dust and the initial harshness from the leaf. Also it apparently wakes the leaf up and adds more depth to flavor. So today, I used about 2 1/2 tsp in about 12/13 oz of water in my ingenuiTEA after two 10 second rinses.
The smell in the bag doesn’t give much away, but the minute it began to steep, you could smell the aroma of a very strong brew. 3 minutes and I got it into my mug. Smelling it, it is really earthy and kind of woody. The leaves are broken up, but not destroyed. It brewed this beautiful dark amber, almost chocolate colored tea. First sip has a slight bitterness, but it is barely there. Really, I feel like I am drinking a forest. It lends itself to some fantasy day dreaming of a woodland realm. Looking forward to my next steeps… Stay tuned.
Steep Two: Wow, just an amazing experience. No bitterness and the color is now dark amber. A beautiful earthy flavor. I steeped again for 3 minutes in the ingenuiTEA. Paying attention to steeping times sure makes a difference and I think the rinses were beneficial as well. The woodiness is definitely a finish experience in the back of my mouth as I swallow.
Steep Three: I stuck with the same three minutes, and in hindsight, and extra 30-60 seconds may have increased the flavor. But all in all, the tea is hitting really clean although not nearly as earthy as my other two infusions. Which in no way is a bad thing. It’s a lighter amber with a smoother finish. I have to say, Good Work Finland!
Preparation
Trying a new tea each day. Especially when I can steep it 3 times. Today’s cup i think I overreacted and added a bit too much leaf. When steeping, the leaves are not full, but pieces. When dry, the lemon and basil are really prominent, but as I sip the brewed cup, I sense the basil and the lemon is hidden. I also forgot about it and steeped this cup for probably 10 minutes, so it tastes remarkably like black tea. I’m reserving judgement as directions call for 3 minutes. I will throw a rating up after the second steep.
Second Steep: Much better. 3 minutes did the trick. The basil is still there, lemon is still kind of hidden- subtle might be a better term, but the bitterness is gone. The brew was clear with a hazelnut color to it. Note to self: Don’t forget about the tea while steeping.
Third Steep: Oddly better than the second. I steeped it for over 3 minutes, probably closer to 4. Basil is still hanging out with a little lemony twist. I am surprised at the longevity of this blend!
Preparation
What an interesting combination! Is the lemon aspect flavouring with proper lemon or is it something like lemongrass? I’m going to have to try and experiment with and imitation of this combination.
It is definitely lemon, not lemongrass. It was wonderful. Who knows what tomorrow will bring!
Cool. I have an otherwise kind of boring lemon black just hanging around the cupboard. I can take some of that out. :)
That sounds delicious! Lemon is just a great friend of tea.
Watching this steep was incredible. I’ve been drinking oolong from another company, which i now see probably sent me the dust at the bottom of their tin. This oolong is full leaves, with the most pleasant banana aroma. It is this beautiful light golden color that makes you want to guzzle it down, until you remember how hot the water is. It tastes as light as it looks, which may be due to a lack of enough leaf on my part. There is a banana sweetness that hits your palate, but the oolong is missing, which is odd. Any suggestions on better brewing?
I used 2 teaspoons in my IngenuiTEA. Filled to about 12/13 ounces (not the full 16).
Preparation
Curious re: lack of oolong taste. How hot was your water? You might give it another with hotter water or more leaf? I usually use water just at boiling for oolongs. Judging by your reddit post pic (nice!), looks like you could definitely use either more leaves or less water. My vessels are usually packed to bursting once the leaves open up.
Awesome! Thanks spoonvonstup! I will try less water in the next infusion. I also was wondering, with teas you can do multiple infusions, if I am going to use the leaf the next day, should I refrigerate it or just leave it hanging out in the infuser, room temperature?
I think multiple infusions are always ideal if you can do them within the same session (especially with most oolongs, with can develop a lemony taste if left sitting). However, that being said… I never know how to answer your question “officially”.. only describe what tend to happen with me. I don’t know if it’s “best” but I usually just leave my leaves sitting out in the open air. By the next day, they’ll have dried, and I just resteep after a second or two “wake up” rinse to warmt eh leaves back up.
If it’s getting to be humid icky summer time and I’m down in Houston? Then I might put the leaves in the fridge if I remember to avoid mold. But then again, I am lazy and probably would only remember to leave the leaves uncovered so that they could dry a bit rather than trapping the moisture inside a cup in the humidity.
My first cup, and I can’t find the steeping time for it. I went with 3 minutes, which seems to be okay. No bitterness really. I don’t know what i am supposed to be looking for with this tea as I am not an Irish or English breakfast drinker. I do know that it has a nice black tea backdrop, with a subtle creamy flavor and only the slightest touch of vanilla. I do wish i could taste more vanilla and more of the Irish breakfast notes, but I am enjoying it nonetheless.
Preparation
I brewed 5 bags in 6 cups of water with a half cup of natural sugar crystals. With some heavy cream, it is an almost identical replica of my favorite Thai restaurant’s brew. So lovely and perfectly balanced spice.
