80
drank Oriental Beauty by Butiki Teas
218 tasting notes

TTB #6

Okay, Oriental Beauty, here it is! I was the most excited about this one of the whole Traveling Tea Box (which means REALLY TERRIBLY excited) but I must say that it failed to meet my expectations somewhat. I mean, it’s still a great tea. There’s natural sweetness to it, in both scent and flavor. I can see where the “fermented” part is coming from, even though I’ve had hardly any fermented oolongs before (more fermented than roasted, that is) and I do think it’s very unique. But I find the whole experience rather… flat? Like there’s not much body to it? Perhaps it’s because of the way I steeped it (1 tsp/8 oz for 4,5 minutes at 190F?). I’ll try to resteep the leaves again before I attempt to rate it.

EDIT: Okay, I resteeped it for about 5 minutes at 195F and I still fail to notice much of complexity in it. Perhaps its subtlety is its greatest quality? It is not one I would crave for or even think about after it’s gone. It is still a great quality tea, definitely enjoyable and interesting. This oriental beauty just doesn’t seem to be my type of beauty, that’s all.

Flavors: Earth, Flowers

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 5 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML
bluebelle

A lot of Butikis require 1 tsp/6 oz, so for 8 oz you might want to overleaf slightly. I’m interested to see what you think of the resteep, though!

Butiki Teas

Hi Kat_Maria-For that specific tea, we suggest 2 teaspoons per 8oz of water, steeped for 4 minutes. I hope this helps. :)

Kat_Maria

Yeah, the resteep is in the making. I would still give this tea about 80 rating as it is, because it is really good and unique. It’s just that I expected God knows what from it :D Ah, the expectations, they can always spoil the best things.

Kat_Maria

Thanks, Stacey :) It’s just that since it’s a part of Travelling Tea Box, I did not want to use too much of the tea – so that others after me can try it. But I think I am just going to resteep what I have (which is a bit over 1 tsp) for about 5-6 minutes and see how it tastes :)

Kat_Maria

*Stacy. Oops!

Butiki Teas

No worries on the added e. :) I definitely understand about expectations and even hype being an issue. That happens to me all the time with tea.

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Comments

bluebelle

A lot of Butikis require 1 tsp/6 oz, so for 8 oz you might want to overleaf slightly. I’m interested to see what you think of the resteep, though!

Butiki Teas

Hi Kat_Maria-For that specific tea, we suggest 2 teaspoons per 8oz of water, steeped for 4 minutes. I hope this helps. :)

Kat_Maria

Yeah, the resteep is in the making. I would still give this tea about 80 rating as it is, because it is really good and unique. It’s just that I expected God knows what from it :D Ah, the expectations, they can always spoil the best things.

Kat_Maria

Thanks, Stacey :) It’s just that since it’s a part of Travelling Tea Box, I did not want to use too much of the tea – so that others after me can try it. But I think I am just going to resteep what I have (which is a bit over 1 tsp) for about 5-6 minutes and see how it tastes :)

Kat_Maria

*Stacy. Oops!

Butiki Teas

No worries on the added e. :) I definitely understand about expectations and even hype being an issue. That happens to me all the time with tea.

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ME & TEA

I started drinking tea when I was a teenager, my dad used to make tea a million times a day as it was (and still is!) good for his health. So he would make it for the entire family. Usually it was Lipton with a teaspoon of sugar per cup and a slice of lemon. I was fond of it made this way then a lot.

Then I would have occasional loose leaf teas, I slowly got into green tea… I would mostly stick to bagged tea though. It was just convenient.

Only recently, in the middle of 2013, did I start getting seriously into all kinds of loose leaf tea.

My cupboard only reflects what I have in ‘regular’ (non-sample) sizes. It could be that I have some tea you’re looking for, just in a smaller amount, even though it is not in my cupboard, so you can always just ask when swapping with me :)

[LOVES]:
- Chinese & Taiwanese black teas
- second flush darjeelings
- malty assams
- green oolongs
- Chinese green teas
- super-fruity rooibos/honeybush “teas”

[LIKES]:
- Japanese green teas
- white teas
- dark oolongs
- interesting dessert teas
- earl greys
- pu-erhs

[IS INDIFFERENT ABOUT]:
- chai teas
- herbal teas
- fruit teas

[DISLIKES]:
- mint in blends (it’s ok as straight mint)

JUST ME
Apart from tea, I love reading, board-gaming with my husband, learning foreign languages (currently Spanish and Portuguese) and listening to lots and lots of music!

And if we just stick to food-related stuff I am also a great aficionado of good craft beer and dark chocolate :)

MY FAVORITE TEA COMPANIES (so far):
Butiki
Golden Moon Tea
Harney & Sons
Lupicia
Shang Tea
What-Cha
Whispering Pines Tea Co.
Yezi Tea

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