This one came from Tommy the Toad. The liquor is dark like a black tea and smells of orange flavoring and smoked/roasted tea (Wuyi?). There is a bit of an earthy scent. For $2.75/oz, the leaf is actually better than I expected. The flavoring is pretty much exactly what I expected from Tommy’s description. It is a bit overdone and a touch artificial in the first cup. I can’t tell if the flavor is really that far off or if maybe orange just doesn’t mix well with this highly oxidized roasted oolong. I think the addition of a little lemon to support and compliment this tea would help greatly.
The interesting thing is, the third cup is fabulous. The flavoring becomes just a tasty remnant and the oolong looses its roastiness. The earthiness that was present from the beginning resembles a mild sheng puerh – sticky lip feel and all. Orange and sheng apparently work together really well for me. I would drink this cup all day long.
I wouldn’t reorder this tea BUT based on the quality of the leaf and the great price, I would not hesitate to try some of their other blends.
An interesting side note: every time I take a sip the smell makes me think of the world food mart where I buy most of my teas locally. More accurately it reminds me of incense and hippies. Far out man.
Thanks Tommy!
Psychadelelicious!
Right on, right on…
Maybe this is left over from the Summer of Love …"Are you going to San Francisco …will you wear flowers in your hair? " Oops I’m the only one on Steepster who was ALIVE then! Sob!