Revival

My 1000th reflection/post! Gah, that’s a lot of drinking and thinking, or not thinking. :)

Opened packet for the first time today.

The vanilla bean plays nicely against the roasted oolong, which looks to me like a really dark roast as the appearance is that of black charcoal nuggets which barely barely open throughout the early steeps.

Perhaps I should use boiling water rather than my usual slightly cooled boil approach.
Nonetheless, the vanilla becomes more prominent in later steeps, perhaps it needs softening for the taste to fully bloom.

With a roast this dark, I expected it to be harsh, but it is not, not at all.

Also, I miss Liquid Proust and his insights and his experiments and his kindnesses. I hope you are well, LP!

I bought this from the Liquid Proust sale a while ago, sadly only now writing a note. This must be the DARKEST oolong I’ve ever seen. Entirely black. They also never unraveled during any of my steeps (and the last steep went for a WHILE for this reason), so possibly these were a little too roasted! I love seeing the big pieces of vanilla in the blend. I have been steeping up so many vanilla teas lately. Roasted oolong isn’t usually my thing. This one is good enough. I’m not really tasting much vanilla at all though, which is a shame. The vanilla would have really elevated the flavor. The oolong itself has less flavor than you would think, since this charcoal oolong REALLY looks like actual charcoal. I don’t think there was any saving this particular oolong, no matter how much Liquid Proust tried. Always happy to try any tea though.
Steep #1 // 1 1/2 teaspoons for a full mug// 10 minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep
Steep #2 // few minutes after boiling // 3 minute steep
Steep #3 // just boiled // half a mug of tea // 6 minute steep

I am finally getting to this tea never mind I’ve drank it for the past month. There is a long relationship I’ve had with roasted Tie Guan Yin.

Here’s the story. When I started my Steepster quest, I was an ex black coffee drinker trying to give up my old habit. Dark roasted oolongs were often recommended to such a drinker, and thanks to Andrew, I got into the world of oolong. He was nice enough to teach me with a series of samples. A few of those samples were aged and roasted Tie Guan Yins, which had the oddest taste I’ve had in a tea. I can dig some roast and some vanilla in the natural profiles of my tea, but this particular variety tastes and smells like mahogany paint stain. Ever since, there was only one dark Tie Guan Yin that I really enjoyed was one from Whispering Pines. Andrew and I both liked it, and while he was far more experienced and became even more experienced with aged teas, I was still left wanting. I continued to drink coffee anyway.

So while he is concocting his experimental blends, he decided to use some of his vanilla flavoring skills (insert white joke here) to revive something out of this old Tie Guan Yin. The antique table taste is still there with its charred texture, but sweetened by the vanilla. The vanilla might be just enough to convince a tea nooby, but a newbie who drinks black coffee. A more experienced or intermediate tea drinker who loves roast and vanilla are the best targets in my opinion. The wood and char taste might dissuade a few.

Summary: If you are one of those old souls who loves the smell of leather books, mahogany, and the taste of a warm, roasted drink in the morning, this is your tea.