Golden Dragon Black Pearl Oolong Tea, Lot 544

365 Days of Tea Challenge – Day 31

Sample Sipdown! (65)

Yay, I made it through the first month of my challenge! ❤

Trying out my new easy/travel gaiwan that I bought on a whim from Amazon. I really like it except for the fact that the little silicone band around its midsection does not stay cool enough when brewing at this temperature, especially as the steeps grow longer. So I may have to reserve this little guy for lower temperature teas.

This is a lovely little Taiwanese tea. I fully admit to having a soft spot for oxidized Taiwanese teas, both oolong and black varieties. This one is a sort of a hybrid between the two, which is intriguing.

The flavor throughout the session was a lovely and comforting blend of baked bread and raw grain/oat notes, along with a big dollop of cinnamon honey. There was also a light floral flavor and a slight earthy grassiness present in some steeps. I loved the lasting sweet cinnamon honey aftertaste that lingered after each sip!

I did smell some tart stonefruit and dried fruit aromas in the wet leaf and the tea itself, but I didn’t really get a lot of fruitiness in the taste. Perhaps a touch of dried fruit? I was surprised by how tart and plummy the wet leaf smelled compared to the flavor of the tea.

Overall, it was just what I’d hoped for from a Taiwanese black. I really do love that freshly baked bread with cinnamon honey butter flavor!

6g – 130ml – 200°F – 5/15/25/35/50/80/180s

https://www.instagram.com/p/BtTzz5NlhhM/

This is like the chicken noodle soup of black tea. It’s gentle and delicate, bordering on bland but enjoyable for what it is. Although its technically a black tea, it’s processed similarly to a oolong hence the name. The leaves are loosely rolled like an oolong and the steeped tea is a very light amber color. There’s almost no malt here and no bitterness. It’s got a sweet honeyed taste with notes of berries, rose, and buttercream. Very soft and light bodied.

I gongfued this but have a feeling western steeping may coax out a stronger flavor and perhaps the citrusy notes TTC mentions. Black tea aficionados will probably be bored by this tea however as a fan of light teas, I find this a good choice for relaxed casual drinking.

When I saw a black tea made from the Four Seasons varietal, I had to try it. I soon discovered that it’s very different from your standard Ruby 18, and not necessarily in a way that I enjoy. I steeped 5 g of leaf in a 120 ml teapot at 200F for 10, 12, 15, 18, 20, 25, 30, 40, 60, 90, 120, and 240 seconds.

The first steep tastes like Red River cereal, with oats, grain, cream, and honey notes. The second steep is similar, although there’s a floral, tangy aftertaste that reminds me of Four Seasons oolong. Four steeps in, this still tastes like breakfast cereal. The aftertaste is the most interesting part of this tea, where its Four Seasons character emerges. Although the Taiwan Tea Crafts website mentions citrus fruits, I don’t pick them up consistently, although I do get hints of citrus from time to time in later steeps.

This is a unique black tea that I’m happy to have crossed off my list. However, there’s a reason why I haven’t had Red River cereal since I was a kid. Since Taiwan Tea Crafts recommends drinking this tea iced, I’ll see if that brings out more of the citrus flavours.

Finished this one off today to start my morning. I am in pnic mode about the incoming teas i have , so the next few weeks are going to be all about drinking up my puerh and getting a few more teas closer to a sipdown. The last little bit of this is off to a tea friend to try out since i know i have a few packages to go out and it’s been far too long since i shared tea with far away friends!