Organic Shibi High Mountain Winter Oolong Tea, Lot 874

Tea type
Oolong Tea
Ingredients
Oolong Tea Leaves
Flavors
Almond, Butter, Creamy, Custard, Floral, Freshly Cut Grass, Herbaceous, Macadamia, Milk, Narcissus, Nutty, Peach, Pear, Plumeria, Popcorn, Rosemary, Vanilla, Apricot, Citrus, Coconut, Cookie, Cream, Grass, Honeysuckle, Lily, Orchid, Passion Fruit, Spinach, Vegetal, Flowers, Tropical
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Loose Leaf
Caffeine
Not available
Certification
Organic
Edit tea info Last updated by LuckyMe
Average preparation
180 °F / 82 °C 0 min, 30 sec 4 g 5 oz / 138 ml

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4 Tasting Notes View all

  • “I’m really loving this one, and surprisingly more than some of the higher elevation teas I have on hand. I used the entirety of the sample, so I’m guessing six grams or more. I’m taking some quick...” Read full tasting note
    95
  • “I bought this tea in 2020 just before the pandemic. As is true of a few other people here, Shibi is my favourite green oolong from Taiwan Tea Crafts because of all the tropical fruit. Fortunately,...” Read full tasting note
    94
  • “Sipdown. My last few teaspoons of this tea were getting stale but ambient brewing rescued it. Despite the freezing cold and endless snow we endured in Chicago today, it was really refreshing to...” Read full tasting note
    99

From Taiwan Tea Crafts

Many times we get asked what is our favorite high-mountain tea. To be fair, we like them all, but if we were to name one that we keep going back to for a rewarding experience, this one will be on the top of the list. Consistency is definitely a sign of quality, both in the growing practices as well as the craftsmanship behind the transformation of the leaf into tea. Our Shibi collaborator has done it again with this superb Lot 874. This is our seventh winter offering from this producer, and probably his best to date. The clean crisp feel of this tea is still present with the mellowness and balance one can expect from a winter offering. The liqueur peaks with succulent notes of spring flowers and smooth vegetal nuances that culminate with a long and smooth finish. The nice thick leaves farmed responsibly are very generous and will give many satisfying infusions of joy in the cup. This tea complies to EU standards in residual pesticide content – one of the strictest norm in the world, presently. You simply can’t go wrong with this tea!

About Taiwan Tea Crafts View company

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4 Tasting Notes

95
1704 tasting notes

I’m really loving this one, and surprisingly more than some of the higher elevation teas I have on hand. I used the entirety of the sample, so I’m guessing six grams or more. I’m taking some quick notes, but here I’ve got after beginning with a 15 sec rinse I drank, and steeps hovering between 10-25 seconds for the first six brews and subsequent longer minute based steeps:

Macadamia, milk, macadamia milk, coconut milk, butter, light popcorn, custard, vanilla, almond milk, fruity hints, deeply creamy viscous texture, florals, maybe plumeria, some grassiness, and some sort of yellow and white flower I’m visualising but can’t name. I knew this was up my alley, but it was so balanced and full in texture and flavor. I’ll come back and write more.

And looking at the notes of others, I’m getting the daffodil floral heavily and some hints of peach and pear moreso mid session. Later steeps lean into a cooling herbal effect like rosemary. Easily one of my favorites from the sampler so far other than Bok’s Lishan. Thank you Leafhopper!

Flavors: Almond, Butter, Creamy, Custard, Floral, Freshly Cut Grass, Herbaceous, Macadamia, Milk, Narcissus, Nutty, Peach, Pear, Plumeria, Popcorn, Rosemary, Vanilla

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 0 min, 15 sec 6 g 5 OZ / 147 ML

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94
413 tasting notes

I bought this tea in 2020 just before the pandemic. As is true of a few other people here, Shibi is my favourite green oolong from Taiwan Tea Crafts because of all the tropical fruit. Fortunately, the vacuum sealing meant that this tea didn’t lose much of its flavour in the two years it’s been in my tea museum. I steeped 6 g of leaf in a 120 ml teapot at 195F for 25, 20, 25, 30, 30, 30, 45, 60, 90, 120, 180, and 240 seconds.

The dry aroma is of coconut, pear, apricot, lilies, honeysuckle, and grass. The first steep has notes of coconut, cookies, vanilla, pear, spinach, orchid, honeysuckle, butter, and grass. The second steep adds citrus, apricot, cream, and wildflowers. The third steep is all about the heavy coconut cream, with heady florals, vanilla, and what might be passion fruit in the background. The florals become more noticeable as the tea cools. By steep five, spinach, grass, and herbs are coming to the fore, though there’s still plenty of creamy coconut and honeysuckle, orchid, narcissus, and other florals. I also get an apricot/peachy aftertaste. The fruit fades by steep eight, though the florals persist until the end of the session.

As always, this Shibi is an excellent tea. Any oolong with so much coconut automatically gets a high rating from me, and the variety of other fruits and flowers is fantastic. My only small complaint is its relative lack of longevity, though that’s only in comparison to the other, pricier tropical fruity oolongs I’ve been drinking lately (the 2021 Longfenxia from Ethan and the 2019 Li Shan from Zhao Zhou come to mind). I highly recommend this tea for aficionados of fruity Taiwanese oolong!

Flavors: Apricot, Butter, Citrus, Coconut, Cookie, Cream, Floral, Grass, Herbaceous, Honeysuckle, Lily, Narcissus, Orchid, Passion Fruit, Peach, Pear, Spinach, Vanilla, Vegetal

Preparation
195 °F / 90 °C 6 g 4 OZ / 120 ML
Daylon R Thomas

Damn, that’s a high statement for Zhao Zhous (I finished it too quickly)! I’ve always wussed out of Shibi from Taiwan Tea Crafts because of shipping…which is hypocritical now, but I am.

Leafhopper

I’ve only had the Li Shan from Zhao Zhou once, but found it to be somewhat similar to the Longfengxia. I’m not surprised that you finished it quickly! Shipping from TTC used to be free over US$60, though I think it’s gotten more expensive. They also have a huge selection of teas, which means there are hits and misses for me.

Daylon R Thomas

Yep. They also either had only 5-10 gram samples, or 250 gram servings every time I try to buy it. I need to time it right.

Leafhopper

Yes, it’s annoying that they only have 10, 25, and 250 g sizes. I’ve been tempted to get the 250 g megapack, but there are occasionally less-than-stellar harvests.

Daylon R Thomas

That’s what I saw in your and Luckyme’s reviews. It’s like I need to know the harvest is good, and then I can buy it…oh it’s sold out.

Leafhopper

LOL! LuckyMe is generally more up to date on reviews than me, but there’s definitely a lag time.

LuckyMe

@Leafhopper So glad you like this one! It’s also my favorite high mountain tea from TTC’s lineup. Also, I wish every company packaged their tea the same way. Keeps them fresh practically forever and relieves my anxiety about unopened tea going stale on me.

@Daylon, I’ve been buying Shibi for a few years now and it’s generally a consistent performer as opposed to others like Long Feng xia where I have no idea what to expect from one season to the next.

derk

Woof, that sounds delightful!

Leafhopper

LuckyMe, those vacuum packs do make a whole lot of difference.

Derk, I thought you’d already tried an iteration of this tea. I would have saved you some otherwise.

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99
676 tasting notes

Sipdown. My last few teaspoons of this tea were getting stale but ambient brewing rescued it. Despite the freezing cold and endless snow we endured in Chicago today, it was really refreshing to drink this over ice. By the magic of room temperature steeping, the sour, stale seaweed taste was transformed into a floral bouquet in my cup. So delicious that I made two ambient brews and finished off what was left of this tea.

I must say cold/ambient brewing has been a godsend for less than perfect teas and those past their freshness. I’ve been able to salvage so many teas that I might have otherwise thrown out this way. Highly recommend giving cold brewing a try before giving up on your less loved teas.

Flavors: Flowers

Preparation
Iced 2 g 8 OZ / 236 ML
tea-sipper

Thanks for the cold brewing tip – I had no idea that would make a difference… I wonder if it would work on the flavor of green tea?

LuckyMe

Definitely. The senchas I bought last spring weren’t all that impressive but tasted amazing cold brewed. 2g to 8oz of water is the ratio I use. I steep it at room temperature for 2 hours, giving the leaves a stir 5 minutes before straining and then add a few ice cubes. Give it a try and let me know how it goes!

tea-sipper

Good to know – thanks. I will try it sometime! Maybe even brew normally at the same time to taste-test side by side.

Mastress Alita

I LOVE the taste of cold brewed green tea, and find that my several-year-old-past-their-prime greens still taste just fine as cold brews. I daresay that I might like greens even more coldbrewed than warm…

LuckyMe

@Mastress Alita agree 100%!! Discovering cold brewed tea has been a godsend for me. I’ve been able to salvage so many teas that might have otherwise gone in the trash.

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