Anxi Monkey King (Ma Liu Mie) Tie Guan Yin Oolong Tea

After noticing the flavors listed with this tea’s description, I almost thought I was still on the page for the Qing Xiang Dong Ding that I just reviewed. I wouldn’t have described this one as nutty or bready. Creamier than other tieguanyins, yes. I suppose the creamy texture can easily lead one to think of a nutty flavor. Perhaps it would stand out more to me if I didn’t sample it in such close proximity to the Dong Ding which is super nutty bread supreme, lol.

The floral in this is sweeter, rather than sharp, relative to some others I’ve had. Not much else to say here. It’s a tasty cup of delicate floral with a hint of cream. :)

This is a very floral oolong. Other reviewers have mentioned buttery notes. I think it’s there but it’s quite subdued to me. Overall this is an excellent oolong and a quality Tie Guan Yin for the price.

I brewed this once in a 16oz Teavana Glass Perfect Tea Maker/Gravity Steeper with 3 tsp leaf and boiling water for two minutes after giving it a 10 second rinse. I think this would be much better brewed Asian style but this morning I am in something of a hurry and don’t have the time. There was a slight bitter note to the tea that I think would dissipate by a fourth steep or so.

I enjoy this a lot. I have tried it western style, and it was very intense that way. It was equal parts creamy and floral for the first western steep – next time I will do shorter infusions, it was almost too intense. It was creamier and sweeter and fruitier for the following two. I am enjoying it gongfu style today, practicing with my new gaiwan, and it is a lot more nuanced this way. Which isn’t surprising. It hopped between creamy and floral the first several steeps, and moved to primarily fruity/floral for the latter. I steeped it countless times and it retained flavor well. I could see this being an everyday staple, as it is pretty inexpensive for the quality.

Thank you to Angel at TeaVivre for this sample!

I have had a few different TGY. Several for me have ended up tasting bitter and not very pleasant to my taste buds. The few that I have gotten right have been wonderful. This tea immediately goes into the wonderful category. I have been sipping on this tea all afternoon with no hints of bitterness. It is sweet and floral. As the infusions go on I get a creamy texture and hints of peach. I have done about 7 or 8 infusions and this tea is still giving! Thanks again TeaVivre for so many wonderful offerings. This is another one that will stay on the wish list!

Backlog:

A lovely roasted Tie Guan Yin. The roasting process has changed the flavor profile – the floral and vegetal notes that I might normally experience with a Tie Guan Yin are more toasty and nutty now. This adds a really nice dimension to the sweetness of this tea.

Early infusions are creamy and sweet. As it was quite hot, I noticed the tea was on the crisp side, but as the tea cooled slightly, it became softer and creamier. Later infusions became smoother, and the roasty-toasty notes became enhanced. I noticed notes of charcoal and freshly roasted chestnuts. The last infusions that I enjoyed of this tea became a different tea entirely, with a cleaner taste and notes of fruit.

Here’s my full-length review of my adventure with this tea: http://sororiteasisters.com/2014/12/28/anxi-monkey-king-ma-liu-mie-tie-guan-yin-oolong-tea-from-teavivre/

Thank you so much to Angel and Teavivre for sending me a generous sample of this tea. The dry leaf is a beautiful grass green. The aroma of the dry leaf is buttery and leafy. The flavor is rather different than other tie guan yin oolongs I’ve had. Usually I’m used to strong floral flavors but this has much deeper flavors. It’s woodsy, buttery, floral, sweet, and a touch of creaminess. I’m going to enjoy a few more steeps of this one :3

After my wife got two steeps out of her leaves yesterday, I claimed them for my daily overnight coldbrew. It’s really good! Kinda creamy, definitely nutty, green and delicious.

It is very good, but if I had to choose between the two, I would choose the Taiwan Monkey Picked Tie Guan Yin. Let’s see how I feel after trying that one coldbrewed tomorrow. But while this tea is good, it isn’t something I feel the need to get any more of.

Got this as a sample. It’s a very green oolong, and smells distinctly of gardenia; the flavor is vegetal, with pea notes in partcular. It tastes of gardenia too, but lightly. It doesn’t have any of the heaviness or cloyingness that a lot of florals do.

I couldn’t bring myself to steep this at the recommended 212F — it just seemed too hot for something so green — so went with a long steep at 190 and it was still quite flavorful.

Something really awesome happened to me, thanks to some awesome connections I got my hands on a ton of paint, a glorious selection of brushes, and some basing/sculpting supplies. This pretty much tops off my miniature painting supplies wishlist, I mean yeah there are a few things I need with washes, varnishes, and some technicals, but mostly I am set. This means that any money I get I can use for buying the actual minis instead of the painting supplies, so exciting! I expect that a large portion of Christmas monetary gifts will be used to buy things to paint. Currently I am working on a rather sexy and scantily clad lady standing in some fancy looking rock formations with a friendly lizard.

So, today we are having a tea from Teavivire, Anxi Monkey King (Ma Liu Mie) Tie Guan Yin Oolong. This Tie Guan Yin is of the Zheng Cao type of processing, meaning it is only lightly oxidized, making this a vibrant green oolong from Anxi! The name Monkey King, Ma Liu Mie, or Monkey Picked, all refer to the legend that ancient farmers could not pick the tea growing wild on the cliffside, so they improvised by tying ropes around their waists and climbed the cliffs, just like a monkey. Charming, though this myth has led to some pretty wild tales about the tea being picked by actual monkeys or that the farmers would scare the monkeys into knocking branches off the tea tree by throwing things at them. The beauty of legends, trying to sort the truth from the fiction! The aroma of the dry and very green leaves is one of those ‘just right’ combination of notes, it is floral but not too heady, has notes of fresh vegetation without smelling too green, and notes of chestnut without being too nutty. The Goldilocks of smells. It reminds me of morning dew on an orchid, along with the summer aroma of growing things and a touch of sweet nectar at the finish, very lush smelling.

Once the leaves have been given their first steeping, the headiness of a typical green Tie Guan Yin comes out! The aroma is a very floral blend of orchid, hyacinth, and a touch of honeysuckle with an accompaniment of fresh vegetation and chestnuts. I think I even detect a hint of distant lilacs, very much so a summer evocative blend of notes. The liquid, it is hard to describe, the aroma reminds me of flower water and nectar, like some little (very hard working) elf gathered all the raindrops left on flowers after a rain storm. It is floral, green, and just a tiny hint mineral. Just like summer rain off a flower, not that I am a hard working elf who has done that or anything.

The notes in my notebook for this tea are a little giggle worthy, especially when I use the phrase ‘powerhouse of orchid’ yep, that sums it up nicely. I find this kind of Tie Guan Yin very relaxing, something about its mixing of strong floral notes, wet and crushed vegetation, and just that hint of buttery chestnut always put me in mind of the feeling after a summer storm. I feel focused and relaxed, very alive and ever so slightly sleepy. The buttery mouthfeel and honey sweet finish mix well with the earlier flavor notes.

The aroma of the second steep, no surprise, is very floral. A blend of orchids, hyacinths, and a touch of chestnut sweetness at the end, ah the headiness of oolongs. The taste is a delightful blend of floral sweetness, I definitely know I am picking up lilac along with the orchid powerhouse this time! A touch of green things, including a tiny hint of fresh spinach, and a tiny bit of chestnut and honey at the finish. It is not as buttery smooth this time, there is a hint of dryness at the very back of the mouth which causes a distinct honey aftertaste.

I should note, I am not the only one sipping this tea at the moment. Yes yes, I do have the notes in my notebook, but decided I also wanted to drink it while writing this. I got my mom a little yixing teapot as an early Christmas/birthday gift (her first) and she wanted it seasoned for green oolongs, so we are having a nice time with this tea and her pot. The third steep is much the same in aroma as the second, a bit more hyacinth than orchid, more sweet than vegetation. The taste takes a similar tone from the aroma, the taste is still quite floral but it is no longer a powerhouse but a mild floral headiness. It reminds me of flowers in the evening, closing their petals up, you can still smell them but it is not as intense. Everything about this steep reminds me of the evening, it is winding down, soothing and relaxing. There is a hint of mineral along with the green fresh vegetation and spinach notes that make up the finish. A very soothing end, and now I return to painting!

For photos and review: http://ramblingbutterflythoughts.blogspot.com/2014/12/teavivre-anxi-monkey-king-ma-liu-mie.html

Warning ! I am tasting the second “monkey” of Teavivre . This is again a beautiful sample offered by Angel . Slighly roasted . Green . A teguanyin to sum up … but not just any!

A beautiful rolled leaf that unfolds entirely at the first infusion. It Looks like a salad :)

It is a so sweet tea , green , floral even very floral but also a little fruity. A nice fruit , peach, but not from a too sweet variety , too heady .

The long finish is impressive. The taste lasts and lasts … it makes me want to go directly to a second infusion. Let’s do that !

The body and texture of the juice remains intact for the second infusion but the peach is more present. The light creamy taste is still there too. Adorable tea. I don’t know which one I prefer between the first and the second monkey Teavivre . Alike and also dissonant . I like both .

Some pics are available here : http://thevangeliste.wordpress.com/2014/12/04/anxi-monkey-king-ma-liu-mie-tie-guan-yin-oolong-tea-teavivre/