Nonpareil Taiwan Li Shan Oolong Tea

This is another Teavivre sample from Sil. I love samples from Teavivre, they are always so generous, & the quality is excellent. This one is no exception. The tea is in nuggets, & once steeped it is an iridescent green. Although I don’t love ‘green’ oolongs as much as I love the more roasty ones, I do enjoy them from time to time. This one has a buttery floral aroma, with a light floral taste. The flavor is also both sweet & savory, with a thick sensation. A pleasant afternoon cup.

Sipdown, 115. Thanks to Teavivre for sending along this sample.

This one totally surprised me. I think the only other Li Shan oolong I’ve had was a pretty typical super green, super fresh variety without any roasting. This one wasn’t quite roasty, but it did have a bakey, nutty flavor that was unexpected. Floral and buttery as well, this was a very tasty oolong. I didn’t fall in love with it but I would happily drink this one again.

Thank you Angel and Teavivre for this sample tea!

The Snow Queen has stretched her Wintry White Robe across most of North America.

Most of us Steepsterites hunker down with copious amounts of tea, hoping to melt the chill from her icy fingers. Burr!

I’ve been drinking Chai, Black Tea and Puerh by the buckets-full! My own additions of cinnamon or ginger to the Puerh warm me head to toe in no time.

Now and then, a reminder of Spring gladdens my heart, and it’s tea that’s able to take me to that golden, glowing place in no time.

While I prefer dark, roasty Oolongs that are cinder-fired and tightly rolled…I love those rare, buttery, floral/savory Oolongs that remind me of the awakening Earth in Spring.

Li Shan is such an Oolong.

Buttery and thickening as it cools, sweet, slightly floral and savory.

I’m not very fond of light Oolongs, but this is perfectly delicious. Not too light and or strong but just right with an aroma sweet enough to make you hunger for vanilla cake.

Winter may be upon us now, but we can remember warm, golden-hued Spring now, thanks to such a tea as this one.

Beethoven’s 6th Symphony http://youtu.be/34dU9RSWf28

This is a very light and smooth oolong. It is very floral, but not too strong, its light. Mid and end sip there is an almost woody taste. It is slightly sweet. Just a tad astringent after the sip. Green oolongs are not my favorite, but this one is pretty good. I think because it is floral but not overly floral.

A very nice smooth Oolong with nice subtlety and gentle flavor and aroma. Slight nutty and floral tones blend nicely for a well rounded brew.

Brewing this up using the western method tonight.
First steep is floral, nutty, and has a smooth, pleasant mouthfeel that reminds me of milk oolong.
Second steep is pretty similar, although it is starting to get slightly more vegetal tasting.

I’m a fan. One of my favorite oolongs. I don’t have much to say in regards to a description. I just shut down my critical mind I was so taken by this tea.

I’m almost exclusively a green tea guy. But this fall and winter I’ve found myself losing the taste a bit and longing for something different. I enjoy oolongs every now and then, along with some black teas and pu-erh, but I was looking for a departure, without going too far from green.

This tea gives me much of what I enjoy about greens while bringing a more overt profile. It has a complexity and some light spice notes along with floral qualities that don’t overwhelm. The liquor has a lovely, golden hue and the substantial, almost meaty leaves steep for many a forgiving infusion (starting at about 1 min, thereafter increasing the time by roughly 1/2 − 1, 1 1/2, 2 1/4, 3 3/8, etc). The mouthfeel is viscous and yet light; strangely paradoxical.

OK… maybe I had a thing of two to say. Maybe I’ll have more to say… I’m off to Teavivre to stock up before this find is a thing of the past.

Tea brewed in my double wall glass Finum. Nice balanced stimulating effect. Not sure of the theanine content of this guy, but I’m guessing the mouthfeel is a result of amino acids. Hoping that includes theanine. It feels like it to me.

Yesterday I received the small Teavivre order I placed on Black Friday. Three weeks in the mail is pretty good, especially considering that it’s the holidays on top of a pandemic. I had some trouble checking out and didn’t request any samples, but Teavivre included two free 7 g packs of this tea, which was incredibly generous. Perhaps they knew I like Taiwanese high mountain oolongs? Anyway, I couldn’t resist cutting one of them open and decided to follow their steeping instructions, brewing the entire 7 g in my 120 ml teapot in boiling water for 25, 25, 30, 40, 60, 90, 120, and 180 seconds.

The dry aroma of these large green nuggets is of orchids, honeysuckle, other flowers, and sugar cookies. The first steep has a nice silky texture and notes of orchids, honeysuckle, butter, cream, spinach, grass, and cookies. I love the lingering, sweet aftertaste. The second steep gives me that sappy note I sometimes get in high mountain oolongs, along with more cookies, some umami, and faint apple and stonefruit. The aftertaste switches from sweet to grassy. The next couple steeps are greener, with notes of spinach and kale, although the tea is still floral, slightly fruity, and sweet. This tea keeps getting greener as the session goes on, but the florals and sweetness keep it interesting.

Having associated Teavivre mainly with Chinese teas, I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of this Taiwanese oolong. I love its sweet florals, although perhaps due to my brewing parameters, it was greener than I generally prefer. Maybe shorter steeps will make the fruit and florals pop!

Last sample of this. Wish it wasn’t so expensive ($24.90/50g) because it’s excellent Li Shan. (Update: At first, I thought, I’ll just get samples here and there of it when I can but decided to buy more. lol It’s very good.)

Aromatic: Vegetal, orchard, vineyards with a little fragrance of natural sweetness, perhaps of fruit. The taste is light, subtle, soothing, umami, creamy and extremely smooth. It has a velvety mouthfeel and throat-feel that are long-lasting as is the sweet aftertaste. Throughout all 8 steeps, it was flavorful, yummy never going flat.

Da Hong Pao Yixing Teapot, 7g, 212℉, 110ml, 8 steeps: rinse, 25s, 25s, 30s, 40s, 60s, 90s, 120s, 180s

Here’s another delicious tea I drank up without realizing. I drank this weeks ago too, so..

Err. (pie on face)

I recall at the time that it reminded be a lot of my Shan Lin Xi from Camellia Sinensis: grassy coconut notes, mixed with thick butter and almost nectar-like sweetness. It may have had a bit of seaweed/marine note, too?

I’ll just have to order more next time. For verfication purposes, of course!

Steep Count: who knows? I was blissed out on it, which is what’s important.

(2016 Harvest)