Ti Guan Yin

This leans toward the darker side of tie guan yins rather than the brighter, loftier toned versions. The first steep is smokey and even somewhat musty, but with a little focus I picked up the familiar tie guan yin flavor profile lying underneath. The second steep was delicious, floral front and smooth. The third steep suffered a sharp dropoff in flavor, but certainly was still drinkable. Three steeps, three surprises.

Pretty dull for a TGY, some bitterness I never worked my way around… maybe a longer rinse is in order. Also a very mineral taste. It’s interesting, but not exciting. Pleasant enough to keep drinking, but maybe not worth the price.

Oolong day continues with this Ti Guan Yin I picked up from the loose leaf section in my local Wegmans. I brewed 1.5tsp in 10oz at about 200degrees for 3 minutes. This tea is a bit confusing. To the eye it looks like a dark roast, with very tightly rolled dark balls that have a bit of a musty roasted scent. But once brewed the taste is much greener than the appearance of the leaves would suggest. It’s a bit mild and middle-of-the-road as far as oolongs go.

Honestly I find this a bit odd. It tastes like a typical green oolong with heavy flowery notes and nice sweetness just as you would expect. But then the roastyness comes in. It’s not bad tasting, I just can’t seem to get the two together in my mind. I’m used to oolongs that sit at the far ends of the spectrum and this is confusing my palate.

I’m pretty sure this is Rishi’s Iron Goddess of Mercy

I bought this tea because I was running low on my fresh TGY from Verdant, and wanted to find one I could use as a daily drinker (I love Verdant’s, but unless it’s on sale like when I bought it I tend to only drink it occasionally.) I brewed this at the same time and temperature I give all my oolongs when I’m first trying them, ~185 for 30 seconds, increasing by 5 seconds each steep. This tea is not bad, though not as subtle and complex as Verdant’s. Its floral taste is a bit stronger than I imagined, so I might tone down the steeping time next time I brew this. It seems to be a decent daily drinker, but will by no means replace Verdant’s as my fancier TGY.

Two steepings, 4 min each, 190 deg F. First steeping tasted nutty, second steep tasted earthy and more full bodied. Steepings after the second yielded tasteless results. This is a dark Ti Guan Yin that needs a lot of room for leaves to unfurl.