348 Tasting Notes

95

I dug the heck out of this Japanese black tea (or “kocha”). It reminded me more of a Taiwanese black with a kukicha consistency and a mild fruit note. What I greatly appreciated was the lack of black tea astringency and/or a bitter foretaste. It was all honey and metaphorically reminded me of sweet tree sap in texture. Quite good.

Full Review: http://www.teaviews.com/2011/03/06/review-mellow-monk-crimson-grove/

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 2 min, 0 sec

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90

This was almost a rating for a perfect white tea. So close. The flavor possessed notes of honey, chrysanthemum, lotus, pale grapes and wilderness. It was wonderful. But the presence of an unwanted “ingredient” in the sample knocked it down a notch…and made it not-so-virginal, per the tea’s description. That said, I can see why it is a rare treasure. It tops most of the Silver Needles I’ve tried.

Full Review: http://www.teaviews.com/2011/03/07/review-de-vos-tea-virgin-white-tea/

Preparation
165 °F / 73 °C 3 min, 0 sec
Tabby

What was the unwanted “ingredient”??

Geoffrey Norman

Human hair. And definitely not mine. I’m sure it was a fluke…but still…had to demerit the tea regardless.

Tabby

Oh god. D:

Geoffrey Norman

That was my thought, too. But like a foul bachelor, I took it out and brewed the leaves anyway. Glad I did.

CMT 雲 山 茶

Maybe it lost 10 points for not having the hair?

Geoffrey Norman

A notch is about 10% by my – albeit unscientific – grading curve.

Tabby

I still haven’t really assigned any meaning to the numbers, myself. And hey, the boiling water should have killed the germs?

Geoffrey Norman

I LIKE that excuse! I think I’ll stick to it.

QuiltGuppy

Maybe it was a strand of a virgin’s hair?

Geoffrey Norman

HA! In Sri Lanka? Doubtful.

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80

I love Silver Needle whites, but they can be a temperamental b**ch of a tea, lemme tell ya. One minute off on your steep, and you’re looking at spinach broth. That was certainly the case here on my first attempt. On a second try with a fresh batch of leaves, I lowered the brew time by thirty seconds. The results were an only-slightly vegetal cup with melon and nut notes. It also had a creamy aftertaste that was mostly unexpected. Decent by Yinzhen standards, which – for me – are quite high.

Full Review: http://www.teaviews.com/2011/02/25/review-white-august-silver-threads%E2%84%A2/

Preparation
165 °F / 73 °C 2 min, 30 sec

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79

I could geekily nitpick that it can’t be a Keemun unless it’s actually produced in Qimen County, but I’m not in a purist mood this morning. The fact that it was a Formosa-borne black tea was merit enough for sipping. Unlike Chinese Keemun, it doesn’t possess the bitter foretaste. In fact, none of its flavor characteristics match up with Keemun. There’s no sweetness and no “orchid”-like comparison. What it does offer is an aged pu-erh’s earthiness coupled with a Formosa oolong’s nutty and pinecone-like flavor. It’s no Keemun Gongfu or Mao Feng, but it still does pretty well.

Full Review: http://www.itsallabouttheleaf.com/1985/tea-review-mark-t-wendell-formosa-keemun/

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 3 min, 0 sec

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91

This isn’t actually an item that’s for sale. Heck, it isn’t even an item that’s considered ready yet. Rather, I received notification from Smith HQ that one of their lead blenders was playing around with infusing Ti Kwan Yin leaves in actual gin. I love trying knew chimeric creations, especially when alcohol is involved. The taste for this was quite unique. The foretaste was all oolong, but the middle was vastly dominated by the juniper berry tang imparted by the gin. My other favorite aspect was the aftertaste. As in, there really wasn’t one. I’m not a fan of the cotton-mouthy sensation some Kwan Yins leave me with after sipping. This had nothing like that. It was smooth, berry-ish, floral, and light. An excellent first try. Just thought I’d share.

Full musing: http://www.teaviews.com/2011/02/24/tea-musing-ti-kwan-%E2%80%9Cgin%E2%80%9D/

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82

I received this completely by surprise from Shinobicha. He apparently saw me raving about this being on my “Tea Want” list and graciously provided me with a sample. The dry presentation wasn’t all that remarkable – looking and smelling like a CTC-cut black tea, very generic-seeming. That opinion was cast aside upon taste. This has some unusual notes to it – grapefruit, wood, nuts, grass, sweetness. Like a Nilgiri mixed with sencha. Bitterness was also thankfully understated. I can’t say it’s “OH WOW!” like a Yunnan Gold (which is far easier to acquire), but I’m glad to have at least tried it.

Full write-up: http://www.teaviews.com/2011/02/23/tea-musing-den%E2%80%99s-tea-shizuoka-black-tea/

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 0 sec

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95

This was the goldest of the Golden Monkeys I’ve ever come across. It resembled a Yunnan Gold instead of its other Fujian brethren, which merely had flecks of gold. The taste reflected the visual presentation; autum flush-like malt and muscatel notes and a caramel-honey/apricot finish. It’s a damn good golden cup.

Full Review: http://www.teaviews.com/2011/02/21/review-white-august-golden-monkey/

Preparation
190 °F / 87 °C 3 min, 0 sec

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80

I’m a big fan of chamomile. Unlike many hokey health claims, chamomile has a time honored tradition of doing exactly what it’s supposed to – knocking someone’s arse out. Valerian also holds that honor, although it smells FAR worse. Skullcap…well, I don’t know much about it or what it tastes like. Combined in this dreamtime blend – along with passion flower – the three work well together. Sure, they’re ingredients I could easily do on my own, but I don’t think I’d nail the balancing act as well as the “Sacred” folks did. A pretty good sleepy steep.

Full Review: http://www.teaviews.com/2011/02/20/review-sacred-rose-dreamtime/

Preparation
Boiling 6 min, 0 sec

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100

No other way to put it. This is THE definitive Earl Grey. British-grown tea (blended with Assam) scented with British-grown bergamot oil. And it sure does taste like it. The black tea base was malty, floral…and balanced absolutely perfectly with the citrus-sour bergamot. A second steep yielded a more diluted bergamoty cup but with no astringency or bitterness. In a word, “Wow.”

Full Review: http://www.lazyliteratus.com/1152

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 0 sec

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91
drank Bamboo Shoots by TeaFrog
348 tasting notes

I don’t often use the word “chimera” outside of my sci-fi reading/writing…but this? What the heck?! Just look at the ingredients. If you think those seem diametrically opposed to one another, wait ‘til you smell and/or taste it. As for the aroma: There’s a tug-o’-war at work here, like it wants to be a tropical “genmai” chai. And – to whatever end – it kinda succeeds. On the flavor front? I know I liked it. I know I liked it a LOT. Describing it is another matter. The fruits dominate, spice and toastiness make their mark somewhat, and I still don’t know what bamboo tastes like.

Full Review: http://www.itsallabouttheleaf.com/1937/tea-review-teafrog-bamboo-shoots-4/

Preparation
180 °F / 82 °C 3 min, 0 sec

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Bio

I moonlight as a procrastinating writer and daylight as a trader of jack. I appreciate good tea, good beer, and food that is bad for me. Someday I’ll write the great American novel. And it’ll probably have something to do with tea or beer…or both. In the meantime, I subsist.

Tea Blog: http://www.steepstories.com

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