63 Tasting Notes
This is a odd one, in a good way. I ordered a sample because this might be only Teavivres tea that has scored five stars. (At least was, checked it)
As usual it’s a small chunk from the cake, it’s made from whole leaves that are pretty big, also some stems are visible. It has different shades of brown, from dark to light brown and smells bit fermented and hay. I used western style 7mins and 100C, when I poured water on the leaves they started to smell something like dried rhubarb. It smells really much like black tea, and tea is also yellowish-red in color. I didn’t expect this. Also leaves turned into reddish brown.
It has honey like flavour that has raisins, dried fruit and malt in it. It’s like black tea with white tea like note in it. I can’t decide if I like it much or not. I really like that raisin and dried fruit notes but it’s still too black tea like for me. But everyone who like black teas should try this at least once.
Flavors: Dried Fruit, Hay, Malt, Raisins
Preparation
Ooh yeah, my first Korean tea, one more milestone in the world of tea achieved. Ordered from the local Chinese tea shop (It was cheap).
Looks quite much like Jiaogulan (which is chinese herb), and smells too. Wet leaves smell like a mix of chinese and japanese green teas with hint of herbs. They are dark green coloured like Japanese ones, some full leaves and some leaf pieces. I used gaiwan and 20s-30s-40s-etc steepings insted 5s steepings like suggested in the package.
It also tastes much like Jiaogulan, sweet herby taste with nuts and seaweed.
Flavors: Herbs, Nuts, Seaweed
Preparation
Found this from japanese store on my trip to Helsinki. There was load of different teas and many on them were quite cheap. But since I’m supposed not to buy more teas this year, bought just this one. I really like bancha (senchas and gyokuros also) teas, I’ve had different brand before that tasted like cut grass and seaweed.
Dry tea is dark green and there is some stems in it, aroma is awesome, seaweedy and strong with grassy hue. I put about 1 tablespoon into my glass teapot.
Tea is golden yellow coloured, usually japanese teas are green but not all it seems. It has buttery aroma with no grass or seaweed. Taste has that same butter and mild grassy note in it. Not bad but I like my Japanese green teas grassy. Maybe I could mix some teapowder with the leaves to get that grassy taste.
Flavors: Butter, Grass, Smooth, Sweet
Preparation
Cute little curly leaves. They’ve dark green color, bit of greyness. Really strong, sweet and fresh aroma, also there is strong roasted nutty aroma. I enjoy this oily fresh aroma always. Only sad thing is this seems to give only three steepings according to the Brewing guide, which is quite few compared to others.
Wet leaves have also really strong aroma. It’s sweet, nutty and fresh. They seem to be small leaf particles and buds . Tea has golden yellow color and smells really good. It has that lovely oily fresh green tea flavour. Roasted chesnut, nuttiness (althought I don’t know how chesnut tastes). It also has some vegetal notes with sweetness. Getting only couple steepings is a minus, but this is really good tea overall.
Flavors: Chestnut, Nutty, Roasted Nuts, Sweet
Preparation
Thank you Teavivre for this free sample. Alright, here we go. My first unflavoured black tea for a long time, since I’m more into greens, whites etc. lighter teas and don’t really like those strong flavours that shu pu’erh, black tea and other darker teas often have. But blacks will get a chance and this is the one that will either make me black tea drinker or they will just sit in my cupboard longer. Since Teavivres Tie Guan Yin made me light oolong liker in a second, I’m willing to try if this has the same effect.
Dry tea looks really good, it has tiny leaves that reminds me a bit from Bi Luo Chun green tea. They’re black/dark brown colored and some of them have golden hair on them. I can smell some chocolate and maybe some raisins in the dry leaf aroma, not so bad than I expected.
I used Chinese gongfu method and my lovely 1dl porcelain gaiwan. I used fewer leaves that suggested since I think it’s too much for most teas. 85C, lower than 100C that I’m used to. Wet leaves smell just like I remember black tea should, it reminds me of rye bread. Leaves are now chocolate brown in color and tea is reddish brown with orange hue. Tea smells same than wet leaves, but milder.
And now the moment of truth, taste. Not that horrible actually, it has malty flavour and bit bitterness and astringency that bring nice refreshing layer but it’s still quite sweet, honey like sweetness.
It wansn’t that bad, I drank it all. I can recommend it, but black did not become my favourite. But I will get my black teas finished.
Flavors: Astringent, Bitter, Chocolate, Earth, Honey, Malt, Sweet, Sweet Potatoes, Wheat
Preparation
This thing is delicious, I have been drinking a lot of flavoured teas and bought some new from Forsman teas own store. It’s biggest tea shop in the Nordic countries, yay.
I bought couple loose leaf bags and this was one of them. I was thinkin for a long time do I buy this or not since I don’t really like cranberries, they are too sour. But luckily I bought it, this is soo good and not sour at all.
It’s a green and white tea blend flavoured with cranberry and vanilla oils also there is dried cranberries, it’s so sweet it almost tastes like strawberries. And everyone who has read my notes knows that I really like strawberry flavoured teas. This one has it’s place in my cupboard.
Flavors: Cranberry, Strawberry, Sweet, Vanilla
Preparation
This is one of my favourites from Forsman. Really fruity tea that tastes like pear, there is not really teas own flavour but it won’t need it. Really fresh and juicy pear aroma and flavour.
Flavors: Pear, Smooth
Preparation
Oh noes, my sample is running out.
Don’t you love it when you go from “I don’t like that type tea” to “Oh noes, my sample is running out” just because you finally got a worthy version?