British style

Sorry it has been such a long time. I have not had access to my computer in quite some time.

One day while in Florida I woke up to find a teapot on the table next to me. Apparently my parents bought me a new teapot. (probably an early birthday present I guess) Being it was opening day of Harry Potter and that the teapot looks like a snowy owl the pot quickly got the name Hedwig.
I have always wanted to try the British milk and sugar type tea. To me there has always been something odd about adding milk to water/tea. Being in the south I am used to sugar in tea, it is actually rare to get tea without sugar here. I thought it was about time I try milk and sugar in my tea.

I selected "Ceylon" tea from red leaf teas. This was because of it's British ties and because I didn't want to experiment on s better quality tea.

Plain Tea: Was very strong and tasted sort of like how damp earth smells. However it was surprisingly smooth with a bitter aftertaste.

Milk And Sugar Tea: The first taste was alright. I did not put a lot of milk in the tea but a sickly creamy presence was there. The liquor had a weird texture to it, almost like the tea was thicker and smoother. I did not like that. It has some merit and I am glad I tried it but frankly I don't think I will be trying it this way again, but you never know.

I do however want to try milk tea where you add tea leaves directly to the warm/boiling milk. I think this would get ride of some of the weird texture that I wasn't fond of.

2010 Yunnan Golden Bud

This is another wonderful tea Gingko so graciously let me sample! Thank you.

The dry leaves are so stunning. I never thought they could be such a golden color. The aroma from these lovely dry leaves is a sort of dry bitterness.

While brewing this tea a lovely smell of sweetness came up with the steam swirling from the brewing vessel. I always enjoy watching steam come up from the tea and swirl around in the air.


The dark ruby brew lead to a perfectly balanced bitterness and sweetness. It was such a smooth flavor. I literally sipped this tea all day. Though it did get weaker overtime it remained balanced the entire time. I could drink this tea all day. It is a wonderful way to start the ever busy day. Sorry for the short post, I am busy packing and getting ready to leave for Florida in the morning.

2010 Sun Moon Lake (Small-leaf cultivar)

Once again thanks to Gingko for this great tea!

I have always heard about Sun Moon lake tea, admittedly the "Red Jade" cultivar, and have always wanted to try some of this well known tea. Also it is Organic, at some point in time I would like to compare organic vs nonorganic tea from the same region. Also I would like to taste the difference between the "Red Jade" cultivar and this "Small-leaf" cultivar. The smell of this is spiced and sweet, it also smells like damp grass. It is a wonderful aroma.
Brewing the tea lead to an even more powerful aroma that lost it's spiced smell the sweetness changed to make it even more noticeable.
I could not wait to taste this tea.
Three wonderful infusions came from this tea, without any change really other then the flavor becoming weaker. This tea has a wonderful darkness to it. It is sweet yet there is this subtle flavor underneath that I am having a hard time to describe. It's not really spicy, but is a warmness that you can feel inside and taste in your mouth. What a wonderful feeling and calmness it creates. This is a wonderful tea and I suggest anyone who likes black/red tea to try it.
On a different note I am sorry I have not been posting as much. This was because sampling teas that I feel that I cannot blog about because they are frankly not my cup of tea. So I have an excess of Red Leaf Tea's products that I probably won't be drinking myself so let me know if you are interested in trying any. Also college applications had been taking up most of my time. Thankfully those are finished for now!

2010 Wild Orchid Fairy Twig (Lan Xiang Xian Zhi)

First off I would like to thank Gingko from Life in Teacup for this absolutely amazing tea!

Opening the package led to a smell of damp forest ground and a flowery sweetness that takes over the air. I could not wait to try this tea!
Waiting for the water to cool was just terrible. At 180 degrees I decided that I couldn't wait anymore. The brewing leaves were even more enticing then the dry leaves.
The first brew led to an amazing greenish yellow soup that had a rather fruity sweetness to it and yet still had a woody taste which created a perfect harmony of tastes. Also a very floral taste came out, an orchid like floral taste. I continued brewing this tea four more times and the flavor never really diminished.
This tea is truly a magical experience! I strongly suggest you try this tea.

2010 Kim Shin Ho Sejak

Another wonderful sample from Dao Tea!
I would like to start out by saying I do not drink a lot of green tea, but I have been inspired to try and drink more now thanks to this tea.

The smell coming from the broken package was that of wet freshly cut grass. It had a pleasant sweetness about it as well. The color of the leaves were that of a dark forest moss.
While brewing more and more smells came out. The sweetness was more apparent and the grass smell left.The soup was a yellow-orange color. Each brew had an unique bitterness to it. I got three infusions out of it. The first two were the same vegatal taste with the bitterness and a hint of sweet grass. The third infusion however was very different tasting. There was a different bitter that overpowered me at first but then as the soup sat in your mouth it became the vegatal taste.
All and all a great refreshing tea!

2009 Kim Shin Ho Balhyocha

Another sample from Dao Teas. Thanks again Matt and Pedro. Also Kim Shin Ho should be thanked for producing this amazing tea!
I opened the bag of 2009 Balhyocha, I had no idea what to expect, a wave of dark sweetness wafted out. The smell alone made my mouth water.

While brewing I could smell a bit of fruit but was not able to place what kind of fruit.
The first sip I took from this dark amber brew was just astonishing. It was spiced almost. It was not a really spicy just enough for a little kick. The sweetness and the spiciness were perfectly balanced. I got to experience three amazing infusions of this magical tea. The first infusion was very strong, but not overbearing. You could really taste the sweetness, which was a grassy kind of sweetness. The implacable spice was there as well.
The Second and Third infusions were a bit more mild but still fantastic. The Spice changed into a ginger sort of spice.

It is really hard for me to describe this tea. There are just so many tastes in it that I have never had the opportunity to taste. This tea is just so unique and has a kind of magic present in it. Kim Shin Ho is truly a tea master.

2009 Kim Shin Ho Jungjak

First off I would like to thank Pedro of Dao Tea and Matt from MattCha's blog.
This tea is the first Korean tea I have ever gotten the opportunity to drink. So thank you for sharing.

After weeks of anticipation and waiting, mainly because the post office workers lost the package, I finally received the package. I opened it up and this tea was the first one to come out so I decided to try it first.
The smell that came out of the little silver sample package was so sweet and fruity with a hint of fresh cut grass. If only this is what the brew actually tasted like. Even while brewing this smell was all around. I thought I was about to experience a new kind of sweetness.
Needless to say my hypothesis was incorrect. The neon yellow brew was extremely bitter. Not just bitter but oleaginous as well. This is definitely not my cup of tea. The only positive I got out of this tea was the caffeine which I actually could notice unlike most teas I drink.

I can't wait to try the others though! I have already tried the 2010 Sejak and really enjoyed it.

Tea outdoors and 1999 Tie Kuan Yin Oolong

So I have been reading a lot of the Tea Outside post from The Association of Tea Bloggers, and even though I am not a member I love the idea of posting about tea outside. And since Brett from Black Dragon Tea Bar prompted this topic I thought it would be appropriate to discuss the tea I bought from him. Thanks again for the wonderful tea!

Cup resting on top of cut bamboo

I decided to go hiking to find the only bamboo forest I know of in my area. It only was about a three mile hike but it was totally worth it to sit next to the bamboo and drink tea.

This Tie Kuan Yin is 11 years old and has been baked once that I know of. It is a very impressive tea I must say. It is a lovely balance of fruity and a sort of nutty bitterness.
I only had enough water for three infusions, but they were wonderful! Next time I will be sure to take more water.
The first infusion was a mix of softer fruits like banana and maybe a hint of peach. If you let it sit in your mouth a think sweetness took over. The aftertaste was a bit nutty, not peanut but walnut?
Second and third infusions led to more of the nutty taste and a pine like aftertaste. I can't wait to see what all this tea has in store!

I try to have tea outside as much as I can. It is hard in the summer, but for some reason tea and nature just go together. Just sit and meditate listening to nature all around you with a nice cup of tea, it is an awe inspiring experience. That's what I did in this little bamboo forest. I encourage you to try it sometime.

2005 Chang Tai Menghai Qiao Sheng puer

Another lovely Chang Tai tea!

I was quite amazed with the first Chang Tai tea I tasted, Golden Bamboo mountain, this one however surpassed my expectations!

Opening the sample bag, from Bret, a lovely smokey smell arrives. Almost a sweet smokiness like my grandfathers old chewing tobacco.
The smell from the steeping pots is just amazing. It reminds me of raw leather and grass.
This tea lasted a good eight infusions before it started to become light, but still bold.

The first infusion was a very strong bitter brew. It tasted as if I had bitten into a belt, at first. As it sits in your mouth however a sweetness, that was soon to appear in bold new ways, appears.

Second-Forth infusions lead to a sweet almost pine, but not quite, sweetness appearing and the bitter backed off becoming more of an aftertaste really. The leathery taste was still present but transforming into something more like a woodiness.
Fifth-Seventh, these infusions lead to even more, yet subtle changes. The sweetness came out even more and the woodiness ended up being a main portion of this flavor profile.

The eighth and last infusion was still a very bold woody flavor and enjoyable.

Thanks Bret for this wonderful tea!

2001 Ming Yuan Hao Yiwu Zheng Shan Sheng Puer

I would like to start off by thanking Bret for this lovely tea.

There isn't much smell to the dry tea leaves. But while it is steeping you can smell a smell that reminds me of forest soil.

I decided to test two different brewing vessels with this tea.

The Yixing was a bit lighter surprisingly but they both generally had the same flavors.

The first infusion was very woody and had a pleasant bitterness as an aftertaste. As I made more and more infusions I started to taste a hint of sweetness. By the third infusion it was a great mix of wood and sweetness. The sweetness is hard to place it isn't fruit but it isn't sugar either. Needless to say this was a very interesting tea. I honestly loved it!

On another note, sorry I haven't been posting but I have been busy with the start of school, switching over to a new computer and work. But I am back now with many new samples to test.

2005 Chang Tai Gold Bamboo Mountain (Sheng Puer)

This is a sample I got from Bret, Thanks again for everything!
That is also a new cup I got from him a "Red Shino" by Petr Novak

The tea itself smells sort of clean. There really isn't much smell to this tea.
Even as the hot water goes into the pot with the leaves there still isn't much of a smell.
I am not really used to not being able to smell anything other then like a clean green smell.

The taste of the soup is very light and clean. With an undertone of bitter vegetal tastes. The bitterness went away after the first infusion though, maybe I just steeped it too long. Lighter then before. The Vegetal undertones came out more in the second infusion, tasting like a really light soup broth almost.

This was a very interesting(yet simple) tea, certainly not my favorite but worth a try and I look forward to trying the other Chang Tai sample I got. It was a good start to the morning!

Back

So I should start off by saying sorry for not having any posts in a long time!
I have been in Ecuador for about two weeks.
Going from the Andes mountain range all the way down to the Amazon river basin near the Napo river and back!
I saw over 250 bird species 20 mammal species 15 reptile and amphibian species one of which being a blue caecilian, if you don't know what those are look them up they are amazing and very rare.
I did get to enjoy some tea with a cold brewing method (tossing some tea into a water bottle then hiking for 2 hours then finally drinking it) but alas I have no photos of the rain forest because my camera died from all the water(even in a wet dry bag). Luckily I didn't take my nice camera. They never told me there wasn't such a thing as water protection in the Amazon.

Needless to say there will be many more posts now that I am back with a ton of new tea ware and tea!
I am excited to start trying everything out.
Also I have plans to start making so tea related things( Balance, Tray, and some cups)

2007 Raw Yuan Nian Jiang Cheng Puer tea

I have Two samples of Yuan Nian company puer tea's both raw however this one is a year older.

The leaves of smell of an earthy forest, however, very sweet almost floral.

The leaves brewing smell sweet and somewhat smokey. I am using a cup brewing vessel that I would rather not use but, I do not have any teaware that is good for rare puer tea. If you have one for sale please let me know. Thanks


The orange musty soup tastes smooth and smokey at first. A very light sweetness comes after sort of like sweet grass but not quite. I enjoyed the sweet aftertaste with the smokey front it was perfect to start my morning. I couldn't get more then one infusion because my cat decided to chew on the leaves when I went to wash a better cup.

I can't wait to try the next Yuan Nian Tea!

Teaware and Li Shan Oolong

I finally have decent teaware!

I have two new yixing teapots and two new Petr Novak cups. The gray pot is a short spout to increase steeping time and really push flavors out of Oolong teas. The Orange-Red pot is a Zhuni clay pot that is my new favorite. Both pots are used best with Oolong teas. The two cups are handmade by Petr Novak, they are called "bark cups". They have an amazing natural feel to them they taste great with tea too! Alright enough about my new teaware. Onto the review!

I used my new Zhuni pot to brew this excellent tea.
The leaves smelt of flowers. A mix of orchids and honeysuckles with a hint of rose.
The taste was nothing like the smell at first.The brew remained a reddish orange for all four infusions.
The first infusion was very fruity, I could taste pear and something smooth like banana. A bit of Guava showed itself at the end too.
Second infusion was more floral, not really a strong floral taste but it was there. Different fruits began to show themselves the biggest of which being the pear again but with a sweet grass taste.
Third infusion became mainly floral, have you ever smelt an orchid? that's what it tasted like but sweeter and with a very slight hint of pear.
Fourth infusion was very weak it was just like rose water but sweeter.

All and all I enjoyed this tea very much. I will be having it on a regular bases needless to say.
Now that I have these pots all I need is a Gaiwan and maybe a couple other cups. I think it would be best to find an other yixing for puer as well.

And a special thanks goes out to Bret! thanks!

Ripe 2008 orange Puer

I have been looking forward to drinking this puer for a long time, I just haven't found a time that would best fit this tea. Today however was a day for this strong tea. With my AP Biology exam tomorrow I thought it would be a great time to have this tea and relax.

As I took off the top of the shell and broke away the tea an amazing aroma of orange mixed with damp soil.
As the hot water went across the tea in my lidded cup, no not gaiwan I wish, the steam came up and smelt so wonderful. The soup was a dark ruby, once again I am colorblind so I had to ask other people.
The first infusion was very strong. It had a very natural taste to it. Sort of like dark rich soil with a hint of citrus. However it wasn't an orange citrus I was tasting, it was more of a grapefruit.
The second infusion was just as dark but less flavor and the citrus started to be more like a orange or tangerine. also it was less bitter and a lot sweeter.
I got to four infusions before I felt it was to weak of a tea for me. The citrus really starts to come out towards the end though.

I really do love this tea, it made my terrible day of studying worth while.

Ripe 2008 Keemun Puer

So this is another Puer that came in the set of 18. This is however Keemun tea that goes through the processes over being puer instead of being black tea like it normally is.

The aroma had this almost honey like smell. Being in the condensed form it was I did not realize that there were lovely hairs in the tea. Is this normal? I have heard tales of it but I sort of thought it was a lie. Anyway I did not notice the hairs until the second infusion at which time I stopped drinking the tea...

The first infusion was so sweet. I now know why Keemun is known as the Champagne of tea.
The soup was a dark ruby color, I actually had to ask someone what color it was because I am colorblind in pretty much all dark colors. It was a bit sweet for my taste. I did enjoy it though. It was sort of like a flower and yet had a darker more earthy taste under the sweetness.

The second infusion was much better. The earthiness is more open and livens the cup with excellent taste. The color was just as dark as the last. Shortly into drinking the second infusion I found the hairs... So i stopped drinking naturally not knowing what to think of them.

After further examination I found out they were in fact animal hairs.


On a side my lovely tea plantation, four tea plants, is doing well. The first batch of tea is currently being processed. I cannot wait to try that!

If you have any tea suggestions feel free to message me because I am frankly at a loss of tea

Best of the British?

I am not normally a huge fan of blended teas but I am currently out of tea other then this massive box of PG tips black tea. I must say that this tea surpasses any tea bag i have ever had. PG tips expertly blends Celyon, Kenya and Assam teas to create a new flavor. I have been drinking this every morning since I have gotten a shipment from them.

It is a very smooth tea. The aroma its self is intoxicating. The tea is very dark, the flavor is extremely hard to describe because it is very complex. Sorta of a mix of earthy and fruity flavor but all blended together in a smooth concoction. It is great for starting my morning. PG tips knows what they are doing, maybe they will surpass Lipton in America!

I am very grateful to actually have some tea now! I can't believe I ran out...
If anyone has suggestions of what to order now please contact me, I will probably be contacting several of my tea mates if you don't contact me first. I finally have a paypal too!

Sorry for not having any photos my camera is on the fritz again

2008 Honeysuckle Puer

So I finally have some more tea! its been a while I am so sorry. I ordered a set of 18 different puer teas, though each is a small amount, and some have questionable herbs/flowers in them. So I went with the first flower I knew Honeysuckle. The actual tea is ripe recipe *8582* from a factory not mentioned from the seller... if anyone has any information about that let me know.

My experience with this tea started out with finding a hair in this pressed tuo cha. Is this common? I didn't mind it that much because boiling water kills pretty much all germs and hey its from 2008 anyway nothing could still be alive. Upon further examination of the tea I saw the dried honeysuckle flowers. The aroma was enough to make my mouth water. It was a mix of freshly cut flowers and kind of an earthy smell.

The first infusion lead to an extremely floral brew, I didn't even drink all of it due to it tasting like I was chewing on a flower. The second infusion however was significantly better. I could actually taste the tea! I was surprised how quickly the floral taste left, yet very happy at the same time. It left behind a darker more strong tea. The more I sipped it the more intriguing flavors I got out of it. It at first seemed to have a kind of mushroom taste to it which changed into a nuttiness which was quite nice. This was also the first ripe puer I have tasted so it was all new to me. I still prefer raw I must say. Though for the time being I am just happy to be able to try any tea I can get! I can't wait to try the other 17, after I translate them so I know whats in them.

As always feel free to contact me if you want to talk about anything.
I really need to find a better way of storing tea... right now they reside in a cardboard box. Also I have realized I actually need a gaiwan, I attempted to use this lidded cup today(the lid was bigger then the lip of the cup covering it). Lets put it this way, hot water wet all over me and the floor. So yea a gaiwan is probably and I am really interested in buying some Yixing pots. If you have any for sale let me know.