39 Tasting Notes
Diggin’ this tea; it’s bolder and far different in taste from some other Oolongs I’ve recently steeped. That might sound redundant – saying this tea tastes different from other teas – but as much as I enjoy Oolongs, sometimes I have trouble distinguishing between the subtle differences and varietals (the first thing that often comes to mind is Tigyuanyin when drinking Oolongs).
Hence, I appreciate this Oolongs’ clear divide and uniqueness in taste.
Subtlety sweet roasted barley sums up well the first steep for me.
I would buy this tea again
Preparation
I love to smell and eat the tea leaves before actually tasting and this is another good tea to do so. The smell is almost fruity; maybe sweet and vegetal is a better description, it’s hard to pin point. The leaves themselves taste rather bitter and roasted.
This is such a good green tea! The flavour hits you dramatically with peaks of I have no idea and trails off dry. Opposite of its flavour profile: flat and consistent. I find it much more rising and falling.
Sure am glad I purchased this again; it’s been too long.
Preparation
sugoi fruity desu yo! The leaves and twigs do smell of fruit (possibly mango) but that lies beneath the more prominent smell hay & grass. The smell is pretty exciting leading up to actually drinking the tea.
Alright, I don’t taste any remnants of the sweet smell, and sencha of course comes to mind immediately, but with a dry aftertaste of malt. It’s a great morning tea.
I only purchased 1 oz but I will buy this tea again with the regular 3 oz tin; it’s that good.
Preparation
Niiiiice! Sittin’ here at Tsubaki Grand Shrine of America at the Kaikan (guest house) and I just received my shipment from Tao of Tea!
Thick of smooth earthly tones and a medley of roasted nuts. Hints of grass and veggies and all together this makes up the smell of long thin dried tea leaves that are delicious to eat but one at a time.
Not unlike in smell, this tea brews a thinner and more refined long lasting taste.
In fact, eating a couple dried leaves as a pre-req is a great bonus to drinking this tea!
Time to move on to the next tea….green kukicha!
Preparation
Inaugurated into the world of tea by no other than genmaicha, I soon after bored myself of this everyday cha. Even the most expensive genmaicha was still just plain green tea with roasted brown rice in it, nothing special.
Genmai-Matcha, however, could be called Genmai-Renewal. The old genmaicha flavour is very evident but with a kick of macha to stir things up. It’s a full, pleasant after-tasting tea that renews the best qualities of genmaicha.
Well, I’ve been lucky enough to live, work, and train at Tsubaki Grand Shrine of America where this tea is exclusively delivered. This Sencha is much more robust than regular Sencha and you notice it immediately; it has a much stronger flavour of hay and maintains a coating texture throughout. It’s not overwhelming, however, and I prefer this Sencha to any other so far. Drink it while it’s hot; the warmth of the water really complements the strength of this tea. Cool or tepid water detracts from the above-said strong points
Preparation
Huh, I was surprised by the general ratings. I notice a lot of steepsters find the ginger overpowering. This is where my liking to more mild tea’s came in handy. I used maybe 12 – 15 oz boiling water to just 1.5 tbsp pu-erh for 5 minutes. The ginger wasn’t too strong and what I enjoyed most was the sheer difference in taste (from green, black, and white, which is what I’ve been drinking most). I guess that’s why it’s called Pu-erh!
Anyway, the ginger is evident and I like it. Otherwise, I’m really not sure how to describe this Pu-erh. Instead I will describe how it doesn’t taste. It’s not musty, or down to earth. It’s not sweet or bitter. It’s not smooth, tangy, vegetal, or floral.
Citrusy? Maybe. Bold? Most likely. Try it for yourself. But I recommend reducing the tea to water ratio.