Little Red Cup Tea Co.

I would like to thank Martin from LIttle Red Cup Tea Company for providing me with this sample to review.

This tea is rather hard to describe because the flavors just don’t seem to stand out as strongly when compared to other green teas that I’ve tried recently. If I weren’t trying to write an in depth review I would say that it tasted like green tea and leave it at that, but that isn’t very descriptive now, is it? I think this tea is likely best described by what it is not. This tea is not particularly bold in flavor and leans more towards the subtle end. It is not bitter and lacks any hints of astringency, although it does have a rather drying effect while drinking it. It does not have a strong grassy flavor, nor does it have a strong vegetal flavor. When I drink it it doesn’t remind me of something else. It is just green tea, uncomplicated, easy to drink, and because of that I think it would make the perfect everyday green tea.

Check out the full review on my blog
http://www.notstarvingyet.com/index/2013/11/19/tuesday-tea-lu-mei-eyebrow-green-tea-little-red-cup-tea-comp.html

I was actually craving a white tea after the strong Nina’s Paris tea I had before it. This isn’t white, it’s green tea. But it seems like a white tea. And if I’m actually CRAVING a white tea, I might as well go all out with the dreaded fuzzies! My least favorite type of tea! I was eager to try this one anyway, regardless of fuzzies. It seemed very unique. Thanks for the sample, Little Red Cup! I used probably a tablespoon of leaves!

Steep #1 // waited a WHILE after boiling // 3 min
I wanted to steep this two minutes, but it went over. The flavor is exactly what I was hoping anyway. It’s like creamed corn!! Very creamy and sweet. Exactly exactly what I was hoping for! It certainly is unique. Personally, I haven’t had a tea that tasted like this before, so I’m not sure how I wanted it to taste like this. The steep color is a pale yellow. It’s just very good!

Steep #2 // waited a while after boiling // 3 min
This cup is exactly the same as the first. So so good! But it seems like all Steepsterers get different flavors from this one. I will savor the rest of my sample! I’m very happy I picked this one. I could see stocking up on this for this flavor profile once in a while. Easily craveable!

This was quite a fun, complex, and tasty unflavored green tea that is quite different than your standard green teas.

Totally had some battles about what this tea is. Technically, it’s a green as it is processed as green tea. It kind of looks like a white, slightly tastes like a white with hay and floral notes. Though, White Monkey has some green tea qualities like buttery vegetal corn. This tea also reminds me of a silver bud raw pu’er with its similarities to white tea and good resteep ability, though White Monkey tastes more fresh.

A great tea for a seasoned tea lover to explore, but also White Monkey is a nice, light tea for a new tea drinker to try.

Full review on my blog, the Oolong Owl http://oolongowl.com/white-monkey-tea-little-red-cup-tea-co-oolong-owl-tea-review/

I glanced through the reviews before trying this – I try not to do it but I did this time. Anyway, so I have to admit after doing so, I was a little disappointed when I first tasted this. I wasn’t getting much flavor. But wait! After the cup cooled down this became buttery tasting and creamy feeling. Then it lit up with floral oolong goodness. I tend to like my tea on the cool side anyway and this one was a very good example. Yum.

This is another free sample I received from Little Red Cup Tea Company in exchange for a review. Wow! This is night and day from the previous tea I drank. This is flavorful and delicious! The leaves themselves seem to be in much better shape too. They’re wavy, fuzzy, whole leaves varying in color from white to dark brown.

I’m going to disagree with most of the other reviewers on here and say that this does taste like a green tea. There’s a soft but apparent grassy note followed by a naturally sweet, vegetal aftertaste. In my opinion, this is a common flavor profile of green teas, while white teas are less fresh cut grass/buttery vegetables and more dry hay/sunshine.

This is a yummy green tea. I’m really enjoying it! Thanks to Little Red Cup for providing a generous sample so I can enjoy it again later. :)

I received this sample from Little Red Cup Tea Company just before leaving for my honeymoon. There wasn’t time to try it before I left, so I stored it in my cupboard away from light and moisture. I always feel bad about writing a review that’s anything but glowing when it’s for a tea I’ve received for free, whether that be through a swap or directly from a tea distributor in exchange for a review. Sadly, this is one of those cases.

I believe this tea is about the same quality as most bagged teas, maybe slightly better. The leaves are crushed enough that they’d probably fit in a bagged form as is. The tea produced is not very flavorful, but it’s also not bitter or astringent. I tried brewing this with 2 tsp of leaves in about 8 oz. of water and it was nearly flavorless. With 3 tsp, it’s a little better. However, it’s missing the lovely sweetness and hay-like qualities that I’ve come to love about Bai Mu Dan. It’s just a rather lackluster cup of tea.

That said, it’s not bad. It’s just not great either. If I really needed tea and this was all I had, I’d still drink it. But if I was in the mood for a White Peony tea and had other options, I’d turn elsewhere. Overall, I rate it along the same lines as I rate the bagged teas I used to love before discovering loose leaf. I am glad I had the opportunity to try it though!

Not sure this qualifies as a Cheapster Steepster but it is affordably priced and it is a sip down. After the lemon green tea nastied up my taste buds I needed something to put me back in my tea happy place. This may be my last caffeine for the day and I botched it. The kettle took off and left me, running the temp up to 200 F. I should have waited. I should have. I didn’t. So this is kind of, OK not kind of, it is way off from what it should be. Feeling like an amateur about now. Time to switch to Candy Cane Lane – I probably can’t ruin that one.

This one is normally very good and I do recommend it just don’t cook it. Arrggh!

My instead of lunch tea today. A bit nutty and sweet. A little more boisterous than white tea but not too much. A good solid clean cup.

Today I over leafed a little (for me), used water at about 175 F and steeped was about 2 minutes. Prepared this was I have to agree with Tea Sipper – creamed corn. I was trying to find the words when I read his review and yes, creamed corn.

Cooler water temp made for a more green vegetal aroma. While the color was green until it cooled slightly then it turned amber. That always seems weird.

I always enjoy white monkey and this is a good one.

This is a really tasty treat. Technically a green tea, it looks for all the world like a white tea. The taste is far more pronounced than most white teas. This one I found to be highly nutty and lightly earthy. Very much enjoyed sipping this one. Nice sweet aftertaste.

Thank you for the samples! I recently discovered that gunpowder greens are some of my favorite greens! The dry leaves here are tiny little pellets rolled up, much smaller than the other gunpowder I recently tried. After letting the water cool a while, I steeped for two and a half minutes. It might have been a half minute too long though, unless I used two many leaves. The taste isn’t bad this way, I just know it isn’t what it should be. I mostly get vegetal, sea-like notes, a bit buttery. I wish it were creamier though. But it seems a bit too astringent, so I’ll work on that! I should have figured that since the leaves were smaller, I shouldn’t have steeped them for 2 1/2 minutes. But it will taste better the next cup!

Finishing off the sample while taking a break. Tonight is band practice and the singers want me to learn three new songs (only one of which do I have a CD to listen while working it out) nothing like pressure. Last Sunday was the first time ever that while we were leading song worship that I wondered how much longer I could keep playing. I love it but I am on oxygen and this last week was not a good week for breathing. I have always had restrictive lung function but as I get older, well… I have never smoked but if you do please stop. I have the equivalent of severe COPD and it is not fun to have blue fingers just going from one room to the other. Take care of your lungs and your body.

Anyway this tea actually reminds me a lot of sheng puerh. It is a green tea but it has that bright mineral/metallic taste I associate with sheng. I have enjoyed it.

A simple green that was very good cold – cause I got busy and forgot.

Forgot to read the recommended steeping parameters. I used quite a bit of leaf (for me anyway) and steeped in 175 F (got that right) water for about 4 minutes. Yeah, less leaf, less time would have probably been a good idea. This as they say, no lightweight. I get mineral, light earth, and a stout does of bitter edging on the too much side. Of course since I brewed it wrong it is my fault. Kind of reminds me more of a young sheng than a green eyebrow tea.

I was hoping for the Rice Chex and honey that gmathis got from this one. Alas I did not. I got mineral with a nice bite. The aftertaste is really sweet and lingers. For fun halfway through the cup I added sweetener and it became way overly too sweet. It did bring out more vegetal substance with fruity floral notes. While there is not a lot of depth, for the price, this would make a solid everyday green tea. I bet it is nice chilled.

Same as many of you – yesterday it was sunny and near 70 F. This morning woke up to a rumbling rainy day. Now its below freezing and spitting white crap. I hate winter. Go away!

Also yesterday I spent most of the day researching, organizing, then actually preparing my taxes. So many new and unique things happened last year with our finances that it was a challenge. But its done. Today I had to calculate Estimated Taxes so I don’t get a penalty like the state is trying to charge me now. How are mere mortals supposed to know this stuff?

Basically what I am saying is I need a simple moment of relaxing and refreshing. That is where the last of this tea comes in. It isn’t pretentious. It is just simple green tea done right. It has enough depth to be interesting along with a bit of bite. Floral and green and just what I needed today. Inexpensively delicious.

I needed this simple green tea to keep me steady and calm my nerves. For those who have been following the saga of the Mun stranded Kerbals – great news! I designed a remote control ship and land within inches of one of my two stranded vessels. The three trapped aboard the ship did an EVA into the new ship and as we speak the ship is returning to Kerbin. If the chute deploys and we don’t disintegrate on reentry – both real possibilities, Jebediah and crew will once again be flying misions. If all goes well tomorrow I rescue the other stranded crew.

I am still working on a full review but basically at first I thought this is a light solid everyday Chinese green. That said, I was playing guitar and let half the cup set. Once it reached room temperature the flavors really came alive. It took on an almost oolong floral quality. I know it wasn’t tainted from earlier teas as I washed my cup and press before I started. I really want to try this iced. I think it will be great. $8/3oz is pretty cheap for any tea that can taste this good.

Heya Steepsters, So I’d like to thank Martin at LittleRedCupTea for the generous sample. SIPDOWN!
It’s initial taste is one of a milder bitterness extent as found in walnut oil, only with hints of sasmine and green tea. The tea taste is a little vegetal and unbitter but not entirely sweet either, mmm complex and subtly jasmine.
Further, my cup of jasmine green is not overpowering with the jasmine bouquet in fact it reminds me of the smell of the actual jasmine bush with something a little bit camphor sort of pine tree at Christmas.
Further still, I must have let this last cup sit out too long and have to remind myself that there will be more steepings, oh yes,
Time to go down the rabbit hole of organic teas and venture into the new world of egcg rich natural grown chinese tea. My friends drink more chinese tea on steepster cause I’m old and people think I have more experience than I do, but I still gong fu most the time and keep it going on in the taste department for quite a while. So definate made my top tea list here thanks to LRCT Jasmine Green.

I’ve quite enjoyed this oolong so far. I usually drink oolong in the evening but this is one that I think would make a great afternoon tea or even a morning tea if you don’t need a huge caffeine boost. This tea might make a good introduction to green oolongs for those who enjoy green tea as I found it to be less floral than other oolongs I’ve had and it has these great snap pea like accents to it’s flavour. I also think that it might make a great ice tea, as it has this bright citrus like note to it.

I brewed this tea in a 150ml gaiwan using around 2 tsp of tea.
The dry leaf was tightly rolled and mostly dark spruce green with a little bit of light olive and smelled of citrus oils, green beans, and a sharp floral note.

The first time I brewed it I brewed it for 25s at around 85*C The result was a pretty intensely flavoured bright yellow with a tint of green broth and although I enjoyed this steep very much I could easily have brewed it for about 10s less. I did a 15s steep the second time and found the resulting tea tasted more floral with stronger notes of gardenia while the longer steep was dominated by snap pea and lemon. Altogether I got about 11 steeps from this tea increasing time at about 5 s intervals until the later steeps where I increased the length of steeping.

Early steeps had this bright scent that seemed to be a mix of citrus, buttercups, white orchid and snap peas and gardenia. Later steeps became sweeter and both more floral while being softened by grainy, honey,amber notes.

The flavours I detected at various times through out the session were, lemon notes, snap peas, gardenia, white orchid, honey, vanilla, oatmeal, honeysuckle, aged pine wood, amber, sandalwood, clover, and bittersweet greens.

The tea had a buttery consistency with a little bite of astringency in the earlier steeps and left a tingling on the lips and the roof of the mouth.

Altogether, this tea left me feeling refreshed and alert. Thanks again Little Red Tea Company for providing me with this very generous sample!