Vicony Teas

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93
drank Jin Jun Mei Waishan by Vicony Teas
1719 tasting notes

I went to bed at 11. I have been awake since 2:30. At 5:30 I gave up trying and got up – sort of. While staring at the ceiling I decided I would start with a Vicony tea. Grabbed this one. Didn’t think about what I was doing and steeped it like 5 minutes. Uhmmm last time I used a 10 second steep. So it is a wee bit strong. Besides being sort of coffee like this is still intensely good. It is a LS but only hints of smoke. Mostly it is everything I love about Chinese black teas – chocolate, honey, malt, sweet potato. This is just the whole package. Last time I had this I steeped it 4 times. Given the length of the first steep today, maybe not as many. A truly excellent tea.

gmathis

I guess the upside of insomnia is more tea drinking time?

K S

I wish. It never seems to work that way. It just means I will have a headache later this afternoon. Instead of laying in bed worrying about things I cannot do anything about, why don’t I just get up at 2:30 have my cuppa and then go back to bed? Oh yeah, now I think of it.

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93
drank Jin Jun Mei Waishan by Vicony Teas
1719 tasting notes

Back in my heavy tea bag use days, I drank mostly flavored Ceylon or Assam blends. I never really cared much for straight black tea. I still find most breakfast teas to be beige. They have bite. They leave you with bad breath. I usually don’t remember what they taste like. I did really like the Paisley breakfast tea – it was a good different.

I find I really like Chinese black teas. I generally use the same descriptors – cocoa or chocolate, malt, grain, maybe a little smoke. Yet the combinations are different so they all taste different.

This is a lapsang souchong tea. Before I tried it the first time I thought LS always meant BBQ like highly smoked leaf. Nope. This one is not smoky. The wet leaf smells like cocoa toast. The sip is one of the richest malt, grain combination I have tried. It feels thick. No bitterness. No astringency. Kind of like golden monkey but darker. This is what breakfast teas should taste like. The aftertaste is nice too :)

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93
drank Jin Jun Mei Waishan by Vicony Teas
1719 tasting notes

10 second steeps on this one! Malt, honey, sweet potatoes, and light smoke. This is an amazing tea. The first day I had this I could smell it the rest of the day. I had to brew it again right away. I had four 12oz mugs. It would have gone more. If you are interested I have a longer review on my blog.

Preparation
Boiling 0 min, 15 sec
Bonnie

I had some Jin Jun Mei the other day and I know how good it can be….delightful!

K S

I have been on a great streak of delightful lately. Woot!

Joshua Smith

I really wish that I had time to sit down and enjoy my jinjun mei, but my internship is winding down, and I’m super busy trying to get as much done a possible…

Scharp

I am also getting a sample of this from Vicony. I hope it tastes good!

K S

@ Scharp, if you don’t like it, I know where you can send it ;)
@ Joshua, that has kind of been my problem lately. Too busy to enjoy tea is too busy.

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97
drank Bohea Tea Da Chi Gan by Vicony Teas
1719 tasting notes

Another oldie in my collection becomes but a pleasant memory. This is grown and produced in Guadun, Tongmu Guan home of LS teas. However this one is not smoky and tastewise is midpoint between Nature’s Tea Leaf Fujian Congou black tea and Teavivre’s Yun Nan Dian Hong black tea. An exceptionally good cup for those who enjoy the type.

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97
drank Bohea Tea Da Chi Gan by Vicony Teas
1719 tasting notes

Rummaging through my box of samples and found this one. Looks like I last logged this 9 months ago. The leaf is long for black tea and dark. The dry aroma is of grain. The brew scent is light smoke and malt. It is fairly sweet and lightly smoked. It reminded me of Bailin Gongfu when I last had it. Today I would say it doesn’t have the chocolate notes. What ever. This is a really nicely smooth satisfying cup. Two thumbs up.

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97
drank Bohea Tea Da Chi Gan by Vicony Teas
1719 tasting notes

Think Bailin Gongfu and you will know exactly what this tastes like – chocolate, malt, and wheat. This is so very, very good! Bohea and Bailin Gongfu appear to originate on different mountains but apparently they both produce excellence.

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 0 sec
Azzrian

yum!!! Sounds great!

ashmanra

Is it smokey?

K S

This has just a light touch of smoke as the cup cools. It literally tastes like bailin gongfu. And yes it is yummy.

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97
drank White Bud Puerh by Vicony Teas
1719 tasting notes

The leaf is from Friday. It’s Sunday now. I just hated to toss it. So… This cup was so caramel. Yum. And bonus, I didn’t suffer any ill effects. Score. Ah, life on the edge.

Charles Thomas Draper

What ill effects do you suffer?

K S

It was tongue in cheek. Using leaf more than a few hours old freaks some Steepsterites out. If I am leaving it overnight I drain it well and leave the lid off. I have never had problems other than occasionally a loss of flavor.

mrmopar

I re steep a lot of puerh overnight for the next day. So far so good.

Charles Thomas Draper

Absolutely. Steep it overnight or leave the leaves for the next day.

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97
drank White Bud Puerh by Vicony Teas
1719 tasting notes

I have several teas that really need a sipdown due to age. This is not one of them. It is supposed to get better with age. I just couldn’t help myself and now it is gone. A wonderful fermented white tea. Retains enough of its white tea traits to be recognizable and supplements it with fresh raw puerh like earthiness. This is from Yunnan but I don’t know if it is truly a puerh but somehow calling it dark tea doesn’t seem correct either. How about I just say it was really good. Definitely worth trying if you can find it.

mrmopar

Yep, they are making white pu-erh cakes now.

ms.aineecbeland

Interesting to spot pu-erh being reviewed upon my opening this page and not for a while now. I am having a cup of pu-erh this morning from one of the tea bags that Azzarian sent my way.

I have not had pu-erh in a long while and this one is most welcome. It is raw, damp richly dark red in color; smelling of damp earth and tasting as such and richly in minerals. All of this from a cup of dampness pu-erh.
If I have not made sense then I don’t understand the drink that is pu-erh.

I find this tea to be well fermented since the aroma/odor and taste depicts as much. Similarly so to your White Bud pu-erh description. How interesting?

Thank you for sharing, hope you don’t mind my jumping in.

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97
drank White Bud Puerh by Vicony Teas
1719 tasting notes

I enjoyed the white tea I had yesterday so much I almost had it again, but I have been wanting a puerh lately. This tea settles both the cravings. This white bud leaf is processed like a raw puerh. It tastes mostly like a silver needle but slightly heartier, with some maltiness and a very mild sheng earthy quality. There is zero bitterness. This is very very good.

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97
drank White Bud Puerh by Vicony Teas
1719 tasting notes

I have been trying lately not to duplicate my Steepster posts with what’s on my blog. This tea is so wonderful I am going to break my rule -

This is the third of the Vicony Teas Company samples I have received for review. This Yunnan Silver Needle White Tea is a sheng puerh. It is listed as Art. No: BYP12 on Vicony’s website. The leaf on this looks like a normal loose leaf silver needle white tea. Very white and very fresh. It has only the mildest scent.

I used my wooden spoon to measure out a healthy scoop of the leaf. I used 12oz of near boiling water and my press. The first steep was 2 minutes. The leaf danced in the press, hanging from the surface of the water. The brew is very clear with nothing floating in it. The color is a dull green. So far there is not a lot that even hints this is puerh other than the slightly darker brew color. There are no scents I normally associate with sheng or raw puerh. In fact it has little scent. Just a hint of fresh hay.

I lift the cup and sip. Ahhh, there it is. At first you catch notes of melon and cucumber but as subdued glimpses really. This gives way to the wonderful leather taste I usually reserve for shu puerh. Actually, I am not sure I have ever tasted it in a sheng puerh. As the cup cools the melon really comes alive and blends with the leather. The result is pure joy. Now it is developing a natural sweetness. I feel a nice coolness on my breath. This is really seriously good.

Cup two was also steeped for 2 minutes. It differs from the first in some respect. The leather is less pronounced but still obvious. This has become even sweeter and slightly more like white tea in taste. The melon / cucumber notes are more prevalent. The more the cup cools the more it takes on a grainy flavor – something like wheat.

Cup three continues with the grainy taste. The leather has disappeared.

On cup four the grainy taste has turned to pure malt. Each cup has grown darker. This one is golden in the press and caramel in the cup.

This white puerh is not the flavor blast that puerh fans often expect. On the other hand this is one of the most complex puerhs I have ever tried. It has zero bitterness. It is a lighter more delicate cup that white tea fans will greatly appreciate. After only one session with this I am hooked. This should be in your tea cupboard!

Preparation
2 min, 0 sec
ashmanra

Wow, that sounds amazing!

Bonnie

Sounds like a good counter to the regular expected puerh taste and refreshing. I like the white ones.

K S

Bonnie, I have never heard of white puerh before. This is awesome. Vicony is a wholeseller. Who retails this?

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84
drank Premium Taiping Houkui by Vicony Teas
1719 tasting notes

I have had this over a year. It has been stored in zip lock bag inside a zip lock pouch. The age doesn’t seem to have had any adverse affect. I remember being on the fence about this one when I first tried it. I later had Teavivre’s version which I liked better at the time. Today though I am finding this interesting. The color is a very pale green/yellow tint. At first it just tastes sweet, then it switches to a light green vegetal flavor. Late in the sip it almost becomes bitter but suddenly transforms into a cross between dandelion and pine. I am noticing a wonderful cooling sensation all the way down into my lungs. Awesome. This is the last of this sample but it should re-steep a couple more times. I am looking forward to each mug. It is interesting how tastes can shift a little after a year. Leaving the rating from a year ago.

Preparation
175 °F / 79 °C 1 min, 0 sec
ifjuly

i love hou kuis!

K S

Apparently I do too, I just didn’t know it.

gmathis

We get nostalgia candy cravings this time of year, too. In our case, cherry chocolates—-the kind that are so soupy you have to hold it upside down, carefully bite off the bottom, then hold the rest like a cup while you slurp up the syrup.

K S

Ooohhh. I haven’t had cherry chocolates in years. Fortunately we are under a winter storm warning. I might just have the craving out of my head by the time the roads are clean :)

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84
drank Premium Taiping Houkui by Vicony Teas
1719 tasting notes

I put all of my Vicony samples in one big resealable pouch for storage. I think it had unintended but pleasant results. This starts light green then mid sip I am getting smoke. I never noted smoke before so I’m pretty sure this is cross contamination but it is exactly what this tea needed! late sip it turns creamy. The aftertaste is bitter but not offensive.

I had a rough day today so this was a pleasant distraction.

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84
drank Premium Taiping Houkui by Vicony Teas
1719 tasting notes

This tea was a former top 10 China tea. Today is the day I figure out how to properly prepare it. My first couple attempts were less than spectacular. I used a healthy handful of leaf in my press. I heated the water until it started steaming and then turned it off. I let it set until the kettle grew completely silent. Opened the lid and let the steam escape for several seconds. Then poured it over the leaf. I went about one minute on the steep.

The leaf smells of buttery vegetables. That is a good start. The cup is cool enough I can sip immediately. The water temperature seems correct now, but the steep time needs to be increased. There is nothing off tasting, it is just not strong enough. As it cools a little more, it takes on a sweet creamy light vegetal flavor. I am on the right track as this isn’t bad.

For cup two, I used the same method on the water but steeped two minutes. Ah ha! This cup I can say I enjoy. It starts light green, then the taste switches to a memory. I can’t describe the taste, I can only tell you, it tastes like water from a fountain in a near by state forest from back when I was a kid. We would stop our bikes at this fountain every time we passed it, just to get a sip. As this moment in the way back machine ends, for Mr. Peabody and his pet boy Sherman, I notice the aftertaste is a light bitter flavor reminiscent of, but not exactly, dandelions.

This is not likely to become a favorite, however with some work, I have learned to appreciate it and even enjoy it.

Upping the rating.

Bonnie

Your tea did well for you and you for your tea. It time machined you and you gave it time to do so. Bravo! You grabbed the brass ring on the merry-go-round and got the water fountain taste!

K S

I Think I grabbed hold of my inner Bonnie for a brief moment.

Scharp

Glad you did it! Taiping Hou Kui is a great tea.

gmathis

Oh, I can just hear the off-key muted trumpets now…“Hey, Bullwinkle!” “Now watch me pull a rabbit out of this hat..”

K S

:) No doubt about it, I gotta get another hat!

Bonnie

I like the picture too.

Bonnie

I thought I felt a little tug awhile back….

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84
drank Premium Taiping Houkui by Vicony Teas
1719 tasting notes

As others said about this type tea – the leaves are huge. I did a long review here: http://theeverdayteablog.blogspot.com/2012/08/vicony-teas-company-premium-taiping.html

Short review – My experience was different than others describe this. The orchid flavor tastes mineral and mushroom to me. It has a lingering aftertaste but I did not find it naturally sweet. It went great with a ham and turkey sandwich. I like it but not love it.

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93

Using up the last of this wonder white peony today. Not enough leaf for two and a little much for one. In it goes. The room is filled with a fresh grassy hay scent. I over steeped on purpose to amp up the flavor as I have been sipping brisk teas all morning. This is hanging right in there. Not so much melon/cucumber steeped long as it is earthy hay. A great finish to a great tea.

I stayed away from the spice drop candies today to avoid pickle tea :)

TheTeaFairy

Haha! So relieved to know your pickle phase is over!!!

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93

So I’m sitting here typing notes to put in packages I will be sending out in a day or two (if I promised you one – its coming soon) and waiting for this cup to cool enough to sip. Forgetting what I’m doing with the tea while thinking on the notes, I reach over and pop a couple spice drop candies in my mouth. Tasting tip: don’t eat spice drops when drinking white tea. Good grief. I really need to move the candy dish out of temptations way.

Normally a good white tea will have fresh hay, cucumber, and melon notes. Looking at my previous notes on this one it was a fine example. It is still scented of hay but the taste is decidedly pickle. Not that I mind pickles but it is not what I was going for this morning. Amateur. Oh well, in the time it took me to complain my taster has mostly calmed down and this is once again a lovely tea with earthy notes. I will continue to sip it today and then I have enough for one more session another day.

FYI: I have read up on white teas and it seems a good one if well stored will remain tasty for 6 years or more. Knowing you don’t have to drink it right away makes an expensive tea seem a little more worth it.

Shelley_Lorraine

lol. I have to keep the candy out of the way too when I have tea. I got all these German bonbons per BrewTEAlly Sweet’s recommendation, and now I occasionally find myself drinking tea with candy still in my mouth!

K S

I usually try to keep some neutral snacks handy – like dry cereal – oh well at this rate the spice drops will be gone soon.

TheTeaFairy

Lol, you cannot be a morning pickle person unless you are pregnant!!!
And yes, the shell life of white peony is definitely a plus.

K S

lol, where is the like button on comments?

Shelley_Lorraine

LOL tea fairy. It may not have been what he was going for, and yet, there he was having sweets with his pickle tea. . . I don’t know about you, but I don’t like my pickles with dessert any time of day ;)

K S

O My! Maybe I am pregnant. :)

TheTeaFairy

This thread is making my spleen hurt, lol! shelly, yeah, adding the sweet factor makes it even worst for him, doesn’t it???

K S, no worries, don’t know you that well but «tea belly» is more likely…Just saying…
K S

Hey, I resemble that remark!

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93

See how white the leaf looks in the picture? Well, it really is that white. This leaf is gorgeous. It tastes just as good as it looks. Cucumber and melon, with a lingering sweet aftertaste. Superfine is not just the grade of leaf with this one.

For those interested Vicony asked me to mention they supply samples to reviewers. You will have to meet a few conditions and they do ask for a phone number. The few hoops were worth it to try this one.

Bonnie

That is a pretty leaf!

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88
drank Keemun Hao Ya A by Vicony Teas
4843 tasting notes

Thank you to TeaEqualsBliss for sending me some of this tea.

This is a stellar Keemun, very robust flavor with a smoky tone. A fantastic burnt-sugar sweetness. A delicious wine-like finish. Very good!

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41
drank Keemun Huo Ya B by Vicony Teas
411 tasting notes

From my It’s All About the Leaf review, available at: http://www.itsallabouttheleaf.com/1668/tea-review-vicony-teas-keemun-hao-ya-b-2/

The first time I tried this, it was so smoky, bitter, and strong I couldn’t finish the glass. So I threw the sample into a drawer and tried to forget about it. Then, a few months later I found the sample again, and decided to brave trying it again.

This time, I decided to make sure I used an extremely short steeping time. And it helped, immensely. Now, the smoky flavors have done from trying to remove the skin from your nose to a more pleasant woodsy flavor. Like chewing on tree bark. The brew tastes very masculine and robust. Lots of tannin, lots of body.

I still don’t like it much. I feel like it’s a bit of a bully of a tea; pushy and strong and ready to hit you if you don’t treat it exactly right. Others may like it, especially if you’re a black coffee fan or like the stronger, darker flavors. Me, I’ll reach for something else.

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93

Vicony Teas is the end-all/say-all to Keemun excellence. Heck, they were there at the drink’s inception. So, I think they have a heads-up on what’s good and what’s not. This is a new type of Keemun – only about ten years old – processed in a way similar to Bi Luo Chun (a famous green tea). And there are similarities. The flavor profile is creamy, sweet, smokey, woody, and a bunch o’ other things. I just can’t think of ‘em at the moment. It’s a very complex cup that only slightly deviates from the Keemun norm. I’m okay with that.

Full review: http://www.teaviews.com/2011/03/20/review-vicony-teas-keemun-aromatic-snail-tea/

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

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64
drank Keemun Hao Ya A by Vicony Teas
2891 tasting notes

A longer review of this is now up at www.itsallabouttheleaf.com. This is a nice, tangy Keemun for no-frills, no-flavors, non-adulterated black tea lovers.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 3 min, 30 sec
wombatgirl

I tried the Hao Ya B the other day, and I thought it was…. very odd. I didn’t know you were out there too! Cool. :)

gmathis

Do you think I have the terminology correct … that Hao Ya isn’t a “flavor” per se, but it’s the grade of tea? That’s the best info I could find.

Its All About The Leaf

Your review will most certainly be up on the website next week GG – Monday is the plan :)

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