What-Cha

This seems like a Taiwan black tea. Grapey, wine ish, light, sweet, a little astringent.

It’s not bad, just not my favorite style.

Thanks Sil for the opportunity to try it. :)

This is the other yellow tea that Sil sent to me.

I think I like the other one better. This one is a little bit too green for me and little too bitter. It’s more grass than hay.
Oh well happy to try it. Thanks Sil

I’m not sure how I feel about this one….
It’s savory, but not vegetal, or grassy – so it’s not green. It’s might be a little woody or hay ish. I’m actually thinking maybe like a medium oxidized oolong – not a really green one and not a dark roast one – but something edging towards green.
This is a little too dry mouth for me, but it’s not bitter, and yet it has a little juicy quality to it – that sounds contradictory but that’s how I’m feeling.
I’ve had yellow teas before and this one is totally different than those.
I don’t think this is a bad tea, I just think it’s not to my taste.

Thanks so much Sil for sharing. :)

MMmmmmmm this is why I love Fujian black teas. It’s fun, it’s malty, it’s starching, and there’s just a hint of chocolate. Not my favorite – my a really nice example of a Fujian black tea.
Thank you Sil for sharing.

This is interesting and MUCH better when you follow steeping instructions on the package. I used 95C water for the first cup – oooops look at the package FIRST Dex….
Second cup I used the recommended 85C and that was a totally different experience.

I’m not usually a fan of Ceylon – but the golden tips make this one interesting. It’s more like a light Yunnan black. A little malty, a little sweet, just a touch of astringency. Pretty good – I might need to rethink my feelings about Ceylon, or at least watch for ones with some golden.
Thanks Sil for sharing.

Sil sent me the last of her sample and on her tasting note wrote something like “maybe Dex can figure it out”.
I’m not sure I figured it out, this was a bit dry mouth for me. It was lighter like a darjeeling some high note, and was pretty thin in the mouth.
Some of this might be user error. I’m pretty sure it was under leafed and I upped the time a bit to compensate.
I don’t hate this, but it isn’t in my favorite flavor profile. Thanks so much Sil for letting me try it. :)

ETA: I was just looking at the package and it says “complex with tangy citrus notes” – I didn’t get any citrus, and I’m quite sure “tangy” isn’t a word I would use for this. Oh well to each their own…

I going to try and spend the day with the What-Cha samples that Sil sent me. Thank you so much – was wanting to try their teas. :))

This is the first one up – I don’t think I’ve tried any Georgia teas before so wasn’t sure what to expect. This is different but nice. It’s really sweet with some fruity notes – seems a little grapey to me but could me more red berry (I so want to say raspberry but that would be just weird). This is lighter than the blacks I normally drink, but it’s not astringent, just a hint of the high note thing. This is a nice tea, I would drink it again. Thanks Sil for the opportunity.

Who knew it’d really enjoy something that tastes like liquid corn pops? This was an enjoyable tea to drink grandpa style at work. I go the “Discover Korea” set as well as the higher grade of Korean green tea. I wanted to sample them all in the spring, and before What-Cha’s ‘best before’ date. Now that spring has sprung, I have been sipping my way through the grades. Hooray for Green Tea week! Post now up on the blog:
http://sororiteasisters.com/2015/04/01/korea-dong-cheon-daejak-sparrows-tongue-green-tea-from-what-cha/
(My first post on SS ever! Wooooooot!)

Hmmm, I wonder what theme I should do for next week?

I’ve held on to this sample from a What-cha order for quite some time, as I believe I think like the rest of most Steepsterites about Kenyan teas. Well, in general, they’re not very exciting. They’re used in Breakfast Blends because they are affordable and don’t really offer any nuances…they’re just straight strength and malt. Well, I need to learn to rethink my groupthink, as this is not your mamma’s bagged tea in leaf form…..

Using the steeping parameters set by What-Cha, I found myself looking into a cup of golden tea and smelling all sorts of floral delicacies. I live near orange groves in Southern California and the smell from this flowery orange pekoe black tea is similar to orange blossoms…white, delicate and sweet. The maltiness of the cup is well balanced by this sweet floral note and a woodsy mid-note that gives the tea a nice round mouthfeel. There is some astringency here, but it isn’t the typical “how’d my socks get blown off” astringency of Kenya CTCs….. (I’m still missing some socks from earlier steeping experiments with Kenya CTCs.) This Orange Pekoe black tea is much more refined in it’s astringency. It elevates the flavor profile to an afternoon tea. An afternoon tea that would feel at home accompanying cucumber sandwiches as well as PB and J sandwiches. One that I would serve my non-tea enthusiast friends and they would recognize as really nice and refined tea without any “weird flavors”.

With the scorching summer approaching quickly here near San Diego, I will be glad I have the rest of the sample package from What-Cha for mornings when I think I just might not be able to bear the thought of a heavy cup of tea….that’s when this previously forgotten sample will be remembered and enjoyed again, wholeheartedly.

PS: I can’t believe there are only 2 of us that have reviewed this tea…. anyone else own it but haven’t gotten around to drinking it yet?

This one is going on the wishlist for later.

It is a light, sweet tea, but with moderate scents of malt. The scents are stronger than the malt taste but it’s still there. The most appealing thing about this to me though is the buttery texture. This would pair really nicely with almost any standard tea party fare, savory or sweet, I think. With a bit more care in the steeping I think the little overtones of dryness would be minimized. It’s a really smooth Darjeeling overall.

Thanks so much for passing this one along, KS

This smells a lot like an Assam to me. And the flavor reminds me of one as well. I didn’t get any toffee, but there is a sweet maltiness to it. It would hold up well to cream and sugar if one desired. I did 1 1/2 teaspoons for 3 minutes rather than the recommended 4-5. I think at 4-5 you could probably spackle the wall with this it would be so strong.

It’s good but nothing I’d pick up to keep around. Thanks for sharing this, Maddy Barone :)

This dry leaf smells strongly of new hay. The leaves are absolutely gorgeous. 3-4 shades of green and brown all coiling around each other. The taste almost reminds me of an unroasted oolong or moderately strong green. This is lightly roasty and mildly fermented. It is an extremely interesting tea that I would grab more of in the future.

Thanks so much for sharing this, KS!

GCTTB3

This is a nice smooth, mild black tea. There are light hints of sweet citrus. Thinking orange peel without the bitterness. There is a mild creaminess to the tea. The tea smells roasty and malty. I am getting a bit of roast in the flabour but not so much malt. Very nice black tea.

This morning, courtesy of Alistair Rea of What-Cha, I brewed Assam 2nd Flush 2014 STGFOP-1 Black Tea Western style: 2 tsp. (3g) / 8 oz / 203*F / 2 & 3 min. without sweeteners, milk, or cream. This was a free sample that was included with my first order.

Leaf: Fine mostly chocolate brown twisted 1 cm long or less
Fragrance: Notes of hay
Liquor: Beautiful brilliant clear moderately dark copper
Aroma: Mild hay & earth
Flavor: Fruity with a malty finish

2 min.: Lighter-bodied so I gave it another minute.

3-min.: A truly fruity Assam that’s velvety smooth and rich with a mildly malty finish. As one continues to sip, the finish becomes moderately malty. There was no bitterness or astringency.

4-min. re-steep: Still fruity, velvety smooth, and rich with a mildly malty finish.

Impression: A unique fruity Assam with a mild to moderate malty finish for those who like a change from the typical more robust Assam teas.

Thanks to Alistair Rea of What-Cha for this gracious Assam sample.

Method:
RO water re-mineralized with an Aptera filter http://steepster.com/teas/teaware/39532-puregen-aptera-alkamag-water-filter
http://steepster.com/teas/teaware/37731-my-weigh-durascale-d2-660-digital-scale
Brewed western-style conveniently using a digital variable-temp electric kettle in a tempered tea mug with a brew basket:
http://steepster.com/teaware/bonavita/39130-1-liter-variable-temperature-digital-electric-gooseneck-kettle
http://steepster.com/teaware/royal-albert/45581-old-country-roses-afternoontea-mugs
http://steepster.com/teas/teaware/29177-finum-brewing-basket
http://steepster.com/teaware/teavana/39312-perfect-preset-tea-timer

This morning for some reason I was cold. I had the air on all night. So when I got up a made a cup of this. I can’t believe I still have any of this. It’s one of my faves. It’s getting a little older now, but still smooth and tasty.

Is anyone else ready for cooler weather? I am sick to death of sweating.

A day ago it was quite warm and nice. Then that winter storm crashed through.And now, at least, my apartment is delightfully chilly even with the heat turned up to 75. (There’s a whole story about the maintenance insisting I keep my heat at 75 to prevent burst pipes. They pay for heat, so I have grumblingly complied while wearing Tshirts and shorts and sleeping with just a sheet)

Anyway, I brewed this one up this morning. I’ve been drinking mostly flavored dessert-y teas lately, but this morning I was eating my coconut lemon cookies and I decided I needed a straight black to contrast with the flavor of the cookies. The tea is aging. I’ve had it more than three years. But the flavor is still mellow and full. It was a perfect foil for the cookies. These cookies really are good. Here is the recipe if anyone is interested: https://www.shakentogetherlife.com/2016/03/lemon-coconut-sugar-cookies.html

I would love a tea with the flavor of the cookies. There is a sweetness followed by the tang of lemon. Not much of a tang, but enough to contrast with the coconut and vanilla.

My goal this summer is to drink down as much of my tea as I can so I have room for new teas come fall.Making col brews by the pitcher full ought to help me with that goal. I really like this tea. It’s smooth and delicious. I wasn’t sure how it would be iced, but it’s quite tasty. When it comes time to re-order in the fall, this one will probably be one I want more of.

It is 79 degrees out there with 93% humidity. Normally, not a day for brewing hot tea (for me). But thanks to the modern miracle of air conditioning, I brewed tea today. First I brewed a pot of the Ginger Peach from the brand spanking new tea shop down the road from me. Blech. Bitter. Very bitter. But I’m not going to write a tea note for that yet. I let it brew about 90 seconds longer than the package indicated. Sometimes that’s all it takes to ruin might otherwise be a good tea. I’ll try that one again at a later date. Meanwhile, to get rid of that bitter taste, I went with a tea I knew was hard to wreck.

I love Golden Monkey teas. This one is so smooth, so rich. It is almost sweet without any additives. Really, you can’t go wrong with a straight black like this one. Just a delight to drink.

I still love, Love, LOVE this tea! It’s smooth and bright, with no funky aftertaste or astringency. I also had a cup this morning of a Mandarin Orange tea, and it left a bitter bite behind. Not this one, though. Nothing here but good tea.

For some reason it’s really cold in my apartment this morning so after my 2 cups of coffee I decided to brew a pot of tea. Which to drink? Decisions, decisions. Pulled out this one with a sense of surprise. Why havent’ I had this one lately? I really love the Golden Monkeys and this one is one of the best. So smooth, so rich. Man, I just LOVE this tea!

I’m getting over the pneumonia. I’m still super tired and draggy, but my temp has been normal for a few days now, and when I cough it barely hurts at all.

This one really is lovely. It’s a good tea to mark the historic decision by the US Supreme Court today, being both slightly sweet and slightly bitter. You see, for my brother this is a bittersweet day. It’s a victory for him and millions of others, but came too late for him to legally marry the man he loved, who died of a brain aneurysm some years ago. He was in a coma for weeks and my brother had no legal right to decide his treatment. So here’s to the future. May it be full of love.

This is the one I pulled out this morning (still haven’t unpacked the tea box; just stuck it in the cupboard for the time being) It was luscious and smooth and warming. It’s been a bit nippy in the mornings in my new garden level apartment, so tea is welcome. I think all this physical labor has worn me down. This morning I was yawning and dragging before my first hour at the day job was over. I needed a pick me up and this tea delivered.

A new favorite in my cupboard!
This tea is smooth, very smooth. I think of it as a posh, elegant tea for mid-morning or afternoon. No bitterness or astringency to interrupt the sip, just silky, mellow tea that is a delight to drink.

I am packing for the move, and I’ve decided I need to keep just 1 tea out to brew for a pick me up during the next two days. I think this will be the tea I drink until the move is over and the kitchen stuff is unpacked on Sunday.

Wowza. Nepal has yet to fail me with their teas. This is so sweet, malty, fruity and smooth. It’s hard to pick just onto aspect to love.
I knew at the rinse that I would love this. I smelled the promise of malt, the hint of honeydew, and a kiss of citrus. Like a mandarin or the sweetest grapefruit I have ever tasted. The maltiness is so nice in comparison with the fruitiness and the candy-like sweetness. The candied orange peel became more and more obvious in the later steeps.
I was almost nervous to steep this at oolong temperatures by looking at the leaf. The bright green leaves tinged with silvery green-grey fuzzies had me buggin’.
I believe I got this as a thank-you sample from Alistair in my last What-Cha order. The second he puts a sale up again and this tea is part of it, I may just have to get tons more. This is killer tea.