1548 Tasting Notes
52teas 12 Teas of Christmas – Day 11
Neat tea. It bends my mind and tongue. I like how the lemon (reads mostly lemongrass to me) melds with the soft vanilla meringue flavor and smooth chai spices (heavy on the cardamom and ginger for me). A little wood and malt barely poke through to ground it all. Almost sassy but mostly a sophisticated blend.
Flavors: Black Pepper, Bright, Cardamom, Cinnamon, Citrusy, Clove, Ginger, Lemon, Lemongrass, Malt, Meringue, Smooth, Spices, Tangy, Vanilla, Wood
Preparation
52teas 12 Teas of Christmas – Day 9
If only this tasted like it smelled in the bag — rich sunflower seed (not peanut) butter and thick, tangy raspberry jam. Those are both there in the brewed tea but kind of both separated and smothered by the malt and toast flavors of the leaf. It’s certainly drinkable as is, but I can’t help to think there’s some kind of tweaking on my end that can really make this tea pop.
Flavors: Dark Bittersweet, Jam, Malt, Malty, Raspberry, Rich, Sunflower Seed, Tannin, Toast, Wood
Preparation
matcha-sencha-toasted rice
Had this with some spicy ramen and pork belly bao at Ramen Gaijin. The tea was great with the meal but was so grassy I don’t think my stomach could handle it without food.
Flavors: Brisk, Clean, Freshly Cut Grass, Grassy, Green, Kale, Nutty, Ocean Air, Silky, Toasted Rice
52teas 12 Teas of Christmas – Day 8
Only 3g left and brewed in a glass gaiwan.
Back in December, I got more of the lightly creamy eggnog vibe and stronger nutmeg taste. Now it’s all banana candy and I’m here to say I love that smell/taste after years of hate. It is not at all cloying and works really well with the mineral and floral oolong base. There’s also a soft streak of bittersweetness after finishing the cup that sits so satisyingly in my mouth. Aroma is like banana candy and rum.
Oh yeah — goes great with cinnamon bread!
Flavors: Banana, Bittersweet, Candy, Clean, Floral, Mineral, Nutmeg, Rum
Preparation
2023 harvest
Wonderful hongcha. Pronounced floral rose and cocoa aroma, tannins balanced with taste. Floods the body with warmth. High in caffeine. Like Qimen, I think. Overleafs pretty well if you’re wanting something real viscous. Does just fine with a tiny pinch of leaves. I prefer this tea grandpa style over any other preparation.
Flavors: Cacao, Clean, Cocoa, Coconut Husk, Floral, Geranium, Juicy, Leather, Malt, Malty, Oak, Olives, Osmanthus, Peppercorn, Persimmon, Rose, Smoke, Spicy, Tangy, Tannin, Viscous
Have my first order from ORT arriving soon! Just some sheng and dancong samples tho. Are you a pretty big fan of their teas?
It’s funny, I spent almost 4 weeks deep in the mountains outside Enshi city with a few people who run ORT but I only drank a few of their teas while there!
Alex is a part of the Loushuiyan tea collective (where I was staying), so he sells the teas from that collective. They specialize in greens but also make red tea. Those are generally pretty good teas if you like Chinese greens from that region.
The teas from outside the collective, I believe, are mostly sourced by another guy from ORT (I forget his name, never met him – Dylan?). I’ve only had two dancong and one zhengshan xioashang from ORT that were gifted to me by leafhopper. All were mediocre teas to poor quality.
This tea in particular, which is not from the collective, Alex gifted me to take home. Apparently it’s not the highest quality lichuanhong (which is considered a novelty tea in China due to the milkdown effect), but I would never know the difference! It’s a great tea.
Their pressed red tea from Laos was also very good!
Much tamer than the Nepal Jun Chiyabari Himalayan Shiiba I had from another vendor several years ago. Lots to discover here. Magnolia nose. Within the soft texture is a mid-toned tropical jackfruit taste and a cool, quartz-like mineral element. Complex fruity aftertaste morphs with each steep, bringing out notes of peach, pineapple, banana, plumeria, lemon, cream, ginger, passionfruit and grapes.
This harvest reminds me of Nilgiri high mountain black teas. I think it has to do with how the density of flavors are expressed within the texture. Like those teas, the character of Himalayan Shiiba really shines in glass teaware.
Thank you Martin for another generous sample of Nepal Jun Chiyabari tea!
Flavors: Banana, Bread Dough, Caramel, Cream, Floral, Ginger, Hazelnut, Honey, Juicy, Lemon, Magnolia, Milky, Mineral, Passion Fruit, Peach, Pineapple, Plumeria, Silky, Soft, Spinach, Tangy, Tropical Fruit, Umami, Vanilla, Vegetal, White Grapes
Preparation
2nd flush, June 2022
Classy and elegant yet strong and rich with a dense aroma. Big hands with scratchy palms, firm squeeze, soft touch. Teak and tobacco, malt and prune. Such a classic black tea.
Assam teas don’t often find their way into my cupboard, usually because they’re too abrasive and without much nuance. This one, on the other hand, I’d be happy to buy again when the Assam itch needs scratched.
Flavors: Astringent, Balanced, Berries, Black Pepper, Blackberry, Bright, Cherry, Chocolate, Coconut Husk, Cream, Dark Wood, Dried Fruit, Fruity, Gooseberry, Green Bell Peppers, Leather, Malt, Malty, Mineral, Molasses, Oregano, Pine, Prune, Red Wine, Rich, Smooth, Soft, Tangy, Tea, Tobacco, Tomato, Viscous, Woody
