361 Tasting Notes

93
drank Mi Xian Black by Butiki Teas
361 tasting notes

I really like this tea. I don’t normally like floraly/fruity black teas, but this one has some spice to it too. Seriously yummy!

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I enjoyed this as much as I enjoy any oolong. Probably more, but I just don’t seem to go crazy for any of them. I just ordered the Laoshan roasted Oolong as Bonnie made it sound pretty tasty, maybe that will be the winner!

Bonnie

It’s possible you’ve been drinking mostly one type…roasty oolongs or very floral oolongs. Over time, I’ve found what I like (there’s lots of variety)…so don’t give up! You’re on an adventure!

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Backlog from yesterday:

You know how you don’t notice a flavor until you taste it strongly in something and you don’t like it much and then you notice it other things and you don’t like them as much either? Stay with me… I purchased a sample of this a while back and loved it so I ordered some more with my last order. Then I tried golden fleece. I didn’t like it as it had a sweet potato/mushroom thing going on. So then I tried this one again yesterday and was quite bummed to taste those same notes in this. I didn’t taste them the first time around as they are very subtle, but now that I can identify those flavors, I taste them and just don’t like this as much. Bummer. Still a decent cup but I’m not as excited by it.

Bonnie

How are you brewing it? I prefer this western style with plenty of leaf (I’ve been known to add cream…ugh..coco French fries).

TastyBrew

I did it western style as well. I’ll add more leaf next time. I loved your review of the laoshan roasted oolong. I just ordered some!

Bonnie

Thanks…it’s lighter and more reminiscent of Laoshan Black (the oolong I mean). I find that that many of these tea’s need time. When I rush…the flavor seems muddled. Maybe I’m just an old woman, but this is what the tea requires of me.

Angrboda

Yes, I know what you mean. I had bought a salad for lunch a few weeks ago which tasted like it consisted of little else than coriander. Now I suddenly just don’t like fresh coriander anymore.

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100

I’ve had a day of trying only new teas so that I can continue to make a little space in my tea cupboard. But after trying all new teas, it was time to go back to an old favorite. For some reason I haven’t had this one in awhile. I may have burned out on it since I pretty much drank it instead of water for a few weeks. So it’s probably been a month or two since I’ve had it. It’s even better than I remember. Holy snikes! I do so love this tea. Perfect way to end the afternoon (and my arrested development marathon while the kids were sleeping). Not to say I’m done drinking tea for the day. That only happens when I brush my teeth for bed at the end of the night!

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I’ve been wanting to try this one for a long time. Pretty much since I discovered milk oolongs by accident with the American Tea Room’s milk oolong. The bar was set crazy high with ATR’s version and this one doesn’t quite match it, although it is very enjoyable. Thanks Alysha for sending it my way. I’ll definitely be finishing off the whole bag!

Dinosara

FYI, ATR’s oolong is unlike other milk oolongs because it is actually some crazy Tie Guan Yin variety, not a Jin Xuan like most milk oolongs. Just a warning that you may continue to be disappointed! I had to divorce my expectations from that milk oolong and after that I enjoyed other ones much more.

TastyBrew

Interesting! Good to know! It probably wasn’t a good one to start with as no other can match it. I actually like della Terra’s a lot too. It’s super buttery.

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drank PU'ERH, ORGANIC by The Tea Spot
361 tasting notes

I so want to be one of those people who likes puerh, and not because it’s healthy or anything, just because they truly enjoy the flavor. Unfortunately, that’s just not me I guess. I made this in the gaiwan so I could do super quick steeps and control the flavor a little bit. Despite being able to brew very mild cups, I just don’t really like the flavor. I don’t mind it in blends when it plays a minor supporting role, but it just doesn’t have star quality for me. I’m glad I got to try it though, thanks Shelley_Lorraine!

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drank Red Dragon Pearls by thepuriTea
361 tasting notes

I received this in a swap with Shelley_Lorraine. It didn’t have any brewing instructions so I dropped about 5 little pearls in the basket and hoped for the best! I assumed this tea would have a similar flavor to other black pearl teas I’ve had (dark, chocolatey, malty). But this doesn’t have any dark chocolate notes, maybe a little milk chocolate as it cools. Its a pretty decent tea, but I like other black pearls better.

Shelley_Lorraine

I didn’t like this one so much either. My father does though, so I gave him the rest of what I had. Sorry there were no instructions. They didn’t come with any and all I can find on the website is general black tea instructions.

TastyBrew

Oh no worries at all! I looked on the website too and couldn’t find any either. The other 14 teas you sent had perfect instructions so I knew you weren’t holding out on me :-)

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I’m on a unflavored black tea kick right now so I’m hunting though all my swaps to find some to try. Yunnans seem to be pretty reliably ok enough tea, never my favorite, but never really awful either. This one is a classic Yunnan. So I liked it enough. Thanks Shelley_Lorraine!

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drank Almond Happiness by 52teas
361 tasting notes

I grabbed this out of my swap drawer this morning and it’s been sitting in there for awhile. For some reason whenever I read the name “Almond Happiness” I just assumed it was a very stongly almond flavored tea, which are kind of hit or miss for me. But I’m going to try and cruise through some sample sipdowns today so I grabbed this one and threw it in the basket. It wasn’t until it was brewing (3 mins @ 185) that I started to wonder what exactly I was making. Frank doesn’t typically make simple flavored teas, there’s usually something more going on. Then I realized how dense I’d been. Almond happiness = Almond Joy. I felt incredibly dumb. Had I realized that sooner I would have brewed this one up a long time ago. Anyway I really enjoyed it. I would totally reorder. I got all flavors (chocolate, almond, coconut) and a nice black base. No honey or milk necessary. Yum! Thanks Jackie T!

Terri HarpLady

That sounds yummy!

Nxtdoor

I have a sample of this from Dexter3657 so I went ahead and made a cup also to see if I can change my mind from the first time I tried it. Haven’t even added a note because I wanted to give it a good honest try. 1 tsp for 2 or so minutes with near boiling gave me a very very weak concoction. How much are you using?

TastyBrew

I used about 1.5 tsp per cup and brewed it for 3 mins at 185. That seems to be the right proportions for the 52teas in my opinion. I’ll do a resteep for between 5-7 too. Some of the 52teas I have hard time getting the flavors out of, but this one I thought was pretty spot on.

Nxtdoor

Will do this tomorrow, thanks!

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100
drank Laoshan Black by Verdant Tea
361 tasting notes

Heading off this morning to do my first open water triathlon. A little nervous as I just started swimming about 6 months ago, but it will be fun! I set my breville to have this one ready for my at 5:30am when I woke up. I keep wishing it was more like the fall, but its still good. Good tea to start the day!

Update post race: Thanks everyone! After a crazy morning when my car wouldn’t start and my dad had to rush over to pick me up, I made it there just in time and finished it! The swim was kind of scary actually, but I finished first in my division for the biking portion! The run was more like an incredibly slow jog, but I finished and as far as I’m concerned, that’s all that matters! :-)

Nxtdoor

Good luck!

Sil

Wow good luck!

Terri HarpLady

I hope it was an awesome experience!

Shmiracles

super good luck!!! please let us know how it goes!

TeaBrat

wow – good luck!

Fuzzy_Peachkin

Woohoo! Good for you doing a triathlon! That’s a lot of training!

Fjellrev

You’re brave for taking that on. Best of luck!

TastyBrew

Thanks guys!

OMGsrsly

Congratulations! :) That sounds pretty awesome.

Fuzzy_Peachkin

Congrats! And being first in the biking is amazing!

Shelley_Lorraine

Awesome! Way to go! (\^.^/)

TheTeaFairy

Wow! Phenomenal accomplishment!

Shmiracles

very impressive TastyBrew! such hard work you should be proud. bravo!

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Profile

Bio

I love tea. And I love beer. I spent my twenties thoroughly enjoying all that beer has to offer but now that I’m into my thirties and a stay at home mom of 2 little kids and 1 big kid, I spend more time enjoying tea.

I joined steepster in Feb 2013 and it’s crazy how much my tastes have changed since joining. Before, I liked cream and honey in all teas and loved mostly dessert blacks. Now I almost rarely drink them, but enjoy them from time to time. What I love more than anything are straight rich black teas, Fujian, Laoshan, Rizhao, etc… I also love pretty much any black tea that the little leaf hoppers have gotten their teeth on.

I’m still not too into the green/white/oolong varieties. I keep trying to but my tastes are evolving pretty slowly on that front.

Overall, I just enjoy tea. Something about it that just settles me.

Location

Portland, OR

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