Old Ways Tea

Another miscellaneous Old Ways tea club tea that survived in my cupboard. This was part of an edition of the club that I vaguely remember from earlier this year which had both a small and medium roast production of the same DHP. As I’m not a big fan of the lighter yancha cultivars, I far preferred the medium, so I’m surprised this packet eluded my thirst.

All in all, strictly run of the mill yancha. It’s not fruity like the higher quality DHPs, focusing rather on the spicy and charcoal minerality characteristic of a rou gui or a shui xian. It deserves a little bit of a higher rating than a generic yancha because the flavor held out for longer than I expected. Otherwise not too much to write home about; have had many better DHPs…

A late-night session after a very hot summer day. This tea is from a past Old Ways Tea club of which I don’t remember, and unfortunately I tossed the information sheet so I’m going into this one blind. Shui Jin Gui, or ‘golden turtle’, is one of the higher-end yancha cultivars and I really have never had many opportunities to taste it, similar to Tielouhan.

Off the rinse, the smell is intensely charcoal with emerging scents of dark berries after the leaves cooled down., while the color is not as dark as I expected it to be. I put it aside to save for later. The first infusion is surprisingly abrasive, with a lot of on the nose tart and citrusy notes, with a hint of hot wax. Not a lot to write home about, and not a lot I could get my finger on in terms of tasting notes. The smell of the wet leaves was now entirely mineral, which definitely did not do anything to assuage my fears that this was gonna be a dud.

Second infusion was better, this tea performs best when you aren’t trying to think about its tasting notes. And in reality, that’s pretty much the theme of the entire session. I don’t know if it was just me not being on my game, or if this tea truly is that much of a conundrum, but I am not exactly going to show any sorrow for this one departing my collection.

The main event of the August 2025 Old Ways Tea club. A very select few ended up getting one of these along with a high-quality Shi Ru, but unfortunately I was not one of those people and got two of the rou guis instead. This is listed as a competition-grade rou gui (one of the most popular yancha cultivars).

Initial impressions of the wet leaf are spicy with a tinge of sweetness below the roast. Liquor is a rich burnt caramel with a lovely spiced cinnamon smell off the nose. The taste of the first infusion rests heavily on the characteristic cinnamon notes. The body is slightly rich with a hint of milkiness, leaving a little bit of froth on the tongue. I took all the time I needed finishing this first infusion; I swear it felt sweeter and spicier at the bottom of the cup.

The lingering yan yun on my tongue set the stage for the second infusion, one that I felt would make or break the tea. The spice was more intense on the tongue, dissolving over the top of my tongue and coating my mouth. This is unmistakably a high quality rou gui and characteristic of the best this cultivar has to offer. It does not offer anything surprising in terms of taste notes, but is truly an orthodox or traditional iteration of the tea type. The spice sticks to your front teeth, truly rich.

The third infusion brings buttered toffee to counter the aggressive passion of the cinnamon spice. There is still a spiciness on the back of the throat – this tea is holding up and evolving very nicely. On the fourth infusion I was met with a surprising berry sweetness on the nose, while the body of the tea is just as smooth as it was on the initial steep. A fruity dark chocolate lingers in the mouth, a taste so good I took a little break from drinking just to savor it.

In the later infusions, I got hints of pumpkin spice, root beer float, and vanilla. I cut it off at ten infusions, more than enough to get an impression, and promptly returned to the rinse. Yes, it could have gone a few more infusions. I might push it on my second bag, which I’m thankful to have received. One of the best rou guis I’ve had the privilege of tasting, and salvages this edition of the club.

Shui Xian is back on the menu for the Old Ways tea club for August 2025, which is a bimonthly offering of various yanchas and a little bit of other teas. At 45 USD it’s a bit on the pricey side for a club subscription, but the selection is interesting and engaging, while not being largely focused on the experimental like many other vendors.

As the ‘darkest’ yancha cultivar, shui xians generally offer a very soupy and warm session with a heavy emphasis on the charcoal roast. The vendors notes on this tea speak of stony and mineral notes, but not much more information than that. It has a medium-strength charcoal pine forest smell off the nose, which is wiped off after the initial rinse (saved for later in traditional Wuyishan fashion – we’ll get back to it later). In fact, I would argue this is on the lighter side for the cultivar, not something I’m particularly excited about but I’m a victim of obsession for this tea type. I concur with the vendor on the taste, a lot of upfront minerality paired with that lasting yancha sweetness on the back of the tongue and a smooth chill at the back of the throat.

Second steep moves towards the spicy, with an incense fragrance note I can’t put my finger on. Definitely nothing woody about it – something more resinous. Third steep off the nose is a little concerning as the tea smells like it is well spent. With shoegaze on in the background, this tea pairs well for an introspective night session, but only because the fog is rolling in here. I prefer shui xian in the winter (along with most yancha, Jan-Mar is the sweet spot season for this tea type, competing with shou puerh), and tonight is ‘cold’ by Californian summer standards.

After the fourth steep there really isn’t anything of note. The longevity just isn’t there for this to be a remarkable yancha, but I love the feeling that it gave me and it complemented the session well. I wouldn’t say that it’s indicative or a particularly noteworthy representative of the cultivar though. Most of the flavor got absorbed into the rinse, which was good but I’m surprised at how light this tea is for a shui xian.

A recurrent feature of the Old Ways tea club, which generally focuses on yancha, or rock oolong. The August 2025 club features this along with some Shui Xian and higher quality Rou Gui; usually it drops late in the summer which is a little unfortunate since I usually like to drink my share of green tea earlier in the season, right after PQM.

It’s advised to drink this tea grandpa style; in fact, Hou Kui is probably the definitive grandpa-style tea. With that said, I went the gongfu route and still felt satisfied. Very light with a muted sweetness and a silky smooth body. Probably one of the best representatives you can find of this tea type, but there is one major error on the part of the packaging that I cannot get over, and has never been resolved in the 3 or so years I’ve been participating in this tea club: the 50g or so of Hou Kui are packaged in the same mylar bag. This means that unless you repackage the tea in an airtight vessel (not easy because of the large leaf nature of this tea) you’re essentially in a race against time before this tea goes bad. It spoils fast, and is easily noticeable with the darkening of the leaves and an obvious difference in taste. I have found myself unable to finish the entire bag before it goes bad; hopefully in future editions of the club this can be resolved.

Gongfu Sipdown (2991)!

This is one of those rock oolongs where you can really taste the fire on the leaves right from the first steep. It’s notably astringent, but in a welcome way where that touch of texture adds complexity to each sip. Really roasty, mineral rich notes of charcoal and leather tempered by the warming spice and woodier cinnamon notes it’s named after. Definitely deepens over time with the lush, dense sweetness of orchids, osmanthus, and plums pushing up from the undertones into the mid-sip to dance alongside the spice, grilled peanuts, and barley. At times, there’s a bit of a herbaceous finish that teases cannabis, as if smelling someone smoke a joint from across the street. Even though I drank it very early this morning, the energy this tea carried is that of a laaaatteeee summer evening spent walking the streets after a really lively BBQ or bonfire and a few drinks. Warm and glowy, where you know in the moment that you’re going to look back fondly on this moment in a few years’ time.

Tea Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/DM1AITOSwdg/?img_index=1

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DERhmibDUFs&ab_channel=RUDECATVEVO

Gongfu Sipdown (2951)!

Tea Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/DLijopdSqZE/?img_index=1

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FfDtEsCFKAA&ab_channel=LandOfValenVEVO

Tongmu charcoal roast black tea
5/90 ml gaiwan
Wet leaf: dry smoky, sweet, fruity

Free sample from a forgotten order that I’ve been meaning to get around to… label says 2022 lol.
1. Oversteeped. Sour upfront and a little malty. Hint of bitter and florals somewhere. Tiny amount of sweetness on the finish
2. Unassuming. Probably understeeped. Just a bit sweet and slightly astringent
3. Sweet
4. Sort of dead. Stopped here

So a rinse probably wasn’t necessary here and took away from the tea. This is also 3 years old now, but certainly did not stand out here.

6g in TWL 70 ml thin gaiwan, which was kind of a mistake lol. used boiling water, and steeped for too long. 1st steep was meant to be a rinse, and was nice, medium dark fruity whatever. 2nd was much too bitter, but I still drank it. Decent sweetness in background. Moved to a mug and was happy enough with it.

Gongfu Sipdown (2628)!

This Wuyi oolong is smooth, full-bodied, and so very roasty with really dense and flavourful notes of grilled corn and chicory coffee on the front half of the sip before softening slightly into something more aromatic and floral with notes of cocoa butter, osmanthus, and orchids. A little powdery feeling in the finish, with a return to the mineral and woodier side of this tea. A few steeps in particular near the midpoint of the session had fruitier notes of red plum and huckleberry that poked through, like a turtle cautiously sticking its head out of it’s shell. Really lovely, especially enjoyed outdoors after a full day’s worth of rain yesterday – everything was just so crisp and fresh!!

Tea Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/C-f6KHduaB3/?img_index=1

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y1D_PYqQKoQ

(2022 harvest) There is a really vivid, delicious rendition of oatmeal porridge, cinnamon on nose. Needs to be brewed sensitively though – on my first try there was something a bit phenolic and plasticy (the charcoal/roast?). Palate is so smooth though. Second try with less concentration of leaves to water and that distracting phenolic/rubbery note had faded back a bit, letting the tea’s more savory elements shine. Upgraded from 87 to 90

(2022 harvest) Soft and fruity, with a little toasted rice and a hint of mango and persimmon leaf on nose. Very smooth, subtle palate. Successive steeps, and it reveals notes of birthday cake, along with a pleasing earthy quality not unlike a puerh.

(2022 harvest) Light, greenish amber cast. Notes of oatmeal porridge, steamed wild herb, persimmon leaf, accompaning some expected yancha notes. Then quite a bit of floral quality in the mouth- magnolia flowers. Enveloping texture. Quite nice, and different.

(2022 harvest) “High Mountain Rou Gui.” Good aroma, with a nice, expected cinnamon oil quality, but there’s also a little bit of a bitter, phenolic note- maybe the from the charcoal roast? This carries through on the palate. A bit of a letdown for my first proper Rou Gui.

Stunning aroma. Stewed apricot and other stone fruit and orchard blossom, spices, lily flower. Body is fantastically smooth. Long finish.

(2022 harvest) Crisp, attractive roast & rock notes, some ripe stone fruit aroma, less floral. Very smooth, good resteep.

Cinammon and baking spice, floral, mouth filling, rich, buttery, smooth. Ticks all the boxes.

This one tastes greener than most of Old Ways’ teas, with some interesting vegetable funkiness. Nice and thick and warming, with plenty of yan yun. Unlike some yancha, this is good in a thermos – when brewed for a long time it becomes very strong without being bitter. I recommend a snack first or it’s tough on the stomach, though.

2020 harvest

I don’t remember much about this. A lighter, fruitier Rou Gui.

Roswell Strange’s note has more to offer than my impressions which have slipped into oblivion.

2021 harvest so 2 years rested.

Sharing a pot on an overcast, cold and breezy morning. Like a glass of heathery, smokey scotch for breakfast. It takes me places but also grounds me right here. This is an expertly smoked tea made with high quality leaf.

This past week, I had 4 different 2020 Old Ways Tea Rou Gui over 4 days and this was by far the standout!

My notes are an absolute mess probably because I was more with the tea than concerned about writing legibly.

Complex sweet aromatics, soft in the mouth, blooming vaporous aftertaste. Cooling mineral sweetness.
Warming and drying. Slowed breathing.
Refined, ethereal, silky.
Malty suede.

Spring 2020 harvest.

Dark, damp earthy aroma mixed with a darker milk chocolate.

Malty and juicy, bitter flowers like lavender. Catches in the throat on the way down and leaves a sweet mineral finish. Salivary glands tingle – salty. Peach and orchid bloom from the throat while a vaguely minty and fruity wild blueberry persists in the mouth. Floral bittersweet and woody bite is ubiquitous from 4th steep on.

It was nice but… but what? Maybe the throat catch turned me off a little? Am I sad that the spice notes of the rinsed leaf don’t come through in taste?

2020 harvest freshly opened is smooth but for someone who likes to be shown strength in one or more facets, it is ultimately nothing memorable. I was hoping for more of a caffeinated yancha before heading into a mandatory work meeting tonight that starts in 12 minutes…

Spring 2020 harvest.

So very green for an Wuyi oolong. The verdant leaf is visually cloaked by the roast and makes for a soft and deep floral bouquet aroma of gardenia a hint musty mixed with less pronounced darker notes of chocolate and cinnamon. I get the same in the mouth along with acidic forest floor, salty wet rocks, smooth malty suede, slight bitterness. Squash-like finish and bitter cacao aftertaste. The texture is somehow light yet full.

It all melds together pretty well but this tea’s energy was absolutely not jiving with my own. Initially the tea was very warming and relaxing but left me feeling cold over the course of the session. The sleep paralysis/lucid dream I experienced that night I attribute to the tea. The few times I’ve experienced sleep paralysis, it has started with a cold wind rushing over the ears with hurricane force and a complete lack of awareness of occupying an earthly vessel… It’s a very chilling and desolate experience.

Flavorwise, this was one of the better greenish yancha I’ve had. Ignoring the energetic effects, this tea is not inspiring for me; I tend to appreciate more oxidation and higher roast for yancha. Especially Qi Dan. I want warm woodiness with that lovely cinnamon note, not gardenias.