thepuriTea

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Recent Tasting Notes

drank Hong Jing Luo by thepuriTea
612 tasting notes

Oh man, I really liked this one! It has a DEEP, deep flavor that makes you worry at first it’s going to get bitter, but it doesn’t (might’ve helped that I listened to the Steepster advice about steeping only 4 minutes); instead you get strong cocoa, wood, a little tobacco, and lots of delicious raisin. I love that instead of sweet potato you do get pumpkin. Brandy too, to go with the raisins, yes! I even detect the brown sugar from the copy; for once I seem to get everything described and in spades. This isn’t a tea I could drink all willy-nilly as it’s so intense and there’s a lot going on, but wow what an experience. Something about it, maybe the smoothness and depth of the malt, reminds me a little of Dragon Pearls. Resteeps well too. Seems to be a thing with me, loving Bi Luo-style curls (Bi Luo Chun is possibly my favorite general green tea style). I’m guessing out of my ass here but it seems like somehow twisting and curling the leaves contributes sweet richness. I love the way it looks too. Very bummed I can never restock this one now as thepuriTea is gone. :(

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 4 min, 0 sec
tea-sipper

Looking forward to this one! I have a sample – haven’t tried it yet…

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72
drank Silver Needle by thepuriTea
2816 tasting notes

Backlog – I had this with my lunch yesterday, it is nice as a cold brew tea. I will need to do that with all of my white teas from now on…

Preparation
Iced 8 min or more

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72
drank Silver Needle by thepuriTea
2816 tasting notes

Another sample tea from the now defunct puriTea (boo).

I’m not really super excited by most white teas and this is no exception. I’m sure it’s fine but I can’t seem to find the “sweet spot” that brings forth the promised flavors. I get a bit of nuttiness and something that reminds me of clover but it needs something, it’s far too mild & benign for my tastes. I think I will try cold brewing the rest of this.

Preparation
185 °F / 85 °C 3 min, 0 sec

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97
drank Golden Yunnan by thepuriTea
4170 tasting notes

I bought two of these sample with their going out of business sale. I knew I’d love it — it’s Yunnan. But I just needed samples because I have many other Yunnan samples. :D The leaves come in a tiny tin enough for a few servings! Kind of tough to scoop the leaves out though. The leaves are mostly gold – but enough darker color to promise some chocolate flavor!

Steep #1 // just boiled // 4 min
I went with 1 1/2 – 2 teaspoons. Kind of tough to tell since I had to add a little at a time in order not to spill the leaves everywhere. The taste is lovely of course… I don’t think Yunnan can be terrible. The first thing I notice is actually the texture of the tea – it actually does seem like honey, which makes sense because it tastes like honey. With just enough chocolate flavor… I guess you could say to keep it interesting… but Verdant’s Golden Fleece has NO chocolate flavor, and that blend is something amazing. But I love all this honey and a bit of chocolate. I guess at this point I’m great at being able to tell how much honey/chocolate flavor there will be just by seeing the amount of gold/black in the leaves.

Steep #2 // a few minutes after boiling // 7 min
Another lovely cup! This cup might have more chocolate than honey for some reason. I love this tea. Honey & a hint of dark chocolate. A tea like this must be a cupboard staple at all times. Sadly, it won’t be thePuritea’s blend.

TeaBrat

sigh they went out of business just as I was discovering how yummy their teas were.

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drank Red Dragon Pearl by thepuriTea
612 tasting notes

Had this yesterday while wrapping up Season 4 of Buffy. Very tasty! I think I just like dragon pearls though—I haven’t had any yet I didn’t enjoy. This brewed up a nice malty, deep chocolate cup that was very satisfying, edged with smoky and cold weather harvest flavors (think apples, prunes, maple) making one think of fall, winter, seasons of dormancy when things below ground. I think I may steal Terri’s idea of using pearls as a purse-friendly portable option. Yum. Also, resteeps very well; I got 4 solid infusions and might’ve been able to keep going but figured that was enough caffeine for a while. Didn’t make me jittery either but gave me that “calm focused energy” thing tea is known for.

Such a bummer thepuritea is gone now; I’ve enjoyed the samples I grabbed in their going out of business sale. Knew that’d be a bittersweet experience—if I liked the teas it’d be with the knowledge they’re impossible to restock and if I didn’t, well, then I’ve had tea I didn’t like. I guess it’s better this way, the former, but ah well.

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 4 min, 0 sec
keychange

yes, calm focused energy is a great way to describe it!

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drank Dan Cong by thepuriTea
2291 tasting notes

This sample is probably from Sil. Thanks, Sil! :)

I have two other teas waiting for second-and-third steeps, but I decided to have something different. I’m contrary like that. :)

The result is… no. It’s way too roasty-toasty for me.

Sorry, thepuriTea. It’s me, not you.

Preparation
185 °F / 85 °C 3 min, 0 sec

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drank Red Dragon Pearl by thepuriTea
132 tasting notes

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drank Hong Jing Luo by thepuriTea
301 tasting notes

Comforted by the taste of both malt and caramel in this little gem this morning. Sadly I was also reminded of how much I miss this tea seller. Almost gone now so I really need to find a similar substitution.

Preparation
200 °F / 93 °C 4 min, 0 sec 1 tsp 6 OZ / 177 ML
ifjuly

if you find one, please let me know! i am in mourning too. love this tea.

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drank Hong Jing Luo by thepuriTea
301 tasting notes

This is one amazing tea! The cutest little nuggets of Yunnan tea you’ll ever find. A beautiful golden brown tea soup. Sweet malty sips of deliciousness. Gorgeous dark full leaves after the steep. Amazing staying power – I enjoyed four steeps this morning.

I am reminded of just how much I’ll miss thepuritea and how “smart” I was to stock up during their final clearance sale!

Preparation
200 °F / 93 °C

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96
drank Hong Jing Luo by thepuriTea
4170 tasting notes

I had to order a couple SAMPLES from thepuritea with their going out of business sale. So sad! This was a free sample with my order which I really wanted to try, but at that point they didn’t have the samples in the tins. It looks slightly like Zen’s Phoenix “Pearls” (snails). The leaves are slightly wound up with gold color.

Steep #1 // 3 min // around ten minutes after boiling
I only waited a few minutes after boiling because I was undecided about what to have. The cup was nice anyway. It’s kind of between chocolate and sweet potato… not really either… just a really nice black tea. Tough to describe! I wonder if black teas always tasted like chocolate and sweet potato to me, I just never noticed the flavors.

Steep #2 // 4 min // right after boiling
Slightly astringent this time around and much darker in color. A nice robust cup! Malty, lingering, much more chocolatey this time around. There is a leaf in the bottom of my mug somehow that actually DOES look like a snail. erm, ew. Other than the snail, this one is a winner! It will be missed but I will savor the remains of my sample.

Stephanie

Going out of business?? Awws

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53
drank Red Robe by thepuriTea
33 tasting notes

This tasted more vegetal than roasty – more of a green oolong than a darker one. It was ok, but milder than I would like even after steeping for 4 minutes. I much prefer the dark premium red robe from Mandala tea. The second steep at 5 minutes was not very flavorful.

Preparation
190 °F / 87 °C 4 min, 0 sec

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90
drank Milk Oolong by thepuriTea
218 tasting notes

A SIPDOWN! Goodbye thepuriTea’s milk oolong. You were an awesome friend to me but since you are forever gone I will have to turn to other milk oolongs now.

But you will always be My First.

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90
drank Milk Oolong by thepuriTea
218 tasting notes

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90
drank Milk Oolong by thepuriTea
218 tasting notes

I haven’t been leaving a whole lot of notes recently… But it seems I rarely drink anything new nowadays – and definitely not for the lack of it! Perhaps I am attempting sipdowns with some of my favorites and not-so-favorites. Not that they have ever gone to a sipdown level yet.

I adore green oolongs. I am not so sure about the dark ones yet – I mean, I do like them, but when I need a super-comfort tea, I turn to green oolongs usually. This one is delicious and awesome.

I also noticed that I am not too fond of flavored oolongs. I love them plain – although the choice of the word ‘plain’ is pretty misplaced ;) But you guys know what I mean.

I think I might start treating the tasting notes partially as a tea log / tea musings space. I hope noone will mind.

Preparation
185 °F / 85 °C 3 min, 0 sec

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90
drank Milk Oolong by thepuriTea
218 tasting notes

After the discombobulating taste of Harney’s Hot Cinnamon Spice, I decided to have something tried and true – this gorgeous, soothing oolong. It doesn’t disappoint!

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90
drank Milk Oolong by thepuriTea
218 tasting notes

I am on the second steep of this right now. While I still enjoy this oolong a lot, I think I will take the rating down a bit as I see less and less difference between this one and the oolongs I recently had from Golden Moon Tea. As before, this one is smooth and sweet.

Oolongs are great reading companions (Probably because you don’t have to get your mind off a book in order to try to decide on another tea – you can simply just resteep what you had!).

TranquiliTea81

I have a sample size of this and really like it! I wish I would have ordered more before they shut down, but by the time that I got my order it was too late. It was the first milk oolong I ever tried though, and I was crazy about it, but I agree with you that it does seem similar to many others.

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90
drank Milk Oolong by thepuriTea
218 tasting notes

So this is what milk oolongs are all about! Super-smooth-tasting numerous steepings a color of winter sunrise. I certainly loved every sip of this and only wish I had a gaiwan to be able to prolong the experience and turn it into a little ritual. But getting a gaiwan is my New Year’s resolution… I sure do have easier and easier resolutions the older I get ;D

Preparation
200 °F / 93 °C 3 min, 0 sec

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89
drank Golden Yunnan by thepuriTea
301 tasting notes

Just what I need on a cold, cold morning – honey, toasty warmth with a little peppery kick at the end of the swallow. Delicious. Regrettably I have only a small sample tin to enjoy and cannot reorder since thepuritea selections have disappeared with the close of the business. C’est la vie!

Preparation
Boiling 4 min, 0 sec

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79
drank Assam #1 by thepuriTea
218 tasting notes

This is a sipdown. Goodbye, Assam.

It’s a good morning tea but not overtly exciting. Something you can drink while you try to figure out your plans for the day.

The only other Assam I’ve had is Butiki’s Caramel Vanilla Assam which was heaven. If I ever crave Assam, that’s what I am going to get… I am not sure if I would ever crave it straight, though.

Preparation
Boiling 2 min, 30 sec 1 tsp 8 OZ / 236 ML

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79
drank Assam #1 by thepuriTea
218 tasting notes

Ooh, ooh! Pretty good! I think I am totally getting this tea this morning. The body is extremely rich, lovely bitterness hits me on the head, which obviously wakes me up. Aroma turns out to be persistently sweet, at least this time. Every sip is extremely enjoyable. I think there’s a great black tea lover hidden inside of me!

It’s like 2:40 PM but it’s morning for me. It really is. My assam tea understands it.

keychange

Don’t you love understanding teas?

Kat_Maria

I sure do! And the best thing is that they all seem to be that way :D

keychange

I know. They don’t judge you. I think it’s every tea-lover’s goal to amass a very non-judgy collection.

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63
drank Hong Jing Luo by thepuriTea
2816 tasting notes

Sample sipdown…

I’m finishing off this sample that I got from thePuritea who is sadly out of business now! The first time I tried this I steeped it for 5 minutes and it was definitely too strong. The instructions on the mini tin say to steep for 5 – 7 minutes. I don’t think I have ever steeped a tea for 7 minutes unless it was an herbal or a rooibos.

This time I tried it for 3 minutes and it still seems really strong. There is a definite tobacco/bitter note that I don’t really care for and I found myself reaching for the soymik in order to dilute the assertiveness of it. I can’t imagine having this tea steeped for 7 minutes, it would be totally undrinkable to me. Anyway, I am glad to be finishing off this sample and not at all upset that I can’t get more. It was definitely not a favorite of mine.

Preparation
Boiling 3 min, 0 sec

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63
drank Hong Jing Luo by thepuriTea
2816 tasting notes

I’m back from my travels and am no longer sick so that’s something to be grateful for – Happy New Year everyone!

This is a sample tin I got from the PuriTea. The dry leaf is in the shape coils, I think I’ve had a tea like this before called golden snail.

Package instructions say to steep this between 5 -7 minutes which seems like a lot, but I decided to go for 5 minutes. I got a very dark tea liquor that almost looks like coffee. This is definitely malty with some cocoa and strong tobacco notes in the finish. I can sense a bit of underlying sweetness but I think I would like this better steeped for a shorter amount of time so I will wait to rate it until I’ve had the chance to do that. It did seem to get slightly bitter at the longer temp.

Preparation
Boiling 5 min, 0 sec
Doug F

I went to look at their site but it looks like they went out of business. Oh well.

TeaBrat

Whoa – I wonder if that’s why they were offering free shipping for all of December? too bad, I liked their stuff!

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95
drank Milk Oolong by thepuriTea
4170 tasting notes

This was from Rachel’s sale a while ago! thank you! I’ve sipped this once before but I didn’t feel like the steep parameters were right (especially with the high rating on Steepster). The flavor just seemed a bit muted. Seeing the instructions for Teavivre’s oolongs… 3-4 teaspoons at boiling(!) gave me the idea to try more leaves are a hotter temp. I’m a little confused if this is a actual milk oolong though, or just flavored. This one isn’t actually called a Jin Xuan. The leaves are lovely looking though – bright green bundles. Two teaspoons this time. The last cup was one teaspoon with the water cooled for about forty minutes.

Steep #1 // water cooled 15-20 minutes // 2-3 min steep
BAM the basket is FULL of leaves. I have no idea how Teavivre’s 3-4 teaspoons would fit in this. The flavor is much less muted this time around. Creamy /milky definitely. But I’m so used to oolongs having COMPLEX flavors. This doesn’t really taste floral/peachy/vegetal. Just creamy. And very drying.

Steep #2 // water cooled 10-15 minutes // 3-4 min steep
Another lovely cup! Much less drying of the mouth this time around. Still very creamy and sweet. Still no other notes somehow. Very weird! I much prefer the tea steeped this way rather than the muted way. I just don’t see how this QUITE gets one of the highest rated teas on Steepster, but it isn’t bad. I’m also very sad that thePuritea has closed. I did manage a mini-order of a few samples.

Steep #3 // just boiled // 3 min
I thought this would be too hot for this oolong, but it was actually better than the second cup while it was hot, but as it cooled, it got a bit too “leafy”. Still surprisingly creamy & sweet. Not burned anyway. I don’t think you actually NEED two teaspoons of leaves for this one, but a hotter temp helps.

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