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Sample from a friend from Athens120 ml gaiwan, ~2gr tea, 93+C water, 45 sec infusion + 15 sec consquent

Dry leaves:
Appearance very small curly, mostly broken, very dark, maybe almost black. They do look that they got roasted to a very high degree. They do look like a green and I could assume that it’s the same leaves oxidized and roasted, but I might be wrong.

Aroma is roasted and malty, it’s almost like smelling chocolate malt(for brewing beer) but it has got a sweet quality, like dark dried fruits(if that makes any sense). I can’t say it reminds me of WuYi because it’s a bit to the sweeter side. I totally love the aroma and I can’t wait to smell it after steeping! Aroma is more to the roasted side than the oxidized side.

Color of brew: Dark amber, especially the first brews and if you brew a little longer, then deep orange and almost light orange the last brews. Amazing clarity but it’s easier for this style to have good clarity.

Gaiwan lid aroma: Amazing, especially the first brews, sweet, smooth, malty, dark candied caramel, overtones of chocolate. Amazing I won’t even smell the wet leaves.

Ok I smelled the wet leaves, they have an addition of smoke and light wood-ish :)

Wet leaves appearance: They don’t unfold much because of high roasting. Mostly broken (maybe because of my friend?), many buds and some leaves. Almost black.

Taste: Not very sweet, it’s got some smoke and wood to but ALL the fragrances come through amazing. Intense roasty, high roasted/baked bread crust, I won’t mention the aromas again…

Sweetish finish, beautiful aroma once again. Not much aftetaste and a very very light astringency, maybe from the roasting.
Medium bodied, light creamy texture and smooth though it’s very high roasted.

Amazing red tea mainly to the roasted side, but you can really see that Chinese people really know how to make Hung Cha. Respect to the roaster/tea master. I wish I could buy some but it’s very expensive for me. It really amazed me!

So this time I’ll try to rate a bit more technically, always by style:
Appearance: 15/20
Aroma: 18/20
Taste: 18/20
Body/Finish/Aftertaste/Qi: 17/20
Extra: 18/20
It could be lower because today I saw the cost of verdant teas but I guess I didn’t pay for it so… :)

Just got the teas today and it happens some samples from a friend came the same day so I’m twice happy!
I’m totally excited with this tea!!

120 ml gaiwan, 2gr tea, 93+C water, 1 min first steep +30 next

Dry leaves: Amazing variety of leaves, furry little buds, amber to dark brown leaves, mostly whole leaves, fully oxidized. Fragrance is sooo mouth watering. It’s mainly sweet with ripe and dried fruit fragrances(maybe fig or apricot overtones). I really couldn’t wait to brew them.

Color: Dark orange, amber-ish. I expected it more red. Crystal clear transparency, very good. Maybe longer steeps give a darker color…

Gaiwan lid aroma: Really can’t describe it. The dried leaves couldn’t give you even a glimpse. Mellower, sweet and so intense. Red flowers, ripe fruit, so complex and sweet aroma! I don’t have any huge experience with OB but omg… I get a hint of citrus too, raisins and apricot for sure now.
I don’t even have to smell the wet leaves! Appearance of wet leave is mostly whole leaves, I really didn’t expect that, amazing!

Flavor: Sweet like h#ll, with a complementary malty, bread-like taste(from roasting?) and all the ripe fruit in the world go with it. A very light fruity acidity tingles the side of your tongue if you leave it too long, balancing the overpowering sweetness.
Medium to full body, especially if you brew longer but light texture.

Later brews become lighter in fragrance but even after 10 brews you get some tasty and fragrant water!! Last steep was all night long!! It’s really worth it, brewing it many times.

Overall I’m thrilled! I might be exaggerating, or all the tea I’ve been drinking today might has gotten on my head, but it’s the best quality tea I’ve ever drank. It’s got no flaws, it can cope with boiling water, no problem with steeping time, amazing appearance, intoxicating fragrance…I won’t continue. I wish I had more money to buy more!

I could give it my max, 93% but I guess I’ll try around 90% because there’s always room for something better!

Second tea, Early Summer Laoshan Green

120 ml Gaiwan, 2 gr tea, 78C water temperature, 1 min first steep +30 consequent

Appearance dry leaves: Curled very small stems and leaves
Color dry leaves: Dark green, maybe from roasting?
Dry smell: Nice, potent, nutty, a bit of roastiness and maybe some spicy hints.
Salivating, can’t wait to try them :)

Gaiwan lid aroma: Very light, nutty hints so I smell the leaves afterwards
Wet leaves smell: Mainly potent, nutty, vegetal and herbal undertones
Color: Pretty light green color
Clarity: Clear but not crystal clear, could be better

Flavor: As expected after smelling it plus some more roastiness, especially if you brew it at higher temps, not very sweet. Very vegetal, it has a nice hint of astringency that clings that gives a spicy aftertaste
Body:Almost full bodied, depending on the amount and steeping time
Aftertaste: Nice fading vegetal and spicy with a salty overtone, didn’t linger that much.
It has quite some stamina but main flavors just fade after 3rd brew and roastiness and a hints of astringency take over later brews.

Salivated just afterwards, wanting to try more, I even salivate now that I’m writing this, lol!
I don’t think it could got at near boiling temps, but I guess it could withstand some heat.
I could even eat the leaves, the ones I tried were lovely!

Overall a bit harsh and not very well ballanced, but I really loved the effect it had on me.
A bit bold but with good stamina, I really enjoyed the “flaws”. I’d rate somewhere around 80 again.

*This thing about rating is strange, I would never rate above 93(or something) so 80 is quite much and I’ve read some scientific papers about rating that are race-dependent so I thing there should be no numbers on the site

First of all I’m very happy because today I received some samples from a friend from Athens and I got my parcel from Taiwan with tea so I got like 10+ teas to taste! I started with two green and a red.

120 ml gaiwan, 2 gr tea, 78 C water, about 1 min first steep +45-60 sec for next

Dry leaves aroma: Vegetal, grassy, hint of nuttiness
Color: Light green, amazing clarity
Gaiwan lid aroma after steep: Sweet, vegetal, spicy undertone, hint of lime?
Taste: Sweet, grassy, vegetal, little spicy, mint and maybe lime overtone, mostly vegetal
Body: medium-light, light creamy texture.
Leaves examination after steep: Mainly whole, one leaf one bud, almost no oxidation

Not much stamina, though the amount was little. Taste faded out nicely in consequent brews though a bit fast.
Not even a hint of bitterness/astringency even when brewed at high temps, I love that quality in tea :)

Overall a nice everyday green for people that want quality, without any major flaws which is nice, but hasn’t got anything too special about it.
*Don’t know what the rating will be because of the strange bar but I would say somewhere around 80

*My first tea addition so if I make any mistake plz correct me!

One amazing organic tea I tried at a small amount(~20gr) from zen8tea.
The leaves were mixed in oxidation and small holes were noticeable, because of a small small leaf hopper insect(maybe like OB?), as zen8tea explained to me in a msg.

It’s rolled like an oolong and I used for brewing enough just to cover the bottom of the gaiwan. The water was 95C most of the times and steep time was 45s+15 every time.

From what I rememberm because I have none left now:
The brew was nice amber color. The fragrance was intense, sweet, ripe flowers(if that makes any sense…). Taste was sweet and soooo smooth, the brew was quite full bodied regardless the little brew time. Aftertaste was lingering for quite a while, a beautiful reminiscence of this fragrant tea.

I really miss this tea now that I don’t have any…
I don’t really know a way to excuse my rating, is there a certain rule like
20 for looks, 20 fragrance, 20 taste, 20 aftertaste, 20 special?