1719 Tasting Notes
After reading Angrboda’s review of Lotus Puerh, and knowing I had some in transit, all I could think of was I want my Lotus. I want it now. So I put the Yixing aside and grabbed the press for a solid blast of this floral green. Unlike any other tea I’ve had. Whereas Tazo’s decaf lotus is a polite, lovely, and proper cup of lightly flowery tea, this is its punk twin. It is a lot louder and far more vocal. The green base is Vietnamese. I have never had a straight Vietnamese green before but I am certain it is largely responsible for the uniqueness of this scented tea. The lotus combines to produce an almost anise like flavor that really appeals to me. The base does no get lost and comes back in at the end. Just what I was craving this cloudy afternoon.
A few more steeps of this one with yesterday’s leaf. I wanted to get my Chi on. It continues to impress with its well mannered youth. And yep, it still has a nice camphor affect. There are blessings in each day if you take the time to notice. It was so much fun playing guitar today with air! Played one of my favorite rock out songs called The Wonderful Cross. It’s based on the Issac Watts classic. For those familiar I play it similar to the Tomlin/Redman version but faster.
I grew up drinking Lipton. It’s like family. Due to high BP mom and dad have switched to decaf. Normally I don’t mind. It works with cards and snacks on a Saturday night. Last night though it tasted like latex paint. Just gross. It was probably aggravated by a day of exceptionally good tea.
I am just getting a good start with this one and will probably keep steeping the same leaf tomorrow as well. I just wanted to jump in and say this is most unexpected. Well, maybe I should have suspected it from Teavivre. This raw pu-erh is only a couple months old but it is very tasty. I used the whole sample (how out of my comfort zone ). I did compromise just a little by using a gigantic 5 oz of water :) and I lowered the temperature of the first steep to 205 F for a 15 second steep. I was anticipating a young sharp bitter astringent blast. Instead I got some cheek tingle and some bite but very manageable. To me this is kind of fruity (maybe apricot) along with a nutty or woodsy taste. It is also kind of mineral in a good way.
The main reason I am posting before getting too far into the session is to report the antihistamine or camphor qualities are cooling my lungs and I feel like I can breathe to my toes. I love that. The is also an easy peaceful feeling present (que the Eagles). Excellent Cha Chi.
I’ve noticed that Shengs seem to help with my allergies/breathing, at least some of them do. I guess it’s the camphor quality, as you say. That makes sense.
This note of yours got me tearing up….hope you continue to feel Better.
Thank you Cwyn. We’ll see how I do after the medicines run out in a week, but right now my O2 levels haven’t been this high in a couple years. Looking forward to rocking out playing guitar at church this morning.
This tea isn’t yet on What-Cha’s website at the time I am writing this. I get the honor of sampling it before the rest of the world. Go Me!
Wha-Cha sources their Kenya teas directly from the farmers. This translates into hopefully a better wage for their hard work and a better fresher leaf for us.
The long leaf on this is very dark and lightly twisted. It looks more like a black tea but on closer examination it really does have a purplish cast. There are a few twigs. The aroma dry is grain and dry grass. The steeped leaf is olive green and brown. It maintains a purple tint and as I was examining it I noticed a blueberry tint to the small amount of liquid under the leaf. It has a heavy but awesome cooked spinach aroma.
The taste is completely different than the Yunnan purple varietal I tried the other day. It tasted like a mellow sheng. This Kenyan purple has a more traditional green tea flavor. As such I think it might appeal to a wider audience. It is a little grassy with a nice bite. It has a fruit note that is not overly sweet or tart and kind of grape like. I don’t really know plum taste – that is what Wha-Cha states in the description – but if my description fits the profile, then I agree with them :)
I wrote on my blog review that this reminds me of Mao Feng. If I had them side by side maybe it isn’t that close but going from memory that is the connection I make.
Preparation
Plum flavor—cross between a peach and a sweet red grape, maybe?
Thanks once again for the lovely write-up, unfortunately the tea has been much delayed by at first a different tea being sent out by accident in place of the Steamed Purple and subsequent promised dates of resending have been missed by the producer. I’m continuing to chase the producer and hopefully it will arrive soon.
This sounds really good. I may have to get some when it comes out. Wish listing!
I’m pleased to announce that it has finally arrived and can be found here: http://what-cha.com/green-tea/kenya-steamed-purple-varietal-green-tea/
So my intention was to give a food grade Japanese matcha a whirl when I ran out of green tea powder for my breakfast milk concoction. But then Teavivre had an anniversary sale and marked this down 40%. 40%! Well that was a no brainer. I have already grown accustomed to its unique taste. Yeah, its bitter on its own but works for what I am doing with it.
The problem is my present supply is starting to show tin at the bottom. Why did I wait so long to order? The 8 oz of restock has shown no sign of moving in days when checking tracking. I know it always takes two – three weeks to get here, but if I just knew it was still moving it would be easier to wait. Why do I keep checking? Aaarrrrrgggghhhh!
I may be forced to return to the world of Hershey’s syrup for a few days while I sit hitting refresh on USPS. :)
Just having some fun. Trust me, I’ll survive.
Your breakfast smoothie posts have been so convincing I bought an experimental carton of almond milk and some vanilla syrup to attempt it in my own kitchen. I’m still not a matcha pro—has to start with some hot water to dissolve properly…is that correct?
Lol. Hitting refresh is something we are all too familiar with.
I just use a little room temp water out of my filter pitcher, add my syrup, powder, and whisk away. Then I stir it some more once I add the cold milk. No pro here but I’m happy with the results – until I find some xanthan gum to thicken it, then I may start adding crushed ice again.
My first trial run was a little bitter & clumpy, but I was really skimpy on the sweetener. On the other hand, it seems to be a good antidote for stress eating at work.
I had to cut back on the powder until I became accustomed to the bitter. I think I was using about 1/4 tsp. I use a whole one most times now.
I like this one. The dry leaf has a fine pipe tobacco leaf aroma. The cup smells sweet and fruity. The taste is bold but not harsh. A little tongue tingle but not bitter or particularly drying. Nice light maltiness in the fruity aftertaste. The Persimmon Tree says this tastes boldly of apple. To me it was more woodsy with fruity grape leaf notes. Sniffing the cooling wet leaf (I can’t help myself) really brings out that grape aroma. Not really sweet but sweet enough on its own that even I thought sweetener was a detraction. I have very little experience with Darjeeling in general but that does not stop me from saying I enjoyed this one.
I’m tempted just to copy my blog review over here but I will resist. What-Cha is a new UK company. They have free international shipping on orders over $35, and a flat $6 for lesser orders. That seems to include my friends in Canada!
This tea leaf smells awesome. It is sweet and sour like other Chinese greens with the addition of kind of a bread like aroma and a wonderful breath of smoke (not heavy LS or even Keemun).
The taste is so different I had to contact What-Cha and ask if this is indeed a green or if it is a sheng. Alistair wrote back as quickly as time zones would allow and confirmed it is prepared as a green tea. The interesting thing is the large purple leaves of this particular varietal have been cultivated (my word – maybe not the correct one) for producing pu’erh. So I am sort of on the right track.
What I am tasting is sheng like without any of that bright metallic taste. It is mild and vegetal, earthy, along with a stone fruit note (I am thinking apricot). The smoke briefly appears at the back of the sip and just fits. In later cups I notice it developing spicy and floral notes.
More sheng comparisons to this green tea – My lungs feel cool and fresh like I can breath to my toes. I noticed a peaceful sense of well being while sipping. I also found it produced a quiet stomach rumble leading me to believe this tea is soothing to my system. Your mileage may vary.
I found this tea to be captivatingly different. I am 30 ounces into steeping the same leaf and it appears it is going to go more.
nice!
Thanks for the great review Kevin, it certainly was great fun sourcing the tea and equally pleasing to read it met your with your approval.
Not surprised this is tasty. Yunnan Sourcing also makes a Wild Purple loose leaf from the same tea used to press cakes. Theirs, however, is quite roasted. Still it is one of the best teas I’ve had outside of traditional puerh cakes.
Had to make a run to town this morning for some tests – my wife this time. Stopped at Starbucks afterwards. After making my own green tea powder concoction, theirs is way too sweet, but refreshing anyway. I need to find some xanthan gum so mine will thicken like theirs.
Anyway, checking the mail when we got home, there was a new box of samples from Teavivre. Yesterday I got a really big box from another company, and the day before another smaller one. My wife said those words… Don’t you think you have enough tea yet? Not sure if i should have told her about the Anniversary box that is on its way from Teavivre. That one is different. It is mostly more green tea powder that I’m using everyday… and… some stuff to reach free shipping.
I’m so lucky my husband has never questioned the amount of tea in our house…even though it is creeping out of the drawers and onto the counter in the kitchen…
She isn’t upset. She is amused. Besides, her hobbies are a lot more expensive so she understands she can’t really complain. It was just the look and the tone today that made me feel a moment of remorse… and then I tore into the box! Yeah! More Tea!
Hehe, yay more tea indeed! ;)
My husband says the same thing, but he doesn’t really complain. Mostly he thinks it’s funny. And then I hand him my cup or mug and tell him to taste it. He likes a lot of it, which is good.
Take her to JoAnn’s, hand her the checkbook, and hush. Fair’s fair. :)
P.S. Hope you’re feeling better!
With the medicine in me today, I am feeling pretty good. I think I’ll go to band practice tonight and see how it goes.
Prepared this one again today to see how my taste buds and smeller are reacting to the medicine. I did not add sweetener, which as many of you know is almost unheard of from me. I have learned to use less leaf with this so as not to get overpowering floral. I used 2..5 g with 5 oz water and 195 F water for 1 minute. The jasmine is well behaved. There is just a hint of bite and a slight cheek tingle. It also seems slightly salty. That may be the medicine, but otherwise I think I can taste again.
On the sad side I noticed a crack in my favorite teapot. Apparently I must have bumped the spout of my crystal teapot on the sink. The crack runs down the top edge of the spout. I’ll keep an eye on it but will continue to use it unless it gets worse. I never cared for teapots until I got this one. This one is borosilicate (sp?) glass. It was less than $20. I wonder if the more expensive ones are just as fragile?
Sorry about your pot! (I have typed the word “pot” quite a number of times lately for various reasons and it always says POOT when I look at my screen. LOL!) I have a tiny borosilicate glass pot and it has held up well. I have some of the Bodum iced tea pots for loose leaf that were on special at TJMaxx and they have also done well. I have a cheap regular glass pot that I just don’t use because the glass infuser shattered right away and I can tell the pot would break very easily. It was a gift. If I were purchasing, I would stick with borosilicate. I don’t know if spending more gets you a higher quality of glass or not.
My Bodum press is borosilicate glass. In fact I have two. They have been extremely rugged and lasted several years. A friend shattered his same exact press just by accidentally tapping it wrong on the sink. So my crystal teapot may have been sturdy enough had I not hit it exactly as I did. Not being familiar with different versions it will leave me wondering if it was me being clumsy or the poot (just for you).
LOL! Just for me! :)
