80
drank Feizi Xiao by Verdant Tea
258 tasting notes

Received a sample of this from Lion (Thanks!).

I didn’t get a very strong scent from the dry leaves. I brewed this in my gaiwan, just under boiling. After the first 15 second steep, the wet leaves smelled heavily of wet hay. The liquor was a nice caramel brown and had a slightly malty, slightly fruity scent. The taste in the first steep was a bit weak but I kind of suspected that would be the case.

Second steep, 30 seconds. Now the flavor of lychee, malt, and mineral comes to life. Rather enjoying the lychee as I have not had much experience with that flavor.

I continued with steeps of 45s, 1m, 1m30s, and 2m30s. The lychee flavor stayed well through the first 5 steeps with it finally fading a bit on the 6th and last steep. I would describe the last steep of 2m30s as watery, mineral, and slightly floral. I’m sure I could get another steep or two but overall it tasted done to me.

I am pleasantly surprised with the fruity/lychee flavor and coating lingering on my tongue and throat. This wasn’t a strong bold tea but a very subtle tea that presents its flavors to those who stop to look for them.

Flavors: Floral, Fruity, Lychee, Mineral

Preparation
205 °F / 96 °C 0 min, 15 sec 4 g 4 OZ / 118 ML
Lion

I really like this tea too. Lychee is one of my favorite fruit flavors because of its slightly floral character. Some friends of mine were trying this tea together with me and we decided that it definitely reminds of lychee if you have it on its own, though compared side-by-side with lychee flavored foods, it isn’t as lychee-like. I also just got to try fresh lychee this week thanks to finding some at a local Asian market (heck Whole Foods even had some this week!) and I would say this tea reminds me more of the fresh fruit than the sweetened canned ones or lychee-flavored foods. I like it either way!

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Lion

I really like this tea too. Lychee is one of my favorite fruit flavors because of its slightly floral character. Some friends of mine were trying this tea together with me and we decided that it definitely reminds of lychee if you have it on its own, though compared side-by-side with lychee flavored foods, it isn’t as lychee-like. I also just got to try fresh lychee this week thanks to finding some at a local Asian market (heck Whole Foods even had some this week!) and I would say this tea reminds me more of the fresh fruit than the sweetened canned ones or lychee-flavored foods. I like it either way!

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Bio

Michigander, Husband, father of three, lover of tea, books, nature, gardening, and passion. Stay at home dad currently. Previously a preschool teacher.

I have now completed some tea swaps and I am so totally up for swapping! What a cool way to connect with fellow tea lovers and try some new teas. My tea cupboard on here is woefully out of date though.

Black tea has been my go to tea for some time. Oolongs are good too but mainly roasty oolongs. I’m finding that there are some green and white teas (mostly Moonlight Whites) that impress me lately which they never used to do. I am getting into and developing a taste for Pu-erh. I have tried raw and my Ulcerative Colitis just can’t handle the roughness of it. So I stick to ripe Puerh. I am recently drinking more herbal tea or Rooibos especially STRONG ginger blends. I’m not too picky.

Some of my favorite places from which to purchase tea are Whispering Pines Tea Co, Verdant, A Quarter to Tea, Beautiful Taiwan Tea Co, Bitterleaf Tea, and Yunnan Sourcing.

Rating system:
90-100: Some of the best I’ve ever had. I’d be a fool not to keep it stocked as often as possible
80-89: A damn good tea. Not to be missed
70-79: A good tea but lacks the wow factor. More than likely a simple tea that could be an every day option
60-69: Eh. This is okay. Not swill by any means but fairly underwhelming.
50-59: Not really doing it for me. I’ll finish it but please don’t bring me any more.
Below 50: Life is too short to waste on things such as this

Location

Lansing, Michigan

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