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From Daylon R Thomas!  Thanks so much!    I’m thrilled I get to try some of these Trident teas that Daylon introduced Steepster to a while back.  The leaves here COULD NOT look more delicious:  Mostly black with the perfect amount of gold leaf, not only is each piece of leaf twisting around itself, but all of the leaves twisting around in a lovely mess in the pouch.  It looks like the perfect black tea.  From Nepal!  The flavor is sweet, malty, honey, a bit of sweet potato but also like little summer squashes — mostly reminding me of a light Chinese Yunnan, but not too light!  The second steep almost tastes like a lighter traditional Assam, even though this is not Assam.  From the look of the leaf, I’m shocked they compare this to a Darjeeling. Then I re-read Daylon’s note and he compares this to Darjeeling and a Chinese black.  I bet this tasted more like Darjeeling a year ago, and now those flavors might be muted. 
Steep #1 // 2 teaspoons // 18 minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep
Steep #2 // just boiled // 3-4 min steep

Ashmanra’s sipdown challenge – August 2023 Tea #7 – An impulse buy tea

This will fit for the “impulse buy” prompt!  But to me, if I buy any tea, isn’t it ALWAYS an impulse buy??  Lord knows I don’t NEED to buy more tea.   I really liked my sample I bought a couple years ago and this new harvest seems the same.  How could I not love this one?  Assam, Keemun and Yunnan are some of my favorite black tea types and when they combine with Darjeeling 2nd flush, they all just really mingle in a really unique flavor combination.   And the name is perfect for this blend!  Glad I bought another two ounces.

Ashmanra’s sipdown challenge – August 2023 Tea #6 -August 25 – National Secondhand Wardrobe Day

Let’s be honest — MOST of my teas arrive by secondhand.  This one teabag sample is from Cameron B very recently!   Thanks so much!  Always willing to try ALL the Lupicia lovelies.  This is a flavored black.  Right away I taste strawberry and their champagne flavor.  But I’m wrong!  The description doesn’t mention strawberry or champagne.  More like guava and other fruits: mango, papaya, and even rose is on the list.  What the heck.  This one blindsided me here.  Though I hear guava is like strawberry. At least there is no noticeable  hibiscus.   The base is a little bland this time around though. The second steep seems even more like a strawberry jello type flavor, maybe due to the fruit flavors blending.  Possibly more rose. Maybe lychee or starfruit, but those flavors aren’t supposed to be there.  I’m guessing all the wrong tropical fruit!  I’m happy I was able to try it, but I don’t think it’s a Lupicia favorite.  By chance, I’m also wearing secondhand clothes, as I do most days, mainly because I’m much more a fan of the older style jeans than the newer jeans, so I buy a lot of them on ebay.  I would like to take a poll and guess us Oregon Trail gen kids like bootcut jeans?  Maybe it’s just me. :D
Steep #1 // 18 minutes after boiling // 1 minute steep
Steep #2 // just boiled // 3 minute steep
2023 sipdowns: 79

Another sample from Cameron B! Thanks so much! One teabag, one more sipdown!  Oh this blend sounded complex and well thought out.  I was trying to think of an appropriate movie to watch while drinking this, as the description mentions “your favorite princess movie”.  And really, the flavor here really does seem extremely fitting for a princess theme.  I couldn’t think of a resulting flavor from a tea that would more scream PRINCESS. And it’s hard to describe why!  It’s all fruit sweetness.   Mostly rhubarb with a hint of coconut, which reminds me of a Dammann Freres rooibos blend.   I definitely wouldn’t mind stocking up on this to be yet another tea available for a rhubarb choice!
Steep #1 // 20 minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep
Steep #2 // just boiled // 3 minute steep
2023 sipdowns:  78

Thanks again to Cameron B!  One tuocha to sample, so this is a sipdown!  This is one of the tiniest tuochas I have ever seen.  And judging by the flavor, I don’t think I have had this one before, including from another tea shop.  The wrapper is plain white tissue paper and looks like a bird nest.  1999 is quite an old tuocha!  The earthy richness is apparent even before the water hits the tuocha, which is why I had to double check the label on the tea to see if it was ripe or raw when the first brew was so so light.  Really, the only flavor was a slight BBQ smoke and the tuocha in the infuser was barely different in appearance, no unraveling.  The second steep takes off and the flavor might be the DIRTiest puerh I have ever had.  (That’s a good thing IMO. )   The third steep was even richer, but then the fourth had kind of weakened, even with a 10 minute steep.  Overall, happy to have tried such an old one!  But the size of the tuocha doesn’t really lead to as many steeps and as much complexity in flavor as I would like, never really escaping that full dirt flavor.  I’m honored this tuocha waited around for me though. :D
Steep #1 // 20 minutes after boiling // 3-4 minute steep
Steep #2 // 10 minutes after boiling // 5 minute steep
Steep #3 // just boiled // 5 min
Steep #4 // just boiled // 10 min
2023 sipdowns:  77

Ashmanra’s sipdown challenge – August 2023 Tea #5 – A tea with orange flavor

I tried my hardest to find an orange tea that I could actually sipdown. But I guess I went with the oldest one. And possibly favorite. This tea is still a delight. I would definitely buy it again. Full sweet and orange on the perfect base.

Another one I very much wanted to try.  Thanks so much, Cameron B!  Huge green tea leaves from Thailand, with an occasional bit of fruit (mango, coconut).   I love sticky rice teas, so this should be a good one.  And it is!  The green tea seems to me more like a Wen Shan Bao Zhong oolong, and that’s what I would guess in a taste test. The coconut is at the forefront and tastes more like toasted coconut.  Really only hints of the mango and sticky rice.  But the base is very buttery, so pairs really well with these flavors.   Even the third steep doesn’t seem overdone at such hot temp, meaning I really do think this is an oolong, not a green tea… unless Thailand green tea is very forgiving with hot brewing.  But it’s a great base for these subtle flavors!  So it’s another tea that found another great new home. Where Cameron B was tasting suntan lotion coconut, I didn’t notice that at all— I noticed toasty coconut. And note to self: do a third steep.  And also, next time, try the third steep at boiling. 
Steep #1 // 2 teaspoons for a full mug // 30 minutes after boiling // 1 minute steep
Steep #2 // 35 min after boiling // 2 min steep
Steep #2 // 24 min after boiling // 2 min steep

I was lucky that Cameron B wanted to do a cleanup of teas, because I received an amazing treasure trove of teas yesterday. I couldn’t help asking for some, as there were some that I had wanted to try for years and also some old favorites that I didn’t have around anymore! Thanks so much, Cameron B! I appreciate it!
I can tell you right now… I LOVE THIS TEA. What the heck. I also feel like I have problems with cherry flavoring, just as Cameron B does, but sometimes cherry teas hit that right balance with other flavors, making them not taste QUITE like cough drops unlike if it was a cherry flavor standing on its own. The balance here with the mild rose is wonderful. And that green tea with oolong! It’s a perfect base. And since this is a Mary Poppins tea and Admiral Boom resides on Cherry Tree Lane firing his cannon from the roof, I get an extra kick that this tea uses GUNPOWDER green tea. I consider Mary Poppins one of my favorite Disney films, so I’m honored to try this tea and even more pleased that I love it. It might be one of the better cherry teas I have tried. It also reminds me of a Bird & Blend tea but I’m not sure which one at the moment. (But this is NOT an exact blend sourced from B&B.)
Steep #1 // 1 1/2 teaspoons for full mug // 30 minutes after boiling // 1 minute steep
Steep #2 // 35 minutes after boiling // 2 min

Not a sipdown but a good time to revisit this lemony green. Of the 26 teas in the alphabet challenge, 15 were actual sipdowns. I think that’s… pretty good I guess. At least it is nice to know that there are at least three letters that still only have ONE tea representing it.

2023 Ode To Tea – Part II – Y

Another sheng I haven’t written a note for yet.  From JakeB QUITE a while ago!  Thank you!  And it’s another sheng I think is a great sheng, as long as I only steep for 30 seconds Western.   I love that only sheng tastes like this and it is just so different from shu.  All steeps were fairly similar in flavor.  It’s almost like an odd, otherworldly tropical fruit with a tangy note, yet also a cream quality.  I think it was a good thing I neglected this sheng for a while?  I bet the flavor improved.  I only have one steep session of leaf left.  I love the wrapper design too.
Steep #1 // 1 1/2 teaspoons // 45 minutes after boiling // 30 second steep
Steep #2 // 30 minutes after boiling // 30 second steep
Steep #3 // 33 min after boiling // 30 second steep
Steep #4 // 30 min after boiling // 45 second steep