1908 Tasting Notes
It’s almost looks like there’s three different kinds of tea in this sample I got from Ricky. There are thin black twists, little light-brown pieces, and curled-up leaves covered in a thick coat of silvery down. They gave off a lovely sweet, fruity smell as I brewed them. Unfortunately, in my attempt to stretch this tea as far as I could, I didn’t put in enough tea. I did steep it for a little bit longer than I’d originally planned in an attemp to compensate, but I do think the result could have been better – due to my own fault.
The tea has a dept and strength that you can’t find in a green oolong. It has a bit of a mix of toastiness notes and bit of tanin to it and I’m also picking up a faint fruity sweetness. Even weaker than it’s supposed to be it tastes decent, so I can’t wait to see what it’s like when it’s made properly.
Preparation
I decided to give this another shot before I gave a final verdict on it. When I added the water the leaves foamed a little bit – ZOMG, my tea is RABID! XD
Anyways I had to steep it for awhile before I got any significant flavour and when I did it was quite bitter and basically tasted like an oversteeped green. It’s the compost bin for you, Strawberry Sencha!
I should add that the poor rating has relatively little to do with the store itself – this tea was sitting for God knows how long in my mother’s cupboard. Time to get rid of this and get some fresh tea from Zack’s. Hopefully my plants will like this better than I do!
Preparation
Oooooh vanilla! When I opened the sample packet the smell was a mix of citrusy and a creamy-sweet smell that made me think of melted ice cream and creamy caramel – can I eat these leaves? ;)
The taste is nice, the bergamot sort of pushing the cream out of the way to take center stage. It’s isn’t too pungent, which is a problem with Adagio’s Earl Grey Bravo, and it has a clean citrusy flavour with a touch of spiciness. On its heels follows the cream flavour which is a bit muted but it gives a sweet, vanilla accent to the tea.
Preparation
One of my favorite teas :)
*nods * I’m looking forward to experimenting with this one. I was a bit annoyed that SpecialTea’s sample packets aren’t resealable, though.
Yeah, I stole a bunch of binder clips from work and used them to reseal, haha.
That’s pretty much what I ended up doing too.
I steeped this extra long and as a result the honeybush flavour was a bit more prominent. I think I’ll keep it at 7 minutes as that seems to generate a nice balance between the honeybush base and the pina colada flavours.
Preparation
I’m giving this one another shot, keeping in mind that oolongs are usually best on their 2-3 steeps.
The first steep, like before, was rather weak, the liquor a very pale greenish-yellow. Flavour-wise it started out with a green but slightly buttery taste that faded into a light bakey flavour.
The scond steep is fuller, the colour a darker gold. It’s not a robust oolong- I don’t think this tea has the capability to do robust. I’m not really picking up any of that butteriness from the first steep, instead the flavour is an interesting combination of floral and fruitiness. The floral is subdued, less noticable than the Tung Ting I tried from The Granville Island Tea Co or the Four Seasons Oolong from Samovar. I’m also still picking up some bakeiness on the tail end of each sip, though the tea also has a bit of a ‘green’ aftertaste. As it cooled down the tea taste sweeter, smoother and less bakey.
The third steep has a bit of a fruity tang to it, but it’s getting noticably weaker so I think I’ll put this one to bed.
I revised my rating of this tea as I only got the chance to do one steep the first time I tried it. Now I find I like it much better. Overall all it’s a mildly flavoured, light tea with muted floral and fruity notes and a very smooth feel in the mouth.
Preparation
I agree about the lightness of the tea. Both Ali Shan teas I’ve had have been quite delicate. Yet I find them very delicious, as well. Just an entirely different category than a dark oolong. Like a great green tea that doesn’t get bitter or astringent IMO. And since I rarely have the patience to do a great job of steeping green teas, light, green oolongs and pouchongs are a godsend. :)
Drank this while I was watching the Olympic Opening Ceremonies. Man they were awesome! Although, unfortunately there was a pal cast over things by Georgian luger, Nodar Kumaritashvili’s death while training on the track up at Whistler today. :(
Preparation
Tragic, indeed.
oh, I didn’t know they made a pear… wish my local cafe (which only carries Revolution) had this!
It was so sad to see the Georgian team come in with their black armbands, and as the music died down and the crowd stood. So sad. I can’t believe that they’re blaming him, and not the track! One luger was knocked unconscious last week, and several have fallen off their sleds. Several others have reported having great difficulty navigating the track. Ugh.
Well this is the last of this, so long Russian Caravan! It was a decent tea, but I don’t think I’d buy it again, it’s a bit too smokey and it lacks something in terms of body.
Preparation
Last tea of the night, I promise. ;)
I’m not tasting the sweetness very much this time for some reason. Ah well, it’s still a great bedtime tea.
BTW I put a bunch of teas I don’t want on the ‘Take It Away’ thread on the Discussion Board. Some of it’s been claimed, but there’s still some left. If you’re curious go have a look and see if anything catches your eye. :D
