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A sipdown! (M: 1 Y: 41)
There are venodrs, which sparkled my interest several times; only to find they are from North America and shipping gets just crazy expensive. But when you’re doing swap, I get teas I wouldn’t try otherwise. This seems that isn’t the case, but it is still outside the EU. Thank you Courtney for this oolong.

I have prepared it twice, once in a tea pot for my family using 4 grams; and it was fine, though a bit astringent.

Today I prepared it for second time and using gongfu method and it is much better. I did steeps as suggested — 30, 40, 60 seconds and then 15 seconds increments.

I notice exactly what is mentioned on the baggie — “Vegetal upfront, sweet slightly unripe peach aftertaste”. Yes, it started a bit vegetal, but following steeps were sweeter and sweeter, with hints of astringency as described as slightly unripe peach. As I do prefer those peaches, it was perfect for me.

Last steeps were just grassy, green oolong in flavours, which weren’t bad, but alas, a bit boring.

I wasn’t so good in filling the prompts during February, but again here is a list of those teas that were removed from my stash (sadly also in way I am not proud of):

A sipdown! (M: 10 Y: 26): Magic Nights by Basilur
A sipdown! (M: 11 Y: 27): Organic Nonpareil Ming Qian Dragon Well Long Jing Green Tea by Teavivre
A sipdown! (M: 12 Y: 28): Glücksmomente by Echt Entlebuch
A sipdown! (M: 13 Y: 29): Z Perskiego targu by Pod Lampionami
A sipdown! (M: 14 Y: 30): Darjeeling White Tea by Teehaus Shila
A sipdown! (M: 15 Y: 31): Affogatea by Bird & Blend Tea co.
A sipdown! (M: 16 Y: 32): Wilde Hilde by La Cucina
A sipdown! (M: 17 Y: 33): Vánoční dobroty by Oxalis
A sipdown! (M: 18 Y: 34): Linden-Raspberry by TeaCoffeeMarket; prompt: Your oldest black tea
A sipdown! (M: 19 Y: 35): 2017 Yun Tai Mountain “Sentinel Mountain” Fu Zhuan Brick Tea by Yunnan Sourcing
A sipdown! (M: 20 Y: 36): Jasmine Pearls by Imperial Tea Court — thanks derk, I believe it is from very first swap
A sipdown! (M: 21 Y: 37): 2013 “Bamboo Aroma” Tian Jian Hei Cha * 200 grams by Yunnan Sourcing
A sipdown! (M: 22 Y: 38): Nepal Jun Chiyabari Himalayan Imperial Black by Klasek Tea
A sipdown! (M: 23 Y: 39): Bitter Gourd stuffed with roasted TGY by Liquid Proust Tea
A sipdown! (M: 24 Y: 40): Kaneroku Matsumoto Tea Garden: Yakushima Cedar Wood Smoked Hojicha by Yunomi; prompt: A tea best for afternoons

The time has come for this Man, Gingerbread Man. Tomorrow he would celebrate his third birthday (pressing date).

I used a whole mini in my gaiwan and steeped with various steeping time. Mostly around 30 seconds, with rather small increments. I wasn’t totally focused to the tea this time, but this tea is rather forgiving.

There is a thick mouthfeel; strong dark shu flavours, and while it is not gingerbread in any way, it is rich and a kind of sticky. I can’t point out any particular flavours, but it made me feel cozy and it was warming me up.

Enjoyable and easydrinking shou and off any funky and off flavours. Definitely it was worth 80 cents I paid for it. Would I get more of this? Maybe… it’s not so expensive and it’s drinkable.

I finally got around to trying the 6 grams of tea I received from White Antlers and derk. Thank you both! I miss the first member dearly; I hope they are doing well.

I used all 6 grams in my teapot today, steeping it for roughly 3 minutes—and it was wonderful.

The aroma in the cup was reminiscent of an old antique shop or bookstore. I detected notes of mustiness, a touch of boiled linseed oil, sisal, and a hint of dust. Nevertheless, it evoked a cozy feeling, making me wish I were enjoying it in an armchair by the fireplace. The only trouble is, I have neither!

Tastewise it was mellow, smooth and a little creamy shou; with woody, wet forest floor and a little of mushroomy taste. Earthy aftertaste, but not bitter, savoury and strong, but not so heavy in the stomach.

I’m a little sad that I finished it so quickly, after only one session. We rarely do more than one infusion; in extraordinary cases, we’ll do two. If I particularly enjoy a tea, I might even do a third — but that’s usually just for me.

Hands down, this is a brilliant tea.

Maybe my expectations for this Mini were too high, maybe I was preparing it wrong…

This is fine tea, and I was steeping it with several 30 seconds steeps (including rinse), and many longer ones. The dragon ball never fell apart; but keeps releasing nice and slightly astringent flavours typical somehow for sheng. And here comes the twist; yes, it’s definitely astringent and there are unripe stone fruit notes; I would describe them as unripe apricots… but there is, in my opinion, slight smokiness (or it’s roastiness — ?). That switches the flavour a little into oolong territory. Later steeps were definitely more oolong like.

I used whole litre in my thermos and honestly, I have to say, this is unique tea but somehow I feel it should be even a bit better. Or it’s again Yancha like and it seems I am not so big fan of those.

I would like to hear other tea enthusiasts thoughts. But this tea doesn’t seems to be for me.
That’s me problem, not tea problem.

A sipdown! (M: 9 Y: 25)
I have decided to spend remaining 7 grams in a single gongfu session.

It tastes very differently, it is not so mineral and salty; but heavy notes of wet forest floor, mushrooms and different woody notes are still present.

Flavour-wise it is not too complex, but it is suprisingly mild for stomach, despite dark and strong notes that I wrote about in previous paragraph.

Longer steeps weren’t bitter or astringent, it was just like you have doubled the mushroomy (shu) notes. In a certain way this tea reminds me Bancha Goishicha from Japan; which is also in my stash… so I should compare it in a short time, in a time I still have a memory of this one.

A sipdown! (M: 8 Y: 24) — prompt: A spiced tea
Last year I was here crying, how spicy it is and I can’t handle it. But as we had some winter weather outside; some snow and a little of snowfall, combbined with partially cloudy sky, I decided to bit the bullet and try the second bag from derk. Thank you!

Well, it seems this one was much closer to her impressions — as it was mild with hints of hot. It was distinctly spicy, but chocolate was a bit hard to find. Ginger and allspice were the most prominent in this bag.

It seems that previous one contained all the habanero from the box, and this one is much closer to indeded fiery tea.

Without rating intentionally

Those Jingmai Moonlights are like a cuddle in a cup. So sweet, so smooth, so easydrinking.
I have used today 90°C water and just finished my thermos full of that water with various, definitely uncounted and random steeping times; and there wasn’t a single bad steep.

Some were distinctly stonefruity, later ones were more herbaceous and meadow forward; with hot fresh hay notes.

All steeps were companied with velvety smooth and long mouthfeel and perfect as usual.

Comparing it to the 2018 harvest I had, I find this a wee better, although my impressions of that harvest are very faded by now.

A sipdown! (M: 7 Y: 23)
While it seems I am not so fond of this tea anymore; it was still a very pleasant session with slightly smoky note combined with birch / woody note. The impression of Finnish sauna was there and it complemented so well my planning of a summer trip — that will probably actually start there!

I am actually considering my first YS order to get a little more of this; but as I wrote in my previous notes — I need to reduce my stash first and ordering from Chinese company will need of course customs fees and everything related to it.

So, thank you derk for, great tea experiences I am going through with the teas you sent me and I just feel that I sent you, rubbish, if I am using nice words.

A sipdown! (M: 6 Y: 22) — yet another puerh sipdown.

You know, I have lots of these last quantities left teas. So, I just picked any other randomly, and while I don’t think I need to slay any demons in me now ;knock knock on the wood, panic attacks are much less present.

I did super-fast rinse with toss, and let humudity absorb a bit into the leaf.

Steeps were various lenghts, starting with short ones and just did increments of 10-15 seconds each steep.

It is surprisingly very mild and sweet, while I have been expecting other side of the spectrum (bitter and astringent); hints of floral notes and hot hay,… argh! I burned my fingers!… later steeps have that vegetal/pepper qualites that were described when young. Aroma is mostly grassy, with hints of petrichor.

If anything, this tea, comparing my previous note (and notes of others), has mellowed by a lot! Liquor was in all steeps definitely very thick and somehow a bit oily and with long mouthfeels.

Based on today impressions I raise the rating from 78 to 85.