400 Tasting Notes
Sipdown
I found an unopened bag of this last weekend and drank the rest of it on Friday (delayed note, for sure. Ha-ha). The last bit of this was grandpa styled. I even added the vanilla bean to the cup, which made it excellent . I don’t venture into flavored teas that often, but I’m glad that going through my stash allowed me the opportunity to revisit this tea for one last time… :)
Sipdown
I think this might be the first cake finished off…I’m not sure whether I should celebrate or allow this to sit for a few more days, realizing that I’ve had a tea in it’s entirety! Pats back?
Honestly, I’ve finished my cake ages ago, but the remainder of the tea belonged to me in sample via swap form; which has now been completely devoured. I must admit, this was one of the first sheng puerhs that I had which made really determine that sheng was/is a good find in my tea journey. The Year of the Monkey, 2016 was a fantastic brew that was both kind, yet bitter to the palate. It was good when brewed lightly, but was even better when pushed to the extreme (nearly boiling water
brought out the bitterness, but it would eventually mellow out…A LOT).
Oh what a joy…..Now, to keep going through my stash!
Good afternoon, folks!
This is my attempt to get back into the tea reviewing business….I might stop by more often now…I’ll do my best. Life gets pretty complicated at times. xD
Today’s tea of choice is “Aged Puerh, 10 yr. old shou” via Tea Swap from a long while back. I’m finally getting to the sample drawer (I’ve mostly been drinking the teas I like the least at work, so it makes things difficult for me to rate anything fairly, I suppose).
This one has a slight ‘Indian spice’ with the creaminess on the flavor. It has a thick body, which is pretty consistent throughout the session. I managed to get about 10 steeps from the leaf before I grew bored with the same flavor….However, it was definitely an interesting tea overall.
70/100
Puerh TTB Sample (?)
Finally getting to the bottom of my ‘sample’ drawer and discovered this one there. I picked this up a while back from the Puerh TTB that LP hosted (2016-17?). I must admit that I’ve had a bad habit in the past with drinking the samples I’ve acquired, but so far, I’ve drank a majority of them down. Unfortunately, I’ve been bad with reviewing/noting them here. xD
I was surprised that this was an oolong ‘cause there’re similar notes to black tea. Slightly malty, fruity, and mildly bitter at the start of the session. It lightens up after a few steeps in, but this is definitely a solid brew overall.
Work Stash Review/Sipdown
Honestly, this is not on my top favorites. It isn’t terrible per se, but it isn’t good either. This is one of those teas that cannot be fully enjoyed on its own, but will pass with a touch of honey and/or cream. There’s too much of an edge with this tea (malt/slight bitterness) that makes me realize that, while I might’ve considered this as a moderately okay tea once upon a time, my tastes have migrated elsewhere, I suppose.
I’m at that point in my tea journey where I’ll drink anything at least once, but if I don’t like it, I won’t finish it and/or return to it ever again. This is one of those teas….Still, with that said, this won’t stop me from trying more Ohio Tea Co blends/teas.
Drinking this today on my personal day off from work. Haven’t really had a lot of time to drink tea and actually think about it…
A bit bitter/smoky at the start of the session, but that fades after a few steeps. I’m currently sipping through steep # 7 while writing this at the moment—I’m noting stonefruits/straw/leather-y apricots. I’ll have to admit that I wasn’t liking this one off the bat, but it’s growing on me…
I might have to start digging into this cake more often, now that I’m mostly working my way through my stash…I’m curious to see where the notes will go after a few months…
Sipdown/Group Buy Sample
This one found itself at the bottom of my stash somehow, so I figured I’d finish the last bit of the sample this morning.
Honestly, the one thing I enjoyed about this tea the most (for a younger leaf) is the fact that it wasn’t heavy in astringency/bitterness. Rather, it was pretty light, considering the age of the material. There were slight floral/straw/fruity notes throughout the session, but they didn’t stand out that much—I started to increase the time/temp to pick out some of the notes. Overall, it was an alright tea, but I prefer something with a bit more age and/or complexity.
I have to say this is a splendid tea grandpa’d style. Honestly, it’s a smooth/sweet blend of deliciousness. The nice thing about it is the fact that there’s no bitterness when it sits at the bottom of the cup while you drink it. Definitely loving this thick-soupy liquor today. Good rainy day tea.
Tea Gift
Threw a few grams of this in my 60 ML pot and shared with friends whilst play a variety of board/card games. ‘Twas a fun time with plenty of good company, food, and of course tea. I often drink tea alone, but when there are individuals who say, “Hey tea man, I hear ya have the good stuff,” I have no choice but to bring out the ’goods’ and ‘wares’ to celebrate my friendship with people. :)
Anyway, the overall frequent notes were: pie crust, apple (later steeps), and ‘charcoal dust’.
