August Uncommon Tea

Sipdown!

Low Country is the one blend I repurchased when I ordered from August a second time. I dig the malty-sugary scent, although I’m glad the steeped cup has more bitter notes to cut through the sweetness. I don’t get much smoke, interestingly, and I’m not sure I’d pinpoint the flavor inspiration as bourbon if the label didn’t tell me to do so. In general, though, it’s a solid breakfast brew.

Unfortunately, I think I’ve ruined this tea for myself by drinking an over-steeped and too-strong cup while feeling sick after getting my covid booster. Now the smell (and thought!) of Low Country makes me faintly nauseated. Good thing I finished the packet this morning. So long, Low Country, and thanks for all the sips.

Not sure what prompted me, back in 2018, to order a plain white tea from August Uncommon Teas (a company known for blends), but I suspect that it had to do with the fact that, back at that time, all their flavored teas were in massive 100g size tins but this tea only sold for an ounce.

I first made a batch as cold brew, but it turned out super weak with my typical parameters… it just tasted like water to me, with an inkling of a citrus-hay note in the background. I increased the leaf for the next cold brew pitcher as an experiment to see if that gets some flavor out of it, and will have to see what tomorrow brings on it. I usually love cold brewed greens and whites, but maybe this one just isn’t cut out for it…

So this morning, I decided to drink it gong fu.

7g / 200ml / 185F / 20s|30s|40s|50s|60s|90s

The liquor smells wonderful. There is this effervescent and sort of vinegary-bite to the smell alone that makes me think of wine or champagne. There is an autumn leaf aroma, but somehow more golden and sweeter, like it is mixed with the scent of honeyed fruits. Unlike the cold brew, there is definitely flavor here. The main sip is filled with the flavors of honey, dates, hay, and autumn leaves, with a sort of dandelion blossom floral/pollen note at the end of the sip that lingers on the back of the tongue. There is a hint of melon there as well. The second steep brought out a fruitier flavor, tasting of dates, nectarine, and raisin, still with a strong hay/floral/pollen flavor in the close. On steep four, the flavor was starting to be less intense, but that also brought out a strong peach/nectarine note. The flavor was quite delicate by the fifth infusion, but I did a sixth just to use up the water I already had heated.

A nice aged white… at least prepared warm. Jury is still out on cold-brewing.

Still absolutely love this one. It’s such a unique flavor combo.

Sipdown!

It’s alright but not generally what I look for in my green oolong or natural jin xuan types. It has an almost “light roast” veggie quality that’s not quite working for me here (like bitter spinach? definitely grassy). I get more lemon verbena (don’t love verbena) than lemon proper.. maybe lemon zest, but imho, this isn’t buttery enough for full-blown “curd” (although there is some nice butter/cream notes, especially on 2nd steep).

Steep Count: 4

Third steep-: I’m reminded of a buttery water chestnut (weird, but kind of like cross a between an apple and a coconut). Somewhat lemony. Also softened spinach for sure now.

Fourth Steep @3min: coconut, butter, mellowed out grass, sweetish lemon (mostly nose/finish). Favourite cup so far.

I can’t really decide how I feel about this tea! I got suckered into a purchase thanks in large part to the write-up on the August Uncommon site. (AU hires some fab copywriters!) It’s probably just my pandemic-induced wanderlust exerting its influence, but the description of a gilded café in turn-of-the-century Vienna won me over. Plus, chocolate and cherry! What’s not to love!?

The thing is, I don’t really get much of the cherry flavor. Chocolate, yes, and it’s not a bad chocolate, either — it’s rich and slightly bitter. But the cherry gets a bit lost for me, other than a whiff in the dry leaf. Like many AU teas, this one has almost overwhelmingly powerful scent before steeping, to the point where it’s almost off-putting. Thankfully, the flavor is more subdued.

Hmm… as it cools, the cherry is maybe coming out a little more. But I don’t think I’d identify it as such if I didn’t know it was in there. It’s just a round fruitiness backing up the chocolate and the slightly astringent base.

I’m definitely digging it more as it cools; the flavors come together and make this a satisfying cup. I bet it would make a good nighttime dessert tea if I weren’t sensitive to late-night caffeine.

Worth a try, I’d say, though I don’t imagine I’ll repurchase.

Sipdown!

Taken without milk – because I was curious. Still smells and tastes like hazelnut brittle and (a darker) chocolate, but the finish is kind of bitter in an alcohol way; charitably, I could call it rum.. The aftertaste is 100% hazelnut though, which is lovely. Not bad, but definitely prefer it with some kind of milk to soften out the flavouring bitters and make it into a flat but tasty Nutella.

Drinking dessert tea with milk. This doesn’t seem like a good sans milk tea (imo, cocoa can be so meh and artificial without milk), but who knows.. maybe I’m missing out.

It tastes like chocolate hazelnut (Nutella) in a cup. Sometimes the creamy milk chocolate with nuts veers into dark chocolate territory but that’s as exciting as this gets. It’s probably the least funky tea I’ve had from August Uncommon. It’s smooth and an easy drinker and I’m alright with it.

To me, this tea smells amazing. The cloves and rose build on extra dimensions to the cocoa – giving it the profile of a fine dark chocolate. It reminds me a bit of Mexican hot chocolate (just needs chili?).

To taste (with milk) the flavours don’t mix the same. It still has the air of enhanced bitter dark chocolate but the clove note is its own deep, dense thing. The rose is a dusky mid-note that blends a bit (but who can ignore rose?). Strong personalities, all three – it’s a darkly seductive blend that I’ll have to think about a bit more (leaning in favour since I love rose and clove, but it’s a lot.)

Also Darjeeling as a base? Yeah, I can taste that too underneath those domineering three. it provides some extra tannins to the cocoa, emphasizes the spice, and adds a muscatel quality which I think builds the rose. Such a moody, neatly crafted tea.

Sipdown!

This tea made me so happy. Eucalyptus, melon, and dragonfruit? Yes, I love all of these things. The Eucalyptus is woody-fresh, almost minty chill, the melon is sweet candy, and the dragonfruit is both a sweet, vegetal cactus fruit. This makes a pretty refreshing and clean-tasting cup. I’d be happy to drink more of this in the summer months.

Sipdown!

This one has excellent elderberry flavouring. It’s really fruity, bright, and floral (violet is good here too). It pops and I love it. Also, I’d no clue that this contained (AU’s signature use of) lapsang souchong, as well as some oolong. I’m sure they add important dimensions to this tea but I don’t notice them much for the vivid flavouring and the milk I added.

Anyways, glad I enjoyed this tea; it was one of the AU blends I was most looking forward to trying too (its name and ingredients list speak to my not-so-secret love of symphonic metal and Alcest).

Cold Brew Sipdown (1540)!

I’m not gonna lie, when I decided to cold brew this tea is was so I could finish off the rest of the sample in one shot. I did not have high expectations for the flavour at all since my first cup wasn’t exactly something I was in love with. However, I think it’s better as a cold brew! Definitely very thick and anise/licorice forward in taste but the chocolate is more mellow and whatever funk/sourdough type quality I was getting from the barley has been essentially chopped in half. I still don’t love it, but it was improved!

It takes a lot for a tea to turn me off so much based on aroma alone that I actively put off trying it and, thinking about it now, there’s only one tea that comes to mind that smelled so off putting to me that I flat out refused to try it…

But I considered, with this one.

Which is crazy honestly because it sounds like something I should like! Sure, I’m not huge of chocolate teas but roasted barley is incredibly up my alley and I really enjoy anise/black licorice flavours for the most part. However, the dry leaf aroma of this tea smells like gross sweaty feet to me mixed with an almost sickly sweet licorice smell and it makes me feel icky giving it a whiff…

Despite that, I did steep up a mug earlier this week and it’s not awful. It definitely (thankfully!) doesnt’t taste sweaty or like feet at all, but there is a slight sourness to the barley that is a little more in the vein of like a sourdough/rye bread but with that roasty undertone. The chocolate is strong and not great but not bad and the licorice/anise flavour, while sweet, is a very reasonable level. The anise is my favourite part. I don’t love this overall though and I’ll definitely not seek it out after I crush the sample – but more because I just don’t think the chocolate and anise compliment each other and less because of the weird smell thing.

Oat milk makes everything better but this is still an odd and rough tea! The cardamom flavour morphs into musky, floral tobacco and back again. With a hint of pine, it’s pretty drying/astringent. The flavour combo definitely reminds me of a mix of essential oils (the ones that are usually marketed as “woodsy fresh” and “sweet manly musk”).

It’s a pretty neat and novel blend but I don’t love it.

Mastress Alita’s sipdown challenge, April 2022: A tea paired with the weather

This tea feels like a close relative to “Walking on Sunshine” by 52Teas – although it’s more citrus bloom that citrus fruit, it carries those same bright, clean sunny vibes that are perfect for a heralding in a positive change in weather. It’s not quite an exact match for today’s weather though (I need to find a gusty, sea breeze tea).

I cold steeped mine over night and while it still contains notes of orange blossom and almond, the crisp honey is so dominant. While sipping the last of it, I think of (and crave) some of Humblebee Meadery’s fun and surprisingly light flavours, like Green Tea & Lime, or Saffron & Orange (http://www.humblebeemead.com/)

This smells like a type of almond cookie we get a lot around Christmas and sort of tastes like it too. While the cup was still hot the honey flavour came on very thick but as it has cooled it toned down enough to let the almond cookies (with orange blossom highlights) shine through a bit.

The white peony (bai mudan) works really well here as a base, emphasizing those sweet, floral flavours of blossom and rich, fruity amber honey. I think I taste a hint of natural hay, stonefruit, and cucumber notes, which I didn’t expect when I smelled such a flavourful tea. Good combo.

Steep Count: 2 – Yep, it’s mellow. Barley malt comes through more on 2nd steep (interesting ingredient – builds both the almond cookie and honey imo).

2021 Sipdown #35
Final piece of sipdown spam! This was the next tea we used for my partner’s sore throat. I was sad to see this one go, as it’s one of my favorite green teas to have warm or cold but it went to a worthy cause. The next time I get anything from AU, I’ll definitely pick up some of this!

This is a super cozy cup and so easy to drink. Trading the smoke of Outlaw for chocolate, this blend almost makes me like chocolate cherries and remember that Black Forest Cakes exist and are some of the few cakes I like.

This tea is also a nice consolation for an eventful Canadian Thanksgiving (only three of us this year). First, my father accidentally poured the gravy into a pot with soap (ahhh… he’s the saddest about the loss of gravy). Then I placed a stirring fork on a hot stove element and then touched said fork with my middle finger, somehow. My finger is currently in a nice cold glass of water… but I at least I have tea!

Taken with oat milk.

This is definitely a niche tea but I like it more than not for its similarities to Silk Road’s Chocolate Panda (which contains vanilla so I like that one slightly better).

I think the aroma and flavouring is reminiscent of those licorice hard candies you get at Greek restaurants (there are also cinnamon ones). Sweet sugar, anise, with a touch of chocolate and barley (all hail the Barley Mother) to give it a “thickness” which I will generously dub “creamy.”

I added milk to my last steeped sample portion and kind of wish I’d been drinking it that way the whole time. It toned down the more medicinal aspects of this blend and made “creamy” truly creamy. Also a nice way to wind down with some “horror” novels (plural) last night. I don’t usually read or watch a lot of horror – I’m more a fantasy/sci-fi person but it’s always nice to branch out to the other speculative fiction genre every now and then.

My mom could not even handle the smell of a steeped cup so your mileage may vary.

I find this one to be pretty similar to Golden Arrow from the same company, except it’s less smokey caramel and more sweet spirits. Unlike GA, It has a thinner but flavourful mouthful that takes me right to the downtown distillery! Vanilla, cocoa and malt, with hints of burnt sugar and smoke. It doesn’t burn the throat going down like bourbon does, but it’s close!

It’s a pretty accurate rendition of a alcoholic drink, and also brings to mind O’Connor’s Cream from TeaGschwendner (that one’s way bolder though).

Taken with both dairy milk and oat milk on different occasions. That may be what turns this bourbon into an Irish Cream sibling.

Steep Count: 2

SMOKE!!! Caramel, and vanilla. I seem to fall into the group that loves this tea.

I find the smoke to be pretty front heavy and undeniable; I think it runs the risk of dominating the sweet dessert notes and ruining the blend if you’re lapsang souchong opposed. I like my campfire smoke tea though and think the addition of caramel and vanilla notes makes it even more drinkable. For those who want a tad less smoke but like the burnt sugar and vanilla – Low Country is similar but boozier and without the caramel toffee (I personally prefer the GA here).

Taken with oat milk. This tea can handle the thickness, and the grains emphasize sweet smoked malt goodness. Underleafing and a milk also helps minimize the smoke.

Steep Count: 2

I’m all out now, but If I order from AUT again this will be in the cart. EDIT I should also add that my mom, who hates Lapsang Souchong and loves to threaten to throw it out, found this to be pretty delicious.

Had this the other evening and while it’s not super exciting I did get rhubarb from it. It’s like chamomile with a little accent. I like chamomile so we’re good. (I’m giving this my default rating for chamomile +1 for rhubarb. And, yes, I do rate chamomile highly. Love that stuff)

Gongfu Sipdown (1461)!

Yesterday I finished off the last of this sample with some juicy blackberries nibbled on in-between the steeps! This Taiwanese oolong has a beautifully buttery mouthfeel with medium bodied notes of gently toasted hazelnut, coconut milk, and undertones of pandan. It was exactly the kind of cozy oolong that I needed for a super rainy afternoon and evening!! Six steeps and it was tapped out though. Honestly, I didn’t have a ton of leaf for the size of gaiwan I was using so I was pushing the steep time longer to compensate & I’m honestly surprised it lasted as long as it did.

It’s definitely a shame that this isn’t a tea still on the AU site because it’s definitely one I would order. This and Ventura Highway, both straight oolongs from AU, were very good. I know they have a third called Eventide, and I plan on getting a sample whenever the new blends launch that AU recently teased in an email.

I know I got this sample from someone but I can’t remember who. So, thank you to whomever it was that passed it along – maybe VariaTEA or Sil!?

Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/CTe9oNCgXGP/

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-PzATU-45U&abchannel=SaidTheWhale

I love the concept and the dry leaf aroma. Mmm.. peach candies and lime blossoms. Both dry and steeped, this reminds me a bit of Buddha’s Blend from David’s Tea – floral, peachy, candy elements, but a tricky base that can get a bit nippy or fall flat underneath all the floral, fruity, candied, and roasted ingredient notes.

Besides a mixed bag of fruity candy, this one tastes a little like a signature cocktail. If I focus on the lime and the base comes out sharp it’s a margarita (predominant in first steep); if the peach and rose notes are stronger it’s a Bellini or Fuzzy Peaches (2nd steep). I don’t really pick up on the pistachios much beyond a mild roasted creaminess (and bitterness, which adds to the boozy illusion for me). The rose, peach, lime and white chocolate notes are generally more apparent if inconsistent (I don’t know what’s going on with this tea sometimes).

It’s weird, it doesn’t quite work as advertised, and has a funky mix of ingredients that never seem to come across the same way, but I kind of like it anyways.

Steep Count: 2