Chicago Tea Garden

Wow, this tastes amazing. I remembered the last time I had this that I liked it as well but I am on my fifth infusion using my new Crane Gaiwan pictured here… http://instagr.am/p/KSgR3RyqQ2/ and all I can say is that I truly believe that this Gaiwan has improved upon perfection. I can’t believe how well it is holding up. I love the sweet liquor I get and just how silky each sip tastes and feels. Truly a gorgeous oolong.

I had the pleasure of trying this one at Tony’s Tea Tasting and it was love at first sip. It is amazing, the second steep my favorite. It is roasted in flavor, slightly sweet, bit grassy. Just amazing! When I was there I bought 100grams before it’s release. Now that Tony just released it I decided to pick more up just to have on hand…400grams later. Yikes!

OH MY GOD
This is love. It takes just like sticky rice – I was afraid to be disappointed.
This is an awesome tea, I shall definitely need more of it some time.

Just reviewed this delectable treat cold brewed. Check out my full review here…

http://rachelsteacupboard.teatra.de/2011/07/20/wu-yu-jade-mist-chicago-tea-garden-cold-brewed/

Love…Love…LOVE…this green tea. 1st Steep – Vegetal, bold, slightly spinachy, and very green. The leaves are so fine and grow amazingly once steeped. 2nd Steep – Just as delicious and more roasty in flavor. It has made it into my permenent stash. :-)

To read more about my Chicago Tea Garden Tea Tasting…
www.MyTeasandMore.com

I quite enjoyed this one as it was prepared for me by Tony of Chicago Tea Garden at a tea tasting of his and then again by my hand at home. It is very clean, slightly grass, and sweet. I would say it is bright and balanced. Delicious!

Smell: Dry leaves smell kind of sweet. Brewed it smells really “clean” and has a bit of sweetness to it.

Flavor: Very clean, smooth, a little earthy. No strong flavors, its soft and fluffy.

Reminds me of: Spring

Aftertaste: Soft vegetal flavor lingers for a bit.

Comforting or Refreshing: Both? It’s refreshing, in that it reminds me of Spring and is kind of “cheerful”. Comforting because its very smooth and the earthiness relaxes me.

Steeps: 1

For some reason I want sweet tea instead of savory today. I found this sample from Ellen after staring forlornly at my far too empty staple silver needle tin. Given the silver sleet drowning Illinois at the moment, it was a perfect fit for dessert and my penchant of matching a tea to the situation.
But this is quite savory a silver needle! Four steepings all tasted like jasmine broth, I’d say zucchini and konbu based with some vanilla at the start. It’s thin and has that distinct white mouthfeel seem to crave more and more. Each had undoubtedly jasmine notes, yet this isn’t scented. I had it beside a Bai Mu Dan as well, so I know it’s not me now.
Absolutely delicious, but not enough for the night. (Gestures to the aforementioned Bai Mu Dan) I’m not sure this tea would ever be satiating on its own, more of a hold over between other teas. I love it anyway.

This tea smells really nice when dry. It’s kind of a roasted scent, but clean.

195/3 min. – I’m trying to up my oolong brewing time as I prefer a stronger cup.

After brewing, it smells as if I overdid it. It’s pretty strong, but when I taste it, it’s perfect! I can taste the roasted leaves. It’s very good. There is no fruitiness or floral taste to it, just a nice roasted oolong flavor. I liked this version much more than the Zealong Pure.

Steep Information:
Amount: 2 tsp
Water: 16 oz 195°F
Tool: Adagio IngenuiTEA 16 oz
Steep Time: a little over 2 minutes
Served: Hot

Tasting Notes:
Dry Leaf Smell: a little roasty, hints vegetal
Steeped Tea Smell: buttery vegetal
Flavor: roasty, lightly vegetal
Body: Medium
Aftertaste: roasty
Liquor: translucent light yellow-brown

2 Resteep:
Water: 16 oz 195°F
Tool: Adagio IngenuiTEA 16 oz
Steep Time: a little over 3 minutes

a bit astringent

3 Resteep:
Water: 16 oz 195°F
Tool: Adagio IngenuiTEA 16 oz
Steep Time: a little over 3 minutes

yummy

4 Resteep:
Water: 16 oz 195°F
Tool: Adagio IngenuiTEA 16 oz
Steep Time: a little over 4 minutes

MilitiaJim says weak, I agree

5 Resteep:
Water: 16 oz 195°F
Tool: Adagio IngenuiTEA 16 oz
Steep Time: a little over 5 minutes

weak, no more after this

Favorite Zealongs: Aromatic, Pure, and then Dark.

I don’t love dark enough to swoon over it, but I do swoon over pure and aromatic.

http://amazonv.blogspot.com/2011/02/chicago-tea-garden-loose-leaf-oolong.html

Tried another oolong today, hoping for another homerun. This one is pretty good. At first, I steeped according to the directions on the side of the canister. 195 for 30 sec in the Breville. Either I didn’t add enough tea, or the time wasn’t right because it was weak, weak, weak. So, I plunked it down for an additional 30 seconds and the color improved significantly.

Okay, aroma… nice, clean, promising. Kind of toasty smelling. After brewing, it smells woodsy, roasted, somewhat vegetal. Taste… enjoyable. I can taste the roasted, vegetal scent that I had been smelling. It’s pleasant, but not creamy and not buttery.. I was hoping for a fuller taste in my mouth. Still, it’s very nice and very light.

After careful thought and consideration I decided to dedicate my new Monkey Yixing Pot to this Monkey Picked Oolong. I am so glad I did. This is a wonderfully vibrant, fresh, and slightly vegetal. After all of that the first thing I noticed was just how sweet the flavor was on my first sip. Simply exquisite!

very light tea, vegetal tones mixed with some nice citrus flavors. sadly, i’m almost out of this tea :(

I wasn’t sure this would live up to the hype. Well, I was wrong. This tea is absolutely delicious, and as the name implies, it has a “pure,” fresh quality I don’t think I’ve ever experienced in any type of tea. There are many flavors here — honey, floral, a bit vegetal — no roasted or chestnut type flavors, though, which I attribute to the tea’s minimal processing. It’s naturally sweet, and just as good on the second and third steepings. I steeped the leaves four times before the flavor began to fade.

Delicious hot, at room temperature or iced. One of the best teas I’ve ever had. I’m going to order more very soon, because I think I am going to go through this quickly.

Very light, very delicate. I prefer my green teas with a bit more power, but this isn’t bad at all. Pretty tea “flower”, too.

I watched the videos about this tea on the Zealong site https://www.zealoong.com while I was waiting for the tea to arrive, so my expectations were raised from the start. It didn’t let itself down. The delivery was prompt and professional, beautifully packed, and the tea itself was divine. I really loved the aesthetics of watching dry little green balls expand into whole green leaves. I steeped in a Libre tea flask so was able to see them unfold like a child’s magic monkey toy. The flavour was clean and pure, as promised. It wasn’t cheap, so I’m “saving it for best.”

This is the most floral oolong I’ve ever drunk. With each sip, I get a very distinct jasmine flavor for the first 10 seconds or so. The jasmine flavor then dissipates and leaves behind a non-specific floral oolong taste. It’s a very green oolong and does not have that roasted/chestnut type of note so many oolongs seem to have. However, I don’t find it particularly vegetal.

It’s unique, and it’s a good tea, smooth and flavorful, but unfortunately I am not terribly fond of jasmine flavors in tea. So I probably will not purchase it. I’ve had other Tie Guan Yins which did not have this jasmine note, so I’ll stick with those.

I’ve now repurchased this tea twice, so it seems it is going to be a staple in my cupboard. It’s the perfect accompaniment to waffles, pancakes, toast, English muffins…or anything toasted, because it has that wonderful, distinct “toasty” note. This morning I had it with waffles, maple syrup and blueberries. It’s a “warm” black tea, comforting, bold and strong. I could drink this every day.