driftwood tea

Notes of amaretto, vanilla, cherry. Coconut leaves a slight oil film on the top of the liquor.
Base is likely a ceylon— a good quality one.
Very smooth and well-balanced. Nice dessert tea, good with a splash of milk and a little white cane sugar.

Different kind of Oolong. Can be oversteeped.

I’ve bought this tea from my local store and as a tea-lover was more then satisfied.
Dry leaf aroma: Amazingly strong, nutty, grass aroma. Notes of milk chocolate. Very sweet.
Wet leaf aroma: Potatoes. Marsh. Heavy cream. Wet grass. Asparagus.
Color: Light gold with tinge of green.
Throat: Toasted rice, wet grass, wet leaves, woodsy. Slightly sweet.
Brew aroma: Candied yams. Wet, freshly cut grass. Creamy chocolate.
Taste: Buttery and vegetal – immediate taste. Quintessential notes of a good Long Jing. Pleasant briskness. Some notes of asparagus. Some mineral notes. Nicely complex. Medium body. Long, lingering length.

This is a beauty of a green—I actually thought it was white tea until I checked because it brews up so light! It’s lightly buttery and very sweet, almost making me think I had put honey in it (I hadn’t). I made a pot of it to share with my mom and a friend, and before I knew it I had plowed through two cups! I rarely do that without noticing. Obviously it’s really drinkable. Luckily I have just a little left for when I want more, and this may go onto the “buy” list.

Having this while watching the season premiere of Hannibal. I can think of no better tea than a Gui Fei to drink while watching this. Lovely sweetness… dark… masculine… complex… warming…
It is as if the leaf hoppers that consume this tea are saying: “This is my design.”

Backlog:

A really lovely charcoal-y aroma that is less evident in the flavor than it is in the fragrance.

The flavor is honey-like and floral. And … there are cacao notes to this Oolong! Sweet and nutty. A really delightful Oolong that is worth taking the time to steep again and again!

Here’s my full-length review of this one: http://sororiteasisters.com/2013/09/09/organic-gui-fei-oolong-honey-tea-driftwood-tea/

Backlog:

A really excellent Silver Needle … one of the best that I’ve tried. Crisp and clean and sweet. A really flavorful cup, but with the delicateness that I like from a Silver Needle.

Only a very slight astringency from this tea, this is more “juicy” than astringent. If you’re one who tends to shy away from astringent teas, this one should be to your liking!

Here’s my full-length review: http://sororiteasisters.com/2013/08/01/doke-organic-silver-needle-second-flush-white-tea-from-driftwood-tea/

Backlog:

I really like Driftwood Tea … they’ve become one of my favorite sources for Oolong teas because their quality is top notch … and with this tea they proved to me that they also have some really exceptional green teas as well.

The leaves are fluffy – reminiscent of a high quality Silver Needle, but it isn’t a silver needle … it’s a Mao Feng! Light, grassy, vegetative, delicate, sweet, nutty … a really, really good tea.

Here’s my full-length review: http://sororiteasisters.com/2013/05/09/pre-rain-huang-shan-mao-feng-green-tea-from-driftwood-tea/

Backlog:

A really lovely Oolong … I really enjoy the Osmanthus Oolong teas because the natural peach-like flavors of the osamanthus accentuate the natural peach-y tones of the Oolong … they go together very nicely. This Osmanthus Oolong is sweet, creamy and dreamy!

I like that this is sweet but it doesn’t become cloying or too much for the palate. Lovely fruit tones. A nice creamy tone.

Here’s my full-length review: http://sororiteasisters.com/2013/04/28/osmanthus-oolong-tea-from-driftwood-tea-2/

Backlog:

A really good Oolong. Strongly vegetative in the aroma, but the flavor tends to be a bit more on the mild side than the aroma suggested. It still has a vegetal tone, but, not nearly as strong. I’m really impressed with Driftwood’s quality.

Sweet, buttery but not so much of a creamy buttery note… it’s more of a taste than a texture. This one becomes more floral as I continued to infuse.

Here’s my full-length review: http://sororiteasisters.com/2013/03/04/organic-oolong-17-from-driftwood-tea/

Oh boy am I ever behind! Review just posted on http://sororiteasisters.com/
for this really amazing oolong!

here are snippets:

Organic Oolong 17 from Driftwood Tea brings us an oolong that is for the faint of heart. That’s right, IS, rather than isn’t. This is a very delicate, soft, gentle, oolong that does not pack a powerful punch. It is lilting, and lovely. This is the perfect oolong for those that typically do not like oolong’s rougher edge.

There is a slight resemblance to a Dong Ding, but more like Dong Ding’s well-mannered female cousin. She is younger, more playful, and less intense, yet has enough of that robust nature that you know your drinking a tea of quality. Yet on the other side you get her floral breath that beckons you to come out and play with her in the sunniness of her color, and she makes everything feel cozy and smooth with her creaminess.

See more here:

http://sororiteasisters.com/2013/04/19/organic-oolong-17-from-driftwood-tea-2/

Full review on http://sororiteasisters.com/ on the 26th of March but here are the snippets:

Doke Organic Silver Needle Second Flush from Driftwood Tea offers a crisp, clean, and juicy sweet cup.

The mouthfeel is what I can only describe as medium, not light yet not heavy, it is somewhat brothy but it has a very nice cleansing effect on the palate.

The natural sweetness is delicious but I find the fruity notes very light, more apricot than peach on my palate.

I must admit this is not my all time favorite tea from Driftwood tea, but then again they have so many teas I have throughly loved, and obviously white tea is not something I drink a lot of. I enjoy it, but have to be in the mood for a straight white tea.

This was the first tea that I tried from Driftwood. It was a sample that James sent when he noticed that I have a taste for Oolongs. I’m not a tea aficionado yet, but I’m trying. I brewed the first for 2 minutes western style using water heated in my Utilitea kettle set to maximum green on the dial. The tea is smooth and fruity at first. The sweetness hit me right on the front of my tongue and lingered. The next two steepings were 1 minute longer each and the floral notes were more pronounced.
I could drink this tea every day and be happy! Can’t wait to try more of my order.

Full Review on March 15th here http://sororiteasisters.com/
For now here are the snippits:

Oriental Beauty (Dong Fang Mei Ren) from Driftwood teas does what Oriental Beauty always does for me, surprises me. I am always taken aback by this tea because I adore oolong, but this is never what I expect an oolong to be! This tea is light, sweet, and fruity, with notes that lean toward muscatel, and juicy peach.

One thing that is a bit different from this Oriental Beauty is that the honey notes are really thick, as in lay in the back of your throat thick, and so wonderfully sweet. Also unlike some Oriental Beauty this tea does not have that drying sensation in the back of the throat. The tea coats the throat and lingers lightly with honey kissed floral notes.

Driftwood Tea certainly does bring us a wonderful example of a high quality Dong Fang Mei Ren with a light smooth taste and mouthfeel. Light, yet so very flavorful! You won’t be wishing for more flavor because this tea has it all from woodsy, sweet, fruity, spiced, and, muscatel, almost in a Darjeeling way, to apricot and floral notes.

Sweet, Creamy, light, a pure delight! Good for multiple infusions! I like the 2nd one just as good if not better than the first! A Might Fine Tie Guan Yin! Lovely!

Nice!

This is really a delightful Tie Guan Yin. Sweet, light and creamy. I like that I’m not getting a really heavy floral note, some Tie Guan Yins tend to be so overly floral and it’s almost inundating, not the case with this first cup (the result of my first two infusions following the rinse) … this is light and refreshing, with a nice buttery taste that hits the palate toward the end of the sip and lingers a little in the after taste. Looking forward to a few more infusions with this!

This is Floral and Creamy! More floral than Creamy, I think. As it cools I can taste more of a sweet-leaf to it, too! Another non-nonsense type of tea…this time around a nice, solid Oolong for the stash! Very pleasant! Nice to sip! Nice to Gulp!

This is a terrific Oriental Beauty! A memorable one for sure! I LOVE the honey notes. The fruity-likeness is that of apricot which many of you know I enjoy! There are also subtle hints of sweet wood which are nice and I think the level of this subtleness is right where it needs to be! It’s smooth, too! I can understand what Nicole pointed at with the Darjeeling-esque flavor, too, but, like she said, without ANY astringency!

This is REALLY REALLY Nice~I like this very much!

WOW! This is a LOVELY Silver Needle! It really IS!

Soft fruit and pine needle aroma. Creamy, clean, Sweet-floral, apricot-type flavor.

Completely IMPRESSIVE!

Again, thanks to the generosity of Liberteas I get to try another wonderful tea! This is a light oolong that reminds me a lot of a darjeeling, though not astringent at all. Very smooth and lightly woodsy.

Aroma prior to infusing reminds me of a combo of candy and flowers. Strange but true! :)

After infusing it smells like a ‘chewy’ or more savory-type combo of flowers, if that makes sense.

It ‘brews’ up to a lovely lemon-lime type color.

YUM! This oolong is neat! I can taste a savory-creamy-flavor with a little hint of grapefruit, almost. On the end sip I can pick up a dried apricot flavor, too, which I LOVE. This is incredible! Very unique and darn tasty!

I’ll be sending some of this to Liberteas for her take on it!

I absolutely adore this tea. It’s a beautiful deep red, complex and well-rounded in flavour, with a natural malty sweetness and a satisfying, smooth finish.