GoeTea

Sipdown! 828. Thanks to LiberTeas for including this in my tasting box, which I have yet to make a great deal of progress on.

Anyhow, this is delicious, and perfect tonight. If anything, I brewed it a tad strong. It tastes like an aged tieguanyin to me, all creamy and delicious and roasty. Similar to the aged tgys from Verdant that I’ve enjoyed recently, although perhaps more… burny. And very good. Yum.

The flavour is not exactly what I was expecting from a tea called Severe Degree of Fermentation (I was expecting something very roasted and strongly-flavoured). A two minute infusion produced a very light cup, which has some faint toasty, woody flavours. Little oolong aftertaste, but the flavours are characteristic of the late infusions of a (green?) oolong for me, minus the accompanying astringency I often find in said later infusions. It’s just very light. I think there’s enough leaf left for at least a generous additional cup, so I will have to give that a shot with a higher leaf:water ratio. It’s good, but just very light.

Second infusion (175F/3min) is more like a less green green oolong. Does that make sense? Similar flavours, but the green-ness (vegetal qualities) aren’t so present, and it’s a bit toasty/roasted. It’s better, buttery and more flavourful than the first infusion. A bit weird actually, because I feel like the flavours I’m getting here belong moreso to the first infusion of a tea than the second (and I didn’t get the two mixed up). No astringency in this infusion either, and quite a bit more oolong flavour.

Definitely a different oolong that I would like to explore a bit more. Hopefully tomorrow I can get another couple infusions out of this set of leaves as well :) I love oolongs :D Thanks for the sample, LiberTEAS!

ETA: Third infusion (175F/4 minutes) is pretty weak. Still no astringency but kind of has a woody flavour.

Happy Easter to those Steepsterites that celebrate it!

I went with my family to the church service and I’m now enjoying a nice lazy day before we go to dinner with my family this evening! I have some nice time to relax and I’ve finished most of my homework, so I decided to brew up this little number from the box LiberTEAS sent me!

This has brewed up into a very bright yellow that tastes really nice! This has a nice creamy feel (not as much as a milk oolong but it does leave a nice heavy feeling in the mouth). It’s sweet with a very slight spinach note to it, and it’s very buttery. There’s a nice floral tone that skips around on top of everything else. As this cools, it’s becoming sweeter and lighter. A nice apple flavor has come out that is crisp and sweet and oh so delicious!

In other news, the Easter Bunny (due to a lack of idea for other gifts) brought me some money and I’m making an order tomorrow from Verdant Tea that I’m very excited for! I contacted David and he is allowing me to make a custom sampler pack with some teas I’ve been wanting to try and I super excited to try them!

This is a truly exquisite oolong. Complex, fruity, nutty, rich. Get it. Drink it.

Different than the Oolong Tea with a High Degree of Fermentation, I am finding this Oolong to be more sweet than savory, with a remarkable floral tone that fills the air when I first opened the tight, vacuum-sealed package, and again through the steeping process, and now as I taste it, the floral notes dance upon the palate. Delightful!

Sweet, floral, with a hint of sweet apple in the background. Deliciously looking forward to many infusions with this one.

This is one of the more unusual Oolong teas that I’ve ever encountered, I don’t think I’ve ever tasted one quite like it. It has a savory overtone to it, slightly salty and creamy. It is soupy … like a rich, thick broth. It tastes very nourishing. I agree with TeaEqualsBliss in that this is as though I’m eating something rather than drinking it.

But there is also sweetness to it, and rather than a savory flavor to cut through the sweetness, it is as though the sweetness is here to cut through the savory tones and give it some balance.

Like I said, a truly unusual tea. I really REALLY like this one.

2nd infusion:

Not really buttery this time. A bit nutty, but not overly. A nice mellower oolong flavor. Infuses darker in color but not as flavorful. Still a great Oooooooolong tho!

If anyone else received this one and knows how to read Japanese – by all means – EDIT this tea!!!!

This was the tightest packaged tea I have ever come across. The FRESHNESS and aroma is truly amazing tho! Well worth the vacuum-packed effort!

I will be doing an infusion test with this one…here is the 1st infusion’s findings…

The aroma is a little like slightly salted butter. The taste is a little like buttered veggies but not as intense with the buttered notes as some I have tasted. It’s brothy and savory.

This is darned tasty! I feel like I’m eating something rather than drinking something!