QNTM Leaf Tea

Shae Advent Day 12

I refrigerated this and added milk, hoping to draw out some chocolate or creamy flavors. It tastes mostly minty, and I think the milk goes with it well. I wish I could taste the chocolate, but regardless, the mint is really fresh and lovely.

Shae Advent Day 10

I had to get up super early today, so I was happy to have something caffeinated this morning! I wouldn’t call this chai spicy, but it has a really complex and interesting flavor that I can’t quite decipher. It’s definitely my favorite tea from the advent so far! I wish their website had more information so I could see what the ingredients are because I really can’t tell what I’m tasting, but I like it!

Cold Brew Sipdown (2626)!

This was an ultra refreshing cold brew with a surprisingly deep, dense and round feeling sort of quality to it. Not that I’d call it a “heavy tea” because the white tea was still pretty fresh and mellow, but the jasmine was just so potent and sweet leaning. Not a delicate tea by any stretch. And, of course, that sorta purple-y grape note I often get with jasmine teas was very much out in full force. I don’t know, I’d just describe it as really lush and fantastic. Very, very nice send off for this tea!

Sipped on this one at the office on Monday.

Even though my sample is older and a bit beat up, the tea is still so great tasting. Highly aromatic and sweet with a lot of fresh and borderline “dewy” jasmine notes mixed with the crisp, and sweetly vegetal notes of sugar snap or snow peas right out of the garden (which obviously come from the white tea itself). Reminds me a lot, actually, of the peaceful kind of sweet earth smell of standing in a vegetable and flower garden on a cooler late Spring morning after a light rainfall.

This was sort of like drinking a lullaby. I really love jasmine white teas, and this is not an exception. It’s delicate and smooth but with a great fresh sweetness – and really I think that’s a huge part of why I lean so, so incredibly in favour of jasmine white teas versus jasmine greens. The jasmine notes themselves are just so much sweeter and almost fruity compared to the way that they play with more grassy or vegetal tea bases.

Flower Garden Oolong was sent to me as a sample with my first order from QNTM Leaf Teas. It’s never been listed on the website and still isn’t now. I’m not sure if/when it will be offered again.

Sipdown (1416)!

Sipped this one down since I don’t need multiple coconut oolongs in my stash right now. It was very waxy/buttery and fatty in terms of mouthfeel from the large quantity of coconut in the blend – it got to be a little much by the end of the cup but for the most part I really liked how rich that mouthfeel was because it was such a nice contrast to the lighter and more delicate creamy/buttery coconut and fresh green and floral oolong. I think of the few different coconut oolongs I’ve had in my stash this past year, this is the softest in terms of coconut flavour – but it’s got the most interesting and standout texture.

Cold Brew!

I recently ordered from QNTM to get more of their GABA Oolong and Purple Jade, and I decided to add in two ten gram samples with my order as well.

This seems like a pretty straightforward blend – oolong & desiccated coconut. I’m not even sure if there’s flavouring in the blend at all, which is cool! It was refreshing with a lot of the floral notes of the oolong coming out and a fresh, creamy coconut flavour that complimented them. Not overly flavoured, but smooth and incredibly natural tasting! I did think it was a touch waxy tasting/feeling, and I’ve tried other coconut oolong that I found a bit more enjoyable – but I’m also definitely not disappointed that I picked up this sample either!

Samurai TTB #42

I think I’ve only tried 1 or 2 purple teas before and this one blew me away with how good it was! Light and delicate like a green tea, but with a rich toasty, nutty flavor that reminded me of my favorite roasted oolongs. There was only enough left in the box for 1 cup, sadly, but I would definitely consider purchasing this one in the future!

I don’t drink much oolong, but I’m always surprised at how much I enjoy its roasted qualities when I do have it. I picked up a few oolongs from QNTM Leaf to try because, let’s be honest, they are beautiful. Also, if I have to choose between an oolong and a green or white tea, I’m going to pick the more robustly flavored oolong. Admittedly, I probably should have tried one of each but I suppose I can do that on my next order.

This blend looks like a good 50:50 mix of shredded coconut and rolled tea leaves. The coconut flavor is mild, but present, and I’m mostly getting that roasted quality I mentioned before. This was a very drinkable oolong, in my opinion, and I mean that in the best possible way – coming from someone who doesn’t drink oolong tea all that often, this was one I really enjoyed and would gladly come back to.

Geek Steep S214 – The Dark Crystal

Gongfu!

I definitely picked this tea out for the name; it just felt so perfect for the iconic imagery of the deep purple Crystal from the film poster of this movie. However, it ended up being a lovely setting and a great tea pairing! It’s medium bodied and so nice and smooth with toasty notes of roasted peanuts, cocoa butter, corn silk, and plum skins!!

Tea Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/CW1PdN9FdDF/

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4pYpMv4Qidk&ab_channel=JamesSupercave-Topic

Gongfu!

Recently got a new QNTM Leaf order so I dug into it this morning with a tasty little session! Love how smooth and toasty this purple tea is! The tea liquor has a great body and thickness to it, and the taste is heavily grilled/roasted nuts and corn with a pleasant minerality and slight woodier undertone! Resteeps considerably well, and was a nice cozier session to begin the morning with!

Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/CJ1TuJ9Ajc7/

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8f3puF-hU8&ab_channel=DavidDeanBurkhart

Samurai Travelling Tea Box – Tea #27

Cold Brew!

To be very transparent, I had low expectations for this blend because I’ve not had a lot of great experiences with purples teas – with a couple exceptions. I had no reason to think that this tea would beat the odds though…

However, the dry leaf aroma was immediately intriguing – very toasty barley/roasted peanut in aroma and y’all know I’m a slut for almost anything with that roasted flavour.

I almost wish I’d made this hot, but it’s truly excellent as a cold brew as well! The strongest flavour is a deep, toasty and caramelized peanut and almond flavour that makes me feel all warm and cozy inside – even if this is a cold brew. Aside from that prominent nutty flavour, the brew also has hints of woodiness to it, some roasted chestnut notes, and a very slightly fruity undertone. I’m also adding this to my QNTM leaf shopping list and, as tempting as it is to finish the sample, I’m going to leave it in the box so that someone else can experience it since I’m pretty sure I’ll be making a QNTM order sooner rather than later…

ashmanra’s monthly sipdown challenge
January 2023 → a tea for joyful solitude and meditation

This one’s a favorite and seemed like a good choice for a bit of solitude. I’m sad that QNTM Leaf is no longer around, not only because I love this blend. While they didn’t have a huge selection, their teas were really high quality and they were always available to chat if I had questions. They were on our Black-owned tea companies list pretty early on too, so I’m sad to see they didn’t make it. I imagine having a tea business isn’t always easy. Or any business really. Maybe one day they’ll find their way back to it. Until then, I’m hoping I’ll be able to find a good substitute for this one once I run out. I really do love it.

Currently: making potstickers, listening to The Magnus Archives, and drinking a cup of this tasty peppermint tea.

This mint tea is from QNTM Leaf Tea, a Black-owned tea company. It’s probably the one I’ve most been looking forward to out of the samples that I purchased. It has great flavor – it’s probably the most minty mint tisane I’ve had. The peppermint is so strong it almost stings the eyes a bit on that first sip, and there’s quite the lingering coolness in my throat halfway in. I really like that this includes three different types of tulsi as well. I have some Vana tulsi from Mountain Rose Herbs that I enjoy and, though I can’t speak to the flavor of the other types, I like the Vana so much that this was one reason I was so excited to try the Mindful Mint. I’m not tasting the cacao nibs, but perhaps with a second steep those might come through? I feel like this tea has a few layers to it. It’s also worth mentioning that it’s very nice even as it cools, so I think this would make a really refreshing iced tea as well.

Had a Western style mug of this a few nights ago and it was just lovely. Thick liquor with such a complex flavour – sort of somewhere between medium to full bodied. I think the general flavours of oak and other sweeter but dark leaning woods stood out the most to me, but they were pretty matched by a stone-y mineral quality, more savory and umami herbaceous dill and other brothy flavours, some charcoal roast, and then a nice undertone of dark plum that built up on the palate over the coarse of the mug. A smidge of vanilla too – not much, though. It was just so warm and inviting with a great spread of really cozy flavours that still felt connected and embedded in nature.

Samurai Travelling Tea Box – Tea #10

Drinking this one today Grandpa style – I wanted to make sure I tried it because this company is from the Black Owned tea company list, and I was debating ordering from them already…

I don’t have a ton of time right now, so we’re going bullet point tasting notes:

- Drank Grandpa style throughout the late afternoon/lunch
- Prune/plum undertones to the flavour
- Thick and syrupy liquor
- Deep woody/oaky notes and lots of minerality (petrified wood)
- Hint of spices like clove; especially on the “inhale” post sip
- Sandalwood notes

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXYA3-z_JH8

Really loved it; making a mental note to order myself some!