Seven Cups

ok. not smoky enough for me.

One of a group of 4-5 rock oolongs I received in a sample pack from Seven Cups. Actually, this one was quite flavorful considering it was only about $6.00 an ounce or so on the website. Very strong roasted, yet aromatic bouquet, and a stronger flavor than the other rock oolongs I have tried so far. It really tastes like a Darjeeling almost. One of the few so far I might consider repurchasing since it is inexpensive and fairly tasty. Good for more than one steep too. Long finish with buttery notes.

Though I consider it sacrileges (and I am an atheist except when it comes to tea), I followed Seven Cups instructions and poured just boiled water onto my tablespoon of leaves in my Yixing. It is a very oxidized oolong with long unraveled, ragged leaves. I waited a minute (per instructions) then poured the tea. Bronze liquor that is very aromatic but kind of hard for me to taste until I let it cool down considerably. Smell is very pleasing, but a little smoky. I don’t really get any strong flavors and for that, I wouldn’t repurchase it myself. It is a good tea, just not my “cup of tea”. :) You can get quite a few infusions from this, though – my third 12 ounce cup was similar to the first.

I tried this later in the afternoon and to me there is no comparison between this and the High Mountain Anxi-style. I like the latter much better (though this is still a very good tea). The leaves smelled toasty as opposed to florally, looked a lot more oxidated, and were little B-B pellets in the package. The first steep at 208F for 2 minutes was golden, not yellow like the Anxi High Mountain. The liquor smells strongly woodsy, bready and minerally like a Dragon Well. The taste is mineral and roasted, but having just had the velvety smooth Anxi earlier, this seems more acidic and astringent. A good TGY, I am sure, but I am a biased judge because I can’t help but compare it to something my palate and nose liked so much better.

I got in my order from Seven Cups on Friday so will be logging some of those soon I hope, but this Tie Guan Yin is a good one. I followed the directions recommended by SC and did water right off the boil for 2 minutes in my Yixing which has a rather large capacity (~16 ounces) so i used a full tablespoon of dry leaves. Boy did the leaf smell good when I opened up the bag (which by the way was a resealable container – a huge plus for me right now in the middle of a tea-buying binge).

The brew is lighter than other TGYs I have tried, but very aromatic. Strongly floral scent like vanilla, mixed with what I think is jasmine and very golden-yellow, clear liquor. Second infusion smells even stronger – I let it steep for 45 seconds more. Same color and seems like even stronger bouquet of flowers smells. Just from my first two steeps I can say this is a winner and a re-order in cupboard. Glad I got the 50 gram bag rather than a sample. Going to stop writing and keep steeping.

I got the 2008 on sale for less than three dollars for 50 grams.

The dry leaf is pretty with lots of green mixed with much darker leaf. When steeped, the liquor was a deep gold color. The aroma was very floral with heavy toasty notes. The flavor was: smooth, deep, rich, earthy, with a slight sweetness and roasty toasty goodness. A lingering slightly tart fruitiness. I infused this many times. At the end the flavor was not as strong, but still very good.

I loved this tea. I am just now delving into the world of oolong, so haven’t much to compare it to, but it was just really satisfying. I don’t know what it tasted like in 2008, but it’s still tasty…especially at the current sale price.

This is great – no it is awesome!
It taste exactly like a Da Hong Pao should taste like. Smell’s like a sauna, have a malty taste but with a sweet end. I know it’s silly – but there is a base line in the taste that I have a hard time describing. It’s soothing, it’s sweet and clean. It reminds me of whipped cream but without all the sugar. Also noteworthy is the consistence; it’s just a little bit more thicker.

(This tea is from Thomas Smith!)

I’m burning through some of my old tea stock. It’s still surprisingly good. Sweet, nutty and smokey. A perfect wakeup tea for a morning like this.

Other high end vendors have Ba Xian as (very expensive) single bush Dan Cong tea (from Phoenix mountain in Guan Dong province). Seven Cups describes the taste of this tea as “similar to Dan Cong,” but it is a Wu Yi tea or Yancha. I assume it’s the same varietal moved to a different location, but would appreciate any more info.

First tasting: Leaves fill 2/3 of my favorite Yancha pot. 185° to 190° water and steep 30 to 40 seconds. This yields a seriously good cup with immediate floral scents and the first taste of stone fruit — apricots maybe, but subtle. Lots of minerals, but no bitterness even this strong. After first impression, spices and mild roast tastes emerge. The tea seems highly oxidized to me — no green tastes — and lightly roasted.

Seven Cups is having a sale that makes this tea an insanely good deal! I believe this would be a great everyday tea for oolong lovers.

This tea is another good example of a daily-drinker that has moderately above-average complexity and yet is easy to brew, with satisfying simplicity and flavor. Crisp, chestnut-laden vapors, warm mint, and some long lasting bright open-field greenness. Also works well as a cold-brewed summer tea.

This is always my “repair” or “energy” cup. If I’ve had a poor night’s sleep, or the weather is wearing on me, or I’m a little sluggish, I work through six or seven steeps of this at work and usually feel better. But, tea always makes me feel better. So who knows if this actually has any added effect. It’s also a nice break from my usually “green” streak of other tea flavors.

Just keeps going and going…

First, I must admit that shu puer is not something I get overly excited or worked up about. I enjoy it for some of its medicinal properties, its overall smoothness, the warmth it brings me, and as something that steeps many, many times. The flavor profile is okay. I’ve had a variety of loose leaf shus that work okay as at-work drinking teas and most of them are usually pretty light on the “riper” aspects. This one, however, gets a little fishy for me, even after a rinse and a few steeps. It does have larger than average leaves for a loose leaf shu and the overall flavor complexity is much deeper than other examples I’ve had, reaching into the umami, mushroom, and roasted nut characters. It is supremely smooth. A little tea goes a long way, with a relatively small portion giving a 6oz gaiwan more than half a dozen steeps before showing signs that it was thinning out. Again, I got what I paid for here, a smooth, not too weird, daily drinker loose leaf shu. I’m pleased with Seven Cups prices and quality.

This morning, this tea has more sourness and harshness than I remember. It’s interesting how the palate morphs based on extraneous conditions. Today, perhaps, the overwhelming heat and humidity have had an impact. It’s still delightfully sweet, supple, and flavorful.

This tea has bones. Yesterday’s Zi Yun Shan was palatable, if a bit flat. However, today, the Li Li Xiang lit me up. Nice tight nuggets of roasted delight grew into large crumpled and creased muddy-colored leaves. Nice chewy depth with flavors of almond, apricot, and a nip of lychee. The moderate amount of roast really adds depth and complexity to an otherwise expectable flavor. A bit nutty, as toasted sesame seeds. Most importantly, this tea held on. A layer at the bottom of my 6oz gaiwan lasted many, many steeps and gave a succulent brew from a 48 minute steep (!) at the end. I’m impressed by the quality of such an affordable (on-sale) tea. One that reminds me how good more oxidized, roasted oolongs can be.

Farewell, Zi Yun Shan, this is my last cup with you. A fitting tea for a “green” spirit of freshness, backed with a blend of light creaminess and sweet, lifting floral lilac.

Enjoying a gaiwan of this at work today. It’s supremely muggy and hot outside, and this tea is nicely countering the effects of sweating during sleep last night. Cool, crisp, and lightly sweet.

I purchased a bargain-bin 2008 batch of this tea to drink at work, as a light, “green” oolong. Accordingly, I need to drop my expectations for excellence from this tea. I followed the brewing guidelines and ended up with a tea a bit too thin and empty for my tastes. At two years old, the amount of dry leaf used needs to be double and the initial steep drawn out a bit. Faded wet spring lilacs, faint peach nectar, and a slightly sulfurous quality to the finish, maybe a bit raw and rough. In the end, I got what I wanted from this tea: affordable, organic, green oolong that’s not flawed.

Unlike the previous two Green Tea Lovers examples from Sri Lanka and Kenya, this tea does not outpour a majority of its aroma in the first steep. Instead, it takes some warming agony of the leaves to breathe. Once open, the aromas are delicate but full of warm dew, honeydew melon, steamed straw, and carrot juice. There are lots of savory herbal elements to the flavor, rosemary stalks and sweet mint. It has an impeccable body of natural sweetness balanced with dry, parched grasses. A long lingerer, this tea was giving solid infusions at the 7th steep. It could have continued on.

Full blog post: http://tea.theskua.com/?p=184

Oh the sweetness of this tea, how it lifts my day. The first two steeps of this tea are pure, viscous and sweet silvery delight. Downright juicy. Bright, clean strawberry and white sugar, mingled amongst orchid and lily floral notes. Not as grassy, hay-like, or complex as certain sources I’ve sampled, but incredibly clean, dazzlingly bright, and with a superb level of sweetness on the forefront. My only real criticism of this tea is that it thins out in the third and fourth steeps a bit more than I would like. Gives a glowing, warm, fresh qi.

It’s an Eight Immortals kind of day. I’m having nothing but problems with my customers today. Problems with my sales reps. Every phone call…a problem. I just found out that I’ve got to go back to Canada for a week next month. That’s cool and all, but I just got back from a week in New Jersey and I’m ready to chill out for a little while. Sorry, I’m nothing but complaints.

But the tea…is good. No complaints in that department. :) The first steep started my morning. The second steep went perfectly with my spicy Thai lunch. And I’ll start in on my third steep momentarily. I didn’t notice the oily feeling as much this time around…but it is “heavy” for an oolong. Eight Immortals has all the components I like in an oolong, but they are slightly muted. I could go with a little more boldness. But all in all, this is a very good oolong. I’m keeping the rating at 90.

I know that I will have to write more on this tea later. I have immensely enjoyed drinking this tea on what turned out to be a rather crazy day at the office. I honestly believe that the tea has kept me sane. This sample was sent to me by the wonderful Doulton and I can’t thank her enough. Thank you, thank you!!! Not only is this oolong absolutely lovely, the Seven Cups tea company is fantastic. I urge all of you oolong lovers to check out their website. www.sevencups.com – I honestly haven’t gotten very far into the site, I’ve been too overwhelmed and super excited about their oolong section. I love all of the details (harvest dates!) and origin notes that they include for each tea. They also host 14-15 day tours in China that are absolutely to die for. I know, I know…it’s one more tea company to bookmark. But you should do it!

Eight Immortals, besides having an ultra rad name, is very strong for an oolong. It tastes like a lightly roasted oolong…0% green tasting (which scores big points for me). The dry leaves look just like the picture, but once they steep and unfurl, I was surprised at how green they really were. The tea has a heavy and oily mouthfeel to it. (I think this is the first time I’ve ever typed the word “mouthfeel”. Maybe it’s just me, but the word strikes me as slightly perverse.) This is the first tea I’ve ever thought of as oily tasting. It’s a rather odd sensation. The tea is filling…almost like it is full of calories. I did not experience the strong floral smell that the description details. It just smelled oolong-y to me. All in all, Eight Immortals is an oolong for those who want their oolongs to taste like oolongs. I do not particularly detect any floral or bread-y notes. It’s almost like an oolong concentrate. I think this might be another contender for my Yixing pot. Yay!

Thanks again Doulton!