The Tao of Tea

Decupboarding, I sent the remainder of this to Tommy, but Tao of Tea is out of this one currently. So sad! This is a yummy oolong, I hope it comes back soon. I would certainly buy a tin of it.

It seems great for this gloomy and overcast day (San Francisco – what else is new?) I am getting toasted grain and peachy goodness. I think this is one of my favorite darker oolongs for sure… see previous notes if interested.

This is really a big cup of YUM – see my previous tasting notes.

I don’t know why more ppl. on Steepster don’t buy from the Tao of Tea!

I came home to my tea collection today and made some of this. Oh sweet peachy, roasty nutty honey goodness!

I am trying to not let myself get sucked in to the world of expensive, gourmet tea. Seeking out cheaper alternatives is a must have. I am very impressed with this. I’m not gonna lie to you and tell you I heard angels singing or the earth moved but this is an excellent value for the price ($4.00/oz as of today’s writing).

I steeped it for 2 minutes and used near boiling water with about 2 tsb of leaf and 10 oz of water. The website said to use fairly hot water in order to bring out the flavors. Very pleasant nectarine and peach flavors are coming through here. Not a trace of bitterness at all which can sometimes be a problem with these darker oolongs. Perfect for daily drinking…

Another thing I wish I had bought more of. My first experience with Tulsi, the Holy Basil herb of India. I wanted to get this in loose leaf form instead of those teabags you see in stores everywhere. This herb is supposedly an excellent adaptogen and good for stress relief. I am trying to find alternatives to caffeine all the time.

When I look at the picture of the tea on Tao’s website is a light yellow. I did not know how much leaf to use and I brewed this up STRONG! Mine is a dark orange… lol. Wow. It certainly is potent, I will need to scale back next time. Cooling is a very appropriate adjective for this herb. It reminds me of mint. I do not taste a lot of orange in this blend. I believe it is mostly tulsi with a very strong fennel aftertaste. I actually like fennel a lot so this is great for me, but be forewarned. I can see I will need to do more tulsi experiments soon…

According to Tao’s website: “Supporters of Small Organic Tulsi Farmers.
We work only with small-scale Tulsi growers that need
assurance for their harvests. As such, we provide up-front guarantees to purchase their produce and help sell it through a market-education development approach. As we grow, we envision our ability to help more small-scale and marginal Organic farmers in this process. Most Tulsi is still grown conventionally and the transition to Organics is recent. We hope to be among the few Tulsi companies that are in the forefront of this movement”.

Good for them!

Perhaps it is the power of suggestion but I already feel better after my potent tulsi tea…

Alright – this is a sipdown. I guess I’m going overboard with the lemon today.

I brewed this up extra STRONG knowing I was going to make it an iced tea for lunch. I added some turbinado sugar and lots of ice, along with about 1/2 cup of soymilk. Wow, it is good this way… like a bubble tea on steroids! Better than any drink I’ve had at Starbucks. I might need to get some more so I can do this again. :)

It’s been a while since I’ve had this and I am enjoying it this morning. The blend of nilgiri and lemon myrtle makes for a very zesty, fruity and citrusy cup. This would make a really great iced tea, I need to try it that way someday. It is also very fragrant! If you don’t like lemon I would not bother… see my previous notes

I like both Nilgiri and Lemon Myrtle so I was pretty sure I would also like this blend from Tao of Tea.

It really doesn’t smell like much when you open the bag. I brewed this for 4 minutes with near boiling water. I think I may have oversteeped it a tad so I will go for slightly less next time. It smells and tastes very lemony but is not too tart. Having only two ingredients helps here I think…. The nilgiri makes a nice counterpart to the lemon. I can’t help but wonder what this would taste like with a darker and more robust black tea. But I am liking this quite a lot, it is pretty tasty and I’m sure it would make a fabulous iced tea as well. I am wishing for some cookies to dunk in this tea. Check this one out if you’re a lemon lover.

Received this one from Batrachoid. I’m really trying to like green Pu-Erh. Honestly I am but I’m thinking it is not for me. The tuocha smells like hay and brews up a goldish liquor. The taste well I would have to agree with Teaequalsbliss mushroom like muskiness. I just find it to be too bitter for me. Very similar to Darjeeling that I have sampled. Still I am appreciative of the chance to try it(sigh).

This was another sampler that I received from Lelias’ Tea Ware.

The leaves in the tin are neatly rolled & polished green tea; when the lid is removed the smell of the mint hits you at once; a deep breath, and yet a deeper one conjuring winter, a cold day and wanting for a hot cup of warmth. If on a hot day this tea would be most welcoming in that it would add coolness with the freshness found in the mint leaves.

This tea is smoothly rich in body and mildly nutty. It is well blended with refreshing peppermint leaves, making me think of sweet mint; not that of an after dinner drink but the kind of mint one adds to liquor enhancing the flavor which in turn enlivens the palette.

Teas characteristic: Smooth, mildly nutty
Overall tasting: refreshing cup of peppermint tea soothing and cleansing all.

I liked this tea because the peppermint leaves can be fully savored all the while rendering for a luxurious cup of tea. I will have with next cup of this tea a York peppermint patty; since now I am realizing this could be what I mean for an over all taste.

The first time I had a good cup of Japanese green tea I was all, “Whoa! Do they put seaweed in this! Yum!” I’ve always loved seaweed. Those kids who made faces at me when I had my yummy seaweed snacks are probably eating sushi these days. hah!

So anyway. I love seaweedy Japanese greens. It’s the last of my sample from Batrachoid. sad. It’s tastes a lot more savory this time. Seaweed and hay. And most importantly, warm. I wish I could drink from my toes cause they are freeeezing! Now I want sushi.

This is a very nice tea to wake up to. It’s slightly toasty even though it hasn’t been roasted. There’s a nice sweet hay flavor mingling with a light matcha taste. Both savory and fruity. I’m not sure I taste the mango as the description suggests, but there’s some sort of fruit. Yummy. Made two steeps for me.

I got Batrachoid’s package today!! I was so excited to try everything =)
It sounds like this tea is a shincha (first harvest sencha). It’s AMAZING. Somehow, “gold” is a good description of it. It’s not steamy or vegetal like most sencha, but rather somewhat nutty and roasted. Great taste, I really like it.
I like Tao of Tea’s new site by the way!

Like sophistre… I thought this was a black tea when I brewed it. It looks like a black tea. And there are even notes here that are quite similar to a black tea such as Dawn (I miss the Simple Leaf!) But, it is, in fact, an Oolong. A very forgiving Oolong that allowed me to steep it at a higher temperature (I thought it was a black, remember?) It still came out wonderful: rich and delicious with hints of cocoa and light florals.

Incredibly smooth, very little astringency. I am guessing it probably would have less astringency if brewed in the gaiwan as I would normally steep an Oolong. I shall have to try that before sending the rest of the tea to my SororiTea Sister.

The leaves are dark and straight. They’re like little 1" twigs.

The brewed leaves smell like…wet fallen leaves…? I’m not sure what it is, but it smells like something natural and woodsy.

First steep was pretty mild and dark tasting. It was pleasant and tasted of stone fruits. 2nd steep was very apricot-y. I had to take a few sips to figure out the other flavors. Mint, anise and campfire. As much as I love the smell of a campfire, I don’t think I like the taste of one. I have never before tasted these things in an oolong. It’s very earthy and well oxidized. These flavors continue into the 4th steep except the minty character. That’s gone now. I’m really not digging the anise and earthy aspect. Normally, earthy is ok, but this is intensely earthy. It’s also very fruity, but the other flavors stand out more to me. I’m sure there are many steeps left in these leaves, but I’m done with it. I kept steeping out of curiosity, but I’m really not enjoying this tea.
Am I brewing this wrong? Everyone else seems to like it.

I’m smelling the bottom of my cup now and it really smells like autumn in the woods with a campfire in the distance. It smells fabulous because I love autumn, woods and campfires, but those are not three things I’d like to eat. hmm…

I’m learning a lot about oolong these days. I’ve always liked oolong, but I never had more than a few different kinds. Thank you Batrachoid, for expanding my education with your generous sample.

Had a sleepless night. My doggie was sick and throwing up. :( I thought I’d have a bit of matcha for the energy. I’ve never successfully made a matcha for myself before. Today was different.
I dont actually have the traditional tools for matcha so I just add the powder and water to a cup and stir with a spoon. Am I a barbarian? maybe a fork would be more whisk-like… Anyway, the matcha is lovely. It’s smooth, vegetal and not bitter all. I love the seaweedy flavor. It’s like a relaxing day at the beach without all the sand.
I’m really just a matcha novice and other reviewers are saying there are way better ones out there, but for me, this was really pleasant.

Thanks for the sample Batrachoid! I had forgotten how much I like Japanese teas. I have all this Chinese tea, which is great, but tea from Japan is truly unique. They are the masters of savory flavors.

I still love this stuff. If you cold brew it in the refrigerator it makes a great iced tea. See my previous notes. I will miss it when it’s gone and will certainly have to order more.

I admit I drink a lot of flavored, jazzed up and funked up tea, especially at work. It gives me something fun to look forward to during the day! I usually start the day with a flavored black or green tea and then switch to oolongs or herbals in the afternoon.

At nighttime I really want something simple and light sometimes. This is a simple french verveine which I am really enjoying. I definitely feel it is mellow and relaxing and helps me a bit with after dinner digestion. If you have never tried it, the flavor is citrusy but not overwhelming (I am drinking mine straight). It does a slight licorice aftertaste. Next to chamomile it’s also one of my favorite soothing teas for frazzled nerves. I will really need to try blending this with black tea someday.

My first tea sampled from the August Steepster Select. It’s a pretty solid ginger peach tea. The ginger is present but it doesn’t punch you in the face. The peach is there. Sweet, but not overwhelmingly so. Slightly flowery, in the generic potpourri sense. Warming, sweet, satisfying – a good flavored black tea. Everything plays well together. The only detracting factor for me is that sometimes I’ll get a spoonful with more flowers than the others, and at that point they can be a bit overwhelming.

Mmmm, mango. Delicious delicious mango. Definitely worth drinking when I follow the directions :)