Verdant Tea (Special)

sipdown! I’ve been drinking this one this morning trying to figure it out. On the whole…it mostly just confuses me. I don’t dislike it, but it so isn’t the tea for me.

Sipdown! had a few cups of this tonight while i bounce between doing work and trying to plan the wedding and get my life organised for this coming week haha. I can dig this tea…even if it is an oolong and not my usual cup of tea. Not sad to see if go though :) i’d drink this one over a lot of other oolongs though heh

Finally caught up with my tea logs from yesterday! i’ve been drinking this one today as i’m trying to spend some time going through my verdant reserve club teas today. They won’t be sipdowns but they are my oldest teas and the ones i have a tendency to hoarde. This is actually quite a nice oolong as far as oolongs go. it has that oolong taste that i don’t mind, but also don’t love. I have a tricky time with oolongs. Green ones often have that oolongy taste that i don’t like…and roasted oolongs sometimes have a particular taste that i also don’t like. this particular oolong has the same sort of taste, but it’s much less in this particular version. Overall it’s a nice tea.

Mom stole my other cup of tea so I had this one instead. Not quite what I wanted but it’ll do.

Another non sipdown tea that I cheated with today and brewed western style. Initial impressions of this one are that I will quite enjoy it, moreso than the other that I tried today. Theres something in hath notes of this one that I’m looking for ward to exploring.

Having another round of this in an effort to drink down my verdant reserve teas. I don’t love this one. It’s a decent enough oolong but nothing amazing for my particular taste buds! I may need to pass the rest of this on to my tea sister terri since she loves it more :)

This isn’t asipdown and my head is not happy with me today….worried I’m getting sick. I cheated today and opted to trythiswith a simple western brew mostly just to get a sense of how I might feel about the tea when is I t down todo a proper gong fu session. Verdict? I think ill like this one. It’s got an earthy quality about it, more similar to a darker tea than a roasty oolong. More to come in the future.

Sipdown, 131. I was originally going to have a different type of tea for the afternoon, but then I decided it would be interesting to see if I could taste differences in shu puerhs. So I grabbed this one!

The initial impression is that this one is very similar to the Xingyang shu, but it reveals its differences. The predominant note is wood, but this is like pine rather than oak. This lacks the deeper aged bourbon notes, instead this is brighter and crisper. No candy sweetness either, a cleaner, sharper texture. As the steeps progress it got less woody. The grits/cornmeal/tamale crust that Terri mentions is spot on. Interesting. A hint of sweetness pops up.

I do enjoy trying out all these puerhs. Education! :D

Sipdown, 132. I have come to the realization that I’m just not that excited by puerhs, sheng or shu. So I’ve packed up my reserve club puerhs off to someone who will appreciate them better, or will pass them to someone else who will appreciate them. I did, however, save one gongfu-sessions’ worth of each tea to try, in order to continue my tea education.

The description of this tea says that it is a true tea lover’s tea, and talks about the mustiness of old books. Again I come across the conundrum of puerhs, in that they often encapsulate some of my favorite scents, but I don’t necessarily want to taste those scents. Musty books/libraries, old oak barrels, newly dried tobacco, piney woods, wet rock. I love those scents, and they all often show up in puerhs of different varieties. This one definitely has the old oak bourbon barrel thing going on.

It’s amazing how sweet the first couple of steeps are. It’s incongruous to me… The scent and initial taste of somewhat smoked wood, followed by the sweetness of candy. I think especially for shu I can see the appeal, especially because I like bourbon and some of the same notes run through this puerh. This is nice, I am enjoying it. I just don’t think I am ever going to crave a puerh or want to have a particular one more than once. Maybe one day I’ll find a puerh that I love enough to keep in my cupboard.

sipdown! mwahahah ’cause i sent the rest home with Cavocorax for her to try out. Nothing says AWESOME DAY ever than getting to give teas, get teas and throw around a small child ;)

Silly enjoy this one, though i’m not sorry it’s all gone. Decent enough cup but yabao seems not to me quite the right tea for me on the whole!

I didn’t think that i’d like this one, since in my head i was equating it with verdant’s silver buds yabao. I’ve been drinking this one to relax from the work that i’ve been called in to focus on today. I’m supposed to be be having a FUN weekend and yet now i’m troubleshooting issues. What fun! I guess i shouldn’t complain too much though, since the past two weeks have almost been normal work weeks. crazy!

I promise to write a better review at some point in the future (no this isn’t a sipdown terri..i just needed to get around to trying some of my reserve teas!) but for now, this is a sweet, delicious tea that i’m enjoying the sun with.

This tea makes me sneeze. I pretty much wasn’t expecting to like this tea since it’s a green one :) I had a go at this one, mostly just to sip a few of the steepings and move on to the next steeping. I can see how lovers of the green, would really enjoy this one :) It’s subtle and then floral and stuff. Wasn’t a fan of the jasmine that came from behind! ha. Overall, i can appreciate this tea, but it’s not for me so no rating here. If you like creamy, floral delicious green oolongs…this is a tea for you :)

The last time I reviewed this sheng, which was a reserve TOMC for last August, I had just gone into the studio with a local rapper, Spaide Ripper, to record a song called Angels.
Coincidentally, he just contacted me & the CD is almost ready for release, & he’s planning to make a music video, which he wants me to be part of. Cool! I’m not really a huge rap fan, but he’s a pretty cool guy, a family man, & we had a great time in the studio. So, you know I’m in!

I spent most of the morning sipping on steeps of this Sheng & gardening. It’s a smooth & savory one, with a hazelnut butter kind of a taste to it after awhile. The earlier steepings are potent but smooth, with a spicy taste that reminds me a bit of Cannabis, which I haven’t smoked in over 30 years, but did smoke a lot of back in the day, & yes, I inhaled…every time!
sipdown – 316

This afternoon I spent a couple hours in the recording studio with a couple of local Rappers, adding Harp tracks to a song called Angels.
I was nicely paid, I think the final product is gonna sound really cool, & they were really nice guys! I made them promise me that if/when they make a music video, I get to be in it, playing my harp dressed up like an angel. Turns out the owner of the studio was the engineer for my very first recording, which added a little nostalgia to the afternoon.

I came home & started enjoying cup after cup of this Sheng, which was the last of the TOMC Reserve teas this month.
What does it say about us Sheng lovers that we like teas that smell a little bit like a horse’s breath? LOL, sorry, I just had to say that!

The aroma of the dry leaf is heady, like incense or sweetgrass, a very rich & somewhat smokey vibe. This steeps into beautiful cup after cup of caramel colored tastiness. Initially it is a very pure lightly floral taste, but it gradually develops into an almost creamy sensation with a nuttiness that has me thinking Hazelnut Butter. It’s also very smooth & sweet, sweet like a spring rain. Yeah, that’s what I’m thinking. I still have more steepings to go, but I’ve probably reached my threshold for the night. I may take it back up tomorrow, doing a rinse first to reheat the leaves, & then see where it takes me.
Then again….maybe one more round…

Beautiful & fluffy to look at, in pale shades of cream & sage. I went with the test tube steeper, which is my preferred method for greens these days, & short steepings. A delecate tea with essence of cucumber & lavendar. Probably my least favorite green from Verdant, but a good palate cleanser after drinking my beloved black teas all morning, & a nice segue to something else.

Geez, I guess I’m not the only one who hasn’t drank these August teas yet?
OK….here goes…

This is, first off, a gorgeous tea, IMO. It’s real delicate looking, in shades of palest greens, cream, & sage highlights. The smell is of delicate greens & cream. The brewing suggestions are my least favorite green tea brewing method: fill a 8oz glass cup with 195 degree water & sprinkle the leaves on top. Start sipping, blowing the leaves away until they sink, add more water as needed. This rarely goes well for me. By the time the first cup is cool enough for me to take a sip, it’s usually very bitter, no matter what tea I use. I’ve tried this method with Jingshan & Dragonwell both, & so I usually use my glass steeper instead.

Since there’s enough of this for me to sample it a couple times, I went ahead & followed the instructions this time. Doing things this way has it’s appeal, of course, because I get to watch the leaves doing their underwater dance, floating up & down in a random dreamlike way. There was a point where all the leaves were laying on the bottom, except for one that was standing on it’s tip, fully unfurled like a sail! Or maybe a seaweed frond.

This first cup was a little rough for me. By the time I was able to sip it, it was fairly potent, green, & kind of bitter. Then I started noticing the taste of lavender, which is a little out there for me, but ok. Each time I added water to the cup the flavors got a little milder, the 3rd of 4th cup has kind of a citrus flavor. I ended up enjoying it ok, although next time I’ll return to steeping in the test tube.

I awoke this morning, having made a decision to work my way through the Verdant TOMC bundle from August…finally! I’ve drank Zhu Rong a couple of times (& purchased enough of it to probably keep me set for life), and had cups of Yu Lu & Bai Mu Dan (a couple of days ago). Today I’m working on the Reserve club teas: Wang Yanxin’s Jin Jun Mei, 1st picking Jingshan Green, Haixintang Banzhang Mountain 2007 Stone Pressed Sheng, & this 15 year aged Tieguanyin.

What to say about this tea? I’ve been through several steepings & I would describe it as a very refined cup. The roasting is very light, the taste is gentle & sweet. The floral qualities are alluded to, but not dominant & more like a very light incense, which I can feel as a sensation in my sinuses.

Admittedly, tieguanyin is not one of my favorite teas, although I do enjoy a cup here & there. Having said that, this is a very mild cup, with a ‘pure’ quality to it, as if I were drinking from a mountain spring.

A sad sip down…sigh…but tea is meant for drinking, and I’ve managed to stretch this one out as long as I could! This tea has been my accompaniment all day while I’ve been practicing for tomorrow night’s orchestra concert. When you’re a Harpist, you usually only attend the dress rehearsal, which is tonight.

I think most of my favorite teas from Verdant come from Wang Yanxin.

Morning gongfu session, edging closer & closer to a sip down with this tasty tea. I can’t believe I still have some of this, but it’s only because I hoarded some while it was still available, and managed to stretch it out as long as possible. Still, only a few sessions left until the sad sip down comes, and I will milk each one for all it’s worth. :)

Yes, I still have a small amount of this tea. I’ve been hoarding it for awhile, and today is the perfect day to enjoy some. I’ve reviewed it plenty of times, so that’s all I’m gonna say. It’s delicious.

Long ago I picked up some extra of this tea, & I have been enjoying multiple steeping today, & enjoying the time to savor those steepings.

It’s hard to believe that I still have some of this!
I usually go with a gongfu sessions with this tea, but today I’m just having an awesome cup of it, with a resteep next. It’s rich with malt, honey, & sweet potato. Thick & delicious!

Ah, Jin Jun Mei! Thank you Wang Yanxin!
This was my morning gongfu session tea, which I thoroughly enjoyed. The dry leaves are tiny & twisted, in shades of black & mahogany, with an aroma of honeyed toast. Warmed, I also smell hints of chocolate.
54G + 4oz (rinse) 10/20/30/45 sec, then 1 min/2/etc

Even at 10 seonds, this is immediately rich & satisfying, with flavors of sorghum molasses, sweet potato, toast, & malt that build with each successive steep. So thick & delicious, a real treat.

I’m having a ‘tea comparison’ day. This morning it was Keemuns, this afternoon it’s been Jin Jun Mei. I have 2, but I’m only actually writing a review about this one. The other way (which will remain nameless) is there for me to have a way to see how this Jin Jun Mei stands.

Both teas were steeped identically, with equal amounts of tea @ 1min, 2min, 3min. Then I sat & sipped them side by side to see how they differed. The ‘other’ Jin jun mei was & is delicious, just for the record, with a thick feel & flavors of honey, malt, & butter, liked butter & honey on toast. There’s also some roasted sweet potato in there.

Wang Yanxin’s Jin Jun Mei is perhaps not as malty/toasty, but sweeter, without a doubt, & with a chocolate taste to it as well. It also presents as a more refined cup, although I’m having trouble defining exactly what I mean by that.

All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed them both, & on any given day would be very happy with either one. I have just enough of this one to drink it one more time, & I have some other Jin Jun Mei’s coming, so I may do a Jin Jun Mei Marathon at so point in the future, LOL.