Verdant Tea (Special)

Well, I’m finally finishing this packet. I tried to stretch it out as long as possible because I really liked this one. Some of the blends from Verdant have been a little odd (but, I’m happy to try them). This one, I just loved. I love authentic tasting floral teas, citrus, and vanilla, all flavors present in this tea. It is also really flavorful. Juicy is a great way to describe this. The dominant floral is definitely jasmine, followed by citrus, and then vanilla. The texture is almost syrupy. The aftertaste is floral and sweet.

gah steepster ate my note. to recap:

this one was from dinosara and terri… i had it yesterday and it was really nice. This is not a strong puerh – it’s light and refreshing and reminded me of drinking spring water, except with taste that was sweet and earthy and just downright calming.

Final Count Yesterday: 75 (though that will be going up again with some teas that Kitenna dropped off once i get another few moments to enter them)

I thought I had reviewed this, but I guess not! This was a blend of the month tea back this summer. I have since discontinued the club, but I have a giant backlog of teas that I need to finish off from previous months.

I haven’t been paying enough attention to give this a detailed review, but essentially this is floral, jasmine and sweet. My favorite jasmine white tea is the base, and its typical linen and sugared sweetness is present, perhaps even enhanced by the vanilla. I agree that this being a ‘vanilla’ tea is a mismomer, but I do like the mild sweet flavor that smooths and softens the myriad of florals. To me, this reminds me of my beloved Eight Treasures Yabao but with a different base :)

Overall, this is a lovely summery tea if you like florals and jasmine. I love these things when they are done right, and I love how this blend tastes. For me, this is a good one, as it’s to my liking :)

nope. not for me. I’ve had this a couple times now and it’s just not working for me. something about the green and the berries that creates a flavour that is completely disharmonious to my mouth. The rest of the ounce i purchase will be off to Terri so that she can give it a try!

had this one today…willl write more someday but it smelled vanilla and wonderful…taste wise it was a little weird. Not bad, but i’m not yet sure what to make of it. Jury’s still out :)

I finally decided to give some of my November Verdant delivery a go – this tea sounded so unusual (and, given how much I love the Zhu Rong and the Yunnan Jasmine White, so delicious) that I felt it would be a safe bet for a sleepy Saturday.

The dry blend smells wonderful, though the delicious jasmine and the lighter orange peel definitely are the main aromas (not, of course, that I’m complaining). I used the recommended parameters from Verdant (5g per 8oz, steep for 30"). The infusion that it produced smelled divine – all of that delicious floral aroma from the jasmine, with just light undertones of orange (and a tiny bit of the ZR’s chocolate smell). It also looked noticeably darker than the Yunnan White usually does, when steeped in the same way.

To drink, it really was rather delicious. So floral, caramelly and fragrant – a sumptuous cup of tea, if ever there was one. I’m probably a little blinded by how fabulous I normally find the Yunnan White, but I really, really liked this blend. Though it did come in the November shipment (not, of course, that I received that until early December anyway), I think this tea is actually a perfect one to have out at Christmas – the blend looks very festive and the citrussy notes from the orange peel made it really appropriate for this bitterly cold day.

The second and third steeps were definitely less jasmine-tasting – the odd Zhu Rong leaf that I scooped into the infuser came out much more, giving a stronger caramel flavour. It was still delightfully perfumed, though, so I certainly didn’t mind. And, I guess, it’s kinda nice to have a tea that changes so much, whilst remaining really delicious, the more you steep the leaves.

Excellent!

Another from dinosara and my choice for a mid afternoon puerh. I pulled this one out since i had the 2006 shu this morning just to see how they might be different given that they ARE two wildly different puerhs..but similar hahaha at least in year and region.

I have to say, not a fan of this one. There’s something about the taste, even after multiple tastings that just isn’t sitting with me. It’s more vegetal than the shu and has a side taste that is like the oolong taste that i don’t like, but isn’t that taste. At least i tried..but not a fan.

Another of my puerhs from dinosara It’s a snow day here in Toronto and I AM LOVING IT! So i’m doing my best to be super productive work wise but also with my puerhs. My goal today is to get through THREE sessions! Mother is coming up this weekend for wedding dress shopping, so i won’t have much time to actually drink tea beyond what i take out with me. This was my morning puerh….though in retrospect i probably should have saved it for my evening puerh.

this was an earthy puerh but not overly so. as terri puts it – it’s a clean earthiness. For me, the first sip made me exclaim in surprise over how refreshing the taste was… and then i promptly had several more sessions in a row, standing in the kitchen….where my other half found me gleefully holding my little cup, drinking and smiling haha. This would be one of the few verdant puerhs i might consider reordering (though i doubt it’s available)….as i generally don’t find myself overly impressed with a lot of their puerh.

Thanks dinosara!

Interesting, but no.

Anyone interested in this one? People who I have on my shipping list preferred. :)

I ordered just a sample size of this, because on the one hand, it sounds amazing, but on the other hand, my love for green teas and green blends has been flagging lately, and I wasn’t sure if I would love it.

The blend looks lovely—Laoshan Green tea in those familiar curls, with yellow safflowers, long rice grains, and juniper berries. The brew comes out very harmonious, with a vegetal green base that isn’t distracting or too heady, and a rich, buttery finish with hints of vanilla and toasted rice, the rice being less evident than in the Laoshan Chocolate Genmaicha. I’m not sure if I’m getting anything from the juniper or safflowers, but then again, the berries might just be there for decoration. Overall, it’s a comforting and enjoyable blend, and worth trying, though I’m not sure I’ll get more as it’s not often available, and didn’t amaze me so much that I would search far and wide for it.

mmmm thanks for sending this one my way dinosara I have been enjoying this all mid-afternoon ish. Working from = get to try and have one of my puerhs! yaaay! this is a smooth one…with a woody sort of quality. Like being up north, standing in the woodshed. there’s a nutty quality to this one as well. i’ve quite enjoyed this today.

Another sipdown in The Great Tea Purge/Sampling of 2014! This was a delicious, summery floral tea that I have thoroughly enjoyed for the whole bag. This final cup still has that lovely linen flavor from the Yunnan White Jasmine that I really like, and the florals are atill light and good, even with all the dust that accumulates at the bottom of tea bags. I’d love to see this available next summer at Verdant! See previous notes on this yummy tea :)

And finally a review of my current cup of tea lol. This has been keeping me company as I have been watching curling earlier, then put on some classical music, vacuumed the house, did all my laundry from my trip, and cleaned up the kitchen/bedroom. Oh, and played with the cat lol. This is still such a beautiful cup, it’s light and sweet and although it is summery, I also can picture drinking this while light snow is falling in the night. Which it very well might be doing outside here haha. Delicious, and I am nearing the end of this one too, would have liked this to be made available for furher purchase, maybe it will be in the future! Oh, and just checked – I haven’t actually reviewed this one before LOL. So here’s a quick rundown of this tea, which I have enjoyed many times already -

Smells delicious, light jasmine and florals. I usually steep for around 2 mins, and the aroma is heavenly, if you enjoy jasmine haha. The flavor is creamy and sweet, its like Verdant’s lovely Yunnan White Jasmine, but enhanced with even more florals. There is also a strong linen note in the mouthfeel and flavor. This is just delicious and reminds me of light sprinklings of rain or snow, dew covered lawns early in the morning, flower gardens, springtime, and delicate morning frost. Light and beautiful.

thank you for sending this one my way dinosara it was ages ago but i’m finally sorting through my smaller puerh samples, trying to clean up my cupboard AND take the time to focus on what i’m drinking at least once a week. I’ve been drinking this one all morning – though i suppose it’s now afternoon.

What i’ve started to figure out is that i get a smoke like taste often when i drink sheng…it’s not like lapsang smoke…but it comes through as “smoke” to my taste buds. This particular tea was earthy and vegetal like asparagus and then turned creamy. Overall a nice relaxing time today while cleaning up around the house.

soooo forever ago i went to write this tasting note. Got an extreme, almost migraine headache…and didn’t write anything. I can’t remember anything i was going to write besides this reconfirms for me that yabao, is so NAO for me :)

From the EU TTB – Round 3

I’m not usually a fan of oolongs, but I’ve not much experience with Tieguanyin, so I decided to give this one a try. I used 1 tsp of leaf and gave it 3 minutes in water cooled to around 180 degrees. While brewing, the scent is strongly oolong – very roasty – with no orange or spice that I could discern. There are a generous amount of orange peel pieces in the mix, so this came as a bit of a surprise.

To taste, I’m picking up mostly oolong again. The liquor is a golden yellow, and the taste is roasted and a little smoky. It’s very, very smooth, though, with no bitterness or astringency at all. There’s a tiny hint of orange, but it’s very faint, and rather waxy-tasting. I’m not picking up any spice at all.

I’m a little disappointed with this one. I’d have liked more spice/orange from the flavour, maybe a slightly milder oolong. Sadly not for me.

So this tea came from my swap with Cameron, who didn’t seem to like it very much. When I opened the bag I did notice the overwhelming lavender/woodsy smell, which was quite aromatic. I think this tea should be made into a bath soap, if nothing else. It smells really good!

So, on to the flavor. I am getting some vegetal notes from the green tea but it is definitely very strong on the lavender with a pungent, spicy flavor that is coming from the coriander, I think. It’s a creative blend, for sure, that does remind me of the great outdoors. I’m a little more sold on the aroma than I am on the flavor, but I haven’t really loved any lavender blended teas I’ve tried. Something about them reminds me of soap and/or cleaning product instead of something to drink. This is definitely an interesting tea but I can’t say I would be rushing out to buy any. I think I will finish the cup but might use the rest as bath tea… lol. It’s kind of bitter too.

I love the pretty pink liquid of this one. I do not love the smell. I don’t care for the taste either. I know I won’t be ordering this one but appreciate the chance to try it out. I think I will even leave the rest of it here for the boyfriend to try.

I accidentally let this one cool before I got to it. It grew a bit on me after the first couple of sips but I need to have it again to give it an adequate try.

Finishing up the last of this sample today. The genmaicha is definitely there, but it’s just so creamy. It’s so weird. I can’t get past the weirdness-haha! But I think I’d rather just stay with their normal genmaicha. xD
Thanks so much for the sample, Cameron B.!!

Cameron B. was nice enough to send me a sample of this the other day-thanks! :D
This one also seems to be popular, so I had to try.
And honestly,I’m really not all that sure what to think. It’s pretty buttery, and has a lot of vanilla notes in it. It’s like a buttery, vanilla, genmaicha.
Because while the vanilla and buttery notes mainly dominate this tea, I can still taste the toasted rice…It’s very different. Unique.
Not like anything I’ve ever had before.
I’ll have to try it again sometime before I decide if I really like it.
I mean, I really like how it’s like a vanilla genmaicha…just the butter flavors kinda turn me off. I can see myself either really liking this one, or feeling really really sick from the buttery-ness of it. xD I’ll have to rate this one later when I’ve sorted my feelings for this one! Thank you soo much for the sample, Cameron B.! :D

I’ve committed a tea sin.

And I don’t even care.

I’m on this mission to get my stash down, stop hoarding things, and make my cupboard (the real one, not the steepster one) seem less daunting.

So, i drank this to try it out when I got it.
I enjoyed it. But not any more so than I enjoy the normal LB, which is a lot, obviously.

So when I was going through my stash recently, I saw this…relatively new purchase that I had tried once, and enjoyed, but not any more than the normal LB – and I decided to just dump it in with the rest of my LB in its designated LB tin.

GASP!!!

Even though it cost more. I don’t even care. Since I didn’t notice a difference myself, I just decided to enjoy it as regular LB. So now it’s all mixed up.

Feel free to judge me, tea snobs! :)

Backlog:

I’m really glad that I got to try this blend. It’s a wild and crazy twist on the classic genmaicha. Notes of vanilla, pine, sweet nutty flavors from the rice, notes of edamame. I smell more of the saffron than I taste but after several sips, the flavor of the saffron develops a little.

Really tasty and unique. Here’s my full-length review: http://sororiteasisters.com/2014/08/03/minnesota-blend-from-verdant-tea/