Yunnan Sourcing

This was my first tea of the day, hours ago. It is delicious, lovely chocolatey goodness.

God, this stuff is good! It’s not the smokey lapsang type, but just a super rich dark chocolate thick mouthed roasty cup of YUM!
I made a cup this morning to drink en route to the wedding. Now I’m having a second cup before heading out into the garden for an hour. It’s such a beautiful day in this neighborhood!
I’m also drinking it to make Sil jeolous ;)

Time to rehash my day, through tea :)
This was the gong fu cha of the morning. The black leaves are small & tightly twisted, with an aroma of chocolate.
5G + 4oz (rinse) X 15/30/45 sec
This first round of 3 steeps featured roasted grain, sorghum molasses, & a quickly building satisfying mouth of hot cocoa, with an unbelievably creamy texture.
1/2/3/4minutes
In the 2nd round of steepings the flavors began to fade, until I was left with sweet wood & a slight lingering incense feel.
A perfect start to my day :)

Yup, I love this tea!
It’s amazing how so many different teas can taste like chocolate, but not taste like each other, right? To be honest, I believe I’ve decided this tea is going to be the official replacement for Anxi Fo Shou, of which I only have enough to drink 2 more times. I think one of those 2 times will have to be a side by side comparison, maybe. The other one will be some special occasion, like maybe ground breaking day in my garden, or a celebration of the sprouting of the first seeds that I plant. Or maybe a day when I just need to pamper myself. Meanwhile, I’m feeling a little better about running out of THAT tea, because I have THIS tea, & I think I will have to add it to the list of Hoard-worthy teas, because it really is THAT good. It really is like German Chocolate Cake. And don’t let the name fool you, because although it is roasty, it is NOT smokey, at all.
Now I have to get ready to go play that gig.

I finally have some of this back in my collection! It’s so good!
You think of Zheng Shan Xiao Zhong, & usually a smokey lapsang souchong comes to mind, but this is not that tea. This is a roasty chocolaty cup, but not smoked. It’s delicious!

Sipdown!
This is one of the teas from my first order with Yunnan Sourcing. I’ve enjoyed it! Speaking of YS, I placed an order with them over a month ago, & it still hasn’t arrived. It was from their China headquarters. Hopefully soon…

I enjoyed this tea earlier in the afternoon. It kind of reminds me of Laoshan Black, only less sweet & more dark chocolaty. It is delicious!

I just got home from playing a wedding in the Lobby of the Fabulous Fox Theater! I love the Fox, it’s been years since I played there, but 2 of the guys from the stage crew remembered me! That was really nice!

Anyway, what better to come home to than a steaming hot cup of tea, right? I’ve been working my way through the box from Yunnan Sourcing, & this one is next. I think my favorite selection (so far) is the Wild Tree Purple Varietal Black tea of Dehong. Of course, I’ve only drank it once, and I have enough to sample it several different ways, along with the other teas I purchased. And speaking of black teas, I just noticed Yunnan Sourcing has all of their black teas on sale until sept 12. The promocode is black10 (how’s that for enabling?).

Anyway, this tea is nice too! There is a nice dark chocolate depth to it, an earthy sweetness, a sweet roastiness, & a satisfying mouth that reminds me of a really awesome 97% gourmet cacao, kind of thick, & almost a powdery feel too.

I put off ordering from Yunnan Sourcing for a long time, but I’m very pleased with everything they sent to me (still have a few other things to sample), & I think Scott & I will be great friends! ;)

I took my sons Drew & Leif out to breakfast, as a prelude to a day of prepping the front porch for paint. I made a large go cup of this tea to bring along, because the tea they offer at the breakfast joint is…well, it’s just not what I wanted :)

I have yet to meet a tea from the Wu Liang Mntns that I don’t like, & this one is especially nice, with a sweet chocolate richness, a hint of coriander, & a little floral in there too. A nice start to my day.

No new notes about this, but I am enjoying it. It’s a nice smooth cup, zero astringency. The sun is out, it’s in the 60’s, & trees are starting to bloom. I hate having allergies. I need to start drinking my Nettles again.

Sipdown!
Sadly, I’ve had a weird bitter taste in my mouth all day. Bitter & with a lemony mouthfeel. It has pretty much ruined the taste of all the teas I drank, or at least made them bitter. This one included, which is too bad, because I enjoyed this one yesterday.

This is the first of 2 bubble bath teas…
“Shhhh, little Terri, don’t tell everybody we’re in the bath tub!”
“Why not? It’s not like they can see us!”
“Yeah, but it might creep somebody out!”
(Harrumph) “Not my problem”

Yes, we are going to lay here with our iPad & soak, drinking delicious tea, including this one. And post about it.
“So there!”

This tea is delicious!
It has a smooth & bright mouth to it, & the flavor is sweet, with a chocolate & honeyed essence, and nicely rich but clean taste, if that makes sense.
1TB + my mug (12 oz?) X 3min/5min resteep

Another tea, enjoyed while watering the garden this morning. There is a black swallowtail that has been hanging around my garden a lot lately. Earlier in the summer there were swallowtail caterpillers on the parsley & Parsnips, which some people would be unhappy about, but for me it is a thrill, because I know that caterpillars result in beautiful butterflies!

This is a tasty tea, with a chocolate mouthfeel, & a sweet fruity kind of taste. I went with 1 Tbls in my mug for 3 mins, resteep @ 5mins. Both were delicious, but I’d also like to try a longer single steep, & maybe a gongfu session too.

Another tea from my new friend Scott @ Yunnan Sourcing, this tea is delicious! It is rich & sweet, with essence of chocolate, maybe a hint of floral but more in the mouth than taste (as if that makes sense), & a lovely fruitiness. There is also that bit of honeyed coriander, telling me that the tea leafhoppers probably paid a visit, and that’s a good thing!

I’ve been enjoying multiple short steeps of this all afternoon.
Delicious! Initially it’s toast, malt, sugar, & bee pollen, later giving way to savory creamy mushroom soup, lol, & a taste I can’t quite define…
something earthy…maybe a hint of burdock root…

(bowing to the ground & kissing the earth & then chanting)
“Thank you to the Steepster Gods Who walk among us. I thank you!”

Whew! I’m SO glad steepster is working again! Of course, I remember a time when freeze ups were fairly common, and I have to admit, things have been going very smoothly here for quite some time, so I’m not really complaining, but I am grateful to those who keep this running smoothly!

So the last 2 days I’ve been polishing off the various teas that Sil & TastyBrew have shared in our BBBBox. Today I’m going to work on the ones I’ve shared with them :)

I love this tea! Today I went with 5 G in my little 4oz teapot. I preheated the pot, then let the dry leaf sit in there for a minute. When I lifted the lid, the aroma was pure heaven!! Honey wheat toast spread with malt & honey! I’d almost be happy just to linger, huffing that wonderful thick yummy smell, my mouth watering, a dopey smile on my face.

But not quite!
5G + 4oz teapot (rinse) X 15/30/45secs/1min/1.25/1.5/1.75/2min/3min
My new method is to use 2 cups (sometimes 3). While I drink one, I’m steeping another. That way the leaves don’t get cold.
Delicious! Initially it’s toast, malt, sugar, & bee pollen, later giving way to savory creamy mushroom soup, lol, & a taste I can’t quite define…
something earthy…maybe a hint of burdock root…

I drank this all afternoon while I was practicing. I set up a little table next to my harp, with my new bamboo tea tray (from Mandala) & electric kettle, thus combining 2 of my 3 favorite things (Music & Tea. The third thing is food). I put 7g of leaf in my little 4oz blue lotus porcelain tea pot. The first steep was 15 sec, adding 15 sec to each subsequent steep. This went on for about 4 hours. Those leaves just kept giving, reminding me of bee pollen & cream.

You can see my setup at https://www.facebook.com/terri.langerak

I’ve been sipping on this one for awhile. I finally had time to go with short steepings, & it’s been very nice. The initial flavors were of butter & honey, gradually building in maltiness, & an earthy kind of shroominess. I steeped it in my little 4oz Blue & white lotus porcelain mini teapot (yes, Garret, I am still IN LOVE with this teapot!).
Two leaves escaped the pot & swam around in my cup, finding each other & forming into the shape of a seagull :)
According to http://www.readingtealeaves.info/symbols.html, Seagulls indicate a sign of storms, or if flying (this one was), News from Abroad.
Maybe my package from Yunnan Sourcing will finally arrive! Maybe my lost box from Sil will come :)
In the next pouring they rearranged themselves into the shape of part of one of the Reiki symbols (for those in the know, it was ‘sha’ from the long distance symbol).
Of course, the Reiki symbols aren’t listed on that tea reading website, but I’ll interpret that as meaning there are people who would benefit from having Reiki sent to them.
Of course, this wasn’t a proper tea leaf reading, as I read the leaves while the tea was still in the cup, but I’ve always been a rebel without a clue, so why not?

Yesterday was a lonnnnng day. Today I’m pampering myself. I slept 10 hours, & I’ve been drinking this lovely tea for 2 hours. I put 5 G in my blue lotus 4oz mini-teapot (which I absolutely love, Garret), & have been doing incremental steepings. The first one was for one minute, but I tasted a small sample every 15 seconds, lol, & they were all yum! I added 1 minute to each steeping, & they’ve all been delicious. Next time I’ll probably go with shorter steepings from the get go, & not add time as quickly, but that’s one of the things I love about tea drinking: the experiment.
The earliest cups were butter & honey with a little shroom.
This built to a maltier shroominess, & the cup I’m on now is an electric tongue tingler, if you know what I mean. I feel a nice energy spreading throughout my body, something I really needed this morning, & a reminder that tea is more than just flavor. This one is tasty AND has nice Chaqi!
And now I’m

I have a new friend. His name is Scott Wilson. I don’t know him, he doesn’t know me, but his name is on the box that came in the mail yesterday.
My son Leif called out, “Hey Mom, who is Scott Wilson?”
“I have no idea.”
“Well, you have a package from him. It’s from Portland, OR.”
“Hmmmm….maybe that’s the awesome garlics I ordered to plant in my garden this fall?”
Yes, I did order some amazing sounding garlics with names like Duganski & Spanish Roja. I ordered garlic bulbs like I order tea (like I do almost everything), with wild abandon. There were a few I really wanted that were already sold out for this year…dammit!
“Oh well,” I told myself, “just start with a few, & add those other ones next year.” I think I started with 5, LOL. I’ll plant them in separate areas of my already huge garden in a few weeks, along with the multiplier onions I bought. I’ll also move my shallots & egyptian walking onions to a new ‘neighborhood’ in the garden. I’m still fighting myself over whether I should order the french gray shallots…I have shallots, of course, but they are not ‘gray’ shallots…

Meanwhile, it turns out the box was from Yunnan Sourcing!!!! My first ever order from there. So Scott is my new friend, even though we may never meet, because he sent me tea! Hi Scott! I’m sending you a hug!
This is one of the teas I bought to share with my Bodacious Babes! The purple tea I drank yesterday is another. This is a really lovely tea tea, sweet with a honey essence initially, & then the flavor leans to a rich maltiness. It’s not an incredible bold cup, but if I wanted that I’d be drinking a cup of Assam! This tea reminds me of Golden Fleece a bit, both in appearance (although not as golden), & in taste (although perhaps not quite as nuanced). I’ll have to drink more, of course, & I can!

I’ve written 9 other reviews about this tea, and this will be the finale, as it is a sipdown as well. This tea is from 2014, but it’s still as awesome as ever, and it still brings to mind the same set of elements: Essence of rice congee, an oolong like incense/eucalyptus/herbaceious after aroma in the sinuses that lingers, the sweet after taste of Cherry/plum, and an incredible Sheng like Chaqi, that provides a clarity to both my allergies and my head in general, a really nice tea buzz.

It’s hard to say, but I think this one might be my favorite of the purple black teas in my cupboard…or maybe it’s one of them? One of these days maybe I’ll do a side by side comparison (or maybe I already have & I’m getting senile).

This one, which I’ve already reviewed many times, is wonderfully nuanced with plums, a little maltiness, and eucalyptus. It’s sweet. Some of the steeps are especially sweet. Some are kind of creamy textured. Anyway, it’s lovely, and also reminds me of a really nice sheng. I have a very relaxing teabuzz vibe going on right now, and I don’t mind that at all!

Oh…I almost forgot to mention that this tea creates an amazing sensation in my sinuses…it’s hard to explain…not really like eucalyptus, but I can see how some might see it that way. It’s along the lines of an oolong incense after aroma kind of thing, but sweet…kind of like a cross between eucalyptus, plums, and … hell, I dunno know…!

It looks like this week I’m drinking purple teas. Yesterday I drank 3 different Purple Black teas, all from YS, and today I’ve been enjoying this on, including sharing some of the steeping with 2 of my Harp students, who both loved it!

I’ve reviewed it many times before, and still the predominant flavors and aromas that come to mind are plums & congee rice.