333 Tasting Notes
This is a very refreshing, very green oolong. It’s crisp and lightly floral—I’m reminded of jasmine more than anything, even though I know that’s not quite right; I see lots of mentions of honeysuckle but I don’t actually know what that tastes like, so… The tea is quite sweet; there’s a bit of grassiness but overall I’m finding it light on the vegetal notes. It does have that cooling mint-like quality, but, happily for me, without tasting like mint at all. This is a very enjoyable cup of tea, although I think I do prefer oolongs that are bit more heavily oxidized.
This is super citrusy! There’s also some grass and spinach going on, but these notes are on the lighter side. I’m not getting hazelnut at all, but there’s enough here to satisfy me. A really enjoyable green, and the fact that it’s organic is a plus for me. Thanks for this sample, Nicole_Martin!
I’m mostly getting cocoa, and there’s a fair bit of sweetness. I’m not getting any smoke, although I think a hint of it would add some welcome complexity here. This tea is very nice for what it is, but I’m more and more convinced that Chinese black teas are never going to number among my favorites. That said, I could see myself enjoying a cup of this or something like it once in a while. Thanks for this sample, Nicole_Martin!
Preparation
I like these a bit better than the only other black dragon pearls I’ve tried (from thepuriTea). They seem heavier on the malt and lighter on the cocoa than thepuriTea’s version, which is a decided plus in my book (though I know it’s a minus for most people). Or it could just be that my tolerance level for chocolate notes is slightly higher than usual today – after all, aren’t 99% of dragon pearls supposed to come from the same place or something? Still not my favorite – I prefer Assams and Ceylons when I’m in the mood for something bold and black – but I did enjoy my cup. Thanks for this sample, Nicole_Martin!
This is a nice sencha – it’s very spinachy and mildly astringent (in a good way!). The color of the brewed tea is a fantastic, vibrant green. I’m realizing that I tend to prefer Chinese green teas to Japanese, but every once in a while a good cup of sencha is in order and this serves that purpose nicely.
This is a tea I’d wanted to try for a while, and I was lucky enough to get a sample from Nicole_Martin at the NYC meetup on Friday. The tea is very delicate, but what flavor there is is really lovely. It’s a bit sweet, faintly creamy, and nutty. There’s not much in the way of vegetal notes. This could be a good green for people who don’t generally enjoy green teas, I think, since it’s so gentle. I’d like to get my hands on some more of this – when I do, I think I’ll try brewing with a significantly higher leaf/water ratio (this time I used about 1.5 tsp/8 oz. water) since I’d like to see the flavors pop just a little bit more.
Waybacklogging here… I had a tin of this last fall/winter. This stuff is pretty good, especially for the price. It doesn’t taste at all like pumpkin, but it is a nice spiced rooibos. The rooibos itself is on the gentler side, without that awful pipe tobacco flavor it sometimes has.
I love genmaicha. It’s one of my favorite kinds of tea – it may even be my favorite. Cheap bagged genmaicha from the grocery store, fancy loose genmaicha mixed with matcha – I love it all. I have peasant tastes, what can I say?
I also like teas with lots of roastiness, so this blend seemed right up my alley. It certainly delivers on the roasted front, but I find it’s strong on the hojicha and weak on the rice. Plus there’s something about the flavor of hojicha that I find slightly off. I’m not sure how to describe it, and I can’t think of anything it compares to. It’s not the roasty quality per se, but I think it must be some kind of consequence of the roasting process. I’ve noticed it here and in Den’s hojicha, so I don’t think it’s staleness or anything like that. It’s not an awful flavor, but I could do without it.
I definitely prefer classic genmaicha – I love the contrast between roasted rice and vegetal green teas, and the hojicha’s weak on the vegetal notes and strong on the unidentifiable weird notes. This isn’t bad, though, and I am enjoying my cup.
I tried a five-minute steep today, and, unsurprisingly, this tea is much bolder than it was last time I drank it. The Ceylon’s even more pronounced, I think – I’m getting even more fruitiness, which I’m enjoying quite a bit. I am getting the faintest hint of leather, but I’m pleased to say it’s not strong enough to detract from my enjoyment.
This is a really lovely green – seaweedy and vegetal, but delicately so. I’m never good at identifying just what sorts of vegetal notes I taste in green teas, but if I had to take a stab at it here I’d go with edamame. Now that the tea has cooled a bit, I’m also picking up on the lemon Fuzzy_Peachkin mentioned in her review. I’ve never tasted a straight tea with such a pronounced citrus note. There’s some astringency and bitterness, but nothing that detracts from the experience. This is definitely a tea I’d be interested in restocking – I hope Bellocq keeps carrying it!
ETA: Not so impressed by the second steep, which is too bad given how pricey this tea is.
