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3/5 (see my bio for more info on my new pared down scale)

So oolongs. Now I have a million of them, and I’ve learned wine-y, peachy Taiwanese ones are my favorite while milk and coconut oolongs, at least last I checked, taste bizarrely marshy to me. Haven’t had the famous TGY type yet, so here we go! Did the rinse and western-style 30 second thing per Verdant’s site instructions. I dig the color of this one—first steep’s a creamy, pretty pale gold hue—and the smell is sweetly floral. First tentative sip is surprisingly buttery as well as a bit oaky and hay-like—reminds me somewhat of the kind of Chardonnays that flooded the wine market in the ’90s and people are now reviling but I still enjoy (I mean come on, wine that tastes like buttered toast! Ha). Lots of round sweetness with non-animal farm evocation—sunny days smelling hay and flowers.

Ack, husband just called to say he’s coming home and wants to know if I’ll go with him out to do some sudden errands. Guess I’ll finish this up later.

2nd steep: whoa, much roastier, to the point I’m almost reminded of roasted nuts, yum. Color’s a darker gold hue. The floral element has deepened and become more concentrated, but not at all in a cloying way. Jasmine, it seems. Plays well with the hay and oak thing still going on. Very different from the first steep, and I probably like this one better but they’re both quite nice.

steeps 3-6: the roastiness lasted through all the steeps, and the tea got mildly fruit-sweeter towards the end. Didn’t notice much new, just a smooth unfolding of elements already identified, though I admit I was a bit distracted as our power went out right after dinner and the internet broke and wasn’t resolved until this morning.

5/5 (see my bio for more info on my new pared down scale)

It’s been way too hot frankly to want to drink hot black tea (over 100F most days and muggy as a dog’s mouth, blech), aaaand my favorite kettle is still out of commission (they sent me an entirely different model that isn’t nearly as good by mistake…told me I could keep it for my troubles so it works in a pinch but I really miss my good, keep-warm kettle!), but I was boiling water in the kettle to make steamed rice the Thai knuckle method (from It Rains Fishes) and had just enough leftover for a cup of tea. So!

This lives up to the hype! I’m so impressed with how citrusy it manages to be without getting off-balance—it’s got powerful flavor without ever becoming bitter, too tart, or unpleasantly scrubby in terms of mouthfeel. Slick as heck. I think the boldness of the assam works ideally with that sit-up-and-take-notice bright bergamot; the tea’s strength and body handles the acid beautifully. The first citrusy bergamot in an Earl Grey I really dig. One of the best EGs I’ve had period, especially in that increasingly rare category of EGs that taste like straightforward platonic ideal EGs—no vanilla cream flavorings or other unusual tricks up the sleeve, just a gorgeous balance of black tea and bergamot. Yay Steepster for tipping me off to it!

So out of the blue a wonderful friend sent me a bunch of teas (none of which I’ve tried before, yay! Buncha Harney goodies!) and a beautiful hand-watercolored card with a lovely letter, just ‘cause she knows my husband went back to work last week and this school year’s going to be stressful for lots of ugly reasons (county and city districts have merged and a lot of things are changing, including an effective pay cut, noticeably higher health insurance costs, longer hours—we are now getting up at 4:45 in the morning—and a bunch of things like having a Master’s no longer meaning a pay raise, etc., etc., along with the fact my husband nearly lost his job this spring based on scoring that had nothing to do with him, bureacratic nightmare stuff like that). Now I’m drinking this, part of the care package, and feeling whisked away to, oh say sunny Sunday brunch just when you’re about to break into the homemade coffee cake, complete with streusel topping. Tea friends and getting surprises in the mail are the BEST. Suddenly my ho-hum day has been made. <3

My first Oriental Beauty (I have to admit, as an asian woman I find the name offputting, whether that makes sense or no). The leaf is as unique and lovely as you’d expect, full of different shades and shapes (I especially love the purple and red hues—reminds me of stripey hair colors cool radio lady rockers sported in the ‘90s, ha). Freshy brewed this smells quite sweet, just like warm, good-quality honey, yum. The first sip surprised me, almost in the other direction as last night’s in that I wasn’t expecting darjeeling qualities—that specific astringent fresh fruitiness and hint of wood—but they’re there—not nearly as strong as in a darjeeling but noticeable in a delicate, appealing way that melds with the floral honey element and just highlights the tasty sweetness of stone fruit like apricot. There’s wisps of that musky-floral thing orange blossom water’s got going on too, enough to make it feel special and dizzyingly sensual without going overboard into nauseating (so easy to do with orange blossom water, alas). Very nice balance and interplay without becoming intimidatingly intense or tiringly busy, a lot going on without sensory overload.

It’s interesting too to start to imagine what RachelJ was talking about a few months ago, the difference between old school brisker Formosa Oolong and these newer, more delicately nuanced oolongs that have some of the same flavors—stone fruit of course and honey—but are not what she was seeking for nostalgia’s sake. I’ll have to try an old FO sometime…

I really like this. To me and my personal growing up tea history, this fits as one of the most approachable oolongs I’ve tried, more like a cross between a bunch of other tea profiles (darjeeling, old fashioned Chinese black like you might get at a restaurant 10 or 20 years ago) with the stone fruit element known to classic oolongs. It’s very accessible—probably helps that it’s as sweet as it is.

Like another Steepster mentioned in a review for this one, lately I’ve been leaning towards not saving my premium teas for special occasions—I’d rather drink them whenever the mood strikes (and gosh, I have enough of them!). Though I suppose today was sort of special in that my husband returned to work after a dreamy, fantastic summer where we did all the things we’ve ever wanted to (including travel through nearly 20 states! 4 separate trips, only 1 of which involved flying, complete with weddings, meeting people in person for the first person I’ve known online for years, hiking, camping, swimming, deserts, ocean, great lakes, mountains, history, cemeteries, speakeasies, tea gardens, public nudity, 1 trip involving driving through 11 states in 11 days, what else…and food. Lots and lots of glorious regional food, high and humble, yum!) but kept putting off (this was the year, in the face of potential impending doom re: teaching). I knew we’d both need some TLC this evening so after dinner we ate slabs of pound cake with fresh blueberries and just relaxed, and for me relaxing post-dinner means special tea. Calm before the storm!

This is a surprising darjeeling for me. The initial brewed aroma is quite almondy which gives it a kind of rich heft I’m not accustomed to with darjeelings, and then there’s a lot of greenness (by the way, the leaves dry and steeped look more like green tea than black to my uneducated eyes…they’re pretty, but then I tend to think all leaves beyond CTC are). It feels much more like a Chinese tea in that respect, and skimming the site notes I see the plants did originate in China. As it cools a bit, more familiar woody notes come in (and they’re oh so lovely), floating above the ever-present-if-somewhat-receding heavy food-y, almost savory nutty greenness. Quite unusual for me, very enjoyable. If you are someone who likes all of the nuance, drinks-like-a-meal heft, and delicate perfume-y elements of Chinese tea and are generally wary of darjeelings (seems a common profile here), this might serve as a nice bridge. As a darjeeling freak/fiend, I would’ve been disappointed if the stuff I love about them—that unique woody astringency that gives way to refreshing sweetness!—didn’t show up here, but it does, and just gets fuller and more wonderful lingering on the tongue. It’s a bit like a best of both worlds situation.

That sweetness just gets more and more interesting once the cup’s empty and it settles in your mouth. It reminds me a lot of, bear with me here, the particular vegetal sweetness of the heart of a steamed artichoke as well as the residual aroma from the steam. That might sound gross to some, but it’s marvelous. How uncanny. (And how much simpler for me to enjoy this way, ha.)

I’m interested in preparing this more lightly next time to see if Stacy’s notes about blackberries and lemon (yum) come out. Either way though, a very enjoyable, filling but nuanced cup.

when cold steeped with ATR Yunnan Gold, 5/5 (see my bio for more info on my new pared down scale) and probably the best cold tea I’ve ever had

Cold steeped this with a touch of ATR’s Yunnan Gold (I know, how extravagant…I just didn’t care for it hot though, and it was a sample size so I didn’t have much left) for 4 days (! not on purpose, just forgot about it in the back of the fridge…). It is incredible. Super refreshing and light, crisp feeling, yet smooth, rounded, with deep complex floral (true-floral, not perfume-floral) flavor I feel like hot water destroyed (or maybe intensified to the point it became perfume-floral…looking back on my previous note I apparently thought it was so floral as to signal “inedible” to my brain). Using time instead of heat seems to allow the floral element to develop complexity and nuance without becoming sledgehammer-heavy and thus one-note. Maybe that Upton guy who swore by cold steeping black teas for 4 days was onto something, especially with good Chinese tea. A gorgeous bright gold hue, beautiful in my new Duralex Picardie tumblers. So good I might order both again—teas I wasn’t much excited about hot—just for icing on days I really deserve something awesome, ha.

G’ah, the more I drink this the more my certainty grows that this is the best iced tea I’ve ever had, and one of the best teas period. Nuts how much steeping method can change one’s perception!

5/5 (see my bio for more info on my new pared down scale)

Uhhh as amazing as I knew it would be—had such high hopes and would’ve been nervous they’d be dashed except I’ve had enough Butiki teas now to know better, ha. The smell is uncanny, just like it was for Cantaloupe and Cream, and heavenly. Dry the leaves are visually stunning—long beautiful silvery green flecked with pretty pink amaranth—which again is no surprise given the company. The taste is wonderful too, light (well, actually rather strongly watermelon, but real watermelon, which is itself a light flavor, yum), cleanly sweet, and refreshing just like watermelon! There is a delicate floral element as well as a very light hint of vegetable goodness, and it works with the sweetness because it’s so light but good. It’s all so smooth too; I love when teas pack a lot of real flavor but also possess that magical smoothness.

Had so much confidence in this one I made 3 cups all at once to fill my big makeshift-matcha-bowl/giant mug (a roomy white corningware bowl with a handle and straight sides, designed to do cup-of-soup noodle-y things with I think). Love love love. Stacy is a flavor wizard, I’m convinced.

4/5 (see my bio for more info on my new pared down scale)

I love the way this one looks, long and silver like pine needles, with a fuzzy down. It smells really good brewing and in the cup too—surprisingly sweet in a rich, bakery-ish sort of way, along with some sweet buttery cooked vegetable or sweet pea element. There’s a bit of wheatiness too, not heavy or yeasty like bread really but more like fresh wheat, which surprises me. I thought it’d be light and delicate like other premium greens but it’s got a surprising richness and heft to it, maybe based on that buttery sweet aroma. It’s a pretty, pale peachy gold hue with a slight silvery green tint. I really like this, definitely one of the best greens I’ve had so far (granted, I’m a green tea newb!).

4/5 (see my bio for more info on my new pared down scale)

Been drinking a lot of this cold steeped as it’s, you know, July. It reminds me a lot of jamaica agua fresca/Jamaican sorrel, the same pretty hibiscus tea color with some tartness, with the added dimension of warmth the ginger brings. Very refreshing and satisfying, aptly named as it feels more like a summer ade than tea per se, though there is a wonderful, subtle tea element (it’s a tisane though, so I’m not exactly sure where it comes from…warm spices perhaps?) that sets it apart. Betting my husband will dig it a lot when he tries it.

As a bonus, it’s very easy going to ice; I think it’d be hard to over steep it. I just stick it in a big mason jar in the fridge and strain it off glass by glass, topping off the jar as needed, and it’s always good. Can definitely see it becoming a summer iced tea staple.

5/5 (see my bio for more info on my new pared down scale)

Still a bit stuffy, so still no rating. But I’m pretty positive this is going to be very high once I allow myself to rate it—one of the most beautiful tisanes I’ve encountered for sure. Smells heavenly too, downright therapeutic (have a feeling that thanks to the sage and the bite of the ginger this would be ideal tea for colds, too…much lovelier and headier than my go-to of Stash White Christmas, albeit too nice possibly to waste when you can’t appreciate it, eh…ideal for my situation right now where I’m not really sick, just a little congested). Medicine. Delicious, visually striking, perfume-y medicine (perfume-y in a fresh, sparkling clean soapy lavender-ish herbal way—the sort of thing I adore though I know some Steepsters don’t care for it). Does that awesome-when-you’re-sick thing where it’s both warming and cooling, with the comforting spiciness of the ginger and the neutralizing, almost numbing “cool” effect of the herbs. Like sophisticated non-gross Icy Hot for your throat and gut!

Very interested in seeing how this does iced (I imagine it’d be amazing, but could also see how due to the sage and basil it might actually turn weak or bitter instead…I’ll just have to see sometime!), and I bet it’d be glorious blended with a really good black tea, something intense and bready or chocolate-y perhaps. Yum. One of my favorite tisanes now, right up there with New Mexico Provence Rooibos.