61 Tasting Notes
Um…
An applewood smoked tea. Surely this is a one-of-a-kind tea. Soleil has gone rogue.
It sounds pretty good in theory. I like toasty notes. I find firewood flavors tasty and savory. But applewood smoke scent is so closely associated in my mind with barbecue, I couldn’t enjoy the other things going on. Strangely the citrus oils play nicely with the tang of applewood smoke, so there is nothing off-putting per se. Just a little strange.
Flavors: Fireplace, Smoke, Smoked
Actually a Big Red Robe oolong, oops.
I was seeking a good amount of roasty Big Red Robe and found this option from Zen Tea Life via Amazon. It had all of the characteristics I was looking for: a smoky aroma and flavor, quality leaves, a smooth oolong mouthfeel, and comforting nutty notes. Easily an everyday drinker. It lacked the complexity or cherry tobacco notes of the more expensive Verdant variety I had tried before, but that’s to be expected.
So, so good. A highly perfumed and delicate oolong with a scent that lingers a foot away. As others have noted: butter, honeysuckle, jasmine. The brew was subtle but durable and held up to multiple steepings without getting bitter. A really lovely tea.
Flavors: Floral, Honeysuckle
I was looking for a true Peshwari or Kashmiri style chai with a green tea base, green cardamom, almonds and saffron. Very difficult to find among a lot of other cinnamon and clove black chais.
It was difficult to brew this to taste. At first I brewed too strong and burnt the leaves at 200 F. It was extremely bitter and astringent. Then I decreased my ratio of leaves and temp to 176 F, and it was too weak and still astringent. The cardamom was quite pungent and prominent; although I love cardamom, it overpowered any other flavor.
Received a sample and overwatered it so I’m afraid I missed some flavor.
A delicate, floral oolong as expected. Faint whiff of oatmeal and silky honey. Very comforting and would like to try it with more leaf and something like hemp milk.
Preparation
Yay, my first sheng pu’erh or young pu’erh. A beginner tea for a beginner. After “waking up” the very sleepy leaves with the recommended 3 steeps, I got a wonderful floral (jasmine, as described) aroma off of the cup. I then burned my lip trying to taste it too soon. All in the line of duty.
Flavors: Delicately sweet fresh green pea, soybean, jasmine, wildflower honey, caramel…
Taking a break to smell it again. Ack! Smells so good.
Ok, more flavors: Daisies, white grapes, hibiscus … I don’t even know. I’m making it up now based on things that are also this delicious.
Flavors: Floral, Jasmine, Peas
Preparation
Food pairing: chicken nuggets (kid wouldn’t finish hers)
I strained in a tea basket and it’s fun to watch the residue the thick, early steeps leave in the lid/coaster. It’s quite viscous and slides around leaving behind a LOT of color. This is a dark and long-lasting tea, almost opaque. Despite that the taste is gentle. I get the rice note and also a powdery storage note, as someone said, like dough. The sensation of the liquid is like honey or very good whiskey. I don’t get a lot of sweet smells but just the impression of sweetness from how smooth the liquor is. Maybe there is a slight scent of corn husk or something kind of vegetal-sweet like potato.
Continuing on my pu’erh journey with the rest of Sample Set A…
Flavors: Corn Husk, Creamy, Rice
Preparation
The “mildest” shou I have had, which is great because I’m a novice, and was about to give up on cooked pu’erh. It doesn’t help that I keep running out of the room to tend to poopy baby boy and my tea keeps going cold. Also, adds to perception of compost smell. :)
Medium infusions had a pretty peach tone. So, visually very nice in my white porcelain cup. It took two 15-sec infusions to get the deepest color.
No bitterness, mineral earthy taste, silky texture.
Flavors: Autumn Leaf Pile, Clay, Mushrooms
