Blue Mountain Twirl

Such an interesting tea! I remember that if I steeped it just right, I could taste some sweetness in the first few sips. Then there was a spicy after taste that would briefly linger. I haven’t seen this tea at DT for a while but would love to try it again when it comes back.

On a whim, I got a cup of this while picking up some of my stand-bys. It smelt very… peppery? I had my friend sniff it and they agreed, it smelt strangely of green pepper. Fortunately I didn’t get much of that in the taste, instead it came across as a bit malty, smokey, and a little sweet. It really didn’t taste like any green tea I’ve ever had before. Initially I didn’t care for it, but as it cooled a little bit, it started growing on me, and I really can’t peg what it is that I was liking about it.

It feels pretty complex compared to other teas I’ve drank, and, as a result, hard to describe. I’d definitely like to pick up a proper sample down the road though.

This is a very interesting tea! I purchased it on market street while in Boston for my birthday. What sold me was the initial aroma of the dry leaves. An essence of dark wood, muscaret and with a slight tang of sugar! Upon brewing it reminds me of a green Darjeeling, first flush, with its body and astringency. I brewed in my gaiwan, of course, and had some adverse tastes. What began as a flat sweet green taste became much more. By the sixth steep it had more depth and a mouth embodying sweetness. The liquor is a golden citrine. The fibers in the tea refract the light causing a magnificent effect for viewing. Upon unfurling it makes for a heavy brew and with full leaves and buds ratio. This is one of my favorite greens and I will definitely continue carrying it.

What an interesting tea! Thanks, Anlina, for the chance to try it. :) The leaves are much darker than I would expect for a green tea, and neatly twisted. The scent as it steeps is very floral, but also a bit vegetal, with maybe a hint of bread? Sipping, it’s also predominanty floral but quite complex. I think I’m getting some zucchini and a slight butteriness, though maybe that’s the creamy mouthfeel. It reminds me a bit of a first flush darjeeling, but less fruity and more floral. Neat! :)

This sample was part of a gift from an anonymous Steepster friend. The leaves are very cool, and just looking at them I can understand why this tea is called “Twirl”. They’re quite thin and dark and a bit twisty and twirly. Uh oh, I hope I didn’t ruin this with my steeping parameters, as I steeped it like a black tea while others steeped it like a green…

Well, it doesn’t taste ruined… Huzzah! This is a very interesting one, it reminds me slightly of Darjeeling because it has some floral and spice-like flavors, but it’s definitely something all its own, too. I can taste the green tea part of it, and it’s extremely nutty with just a little bit of vegetal. I also taste creamy baked bread and some honey notes. Surprisingly, it’s not bitter or astringent even though I steeped it hotter than intended. It’s like a Frankentea! A combination of a nutty Long Jing, Darjeeling, and perhaps a lighter Keemun. :P

This one is pretty good. It almost makes me think of a cross of green tea with a roasted oolong. It’s not floral like a green oolong, and it’s not vegetal like a green tea…but it does have a sort of buttery yet smokey note. So it is kind of like a slightly smokey green and a roasted oolong. Hard to describe. For a green, this tea had a bit of body…it is not a thin tasting one. I kind of get a familiar taste of fasting supreme here…but not quite. I can still taste the green in this.

I have to say that I like it!

I’m not usually a lover of straight up green tea, but I had to purchase some of this purely on the fact that it comes from India – not the place one tends to think of when they think green tea. It actually tastes pretty good for a green, and I found I don’t need as many leaves to get to the flavour profile that I want. This is also tea #1 for my 2014 tea advent calendar (I made my own this year, whoo!), and so I must say that the month is off to a good start. :)

I haven’t had David’s Tea non-flavored tea before. This was good. I’ll get a cup now and then when they have it.

Major reading comprehension fail caused me to miss my flight back home from Toronto (seriously, I can’t even count how many times I looked at my itinerary and read 8:10 as 8:30.) So I’ve been up since 5:30am for pretty much no reason at all. I’m running on about four hours of sleep and I have more than an hour to wait for my rebooked flight. And here I am, sitting in Pearson, sipping a take out cup from DAVIDs.

I knew I was wanting a straight tea this morning and I figured that I should give this one a try. And I’m quite impressed.

The nose is very fruity. The liquor a warm, reddish brown and very clear. On the palate, there are lovely notes of sweet, fermented grapes and something that might be chestnuts. No bitterness, but a drying sensation that builds quite intensely toward the bottom of the cup. A hint of vegetal on the finish, giving it a bit of a tangy quality. This reminds me a lot of a Darjeeling black actually.

This is a pretty delicious and unique green tea. A very short steep is probably called for. I can’t imagine steeping this for the recommended 3-4 min.

Edit: Second steep was even better – some malt in addition to the previous flavours, and very smooth. almost no astringency.

Sipdown. This was weird cold brewed, like a random weed from the garden. Slightly medicinal with a slightly dirty undertone.