2018 Smoove Cocoa Minis

Gongfu session time! For the first time in a while, I’ve finally sat down to have a proper tea session whilst still doing homework, dreary and boring I know…

This pu-erh was pretty nice, not my favorite from White2Tea but it was nice to wind down with as I did my homework in our covered porch listening to the early fall rain. Something about drinking a nice Pu-erh, studying Greek Mythology, and listening to The 1975 is so peaceful to me. Even though it brings me a ton of stress, I love school haha!

This one was interesting. I could kind of taste something sort of chocolate in the first steep or two. Not as strong as tea with chocolate flavoring added but maybe like you had a cup of hot cocoa and then decided to make tea in the same cup without rinsing it out very well first. I hoped the chocolatey flavors would last through all the steeps but it became more savory instead. It reminded me of when I’ve added a pinch of salt to my tea…I’m on a high-sodium diet for chronic low blood pressure, there isn’t much I haven’t tried adding salt to. It wasn’t super salty like your average packaged broth/stock but it seemed slightly salty compared to most of the teas in my stash. The really oily mouthfeel was a new experience for me too. It made me think of broth even more, or maybe heavy cream. I was disappointed it didn’t last for many steeps but I think I could probably make it go longer with less water and hotter water. The thermos I had my water in didn’t hold the heat as well as I would have liked and I was using a mug with an infuser thingie, just eyeballing the water level at about 1/3 of a mug. Next time I’ll try a smaller brewing vessel. I think I like Smoove Cocoa enough to finish the cute little mini tong but I’m not sure yet whether it’ll go on my re-order list.

I get two pieces of those from derk. And as my gaiwan is broken (the lid, but as it is second crack I decided to don’t use it anymore), I brewed grandpa. She wasn’t that much impressed, but me? Let’s see!

Used all 7 grams of one piece per my 300 ml glass. Although it is bit on strong side, it is good (and I have prepared two steeps)

First steep is quite strong… but I knew it before I decided to give it a try; and typical shu notes are there. It was bit woody, earthy and quite dark. Not sure if I noticed any cocoa, but kind of dark chocolate was there I guess. Maybe a little of umami.

The seconds steep is way lighter and more into cocoa! Even quite sweet-side. It is more chocolatey than previous. Still full of flavour. Smooth and coating. Cocoa sweetness and hints of creamy.

Song pairing: Well, Bruce Spingsteen’s new album? Have you noticed? I haven’t till today!
That said, I am not sure if: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQyLEz0qy-g (Letter To You), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KzvnEvbL-qs (House Of A Thousand Guitars). That’s it! But all album is, ehm, great.

Both songs make me feel that I should burst out crying, don’t know why. But they are so amazing. Great album. Well, he is “The Boss”!

Won’t rate as I will after preparation gong-fu. This deserves 80+ rating though. I am sad that you weren’t that impressed derk! Maybe it needs the rough preparation?

It seems like there isn’t a consensus whether this tea is cocoa-like or not. I feel like I land somewhere in between. As far as the liquor goes, to me it mostly tastes like mushroom broth with a bit of a woody flavour. However, in the aftertaste I do get some chocolate note, as well as the kind of dry cocoa butter aftertaste.

The tea has a decent balance with some bitterness, spicy notes in the aftertaste and mild caramel sweetness, but ultimately it does lean quite heavily on the umami side of things.

Gongfu!

Sipped on this one earlier in the week on a very grey and rainy day. Those are the kind of days that heavily suit shou sessions, so how could I not!? Such a thick and oily liquor with a balance of darkly sweet and deeply brothy/savory flavours – molasses, wet woods and forest undergrowth, umami, and bitter baker’s chocolate. Perfectly cozy and comforting for a rainy day!

Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/CQZSonxhR8z/

Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hNdjFHerPs0&ab_channel=ScoobertDoobert-TopicScoobertDoobert-Topic

Thanks, Kawaii433, for sharing one of these.

Sadly, I got absolutely nothing from this shou :( And my coin was only 6.2g compared to others’ 7g. The dry leaf smelled only of chocolate and molasses; steeped grandpa in 16oz of boiling water, the faint aroma was the same with an earthy addition. Taste had a hint of sweet cream and fruit on the sip followed mineral, dry earth and some kind of umami I perceived as cheese with no noticeable cocoa, mouthfeel or feelings of relaxation. Savory, not cocoa-like at all. Is it my allergies or is it bunk? Seems very basic to me, which isn’t a bad thing at all, but where da cocoa? And I only did a half refill before deciding nah.

Certainly lives up to its name. The wet leaves and liquor smell like freshly baked chocolate cake.
The first brews are very strong and dark, they taste like chocolate with smooth cocoa notes. There is some fruit shining through, but not much. Later brews begin to lose the chocolate notes, the tea becomes more woody and creamy.
There are also some sour metallic notes later on, but it might be due to the groundwater I use for my tea.
I recommend this for those who like dark chocolate and cocoa.

Ohhhh how i love these Cocoa Minis
The taste got cocoa, sweetness ,fruityness and no wet pile
Just awesome

Smooth and chocolate-y. As advertised.

Some more notes:

1:47 am and decided to finish up a package and my crazy (Cameron said bananas lol) Sunday went into Monday and now entered Tuesday! I accidentally printed the shipping label on an Avery label sheet (the kind with lots of little labels) instead of a plain sheet of paper and made a typo in my own name. Oh man.

I’m going to make another order with White2Tea soon and thought I’d revisit this. I like it. Hardly any fermentation flavors, and it’s a good daily drinker. Sweet, smooth, chocolatey. I have a cake of it but these mini disks are just way cute (and convenient) but more expensive per gram, of course. Ugh lol. I’m a slave to cuteness. I’m trying to talk myself out of it. If anyone would understand, I know you all would lol.

7g mini, Yixing gaiwan, 212°F, rinse, 5s, 10s, 15s, 20s, 25s, 35s (this is where I’m at right now).