Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Oolong, Pu-erh and Herbal

Where to Buy:  BijaBody Health + Beauty

Tea Description:

We’ve gotten enough feedback from guys to know you want your own tea, and you don’t want a frilly peacock feather on it. Point taken. Here you go.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

Of the three different teas from BijaBody Health + Beauty I was sent to try, this was the one with which I hesitated longest.  I could think of all kinds of silly excuses, but, if I were to be completely honest, it was because it was a “man” tea, and well, the last time I checked, I’m a woman.

But, really, that’s pretty silly too.  It’s a tea!  There are some herbals in there that are definitely intended for men, but, I have never claimed to drink tea for its health benefits, so why should I not drink a tea because of its purported health benefits for men?

This tea has a strong earthy quality to it, much stronger than I recall tasting with either the Daily Beauty Tea or the Nightly Beauty Tea from BijaBody.  I definitely taste the Pu-erh here, but, it isn’t an overwhelming or off-putting flavor.  I also taste the Oolong, and I can feel the texture from the Oolong too – its smooth and almost creamy.

This also has a slight medicinal quality to it, but not so much that it makes me want to stop drinking it.  The medicinal flavor is balanced out with the warm spice notes in the background as well as the tea flavors to give this a very enjoyable taste.  After a glance at the ingredients, I worried that the cayenne might be a bit too much for the cup, but, it is actually quite subtle, providing a little bit of heat, but, certainly not to the point where I’d categorize this as spicy or even medium-hot.  It has a mild spice – it’s warm and energizing.

Overall, this is an enjoyable beverage, even for those of us who are not men.  If I were to change anything about it, though, I should like for there to be more of a chocolate taste from the cacao nibs… I taste only hints of cocoa here.  But for what it is, I found it quite agreeable.

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  White

Where to Buy:  Mandala Tea

Tea Description:

Although this amazing tea is pu’er leaf buds, it is best described and prepared as a white tea since it is picked in the late winter/early spring of 2011 and only sundried.  No other processing takes place.

The liquor is clear and the flavor is sweet and floral with hints of pine.  Complex flavors and yet so simple to enjoy.  Mild and pleasant.  This tea is rare and beautiful, as fresh as spring! 

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

This is one of the more unusual looking teas that I’ve come across in my tea adventures.  These buds remind me of the tops of the grassy weeds that I used to run through when I was a kid … you know the ones that would deposit burrs in socks and then keep poking you as it got further and further embedded into the fabric of the sock, becoming more and more uncomfortable?  Well, the uncomfortable feeling never stopped me from running through those grassy fields when I was a kid, and this tea’s unusual appearance isn’t going to stop me from trying this tea!

It brews up to a very pale color … it almost looks like water that is in my cup, it is so pale.  But for such a light color, there is a lot of flavor to this.  I hadn’t read the description above until after I had taken my first couple of sips, and my initial reaction was that this tastes very much like a pu-erh.  It has that pu-erh earthiness to it, although it is more like a “white tea” pu-erh earthiness (which is quite appropriate for this IS a white pu-erh) than the darker pu-erh teas that I’m used to.

It also has some characteristics that I’d expect from a white tea, although it is not as delicate as most white teas I’ve tasted.  But this does have that hay-like quality to it that I often taste in a high quality Bai Mu Dan.

The sip starts sweet, with an almost immediate transition to the earthiness of the cup, and hints of hay, as well as woody tones and floral notes weave their way throughout the sip.  Towards the end of the sip, I notice a mineral-y kind of taste toward the end of the sip that settles on the palate.  The finish is slightly earthy with hints of fresh pine.

It’s quite a nice cup, and a different way to experience pu-erh.

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Pu-erh

Where to Buy:  Verdant Tea

Tea Description:

These nuggets are formed from only the smallest most delicate buds, and slow-fermented to form nuggets.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

Wow!  Just … Wow!

I always seem to be so surprised by pu-erh… surprised that I actually like it.  The first couple of times that I did try it were less than successful tastings, and as a result, I have it programmed in my head that I do not like pu-erh.  But, you’d think that by now, after so many successful tastings since those first few, that I’d have managed to reprogram myself and realize that I DO like pu-erh.

And I REALLY like this pu-erh.  Immediately upon opening the pouch I KNEW this was different.  The tea has been formed into little nuggets, looking a bit like dried clots of dark earth.  And I expected it to smell like dark earth, but it didn’t.  The aroma is fairly faint.  I detect hints of wood, but not much else.

The flavor is quite remarkable.  The tasting notes on Verdant Tea’s website seem to describe what I’m experiencing very well.  Notes of sweet cinnamon and a vanilla tone that is not so much a creamy vanilla, but more of the sugary sweetness you’d experience from an angel food cake.  Enhancing these angel-food-esque flavors even more is a sort of cake-y like taste … wheat and browned sugar and tones of malt.

But it’s what I don’t taste that makes this shu even more remarkable … I don’t taste EARTH!  Usually with a shu pu-erh, even a very good one that is sweet and delicious, there are earth tones that taste unmistakeably … well, like earth.  But, I don’t taste those same earthy tones here.  I don’t taste that brine-y fish taste.  I taste a sweet, clean flavor with notes of wood and spice.  And I like it a LOT!

If you have wanted to get in to pu-erh but have not found one that you can enjoy without tasting those strong, earthy flavors, try this one!  This one WILL surprise you!

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Pu-erh

Where to Buy:  Teavivre

Tea Description:

Aged Pu-erh tea is created by secondary-oxidation and post-fermentation tea.  This type of Pu-erh tea is referred to as ripened, or cooked, Pu-erh, which has a rich, mellow and earthy flavor.  Unlike many other teas which should be consumed shortly after production, such as green and white teas, Pu-erh tea can either be brewed immediately or it can be stored and aged for many years, much like a fine wine.  Most Pu-erh teas are classified by the year they were produced and the region they were grown in, much like many wine vintages.  In fact, when it comes to Pu-erh tea, the longer it is stored and aged properly, the more complex the flavor and the more valuable the tea gets.  Many aged Pu-erh teas are served in Chinese restaurants after heavy meals, as Pu-erh tea is known for it’s ability to break down fat, also making it a great weight loss tea!

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

I was a little afraid to try this Pu-erh, as I worried it might end up tasting a little too earthy for my palate.  It was the name of the tea that frightened me … “ripened aged” usually says to me “very earthy.”

But after unwrapping the individually wrapped tuocha and inhaling deeply, I noticed only a hint of earthiness to the aroma.  In fact, the aroma of the dry leaf is very indistinct, with mere insinuations of an earthiness.

The flavor is more earthy than the aroma of the dry leaf would suggest, but, I am not finding it to be TOO earthy.  Perhaps it is because beneath that earthy overtone, I taste this underlying note of delicious caramel-y sweetness.  And even the earthiness here I find to be very interesting, as it seems to interchange with a deep, woodsy kind of flavor.

Overall, this has a very rustic kind of flavor to it … very masculine.  It is very smooth and mellow, with no bitterness whatsoever and no astringency either.  After my first couple of sips, I added just a little bit of turbinado sugar to see how that would affect the flavor and it ended up giving the caramel-like sweetness I mentioned earlier a very molasses-y kind of taste … very nice indeed!  I like how that molasses flavor marries with the masculine flavors of wood and earth.  This would also probably taste wonderful as a latte!  Might have to try that sometime soon!

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Oolong, Pu-erh & Herbal

Where to Buy:  BijaBody Health + Beauty

Tea Description:

Daily Beauty Tea’s blend of fair-trade, organic Oolong and Pu-erh Tea with beautifying herbs and spices -including cacao nibs, burdock, a dash of cayenne, and so much more- supports a fiery metabolism, internal ph balance, natural detox and digestion, and your skin’s exquisite function*.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

As I’ve said many times before, I’m quite hesitant when it comes to herbal blends, but since I’ve recently tried their Nightly Beauty tea and enjoying it, I felt much more at ease while preparing this tea.

BijaBody seems to know what they’re doing.  They select the ingredients based not only on their positive benefits, but, also for their contributions to the flavor.

The two blends that I’ve tried thus far – Nightly Beauty and now Daily Beauty – have many similar ingredients.  Most notable are the  Pu-erh, cacao nibs and sarsaparilla.  Some of the other ingredients are the same as well, but, these are the most prominent flavor-wise.  But even though they have many similar ingreidents, this tastes quite a bit different from the Nightly Beauty.

I can taste the Oolong tea’s contribution to the cup.  It tastes lighter, smoother and a little on the creamy side.  I can also taste the cayenne pepper in this, it isn’t a spicy-hot flavor, but, it is certainly warming.  I can feel its heat on my palate, but, it doesn’t get to a level where I feel like I need something to cool it down.  It’s quite enjoyable, really.

I do taste the Pu-erh, but of the two tea types, the Oolong stands out.  The Pu-erh gives a light earthiness to the cup that mingles quite nicely with the other ingredients.  I also taste the sarsaparilla and the cacao nib … although neither are as prominent as they are with the Nightly Beauty blend.

While the Nightly Beauty blend tastes more herbaceous, I find that this blend tastes more like tea, albeit a tea blend that I don’t think I’ve ever tried before.  But there’s nothing wrong with that.  In fact, I like how different this tastes.

A very enjoyable tea, and if it has health and beauty benefits, that’s a bonus!

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Herbal & Pu-erh

Where to Buy:  BijaBody Health + Beauty

Tea Description:

Nightly Beauty Tea’s blend of aged pu-erh with calming, beautifying herbs and spices-such as gotu kola, chamomile, red raspberry leaf, lemongrass and ginger- strengthens digestion, healthy skin function, mental/physical calm and enhances your dazzling elegance.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

OK… so this was a tea that made me a little nervous.  Lots of herbs AND Pu-erh?  Yeah, not exactly high up there on the oh-my-goodness-I-really-must-try-it-now list. But now that I’m tasting it, I’m enjoying it.  In fact, I like this a lot, and I could see myself drinking this on a regular basis.

After examining the contents of this sample package, I noticed that there seemed to be more herbs than tea in this blend, so, I decided to steep it at 195°F for 8 minutes to get the most out of those herbs.  And I’m quite satisfied with the result.

There is a LOT going on with this blend.  The first flavor I notice is the sarsaparilla, and it gives the cup a very root beer kind of taste.  I then notice the ginger – it adds a gentle, soothing warmth without tasting too spicy.  The cacao adds a hint of chocolate-y flavor to the background.  Also in the background, I notice a citrus-y note.

Overall, the cup is very herb-y tasting without tasting too medicinal.  The Pu-erh does manage to make its presence known.  It adds an earthiness to the cup that balances everything out.  I find this to be a very satisfying cup – quite soothing and calming – I feel the stress drain from my body!

This is my kind of beauty regimen!

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Green, White & Pu-erh Teas

Where to Buy:  Praise Tea

Tea Description:

Our combination of Sencha, Gunpowder, Mini Tuo, Chun Mee, Pai Mu Tan, Lung Ching, Snow Bud, Pi Lo Chun, candied pineapple and strawberry takes you to an oasis of delight. Delectable both hot and cold. Try some with white crystal sugar. Indulge your taste buds.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

After a quick glance at this tea’s ingredient list, I thought that this tea may just have a little too much going on.  It smelled intriguing, though, with its delicious notes of strawberry and pineapple, so I decided to give it a try.

And somehow, this massive list of ingredients works together very well!  While it is next to impossible to pick out each individual tea’s characteristics, I can taste the fresh, vegetative flavor of green tea, a light earthy quality from the tuocha, and I can even taste notes that are very much like white tea – notes of hay and that crisp, airy quality that is often noted in white tea.

The strawberry and pineapple notes are less distinctive than the flavors of the tea, but, that’s alright.  In fact, I find it to be quite refreshing to have the tea as the center focus in this cup, and have the fruit flavors to serve as accent notes to enliven the overall flavor.  The place where the fruit really stands out is in the aftertaste, where I can taste the flavors of both the pineapple and the strawberry.

This tea does have a natural sweetness to it, so I would recommend tasting before you sweeten.  I did end up adding just a pinch of sugar which helped to enhance the fruit notes more than sweeten the cup.  Without the sugar, the fruit notes fall a little flat … they’re still present, but, just not as lively as with a pinch of sugar.

This one makes a nice iced tea too.  I recommend steeping it at least twice, as it is even tastier with the second infusion.

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Pu-erh & White Tea

Where to Buy:  Red Leaf Tea

Tea Description:

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

For those of you who have read very many of my reviews on different types of Earl Grey tea, you’re probably well aware that I’m carrying on an unabashed, passionate love affair with the Earl.  So when I am given a new Earl Grey to try, I get very excited.

But, I can say that this was one Earl Grey that I was not excited to try.  I was even a little nervous to try it.  I love Earl Grey, but, I’ve had my ups and downs with Pu-erh.  And while I am slowly coming to terms with the rather assertive nature of Pu-erh, and even gaining some appreciation for the tea, it’s taken quite a while for this to occur, and I wasn’t too sure I was ready to try my beloved Earl Grey as a Pu-erh.

I did not steep according to the instructions on the website, which suggest a boiling temperature for 5 – 7 minutes.  Instead, I got out my gaiwan, eyeballed a measurement of the tea in the bottom of my gaiwan, added hot water (190°F) and put on the cover.  I did a quick rinse, and then allowed the first infusion to steep for 45 seconds, and the second for one minute, and these two infusions were combined in one cup.

The Pu-erh is a shou Pu-erh, which means it has been fully ripened.  It is strong and earthy.  But, fortunately, the bergamot is also strong, and the bright, tangy character of the citrus fruit shines through.  Also in this blend is a sprinkling of white tea, which surprised me when I first opened the pouch, as I didn’t expect to see Silver Needles in the package.  I don’t know that I can taste much of the Silver Needles’ contribution to the cup, but, I can’t say that the tea would taste the same without this component.

And I have to say that despite my misgivings about the idea of a Pu-Erh Earl Grey, this is quite good.  Delicious even!  It earned a   It’s not going to earn its way into my list of favorite Earl Grey teas, but, it certainly has earned a spot on my list of preferred Pu-Erh Teas.

I like this!

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Pu-erh

Where to Buy:  Verdant Tea

Product Description:

The Peacock Village is unique in its perfectly light and clean body.  It does not weigh down the palate with earthiness.  Rather, it sparkles in its crisp sweetness.  The very large leaves used are similar to the old tea tree leaf material in the Xingyang 1998.   The first steepings yield a crystalline orange tea with tea oils swirling on top.  The sweetness is like rock sugar and white grapes.  After the preliminary steepings, the tea starts to unfold in darker buckwheat flavor and honey.  Unexpectedly, there is something in the texture and aftertaste of dried oregano.  As the tea steeps out, the grape-like fruit taste becomes dark elderberry, and the aftertaste is tinged with the warm spice of Thai ginger and peppercorns.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

This tea made me a little nervous at the start.  While the dry leaf aroma doesn’t possess a strong earthy scent, the liquor does smell rather earthy.  And it is that earthiness that often puts me off when it comes to Pu-erh.  But Verdant has not let me down yet, so I relied on my past experiences and took a sip.

Yes!  Fortunately, the earthiness is not as strong in the taste.  The first sip starts out with a fairly moderate earthy tone which quickly dissipates into a clean, sweet flavor.  With each subsequent sip, I notice less of the earthy note, and more of that sweetness.  It’s really quite lovely.

I brewed this Gongfu style as directed on the Verdant Tea website, except that I steeped the first infusion 30 seconds and added 15 seconds with each subsequent infusion.  What I am drinking now is the results of the first two infusions (following two quick rinses).  The taste is remarkably light for a Pu-erh, which tends to be somewhat heavy.  Once the earthy notes subside, the flavor is sweet and crisp … almost like a honey that has been thinned with sparkling white grape juice.

The third and fourth infusions render a tea that has almost no earthy note to speak of.  There is just a hint of earthiness somewhere in there, but, it’s back in background, and so easy to miss with the other lovely flavors in the cup.  It has a warmth to it as if it had been slightly spiced.  The spiced tones develop later in the sip, toward the finish, and the aftertaste imparts a tingly taste on the tongue as if I had just eaten something with fresh peppercorn.  Not hot or spicy, mind you, but, just a hint of pepper. I taste lovely fruit notes throughout:  the grape-y notes that I mentioned earlier are still there, and I taste something else too … pear perhaps?  A very interesting tea, this Shu from Peacock Village, and I am eager to try the next two infusions.

My fifth and sixth infusions are even sweeter, reminding me a bit of the rock sugar candy that I used to love as a child (and if the flavor of this tea is any indicator, I still quite like that rock sugar candy!)  The earthiness is gone.  There is a dry sensation toward the finish and into the aftertaste … but it isn’t astringency.  It almost feels powdery, like dry cocoa but it doesn’t taste chocolate-y, instead it tastes like warm spice.  It is a curious sort of sensation, but not at all unpleasant.  I’m quite enjoying the mysteries that I experience as I sip this tea.

For those who have thought that Pu-erh is not to your liking, I think you should give this Shu a try.  It is quite remarkable, and unlike any Pu-erh I’ve yet to taste.

"Abstraction White Rose" by Georgia O'Keefe. I had difficulty finding this tea on the website, so, I decided to treat you to a picture from one of my favorite artists of all time, Georgia O'Keefe. You can click on the photo to learn more about Georgia O'Keefe and some of her other works.

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Pu-erh

Where to Buy:  Tao of Tea

Product Description:

The Tuocha refers to a family of bowl shaped teas, commonly available as Green tea Tuocha, Black tea Tuocha and Puer (aged) Tuocha. More recently, Tuochas have also become commonly available by compressing the tea leaves and flowers together, or by heat infusing them together. In making the Rose Tuocha, more mature leaves of the tea plant are selected in summer, sun-dried, steamed, oxidized to turn dark, then compressed along with rose petals into small bowls. Wrapped with paper, the Rose Tuocha are an ideal size (3 grams) for individual serving.

Flavor Profile: Sweet, smooth, very mild rose flavor with little astringency.

Taster’s Review:

This is certainly different … not at all what I expect when I taste a Pu-erh.  Pu-erh tends to be quite a strong, assertive flavor, but with this Pu-erh, you need to throw everything you know about Pu-erh out the window, because it’s so unusual … but in the very best way possible.

When I steep Pu-erh Tuocha like this, I steep them in my gaiwan, using short steeps and multiple infusions.  My first cup was the combination of the first two infusions (following a quick 10 second rinse).  This cup is really quite light in flavor.  A little woodsy with a mellow rose note that is pleasantly sweet.  No sharpness, no strong earthy flavors.  Smooth and only the faintest hint of astringency at the tail.

My second cup (the combination of the third and fourth infusions), brewed up darker and much bolder than the first cup.  The color here is much more like what I’d expect from a Pu-erh, whereas the first cup was more like a black tea.  The flavor is more assertive compared to the first, but, still, it is not that typical earthy flavor of Pu-erh.  There are some earthy hints that seem to have paired up with the woodsy flavor that I mentioned with the first cup – creating more of a “damp wood” flavor than an earthy note.  The floral notes are stronger here too.  What this cup actually tastes like to me?  Coffee … but without the bitterness and astringency.  This tastes rather like a smooth cup of rich coffee.

My third and final cup (the combination of the fifth and sixth infusions) was slightly (only very slightly) lighter in color than the second cup, but the flavor has become much smoother than either the first or the second cup.  The floral tone has emerged nicely, and I am still getting that coffee-like flavor that I had mentioned.  Of the three cups, this one is definitely my favorite as it has become so unbelievably smooth.

This is an excellent Pu-erh.  It would make a good starter Pu-erh for those who are new to the tea.  And for those of you who really love rose teas, you should give this one a try … while the rose flavor here is a bit more mellow than a typical rose Congou, I like that this Rose Tuocha shows me a whole new set of flavors to the rose that I would have never experienced from other teas.