Hello Tea Friends.
Darjeeling, one of the most famous tea growing regions in the world. Did you know tea produced in Darjeeling accounts for 7% of India’s total tea export? I love to read and learn about tea, there are some great facts on Wikipedia.
The Tea Shelf specialise in Indian teas from source and offer worldwide shipping. A new company to me but they offer worldwide shipping and have a wonderful selection on their site.
The tea I will be reviewing is Uper Fagu Darjeeling Oolong. Upper Fagu is a tea garden in Gorubathan, Darjeeling. This particular sample was picked in 2015 and is second flush with a silver tip grade. I did my best to try and break it down and explain where this tea comes from and what it is. The packet contains a lot of this information which is always useful to buyers.
Opening the packet and scooping some leaves into my hands I see long, thin leaves with a natural curl in a mixture of earthy green and brown colours with plenty of silver tips. The tips also have downy hairs. They bare a dry and floral scent with a touch of fruit.
Steeping Parameters: 1 teaspoon of leaf, 95C water. 3 minute steep.
Once steeped the tea soup is golden and light in colour with a sweet floral and fruit scent, very similar to it’s raw form.
The first few sips reveal a clean, peony base with a nutty, dry aftertaste. Further sips reveal a crisp citrus with honeyed tones. It becomes thicker in strength as it cools slightly.
Overall it’s delicate but very refined. A very nice example of a Darjeeling Oolong. Very nice tea and a company I will certainly be looking at in the future if this is the calibre of what they have to offer.
Happy Steeping!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: The Tea Shelf
Description: One of the finest oolongs of Darjeeling, the aroma of dark chocolate envelopes your senses, reminiscent of a cold wintry day! The leaves are springy with a moss like mosaic of silver and copper. The infusion shows another surprise with individual leaves clearly visible with bright colours of copper and mauve. The chocolate experience continues but now coupled with citrus and fruity notes. The steeped leaves give way to a gorgeous sunset yellow cup, which is very brisk on the palate with notes of jasmine and citrus, which linger on.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Yunnan Imperial from Tea and Tins
Hello Tea Friends!
Anyone who knows me is aware I adore Yunnan teas, that is why I jumped at the chance to review this one. I’m going to jump straight into the review so I c an get my ‘drink’ on.
Opening the packet reveals dark brown leaves that are long and thin with quite a few golden tips among them. The leaves appear to be good quality ie no discolouration or holes, and they were 3/4 in length for the most part so pretty full leaf with a few broken parts here and there.They have a slight smoky wood scent that is also dry.
Steeping Parameters: 1 tsp. Boiling Water. 3 minutes.
The resulting tea soup is mahogany in colour and bares a malt scent with a touch of smoke. Not as wooden nor dry as it’s raw state.
The first few sips reveal a rich, malt flavour that is sour and with a soft smoke aftertaste. Little astringency considering there is no milk nor sweetener. As it cools it becomes thicker and the smoke increases though remains in the aftertaste. Wonderful mouth feel as it cools a little more, filling my mouth with sour malt and smoke. Beautiful.
This had good flavours and was easy to drink, even without milk or sweetener. The ‘gulpability’ of this tea is a good! I recommend this for other Yunnan fans, or anyone looking for a good straight tea.
Happy Steeping!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Tea and Tins
Description:
The principal growing regions in Yunnan are located in altitudes of 4,000 to 6,500 feet. At annual average temperatures between 53 F and 73 F, high-grade, black and green qualities are produced.
The very large portion of large, golden leaf tips gives the full sweet-spicy taste and malty, soft aftertaste to the Yunnan Imperial. The large leaf is dark, matt green and contains many bronze-colored tips, the infusion is heavy and dark.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Superior Sencha – Compass Teas. . . . .
Hello tea friends,
It’s always nice to drink something with the word superior in it’s title. From what I understand; superior Sencha is one of the highest grades of Sencha. It is also more refined and elegant in general, from those that I have tried anyway.
This tea is no longer sold by Compass Tea but it may be something they restock in the future, or have something similar to.
The leaf is dark green with a high shine and a sweet, floral scent with a touch of grass. The leaves are of medium size with some broken pieces present, overall it looks as expected ie no discolouration or holes.
Steeping this at a lower temperature around 65C for one minute to try and draw out some of the umami and sweetness.
A golden brown/green liquid is produced (again typical of Superior Sencha) and it bares a toasted grass and seaweed scent, also slightly vegetal.
Flavour is medium strength with sweet grass highs and toasted peony lows, with a salty seaweed and kale type mineral after taste that lingers and becomes dry.Only a touch of astringency but some umami is present. Half way down my yunomi and it becomes so sweet and floral it’s picked up a perfumed quality has real mouth feel to it. Also slightly bitty at the bottom of my bowl.
A second steep of the same parameters reveals: less sweetness but more umami, mimicking soup broth in this steep. More mouth feel and dryness in the after taste and less perfume. Still it bares little astringency as such and it remains vegetal. It reminds me of Matcha, has a similar sort of flavour and feel about it in this steep. Just a very watery and non foamy Matcha.
Overall I was impressed. The quality was expected (average for a Superior Sencha) but it steeped well and had wonderful characteristics and flavours. A nice example of Sencha and pleasing to drink. I recommend low temperatures if your an umami fan though, at least to start with, I’m an umami fan at heart.
A nice introduction to Compass Teas for me and while this is no longer sold I will certainly keep my eyes open to see what line of Sencha it has in the future.
Happy Steeping!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Green Tea
Where to Buy: Compass Teas
Description: This tea is no longer available for sale but they have many other teas for sale.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Ganymede Matcha Tea Blend by MoongleamTeaShoppe
Hello Tea Friends!
My head is spinning at the idea of a Matcha, cocoa, mint, and orange peel combination and it’s something I have no idea of what to expect. Frankly that is why I chose this blend to try, not only is it original but it’s also from a small Etsy store and I love to give smaller businesses a chance.
So lets have a look at the tea. what can I say?…It’s medium sized pieces of what I assume is cocoa and orange peel covered in a green Matcha dust with a few rough looking chopped leaves. It looks as adventurous as it sounds. Scent wise it smells chocolatey yet dry.
I think I will steep this at roughly 75C (on the milder side) and hope that the Matcha doesn’t become too astringent. But I still want to get the best out of the other ingredients so I don’t want to go too mild. Steeping time will also be a fairly quick 20 seconds. This is going in completely blind on a guess, I imagine it’s one of those teas you have to try and alter to taste and experiment with. But for now those are my parameter choices.
As soon as the water goes in the mint fills my nostrils and bursts through the cocoa. The colour is dark green and cloudy (thank you Matcha) and it bares a strong mint chocolate scent. It looks like used paint water but looks can be deceiving.
Okay so the first sip reveals bitter mint with some sweetness and some creamy cocoa behind it, leading to a dry yet refreshing after taste. The astringency is from the Matcha I think but it quickly fades into a creamy undertone before finishing with softer mint.It’s actually so rich it’s more like a black tea base than green. The orange is lost on me though.
A second steep with the same parameters reveals: less bitterness making it creamier and sweeter, the mint still being forefront. This is more like a traditional mint green tea with a touch of cocoa. Still dry but so easy to drink.
Think of it as a mint chocolate tea with some Matcha goodness thrown in for good measure. A strange combination but it actually makes a nice change to try something so different. My husband said it’s like a chocolate ice lolly that has melted a bit.
So unusual but nice, worth the try and I am happy to have tried a sample. If you’re looking for something different then it’s definitely worth a try.
Happy Steeping!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Green Blend
Where to Buy: MoonGleam Tea Shoppe (Etsy)
Description: The rich, earthy flavor of matcha meets the sweetness of cocoa, mint, and orange peel.
The flavors combine wonderfully to create a wonderful interplay.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Christmas Spiced Tea by Fortnum & Mason
Hello Tea Friends,
This tea was actually a gift from my wonderful sister in law who knows I have a passion for tea. You cannot imagine my excitement when I received this; not only does it come in a beautiful tin but there is nothing finer than a Christmas tea to get you into the festive spirit.
Opening the tin revealed the blend which was decorated with a large star anise piece on the top. It’s so beautiful! The blend itself is a little festive as it has red safflower petals decorating a dark brown blend. It bares a soft yet spicy scent, like cinnamon and clove.
Brewing Parameters: 1.5 tsp in a large mug with boiling water for 3-4 minutes.
Once steeped a dark brown liquid with a red hue sits in my glass that bares the same generic spice scent as it’s raw form.
The first few sips reveal a dark base, wooden and thick with some bitterness with a delicate spicy after taste. Specifically clove, cinnamon and cocoa nib which is probably where the bitterness comes from. I imagine it would be reduced with a bit of sweetener.
The spice is not actually as strong as I expected, it’s more subtle against the black tea base. In a way it’s nice, sometimes ‘in your face’ flavoured teas are too much. There is also some dryness in the after taste though the spice lingers a while.
I would say while this was more of a subtle spice it was Christmas-esque and suited for all day drinking. I imagine a pot of this on Christmas morning would go down a treat! It’s subtlety may even win over some plain tea drinkers.
Until next time, Happy Steeping!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Black blend
Where to Buy: Fortnum & Mason
Description: Warm yourself up this Christmas with the exotic flavours which have been added to this Fortnum’s blend. This Christmas Spiced Tea has a festive seasonal flavour from zesty clementine and bold spices. With the addition of delicious cocoa nibs, this tea finishes any Christmas afternoon treat.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!