Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where To Buy: Fong Mong Tea
Tea Description:
Lishan High Mountain Oolong Tea is one of the most unique and highest quality Oolong. Grown in the Li Mountains of Taiwan, this tea is harvested at the elevation of 1200 meters in an isolated area. Due to the cold weather and relatively harsh environments, the plants grow at a very slow rate and in small quantity. The tea is either harvested during the winter or summer and sometimes only once during the entire year. After the harvest, the leaves are carefully handled and aerated during the long ride to the nearest tea maker. Despite the difficult growing conditions, the leaves are selected as the highest quality of Oolong.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I’m revisiting this tea – kind of. This is a whole new year, and this Lishan High Mountain Oolong Tea from Fong Mong Tea is from a whole new harvest!
And not surprisingly, this is amazing.
Not surprising because: 1) All the teas that I’ve tried from Fong Mong thus far have been good, and 2) I love LiShan Oolong teas!
I brewed this LiShan in my gaiwan, and the first five infusions (following a 15 second rinse) were combined into one cup, specifically, my Yixing mug that I have just for LiShan Oolongs! Yeah, I love ’em that much!
The first cup is amazing: buttery, silky-soft texture, floral, distant notes of fruit, and a touch of vegetal undertones. It is deliciously sweet, almost a sugary sweetness that melds in a lovely way with the exotic floral tones. I like that these floral notes are not sharp, they are as soft as the texture, they taste almost “fluffy.”
The buttery notes … well, I almost typed “creamy” instead of buttery, because they taste like something in between butter and sweet cream, but I decided that it had more of a buttery flavor than that of sweet cream, so I went with buttery instead. That is to say that these creamy/buttery notes are not overly sweet to the point where they might be thought of as cloying, instead, they are like something that’s between sweet and savory, with just a few steps over toward the sweeter side than to the savory.
It’s quite a luscious tea to sip, it feels luxurious on the palate as it glides softly over it. It tastes very creamy and light and sweet. So good!
My second cup (infusions 6 – 10) was just as lovely as the first! It is also sweet, creamy and delicately luxurious with its notes of cream, flower and hints of vegetation and fruit. I didn’t notice so much of a distinct buttery note this time, though, it just tasted creamy and soft, like something that had been flavored with vanilla, but without a distinguished vanilla note.
The flower is just a tad sharper in this cup than it was in the first cup, and I think that this may be because of the fact that some of those creamy/buttery elements are not as apparent in this cup. But I like the sharpness here, it seems to bring the floral notes more into focus for me, while with the first cup, they were soft and fuzzy, almost like a daydream about flowers. Here I taste notes that evoke clear thoughts of orchid.
A really beautiful LiShan. I loved every single sip of it. It would be difficult for me to choose which cup I liked better (the first or the second!) but I will say this: the flavor of this tea is so exquisite that you really should take this for as many infusions that you can get out of it! It’s worth the effort.
White Tropics Tea Blend from Tea & Bloom
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Tea & Bloom
Tea Description:
Mixture of white tea with pineapple, coconut and rose petal. High in antioxidants.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I try to go into a tea tasting with no real expectations. It’s not always easy. It wasn’t in the case of this White Tropics tea from Tea & Bloom … because with pineapple and coconut flavors, I couldn’t help but think Pina Colada.
And this doesn’t really taste so much like a Pina Colada as it does a tropical tea. But I’m not disappointed by that. The pineapple and the coconut are nicely paired here, and the white tea is not overpowered by the tropical fruits. And I can even taste hints of the rose in there too. And it’s the rose that gives this a flavor that is different than the typical Pina Colada flavored tea. (Well that, and there’s not a rum note to this.)
I like that I can taste the creaminess of the coconut, and it melds beautiful with the sweet notes of the white tea while the pineapple brightens up the cup. It’s flavorful, but in a delicate, “white tea” way.
All that said, this isn’t really all that exceptional in any way. It’s a tasty enough tea, I like the classic combination of pineapple and coconut, and I like how they meld with the white tea and just a hint of rose flavor. But, it’s just … alright. I’d drink it again if it were offered to me, but it’s not something I’d want to purchase and have on hand.
Black n Blue Flavored Iced Tea from Southern Boy Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Learn more about Southern Boy Teas here.
You can also learn more about Southern Boy Teas here.
Taster’s Review:
I was so happy to see that this tea – originally released as a 52Teas’ tea of the week – brought back for one of the SBT iced tea blends. It was one of those ‘memorable’ blends, and I knew that it would make a killer iced tea!
Now that I have my new Breville One-Touch (I really, really missed this appliance for the two weeks I was without it. I can’t begin to express how much I missed it.) I hot brewed this large tea bag, steeping it for 2 minutes for the first quart, and then steeping it for 2 1/2 minutes for the second quart to make a half gallon of iced tea. Chilled it overnight, and now I have a pitcher full of deliciousness.
And it is delicious! When I first opened the pouch, I could smell the blueberry and blackberry. It’s a strong, distinctive aroma that I can smell now that I have a chilled glass of iced tea in front of me. It’s not quite as fragrant as a hot cup of tea would be, but I can still smell notes of sweet, juicy berries.
This is really good. I believe it’s as good as I remember the original tasting, which is quite a thing because usually the original teas from 52Teas are at least a little better – sometimes, it’s the reverse, but more often than not, the original 52Teas release is better – but this tastes every bit as good as I remember the original tasting. The blueberry and blackberry flavors are strong and they taste like sweet, fresh, ripe berries with just a hint of that berry tart that tingles on the tongue in the aftertaste.
The black tea is also discernable – it’s a brisk and refreshing black tea. It’s strong without overpowering the flavors, and this is one particular blend where I don’t want the flavors to be overpowered because there really is a very pleasing balance between blackberry and blueberry.
As I said before, the original version was one of those memorable black tea blends from 52Teas – it was one that I sort of hoarded for a while so that I could steep it for iced tea because it was such an incredibly good iced tea! I generally am very happy to share any of my teas with people because I have a lot of tea.
No, seriously, I have a lot of tea. Go into your nearest Teavana and see their tea wall … I have more tea than that. Not joking.
So, it’s a rare moment when I find a tea that I’m reluctant to share with others. But the original of this blend was one that I sort of kept to myself so that I could get as much iced tea out of it as I could. That’s how yummy this is. I’m so happy that 52Teas ‘accidentally’ recreated this for the Southern Boy Teas line!
Orange Creamsicle Flavored Iced Tea from Southern Boy Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Learn more about Southern Boy Teas here.
You can also learn more about Southern Boy Teas here.
Taster’s Review:
Ahhh! This is yummy!
As the temperature outside continues to rise, I need something cold and refreshing to sip! I generally prefer hot to iced tea but, over the past couple of years, I’ve come to appreciate having a pitcher full of iced tea chilling in the fridge. I try to keep a pitcher in there at all times, and during the warmer days of summer, I usually need to refill that pitcher daily.
To make a pitcher of this Orange Creamsicle Iced Tea from Southern Boy Teas, I hot brewed the sachet. I think I may have to order another package of this so that I can experiment a little and try it cold-brewed as well. By cold-brewing one of Southern Boy Teas/52Teas iced tea sachets, I can get a full gallon’s worth of tea out of the package, however, when I first try a tea from SBT, I have learned that it’s best to start out with a hot-brew and then experiment. The hot brew will tell me whether or not it’s worth my while to experiment.
In other words, the hot brew tells me whether or not the flavors are there. I’ve learned the hard way that with some of the SBT teas, cold-brewing just doesn’t do the tea justice. So, when I’m first trying a tea, I hot brew it so that I can sit down and write a review about it. If I like it well enough to “experiment” then I order another package.
And I like this. There is a good balance between black tea taste and the flavors of orange and vanilla. It’s not overwhelmingly orange and vanilla Some flavored teas seem to go overboard with flavoring and you don’t end up tasting a lot of tea, I like that I’m tasting TEA here!
The taste is sweet but it’s not cloying. The black tea is brisk and full-flavored, not too astringent, and not bitter. It’s a very pleasant, refreshing beverage. And let’s face it, summer’s coming whether I’m ready for it or not. At least I’ll be “armed” with some nice iced tea choices, thanks to Southern Boy Teas!
Apple Pie Keemun from 52Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Tea Description:
I’ve paired a nice Chinese Keemun with freeze-dried granny smith and red delicious apples, cinnamon chips and organic flavors, including some brown sugar and other yumminess that goes in an apple pie. I think this one is going to be really popular, so don’t drag your feet about getting yours.
Learn more about this blend here.
Taster’s Review:
When I opened the pouch of this Apple Pie Keemun from 52Teas, I was greeted with the delicious aroma of apple pie! A strong cinnamon note with lingering apple notes. Mmm! I started to get very excited over the prospect of tasting apple pie in a tea!
This is really quite tasty. When I first read the announcement about this flavor, I thought … “Oh … that sounds amazing. Apple Pie and Keemun tea.” The body of the Keemun is rich and full, and it offers a nice platform for the flavors of apple and cinnamon.
The Keemun has a slightly smoky note to it. This smokiness gives the cup a “fresh baked, home made” sort of goodness which is further enhanced by the buttery, pastry like flavors that I’m tasting. The natural fruit notes of the Keemun elevate the flavor of the apple. And the earthiness of the Keemun compliment the cinnamon.
A really good, palate-pleasing combination of flavors. It all works together very well!