Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Cameron Tea
Tea Description:
Region: Sun Moon Lake, Taiwan
Type: Black Tea
Harvest Time: Winter 2013
Oxidation level: Fully oxidised
Taste: Natural flavour of cinnamon with a slight hint of mint.
When to drink: Throughout the day
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Having tried and LOVED the Premium Grade Sun Moon Lake Ruby Black Tea from Cameron Tea, I was excited to try their Competition Grade Ruby Black to see how it would compare.
I brewed this tea in my ceramic teapot which I warmed using hot tap water prior to measuring out the tea leaves. I pinched out what appeared to be the equivalent of two bamboo scoops of the tea into the vessel. This tea – because of it’s long, wiry leaves – is difficult at best to attempt to actually measure out with my trusty bamboo scoop. So, unless you have a scale, you’re probably better served to use the noggin here and give it your best guess rather than to try to measure this tea with scoops or spoons. I personally do not have a tea scale – and I don’t want one! Tea should be simple and scales = scientific. Science = not simple.
Anyway, after putting an estimated 2 scoops of tea into my teapot, I then added 16 ounces of near boiling (205°F) water to the teapot and let the tea steep for 3 minutes. The result is a near perfect cup of tea! (Well, actually, a mug of tea!)
It’s been a little while since I last tried the Premium Grade Sun Moon Lake Ruby Black Tea, but what immediately caught my attention about this tea is the cinnamon-y spice notes! I don’t remember the spice notes being quite as forward in the Premium Grade version of this tea, and I’m not sure why that is.
Just beneath the cinnamon-like notes I notice flavorful notes of cacao – now those flavors, I remember! I think that the big difference, at least in flavor, between the two grades is that this Competition Grade has a more pronounced spice note and the Premium Grade has a stronger cacao focus.
Other than that, this tea is very similar to the Premium Grade … both are rich, satisfying teas that would serve well as a breakfast tea or mid-to-late morning tea. There is a strength to this cup that I find appealing, it’s the kind of tea that I want early in the day to keep me going.
This is really quite lovely on a day like today, when the weather is getting just a little cooler. Not a lot cooler yet, but, I’m certainly ready and eagerly awaiting more signs of autumn to appear! But this tea definitely has an autumnal sort of flavor going on and I like it a lot.
Another cup of AWESOMENESS from Cameron Tea!
Taiwan Sun Moon Lake Formosa Black Tea (Competition Grade) from Cameron Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Cameron Tea
Tea Description:
Region: Sun Moon Lake, Taiwan
Type: Black Tea
Oxidation level: Fully oxidised
Taste: Strong and refreshing flavour.
Terroir: Sun Moon Lake is located at altitude of 700m, surrounded with mountains and lakes with remarkable environment and typical climate for growing black teas. Heavy moist and stable yearly average temperature make the tea trees grow thick and rich tea leaves which produce carmine and perfectly clear liquor.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I’ve got to tell you, every time that I’m preparing to brew one of these black teas from Cameron Tea, I get really excited! The tea is simply superb!
And this competition grade Taiwan Sun Moon Lake Formosa Black Tea from Cameron Tea is no exception. The leaves are dark chocolate in color. They’re long, slender and wiry, but they aren’t so slender that it looks like they’ve been slivered down to size. They appear to be whole leaves that have been rolled lengthwise.
The dry leaf doesn’t have a strong aroma, it smells a little bit like warm leather and earth. It’s a very light scent … barely there. The brewed tea has a stronger fragrance, offering warm notes of leather, molasses and maybe even a gentle spice note here and there. It’s not a particularly strong scent, but it’s pleasant.
But it’s the flavor that wins me over with this tea. It’s a warm, rich, robust flavor. It’s not robust in the way that … say an Indian Assam black tea would be. It’s not the kind of black tea that I’d turn to to get me up and running for the day. It isn’t a strong “gusto” kind of tea.
Instead, this is more of the kind of tea that I’d want for my second cup of the day. After I’ve already got my jump start, and I’m looking for something to keep me going and something that is going to inspire a positive outlook on the rest of the day – this tea is THAT tea!
It is sweet with notes of cacao and caramel and yes, even some notes of molasses. It’s a sweet tasting tea, but it doesn’t taste cloying. There are subtle hints of earth and leather. It has a thick, buttery, smooth texture to it, although it doesn’t taste overly “buttery” the way a green tea or green Oolong might. At the start, there is very little astringency. It does build as I continue to make my way to the bottom of the cup; I start to notice a sort of dry “pucker” in my mouth after the sip. But it is a subtle sensation, and even those who tend to be sensitive to astringency would probably find the astringency of this tea acceptable.
As I continue to sip, I start to pick up on notes of stone fruit. Imagine a ripe plum that’s been drizzled with molasses and then lightly roasted. That’s the fruit note I’m experiencing. Not so much of the “tart” or sour notes of the fruit, it’s all about the sweetness of life in this teacup!
I love this tea! Then again, I’ve been overjoyed by everything that I’ve tasted thus far from Cameron Tea. If you are looking for exceptional black and Oolong teas … you need to check out Cameron Tea!
Taiwan AliShan Jin Xuan Oolong Tea (Competition Grade) from Cameron Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Cameron Tea
Tea Description:
AliShan is one the famous oolong tea growing areas in Taiwan. Located at altitude of 1500m, the mountain has a rich soil and ideal climactic conditions. The cool climate and moist from daily mists make the plants to grow very slowly and produce tender, flavourful tea leaves and buds.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Oh. My. Goodness! YUM!
By now, I’ve tried several different teas from Cameron Tea, and I’ve been quite delighted with the teas that I’ve tried! But this one … this is the best thus far. Not surprisingly, it is an AliShan Oolong. A Jin Xuan AliShan at that. What that means, essentially, is that this is a Milk Oolong. And it’s one of the finest Milk Oolong teas I’ve encountered in quite some time!
So sweet and creamy and oh-so-good!
Since this is an Oolong, I approached the brewing the same as I would just about any other Oolong: in my gaiwan. But instead of combining the first two infusions in one cup, I combined the first five infusions in my YiXing mug that is designated for AliShan Oolong tea.
And the combination of the first five infusions is lusciously sweet and smooth. It has a flavor that is somewhere between milk and sweet cream with hints of vanilla. The texture isn’t quite as heavy as whole milk. It’s probably more like the texture of a 2% milk. Which is a nicer, creamier texture than the milk that is usually served in this house.
We get 1% milk. I personally prefer 2% milk. But since I’m not a big milk drinker nor do I consume a lot of cereal, I don’t balk too much at the 1% milk. What I’m driving at here is that I like the texture of this tea better than I like the texture of the milk we buy. Although … I’m not sure how Oolong tea would work on cornflakes.
The flavor is so sweet and delicious. The floral notes in this cup (the first five infusions) are mingling with the creamy tones, and in this cup, the creamy notes are stronger than the floral notes. The creaminess lingers, but it never feels overwhelming to the palate. It is quite enjoyable.
I can also taste hints of fruit in this cup, but they are distant. It’s actually quite a complex cuppa, but I find the creamy notes so delightfully decadent that it’s hard to focus on anything but the sweet, creamy notes!
Since I LOVED that first cup so much, I decided to go ahead and infuse those leaves a little more, and I brewed a second cup – a combination of infusions 6 – 10.
And believe it or not … the second cup was nearly as lovely as the first! Still very creamy! The creamy notes are more distinctly vanilla this time around … making this cup even more delicious in my opinion. The (still) subtle floral notes of the cup seem to emphasize the vanilla.
I taste hints of a melon-like flavor in the distance, the aforementioned fruit notes that I noticed in the first cup are slightly more distinct now … but only slightly. This tea is still more about the creamy notes than it is about either flower or fruit. This cup is a little more astringent than the first. I noticed barely any astringency in cup #1 and now there is a mild astringency to this cup.
If you are a fan of Milk Oolong teas … this tea should be at the very top of your MUST TRY list. Trust me. You’ll be thanking me after you try it. And you’re welcome!
Taiwan AliShan High Mountain Oolong Tea (Competition Grade) from Cameron Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Cameron Tea
Tea Description:
AliShan is one the famous oolong tea growing areas in Taiwan. Located at altitude of 1500m, the mountain has a rich soil and ideal climactic conditions. The cool climate and moist from daily mists make the plants to grow very slowly and produce tender, flavourful tea leaves and buds.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Yay! AliShan! I love AliShan Oolong! I love LOVE love it!
And this competition grade Taiwan AliShan High Mountain Oolong Tea from Cameron Tea is LOVELY! It is definitely worthy of all the love I bestow onto AliShan Oolong teas.
The dry leaves have a sweet, floral scent with hints of fruit. The aroma of the brewed liquid smells very much like the dry leaf, with a little more floral notes and fewer fruity notes.
I brew the leaves in my gaiwan, but since this is an AliShan and it’s a rather special tea to me, rather than using my usual Oolong tea cup that holds two infusions of an Oolong, I combined the first five infusions of this tea into my Yi Xing Mug that is specially designated for AliShan Oolong teas.
The first five infusions mingling together in my tea mug produce a sweet, creamy, luscious flavor. The overall flavor and texture of the cup is delicate. Notes of flower, hints of fruit and vegetation, and a light honeyed sweetness wash over the palate. I would describe the honey notes as a “thinned” honey, it isn’t a thick or heavy sweetness, it’s more like a watered down honey-esque tone that melds with the floral notes in a really delightful way, softening the flowery sharpness.
There is also a distinct, roasted nutty tone to this tea. This is a distant flavor, something that sort of plays off in the background while these other flavors serve as the primary flavors tasted.
The sip starts out with a fresh, crisp floral note that is immediately followed by a hint of sweet, buttery vegetative taste. Fruit notes weave their way in and out of the sip while the thinned honey flavors sort of provide an undercurrent of sweetness. Mid-sip, I start to notice the hint of roasted, nutty tones. The finish is sweet and crisp with a faint but lingering aftertaste of sweet flower.
A really lovely Alishan Oolong! Admittedly, I haven’t yet found an Alishan that I’m not fond of, but, I have to say that this Competition Grade from Cameron Tea is certainly an excellent example of this, my favorite Oolong. I highly recommend it.
Muzha Tikuanyin Oolong Tea from T-Oolong Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: T-Oolong Tea
Tea Description:
This Premium Muzha Tikuanyin tea is competition grade. The tea is handpicked, handcrafted and produced from Tikuanyin varietal. The production method of Taiwan TKY is complicated as the tea leaves must be repeatedly rolled and cloth twisted and then charcoal roasted for several days. The aroma and taste is this tea is fruity and sweet with this attractive and lovely Tikuanyin fragrance. It is rich and complex, and stands up very well to multiple infusions.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
My first cup (the first two infusions after a quick rinse) of this Muzha Tikuanyin Oolong Tea from T-Oolong Tea was lighter than the subsequent cups, but it was still very flavorful. I could taste the charcoal roast, nutty notes, and a sweet, fruity tone come through.
But the second cup (infusions 3 & 4) is where the taste really came alive with this tea. It is so delicious and roasty-toasty. The nutty flavors and the fruity notes are coming through stronger now. There is a creamy, buttery taste to this, but instead of a typical cream/milk/butter type of taste, this is more reminiscent of browned butter. Sweet and toasty! The creamy notes accentuate the nutty tones, and the fruit flavors evoke thoughts of sweet stone fruit. This cup started out really smooth, and as I neared the end of the cup, I started to notice a mineral-y sort of taste and texture toward the finish.
With my third cup (infusions 5 & 6), I noticed more of the mineral notes begin to emerge, although I wouldn’t say that this was an overly “mineral-y” cup at all. It was deliciously sweet with notes of fruit and nut. It was less creamy than the second cup, though, and I noticed more astringency with this cup. The flavor was still deliciously toasted.
I was hesitant to actually publish this review since this tea is currently sold out on the T-Oolong Tea website, however, I decided to still offer the review in case my readers might be interested in watching T-Oolong Tea for when this tea might be back in stock … it’s definitely worth checking for because this is a really delightful tea!