Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Driftwood Teas
Tea Description:
Oriental Beauty is also know by several other names including: Dong Fang Mei Ren; White Tip Oolong; and Champagne Oolong. Whatever name it goes by this is perhaps Taiwan’s most special tea and cited by many connoisseur as one of the world’s finest.
Key Flavours: Ripe fruits, honey and sweet muscatel notes combine with hints of warming spices and exotic woods.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Oriental Beauty (Dong Fang Mei Ren) from Driftwood teas does what Oriental Beauty always does for me, surprises me. I am always taken aback by this tea because I adore oolong, but this is never what I expect an oolong to be! This tea is light, sweet, and fruity, with notes that lean toward muscatel, and juicy peach.
Then we have the woody and spicy notes that come forward but very subtle on the spice more strong on the woodsy notes. I do love the wood notes in this tea, it feels so natural and wonderful and makes me long to go hiking!
One thing that is a bit different from this Oriental Beauty is that the honey notes are really thick, as in lay in the back of your throat thick, and so wonderfully sweet. Also unlike some Oriental Beauty this tea does not have that drying sensation in the back of the throat. The tea coats the throat and lingers lightly with honey kissed floral notes.
I can’t mention enough how lovely these wood notes are and with the honey sweetness, and that light touch of floral and spice. This may be one of my favorite Oriental Beauty oolongs, yet I find myself saying that in almost every review I do of Oriental Beauty. Yet then I say that I normally do not gravitate toward lighter oolong. Maybe I am changing in that aspect.
Driftwood Tea certainly does bring us a wonderful example of a high quality Dong Fang Mei Ren with a light smooth taste and mouthfeel. Light, yet so very flavorful! You won’t be wishing for more flavor because this tea has it all from woodsy, sweet, fruity, spiced, and, muscatel, almost in a Darjeeling way, to apricot and floral notes.
This is truly a tea to savor through multiple steeps Gong Fu style!
Taiwan Honey Black Tea from T-OolongTea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type:
Where to Buy: T-OolongTea
Tea Description:
All Natural Tea
Season: 2012 Spring (harvested in 2012 April)
Altitude: 300 meter above sea level
Varietal: Qingxin Dapa
Origin: Hsinchu County, Taiwan
Semioxidized
Packing Method: Vacuum packagingThis high quality Taiwan Honey Black Tea Oolong is all natural, handpicked, handcrafted and produced from Qingxin Dapa varietal, the tea leaves used to produce Oriental Beauty. This tea has an intense honey aroma and taste, very pleasant and enjoyable. The taste is a mixture of black tea and oriental beauty oolong. This tea is very rich, complex, smooth and delectable with almost no bitterness and astringency. The aftertaste is very sweet and long lasting and makes you want another sip.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Taiwan Honey Black Tea from T-OolongTea has the most decedent, honey kissed, chocolate, flavor one could imagine, it
gives such a sweet thick mouthfeel that just begs to be savored slowly.
There are also some sweet dark cocoa notes within the cup as well which are not to be overlooked as this cocoa note provides even more depth and complexity to the cup.
Then just as you think you have this tea figured out you will experience some caramel notes followed by candied plums playfully hiding in the background and peeking out now and then.
This is a very thick and rich brew that may please some coffee lovers because of the deepness of the flavor and robust flavors. This is not a shy tea! There is also a feeling in the throat that is more like a coffee than a tea in how full it feels.
Really this tea is like drinking a melted candy bar, its just that much of a treat! No bitterness, no astringency, so smooth, and invigorating. An excellent wake up tea for those lazy Sundays when you just want to snuggle into the covers of your soft warm bed, and sip slowly, reverently, and savor each pleasurable drop.
I for one love a tea that really stands up and demands to be recognized. This is a tea with attitude, “recognize” it states boldly – and I do! Yet it is so sweet, so succulent, that it woos me, makes me want to just keep breathing in its aroma.
A bold tea, with muscle, that has a soft romantic side. Oh yes!
Glenburn Estate Darjeeling from Butiki Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Butiki Teas
Tea Description:
Glenburn Estate Darjeeling is a black tea that originates from the Glenburn Estate located in the Himalayas above the Rungeet River in India. Graded FTGFOP-1 (Finest Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe, First Flush), this Darjeeling is comprised of tender shoots plucked during the onset of spring. The Glenburn Estate is working closely with the board of the Ethical Tea Partnership, which focuses on sustainability and living and working conditions of those working at tea estates, to bring the ETP to the Darjeeling region and is focused on maintaining high ethical standards. Our Darjeeling has gentle citrus, fragrant floral, and sweet juicy peach notes with some mild ginger notes. This smooth tea is free of astringency and has as substantial body.
Ingredients: Indian Black Tea
Recommended Brew Time: 3 minutes
Recommended Amount: 1 1/2 teaspoons (2.5g) of tea for 8oz of water
Recommended Temperature: 212 F degrees
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Glenburn Estate Darjeeling from Butiki Teas is a prime example of a quality first flush Darjeeling. If you are like me and generally prefer second flush you should still give this one a try, because it is worth it to have one of the best first flush Darjeeling’s as a tea lover and connoisseur.
The peachy floral notes just jump right out of the cup into my waiting nose. The aroma alone is worth getting some of this. I could bathe in this stuff!
This Glenburn Estate Darjeeling is a lighter black tea, soft, delicate, and gentle. It may not be my morning wake up cup but it sure is the perfect cup for lazy Sundays, mid afternoon tea service, a garden party, or anytime you don’t need the kick in the head but want to enjoy a delicious Darjeeling.
The flavor notes are so laid back, mellow, but absolutely present. I love the light juicy sweet peach notes, the light lilting floral flavor, and that ever so subtle touch of ginger, which I pick up more in the aroma than the flavor but again, the flavor is there. I even get a honey aroma and note on the palate.
Then to make this tea even more appealing it is vegan, and fair trade.
I requested this as a sample from Stacy of Butiki Teas in my last order and now I realize I really should have just went for it. For one thing, any tea I have tried from Glenburn Estate has been top notch, and for another reason, Stacy has the ultimate taste in tea selection and I just should have known it would be excellent!
This has made it to my shopping list.
Wuyi Oolong Organic Dark Roast from Samovar Tea Lounge
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Samovar Tea Lounge
Tea Description:
Origin: Wuyi Mountans, Fujian, China
Flavor Profile: Deep and complex…with a rich body, a roasted aroma, and sweet finish of raisin sugar, honeysuckle, and roasted barley. Warm and earthy notes of bittersweet chocolate and peat moss. Expertly dark roasted, the Wuyi oolong has very little floral notes. If you are a coffee lover, this tea will steal your heart away.
Tea Story: This long rolled oolong tea harks from the remote and ancient cliffs Wu Yi Mountains in Northern Fujian province. Produced in China since the 18th century, our dark-roasted Wuyi is also know as Wuyi Qi Lan, Wuyi’s Profound Orchid.
Our Wuyi’s nutty, dark-roasted flavor profile has won over many a coffee-drinker. If you’re someone who’s trying to wean themselves from coffee, this Wuyi is the perfect step into the world of tea. Trust us, we’ve seen many stave off coffee-withdrawal with a smile, sipping the Wuyi.
Samovarian Poetry: A climactic eruption of tea intoxication. Hauntingly ambrosial, with an evolving complexity of carmelized raisins, roasted barley, smoked bittersweet chocolate, & aged peat moss.
Food Pairing: This is the best oolong for pairing with deserts. The roasted, nutty flavors pair excellently with dark and milk chocolate, sweet creams, and the dense sweetness of baked figs or juicy dates stuffed with chevre.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Wuyi Oolong Organic Dark Roast from Samovar Tea Lounge is a good starter Wuyi but at the price for this specific tea may not be worth it to those just starting out. This is a good tea, with notes of honey, cocoa, rock mineral, peat, salt, and lingering floral after notes, but with that said there are many other Wuyi Oolong out there at a much more affordable price tag, that are just as good, if not better.
Please don’t take this wrong, as I do enjoy this tea quite a bit but there is a slight bitter note left behind when I recall what I paid for this tea, which leaves me a bit disenchanted with Samovar.
On the good side of this Wuyi Oolong Dark Roast from Samovar Tea Lounge, there is a hardy, robust, flavor that would be excellent to serve to your coffee drinking pals. There is absolutely depth to this cup and some really wonderful flavors to explore. I also can detect some nuttiness and a creamy mouthfeel within the sip.
I feel this is an excellent tea to introduce your non tea drinking friends to as well as a great place to begin a tea journey. While there may be less expensive options out there to explore, this tea does provide one with a great starting place and a baseline to compare all others to. It has the elements one should expect and require of a good Wuyi however perhaps lacking in some elements it has all of the base notes one would need to start their knowledge from.
I do not regret this purchase, it was one of my first purchases back when I got into loose leaf tea and I do absolutely feel it set the parameter for what to expect from a good Wuyi.
Premium Taiwanese Assam from Butiki Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black, Assam
Where to Buy: Butiki Teas
Tea Description:
Our Premium Taiwanese Assam is sourced from Yuchih Township in Nantou County, Taiwan. Assam bushes were brought to Taiwan in the early twentieth century but have since been refined by the Taiwan Research and Extension Station. The long dark chocolate-colored leaves produce a sweet fruity aroma. This malty tea has rich chocolate notes with notes of cinnamon, clove, and raisins.
Ingredients: Taiwanese Black Tea
Recommended Brew Time: 3 minutes
Recommended Amount: 2 teaspoons of tea for 8oz of water
Recommended Temperature: 212 F (boiling)
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Premium Taiwanese Assam from Butiki Teas is one of my favorite black teas. The leaves of this tea are stunning! Twisty and wirey with almost a blue tone hue to them.
Some of you who read my updates on steepster may have already read a portion of this as I am using a part of my review from there.
The steeped cup is a lovely deep golden amber tone and smells of sweet potato and chocolate. This cup is DELICIOUS! If you are not used to really high quality amazing tea like this just understand – this is not your mother’s or grandmother’s Lipton tea! Haha, my grandmother, bless her heart would drink that instant powdered tea daily, you know the stuff that came in the glass jar with the green lid. Today it is probably in plastic but regardless – this is a true delight and anyone who is even considering trying a different black tea should give this one a go!
There is a very sweet aspect to the tea, it has notes of sweet potato pie, even a bake-y element to it but it is not that sweet – not like as if someone spooned sugar into the cup – just a very natural sweetness. There are strong notes of chocolate and also notes of honey. A very rich cup yet the mouthfeel is bright and cheery. It is not too heavy or syrupy.
The only regret I have is that I did not try this tea sooner. It has become one of my stash favorites. It has a permanent home in my tea cabinet.
There is a slight very light note of cinnamon or some kick of spiciness here but nothing that would cause those who are spice shy to shy away from. There is also a bit of a saffron note!
As the tea cools a bit it does become slightly thicker with a heavier mouthfeel and notes of maple syrup begin to peek through.
I know it sounds like I am talking about a dessert not a tea yet this is not a dessert tea but rather a wonderful black tea that anyone would love!
The only downside I have found to this tea is that when steeping western style, it does not re-steep very well. However if you opt for gong fu style steeping it holds up to many steeps giving you layers of wonderful notes to discover cup by cup.