Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
About this Blend:
Murmur starts with a white peony base which features the signature unopened tea bud and two accompanying leaves. This tea has beautiful delicate notes of juicy honeydew drizzled in honey, with accents of darker fruit and chocolate. Next, the strawberries are added to accent the white peony’s fruity notes and add a little tartness to the back of the palate. Lastly the cacao nibs contribute to the rich, classic chocolate taste that pops mid palate.
Read more about Handmade Tea here.
NOTE: this tea was the tea of the month for February, 2012. However, I did notice that – after a quick visit to the Handmade Tea website, that this particular tea is offered on FAB for just a couple more days! So if you’re interested, you need to act now! Also worth mentioning, Caleb at Handmade Tea is offering a 15% discount on the first month’s subscription to Steepster members who subscribe to the monthly service. Read more about that discount here.
Taster’s Review:
I want to approach this review a little differently (as you have probably already noticed!) because, really, this tea and tea company are a little different from any other that I’ve yet to encounter. This tea is true to its name, it is truly a handmade tea – something that you, the consumer, could have easily crafted yourself with the right tools at your disposal. This tea required no real skill in tea flavoring, because it is NOT a flavored tea. It is a blend that falls somewhere between tisane and tea. It takes high quality, pure, unflavored loose leaf tea and mixes with it dried fruit, spices, and other components to create something that is a little like a fruit tisane and a little like a pure, whole leaf tea.
Let me start by telling you a little bit about the packaging and what is included with each package. Each box is tied with red twine and sealed with a wax seal which adds a touch of class and makes one feel like they’re getting something very special. Inside the twine sealed box is a large tin of tea that holds the blended tea. In this case, it is a white peony blend with dried strawberries and cacao nibs. There are also three tiny tins which hold small amounts of each of the components: one for white peony tea, one for dried strawberries, and one for cacao nibs. These individual components allow you to personalize your experience further. Wand a little more strawberries? Add them! More chocolate-y flavor? Make it so! Or maybe you’d just like to eat the strawberries right there at your kitchen counter. Sure, go right ahead!
So, let’s get right down to it. I’m going to do three separate tastings of this tea. The first time, I’m going to taste the blend as I received it. The second, I’m going to taste the white peony on its own. And then, I’m going to customize it by adding a few more strawberries and cacao nibs.
First Tasting
If you’re expecting chocolate covered strawberries – you’re going to be sorely disappointed. This … isn’t a flavored tea. That is why I decided to craft this review differently to begin with … this initial tasting. I wanted a strong chocolate and strawberry presence, and it isn’t there. A wee bit disappointing when you’re expecting one thing and you get another… HOWEVER… this IS really quite good, so it is a little weird for me to say I’m disappointed. Instead, I would want to say that this isn’t a chocolate covered strawberry experience. This is a white tea experience with hints of strawberry and chocolate.
What I taste mostly is white tea. Nothing wrong with that: this is an excellent white peony! Sweet with honey-like tones and hints of melon. I notice a dew-like taste to this, a taste that evokes thoughts of those early spring mornings when the new spring leaves and grass are sparkling with dew drops. It is vegetative and fresh tasting, and overall, it hosts a beautiful delicateness to it.
About mid-sip, I notice the chocolate. It doesn’t really pop in like “HEY! I’M HERE!” instead it sort of creeps into the taste buds awareness … as if it is being drizzled over the palate. The chocolate is subtle and smooth … but very delicious. I wish it was stronger, of course, and it will be in my third tasting of this tea!
Finally, the strawberry creeps in at the finish, and lingers into the aftertaste, offering that berry taste that I’d experience if I were to bite into a fresh berry. After I’ve eaten the berry, the aftertaste that remains… it’s that same aftertaste. Sweet yet tart. Not strong or overwhelmingly present, but, there in the aftertaste, haunting the taste buds with strawberry goodness.
Overall, this first cup of Murmur tea was really delicious, even if it didn’t fulfill my expectations … I still really enjoyed it.
I will be writing a second part to this review which will publish in a few days time which will include my impressions of the tasting of the white peony on its own, as well as the tasting of the customized cuppa.
White Peony (Bai Mudan) from Peony Tea S.
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Peony Tea S.
Tea Description:
The White Peony from Fuding is one of the most popular authentic White Tea around with its sweet aftertaste and refreshing taste. Affordably priced, there is no better time to try this remarkable tea.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Up until a couple of years ago, I would have considered myself to be quite a novice when it comes to white teas, having only tried one or two up until that point. Since then, I’ve had the opportunity to try quite a few white teas, but still, I am learning more about it each time I try a new-to-me white tea.
It wasn’t until very recently (within the last year or so?) that I started to notice a distinct difference between Bai Mu Dan teas. Many (if not most) tea companies out there carry a Bai Mu Dan, but even though they have the same name, not all Bai Mu Dan teas are “equal.” And one thing that I’ve learned is that the dry leaf of a Bai Mu Dan will tell you a good deal about the quality of the tea.
For example, the tea leaves here are large and whole. There are varying shades of color to the leaves, starting from a very pale grey-white color, to a pale silvery-green, to a light tan. The leaves feel soft to the touch and are covered in tiny, white hairs (sort of like a fuzzy down). These different qualities tell me a few things: these leaves have been handled with a great deal of care and they are of high quality.
The color of the liquor is a gorgeous color – it’s almost alabaster. Even with as many white teas that I’ve consumed over the past few years, I think only a handful of them (at most) had such a pale color liquor. But that doesn’t mean that it lacks flavor.
The flavor here is delicate, but, it is so lovely. It tastes sweet and clean, reminding me a bit of hay and fresh sweet grass. It has a very smooth texture to it, almost like silk, and the finish is dry with a dry, sweet aftertaste that reminds me of the winter air. That cool, crisp “taste” of the mountain air in the winter … that is the taste that notice in the aftertaste.
It is an extraordinarily soothing tea: calm and serene. Even though I know there is caffeine in this, the delicate, luxurious quality to this tea inspires a sense of relaxation from within.
An excellent White Peony, this!
Yunnan Black (Dian Hong) from Peony Tea S.
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Peony Tea S.
Tea Description:
Yunnan Black or Dian Hong is one of the most beloved of China’s black teas. It’s rich aroma, full flavor and natural citrusy taste makes it an excellent choice of lovers of black tea. It’s elegant reddish brown liquor adds a nice touch of elegance to this classy tea.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This is a delightful Dian Hong.
The aroma of the dry leaf is remarkable. These tan and gold leaves smell sweet, reminiscent of that sweetness you might notice if smelling dates or dried fruit. That fragrance is also noted in the brewed tea, although it is a bit softer in the brewed tea than it is in the dry leaf.
The sweet, date-like essence translates to the flavor as well… I get the taste of the date here, and even a hint of citrus comes through. The citrus seems particularly noticeable in the aftertaste.
This tastes rugged and earthy … very masculine in character. There are notes of leather, and even hints of cocoa in the background. It has a very smooth flavor and texture, very rich, as if to envelop me in velvet-y smoothness.
This is my first experience with this tea company from Singapore, but, I have a couple other teas to try from them. If they are even half as good as this Yunnan, I’m in for a real treat!
White Peony (Bai MuDan) from Teavivre
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Teavivre
Product Description:
A great White Peony (Bai MuDan) Tea
- Organically grown at Mt. Taimu in Fujian province
- Tea buds covered in white hairs, with one or two new leaves
- Pale orange-yellow color when brewed
- A delicate, slightly flowery, sweet, lingering taste
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I think this very well may be the highest quality Bai Mu Dan tea that I’ve ever experienced. The dry leaves vary in color from light green to silvery white. Most Bai Mu Dan teas that I’ve seen are more of a very light tan to off-white color. These leaves are covered with fluffy, fuzzy hairs, and possess a strong grassy scent. They brew to a beautiful, very pale yellow color that is more pale than it is yellow.
And it tastes so good. So delicate and sweet. There are notes of a grassy/vegetative taste, but it is much softer than the aroma of the dry leaf might suggest. There is a very pleasant creamy note to this tea, it’s very soft and luxurious … like wrapping ones self in a soft, fluffy robe.
There are hints of flower in the distance, and a delicious honey-esque sweetness to this cup. The sweetness lingers well into the aftertaste. There is no bitterness to this tea, and very little astringency. The cup is quite smooth from start to finish.
If you’re new to white tea, and what to experience one of the very best available, this tea should be on your MUST TRY list.
White Mu Dan Peony from Earthbound Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Earthbound Tea
Product Description:
White Mu Dan Peony or “White Peony” is a rare tea that comes from the Fujian province in China. Only the tips and the beginning of the first two leaves are plucked. When infused, this tea has a unique nutty flavor that is mild and sweet.
Taster’s Review:
There are a lot of tea companies out there, and it would seem that most of them have a White Peony or Bai Mu Dan white tea in their inventory. However, one shouldn’t assume that just because they are all “White Peony” or “Bai Mu Dan” teas that they are all alike… because I’ve tasted some very good quality Bai Mu Dan teas and some not so great Bai Mu Dan teas. This one is a very good one!
This is actually one of the stronger white teas I’ve encountered. It has a very smooth character with deliciously sweet nutty notes. While many white teas tend to be “delicate” – often to the point of having an undistinguished flavor – this White Peony stands out amongst them.
I would recommend this White Peony to the white tea skeptics out there that find white tea to be too weak or bland. This White Mu Dan Peony may just change their thoughts about white tea!