Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Teavivre
Tea Description:
This year, the tea is made of fresh tea leaves in higher quality, and is produced in better place with better crafting method.
When mentioned Anxi County, people will spontaneously think of Anxi Tie Guan Yin, “Iron Goddess”. It is well-known both inland and abroad. This Tie Guan Yin is close to forest green in color, has a pure aroma. Meanwhile the liquid of this Oolong tea is transparent and bright, which truly is a feast to the eyes. In taste, this Tie Guan Yin has sweet flavor, long-last fragrance and comfortable sweet aftertaste.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I know that I’ve said it before, but it’s something that bears repeating: Teavivre has some of the very finest teas that I’ve ever tasted! There’s a simple reason why it’s one of my favorite tea companies: their teas are top-notch!
And this Nonpareil Anxi Qing Xiang TieGuanYin Oolong is no exception! This is lovely.
Having tried their Nonpareil Anxi Yun Xiang TieGuanYin Oolong a couple of months ago, I found myself wondering how this tea would differ. I was able to spot one big difference immediately upon opening the package and examining the leaves. The dry leaf for this tea is bright, emerald green while the Anxi Yun Xiang TieGuanYin were darker in color: greenish brown!
That’s because the Anxi Yun Xian is a roasted Oolong and this hasn’t been roasted. The roasting process seems to cut some of the floral notes and they become more of a roasty-toasty, nutty flavor. I like both teas.
To brew this tea, I used my gaiwan and measured a bamboo scoop of leaves into the bowl of the gaiwan. Then I added enough water (heated to 180°F) to cover the leaves. I let them steep for 15 seconds and discarded the water (this is the rinse). Then I filled the gaiwan and let the tea steep for 45 seconds for the first infusion. I strained the tea into my cup and then repeated the process, adding 15 seconds onto the next steep. I combine the brewed liquid of two infusions for each cup – so my first cup was infusions 1 and 2. My second cup was infusions 3 and 4. You get the picture, right?
The sweet floral notes here are really nice. They aren’t sharp, they’re soft and sweet. Orchid with notes of vanilla! That’s how I’d describe this first cup. It’s sweet and creamy, but not creamy like a milky type of creamy or a buttery type of creamy. This is distinctly vanilla! So smooth and sweet and yummy!
The second cup has stronger, more defined orchid notes with less of a creamy, vanilla tone. The flavors are a more focused. The description on the Teavivre website says:
Tastes fresh and lovely. The fragrance of orchid will be tasted from first sip. It feels clean and mellow in mouth, has sweet aftertastes and long-lasting flavor.
I think that this is especially true of this second cup. The orchid was immediately identifiable. With the first cup, I noticed the strong, creamy characteristics first. Now, the creaminess has tapered somewhat and I’m tasting the fresh, beautiful flavor of orchid. It’s a strong and forward flavor, but I like that it’s not too sharp tasting.
The third cup was almost identical to the second cup, with a beautifully perfumed cup with notes of orchid, light creamy notes in the background. Sweet and mellow! I am loving the orchid notes in this tea because they never get particularly sharp, they stay mild and lovely. A real pleasure to sip.
This is a really lovely TieGuanYin. If you’re a lover of Oolong teas that is looking for a top notch TieGuanYin – you really should try this one. It’s truly a remarkable tea.
Da Ye Xiao Qing Tuo (Big Leaf Mini Green Tuo Cha) from Seven Cups
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Seven Cups
Tea Description:
This tea has a light aroma and rich, smooth flavor with a long finish through multiple infusions. The liquid is light and clear, and the infused leaves are the color of bamboo leaves. You can feel the sweetness of the tea in your throat after a few sips.
Learn more about this tea here.
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Taster’s Review:
I’m love LOVE loving this Da Ye Xiao Qing Tuo Pu-erh from Seven Cups! It’s so remarkably sweet – one of the sweetest Pu-erh I think I’ve ever encountered.
The sweetness was strong from the very first cup, and this sweetness only developed with each subsequent infusion. I taste a very light vegetal tone to the first cup as well, but mostly what I taste is a honeyed sweetness that is absolutely delightful.
The second cup was where I noticed the sweetness developing into a creamier note. I could also taste the vegetal notes a little more with this cup. The combination of the cream and the veggie notes gave it an almost “creamed spinach” type of flavor, although the vegetal notes were sweeter than spinach.
The third cup was a little less sweet and a little more vegetative. The creamy notes were not as noticeable this time. The flavor is more of an earthy vegetation this time. Still very flavorful, but, I found myself missing the sweet creaminess that I experienced in cup number two and the joyful sweetness of the first cup. This is still good, just not as delicious as the first two cups.
I decided to have one more cup to see what flavors were in store for me, and I found that with this cup, there were no creamy notes and the sweetness was not the same. It was more of a sweet vegetative taste rather than a honeyed sweetness or a creamy sweetness of the earlier infusions.
I am sure that this Pu-erh could have gone through many more infusions, but, I think that because I so enjoyed the first two cups so much, that I found myself missing what those two cups had to offer and I couldn’t appreciate the later infusions as much.
A really nice Pu-erh, and I’m glad that I got to try it. Another great tea offering from my Steepster Select box!
Superfine Taiwan Qing Xiang Dong Ding Oolong Tea from Teavivre
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Teavivre
Tea Description:
In Taiwan Oolong Tea, Dong Ding Oolong Tea is an excellent kind highly praised by the world. Dong Ding is originally planted on Dongding Mountain, which is a branch of Phoenix Mountain, in Lugu Village, Nantou County, Taiwan. The tea is planted in the area at the altitude of 1000 meters. So this is also a High Mountain tea, which is known as its obvious floral fragrance. This Dong Ding Qing Xiang Oolong Tea is made of the tea leaves from Qing Xin Oolong tea tree. This tea has thick and soft leaf, refreshing tea liquid, with strong osmanthus scent. Meanwhile it has strong sweet aftertaste, which makes High Mountain tea more excellent than low altitude tea.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This Superfine Taiwan Qing Xiang Dong Ding Oolong Tea from Teavivre is absolutely lovely! It’s so sweet and lush, with a creamy mouthfeel and an intriguing flavor that has exotic floral notes as well as hints of fruit. I’m enjoying the complexity and the soft texture.
I brewed this Oolong in my gaiwan. First I did a quick “rinse” or awakening of the tea leaves, by steeping them in hot water for 15 seconds and then straining off and discarding the liquid. Then I steeped the first infusion for 1 minute (I meant to infuse it for 45 seconds, but I got distracted and missed the 45 second mark, so it steeped for a full 60 seconds), and the second infusion for 1 minute 15 seconds. I poured both of these infusions into the same cup. Subsequent infusions were prepared the same way.
The first cup was lighter in texture than those that followed, but, it still possessed a pleasantly creamy mouthfeel. It is so silky and smooth. I taste notes of peach, hints of vegetation (just a slight “grassiness” in the background), and a overtone of floral notes. There is a faint astringency that is most noticeable at the very end of the sip. I start to notice a slightly dry sensation.
The second cup was my favorite, and this seems to be typical of my Oolong experiences. It seems that I always love the second cup best. It felt soft and smooth to the palate, and it had a flavor that was both floral and fruity. The vegetative notes have emerged slightly and they added an interesting contrast to the sweet fruit and floral tones.
In subsequent infusions, the flavors became more of a harmonious taste. The flavor remained sweet, and I started to notice an almost “honey-esque” note in the third and forth cups.
I enjoyed my afternoon spent with this Dong Ding from Teavivre. An excellent choice for the Oolong enthusiast!
Lingtou Dancong Oolong from Qing Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Qing Tea
Product Description:
Fenghuang Dancong wulong tea has a history of about 900 years. Nowadays there are still about 3000 tea bushes left of this kind that range from 200 up to 400 years old. Fenghuang Dancong wulong tea is named after a mountain in the northeast of Guangdong province. Like supreme tea plantations elsewhere, Fenghuang mountain also possesses all aspects necessary for producing great tea such as: high altitude, abundant rainfall, short periods of sunshine and diffused light.
Fenghuang Dancong is a typical Guangdong wulong tea, with a high degree of oxidation and a taste that resembles lychee fruit. This tea bears resemblances with Wuyi tea, yet Guangdong wulong tea has become a style of tea cherished by tea lovers all over the world.
Taster’s Review:
This Oolong is delightful!
As the description suggests, it does have a taste that is somewhat reminiscent of lychee fruit. There are also distant notes of smoke and a front note of flower. Such a beautifully complex tea, this Lingtou Dancong!
While the aroma of this tea is a bit lighter than some Oolong teas I’ve encountered, there is no lacking for flavor here. The palate is immediately greeted with a floral note (Orchid, perhaps?) which is followed up with the lychee note I previously mentioned. The smoky taste weaves throughout the sip, never making itself dominate within the taste, rather it merely hints at its presence.
The flavor is sweet with a distinct sour note with a suggestion of savory bitterness toward mid-sip. The mouthfeel is not as well-defined with this Oolong as it is with other Oolong teas. That is neither good nor bad in my eyes, simply different. There is some astringency to this cup, but it is not a pucker-y or an overly drying astringency.
I suggest resteeping the leaves several times – with each subsequent infusion, the flavor changes only slightly, but I notice different flavors with each. In the third and fourth infusions, the flavor is slightly sweeter and smoother than in the first two. By the fifth and sixth infusions, I notice very little of the smoky essence while the overall taste becomes almost seamless.This tea is top-notch, and I highly recommend it to all Oolong lovers out there!