Oriental Beauty Tea (Dong Fang Mei Ren) from Driftwood Tea

by liberteas

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Oolong

Where to Buy:  Driftwood Tea

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.

Learn more about this tea here.

Taster’s Review:

This is a rather unusual Oriental Beauty – and I mean that in a very good way.

Don’t get me wrong, I love Oriental Beauty Oolong teas, they are one of my favorite Oolong varieties, but, I have come to expect certain things with Oriental Beauty and this one surprised me with some of the flavors I’m tasting here.

Normally, I expect a strong essence of a fuzzy, ripe peach, and I do detect some peach-y notes here, but I’m also tasting a strong muscatel note – so much so that it’s almost Darjeeling-esque!  It tastes of fermented grapes, with a hint of wood and musk, and a sweet, apricot/peach note.

The aroma of the brewed tea offers a floral note as well as a woody tone, but I don’t taste a strong floral essence.  There are some flowery notes to the flavor, but, the majority of the floral tones remain in the fragrance, and do not translate so much into the flavor.

But that’s alright, because I’m loving the way the flavors come together in this cup, with its strong fruity presence and background notes of wood and musk, hints of spice and whispers of flower.  It’s a beautifully complex cup, and offers some surprises to what I expected might be an ordinary cup of Oriental Beauty tea.  And while there’s nothing wrong with the typical cup of Oriental Beauty – I love Oriental Beauty Oolong! – it’s nice to have a tea challenge me and question what I thought I knew about this tea!

I love this!

liberteas

Anne (aka the Mad Tea Artist) has celebrated her 29th birthday for many years now. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her hubby and her youngest daughter. Her oldest daughter is married and has bestowed Anne with the proud title of "Gramma" and her grandson is about the cutest boy you ever did see. Anne started her journey with tea as a casual drinker and became more serious about her tea drinking when she realized that she couldn't drink coffee. Shortly thereafter, she started becoming obsessed with the beverage and she started creating small-batch, artisan blends of tea that she sold online as LiberTEAS. After a few years, she realized she wasn't cut out to be the sole proprietor of a business so she closed LiberTEAS and started reviewing teas online. She met Jennifer through another blog that they both reviewed for and they decided to start their own review blog. This review blog! Throughout her journey as a tea reviewer, she discovered 52Teas and became enamored with the idea of creating a new tea every week. When the founder of 52Teas decided he wanted to move on, he offered the business to Anne but knowing that she wasn't cut out to be a sole proprietor, she instead offered the company to her oldest daughter who employs her as the Mad Tea Artist for 52Teas!

This post was posted in Oolong

Earl Grey White Tip from Tea Source

by liberteas

Tea Information:

Leaf Type:  Black

Where to Buy:  Tea Source

Product Description:

Made from fine Chinese teas with a large portion of white tips (the most prized leaf of the plant) and blended with the finest oil of bergamot available. Incredibly aromatic and flavorful.

Taster’s Review:

This is a fantastic Earl Grey.  Incredibly rich and flavorful!

The aroma of the dry leaf seduced me immediately – there is just something about that bergamot fragrance that captivates me.  The scent of the brewed tea is a bit softer, but, it is still quite enjoyable.

The bergamot flavor of this Earl Grey is very crisp and clear.  Very bright and tangy, and not overwhelmingly floral.  This does not have that perfume-y aftertaste.  It’s very smooth.

The black tea is a strong, brisk tea and there are several white tips.  I don’t experience much of anything that the white tips contribute to the cup, but at the same time, I can’t say that this would be the same tea without them in there.  The black tea has a very pleasing flavor.  It is moderately astringent, but it is not an overly dry astringency.  The aftertaste is tangy yet sweet.

A very enjoyable Earl Grey from start to finish!

liberteas

Anne (aka the Mad Tea Artist) has celebrated her 29th birthday for many years now. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her hubby and her youngest daughter. Her oldest daughter is married and has bestowed Anne with the proud title of "Gramma" and her grandson is about the cutest boy you ever did see. Anne started her journey with tea as a casual drinker and became more serious about her tea drinking when she realized that she couldn't drink coffee. Shortly thereafter, she started becoming obsessed with the beverage and she started creating small-batch, artisan blends of tea that she sold online as LiberTEAS. After a few years, she realized she wasn't cut out to be the sole proprietor of a business so she closed LiberTEAS and started reviewing teas online. She met Jennifer through another blog that they both reviewed for and they decided to start their own review blog. This review blog! Throughout her journey as a tea reviewer, she discovered 52Teas and became enamored with the idea of creating a new tea every week. When the founder of 52Teas decided he wanted to move on, he offered the business to Anne but knowing that she wasn't cut out to be a sole proprietor, she instead offered the company to her oldest daughter who employs her as the Mad Tea Artist for 52Teas!

This post was posted in Black Tea, Earl Grey