Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: Darjeeling Tea Lovers
Tea Description:
MARGARETS HOPE BI – MUDAN has been made from PURE AV2 clonal plants at an elevation of 6000 ft. A specialised team of tea pluckers pluck the finest 2 leaf and a bud under the full moon beam which enhances the flavour of th tea. This tea is very high in antioxidants due to the process by which it is manufactured. A must try for the tea lovers.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I’ve tried maybe a handful (at most!) of white teas that were produced in Darjeeling, and I must say that the more I try, the more I like this rather rare tea! It has some qualities of a black Darjeeling with the lightness of a white tea … but then again, as a white tea, it has more flavor than a typical Chinese white tea. It’s quite an enigmatic tea, and I’m loving every sip of it!
And just because this IS a white tea, don’t think for a second that it is going to be “too delicate.” It is delicate, yes, when compared to a black or even a green Darjeeling. However, it is not delicate if it were compared to, say, a Silver Needle white. In comparison, this one has so much more flavor! Don’t get me wrong, I’m not knocking a Silver Needle, I love them! But, I am also loving the delicious differences I’m noticing from this Bi-Mudan from Darjeeling Tea Lovers.
I taste much of the fruit notes that one might expect from a Darjeeling, I even taste hints of a grape-y muscatel! This muscat grape note is accompanied by a deliciously crisp apple-y taste that is a little bit sweet and a little bit sour. As I reach the end of the sip, I notice a slight mint-like note that is crisp and clean, and this note seems to meld with the astringency in such a way that is quite unique, leaving the palate feel clean and taste sweet. My mouth actually waters shortly after the sip ends, and I’m not sure if this has anything to do with the effects of the tea or just the fact that my taste buds are loving what they’re tasting so much that they want more!
It has a crisper taste than most black Darjeeling teas that I’ve tried, and usually these are sparkling and crisp! This is even more so! It has a very uplifting quality – not quite as calm or soothing as a white tea, instead, I’d say this has some energizing properties to it.
A fantastic Darjeeling white – and it’s FABULOUS iced!
Earl Black from 52Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: 52Teas
Tea Description:
It’s another hot day in Doo-Dah (I have no idea why Wichitans refer to the city as “Doo-Dah” but it feels right; feel free to enlighten me if you know where this comes from). I’m pretty sure that the global warming people were right. I’m just hoping we can fix it before we all turn into puddles of goo.
In the meantime, I’m relaxing with a big glass tumbler full of our new tea of the week. It’s a blend of shou mei white teas, dried black currants, organic bergamot flavor and natural black currant flavor. And it is seriously hitting the spot. I got some really nice shou mei for this blend: it’s light and sweet, but very much a presence in a cup that is otherwise a perfect balance of tart and sweet. I have always loved our black currant bai mu dan, and if you like that and like earl grey, I don’t think you can possibly go wrong with this blend. It is delicious!
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
By the sound of the name, you might think: oh, this is just another Earl Grey with a black tea base. But it isn’t! This is truly an unusual tea – exactly the kind of tea that 52Teas is known for creating!
What makes this so unusual is that despite the name of this tea … it isn’t a black tea. It’s a white tea! Specifically, a Shou Mei. The black in the title refers not to the type of tea, but the fact that this tea is flavored with the essence of black currant. And, of course, bergamot (that’s where the Earl comes in!)
And wow! How is it that no other tea company has thought to combine the flavors of bergamot and black currant before? (0r, if they have, how is it that I haven’t yet discovered it?) This is really tasty. The flavor is sweet, tangy, tart and deliciously fruity.
The Shou Mei is a nice choice as a base for this tea. It gives the tea a bit more body and flavor than a typical Bai Mu Dan might while still managing to maintain a lightness to the cup. I think that a softer tea might have gotten lost in this blend, but a stronger tea might have overwhelmed the gentle balance tht exists between the two fruit flavors.
As it is, though, there seems a really pleasant balance between tea and fruit tastes. The tea has a pleasant texture – soft and silky … creamy even! This creaminess melds so nicely with the bergamot and black currant. The sweetness of the tea offers a nice contrast to the tart and tangy tastes of these two fruits, and also offers a slight nutty taste to the background.
The bergamot and black currant seem pretty evenly matched. The black currant gives a slight raisin-y, grape-y, wine-y kind of taste to the cup, sweet and just a little tart. The citrus-y bergamot matches that tartness with some of its own – giving it just enough tartness without causing me to pucker.
A very pleasant cup of tea – delicious hot, but even nicer as an iced tea! I can’t wait to try it cold-brewed with my Steep & Go!
Silver Needle Bai Hao (Wu Yi Qu Hao) From In Nature
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
Where to Buy: In Nature
Tea Description:
Silver Needle Bai Hao white tea is possibly the most natural form of tea. It is only made from the buds, picked when they are at their most tender.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
The dry leaf doesn’t really look like any Silver Needle that I’ve ever seen before. I see Silver Needles in there, but, then I also see larger leaves in there, darker leaves that look a bit like Bai Mu Dan, and perhaps even some Shou Mei. Like a blend of at least the two, and possibly all three of these types of white tea. The aroma is soft and reminiscent of fresh air and hay. The brewed tea has a slight vegetative scent to it, and is a pale golden color – a bit darker than I’d expect from a typical Silver Needle.
The flavor is very nice – but again, it doesn’t taste to me like other Silver Needle teas that I’ve tasted. Silver Needle tea is usually quite delicate. And while this does have a certain delicate quality to it, it has a fuller, rounder taste. It really doesn’t taste like a Silver Needle, but then again, it doesn’t taste like the Bai Mu Dan or Shou Mei teas that I’ve tried in the past either. This has a unique and wonderful flavor all it’s own.
It is a very crisp flavor with a fair amount of astringency. The layers of flavor reveal vegetative notes, nutty tones and hints of flower and fruit – almost an apple-like taste with a hint of honeysuckle. There is even a hint of malt to this – almost like the flavor of infused hops.
I enjoyed this hot, but I think I liked it even better as it cooled. It was very refreshing, and the tang of astringency toward the tail was very uplifting. Not quite what I expected from a Silver Needle tea, but, I am enjoying it nonetheless.
Murmur from Handmade Tea, Part 2
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: White
To Subscribe to Handmade Tea’s Tea of the Month program, click here.
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.
Taster’s Review:
As I mentioned in part 1 of this review, I wanted to approach reviewing this tea by reviewing three separate tastings. The first part of this review featured my first tasting of the actual blend “Murmur” as blended by Handmade tea. This article will feature the last two tastings: the second tasting will be of the White Peony Tea base, while the third will be of a taster’s improved batch of Murmur, with extra strawberries and cacao nibs.
Second Tasting
This is a decent Bai Mu Dan. It’s of good quality, beautifully colored leaves ranging from a pale, silvery green to a light tan. These leaves are broken, but I wouldn’t say that they’re “crushed” – I’ve seen larger, whole leaves with some of the higher quality White Peony teas that I’ve encountered, while I’ve encountered some crushed, tiny leaves. These are somewhere in the middle – appearing more whole than broken, and I was happy to see the tiny, silvery hairs on the leaves, indicating that these leaves have been handled well. White Peony is a delicate tea, and it should be handled as such!
As for the taste, it is good. Delicately flavored – that’s to be expected – with distant notes of vegetation and a soft, velvet-y mouthfeel. Some fruity notes, but interestingly enough, I found that when it’s part of the blend, the melon-esque tones of this tea really seem to emerge. The addition of the dried strawberries and cacao nibs emphasized the subtle melon notes of the tea, allowing this taster to explore some of the nuances that I might have otherwise missed with the pure Bai Mu Dan.
Third Tasting
For this third and final tasting (at least, for reviewing purposes), I decided to add what was left of the freeze-dried strawberries and the cacao nibs to the large tin of blended tea. I say “what was left” because my SororiTea Sister, TeaEqualsBliss, had tried and reviewed this tea before I did, so she also used some of the berries and cacao. The two sampler tins were about half-full when I got them, and I emptied the entire contents of both small sampler tins into the blended tea and gave them a gentle shake to combine.
I have to say, that of the three tastings, this one is my favorite. The chocolate is stronger, and the strawberry flavor also emerges somewhat stronger – although because this is a “blended” tea and not a “flavored” one, neither flavor is particularly strong. If you were to taste a chocolate strawberry flavored tea that was flavored by a reputable company side-by-side with this blended tea, they’d taste very different.
But that’s not to say that this is not good – I really like this, and with a white tea, this blended approach really works well because it keeps the flavors subtle so that the white tea is not overwhelmed. Instead, it seems to be celebrated with the strawberries and cacao bringing out flavors that I didn’t notice when drinking the pure White Peony Tea.
Overall, a very tasty tea that offers a pleasant, contemplative cup when you want one … or just really refreshing taste that calms and soothes you when you just want to relax and contemplate nothing!
Murmur from Handmade Tea, part 1
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.