Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Teasenz
Tea Description:
The most flavorful and fragrant of all Chinese green teas. Xin Yang Mao Jian’s small, roundish leaves with fine, white hairs develop into an intense green color when brewed, producing a refreshing liquor that transports you to a relaxing, calming world after a long day. Robust flavor, lingering fragrance and an invigorating taste.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I think I fell in love with this Xin Yang Mao Jian Green Tea from Teasenz at first sight. The leaves are gorgeous! Long, slender, elegant looking leaves that are beautifully deep, forest-y green with tiny white fuzz. I could tell by looking at these leaves that I was in for a top notch Chinese green tea.
Of course, I’ve come to expect nothing less from Teasenz. They seem to always deliver some of the very best teas I’ve tasted!
And this is a remarkable Mao Jian!
The dry leaf aroma is somewhere between steamed spinach and kelp, leaning more toward the steamed spinach. The brewed tea also has a strong vegetal note, but, I find that the flavor is less vegetative than the fragrance would suggest.
Oh, sure, it still has a vegetative taste to it, but it’s not as strong as I expected it to be. Or perhaps it would be more accurate to say that I expected more of a “spinach-y” or a “grassy” or even a “kelpy” sort of flavor but this is more like a sweet vegetable, like maybe a steamed artichoke heart.
This is sweet! It has a strong sweetness to it that seems to develop on the palate, starting off rather light, and then by the time I reached mid-cup, the flavor is intense and it lingers long into the aftertaste. Just after the sweetness washes over the palate, I start to notice the nutty flavors develop. It finishes with a delicate astringency. The aftertaste remains sweet long after the sip.
A really lovely Mao Jian. This one gets high marks!
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!
Organic Oriental Beauty Oolong Tea from Butiki Teas
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Butiki Teas
Tea Description:
Our Oriental Beauty is organic and utilizes the Chin Xin oolong varietal. Originating from Hungshan in the Anhui province of China, this oolong is crafted by tea master Shan Zhen Chen. Our Oriental Beauty is made from young shoots and is heavily fermented (60-70%), heavily withered (13-25%), and lightly roasted. This gorgeous tea contains leaves that vary in color, including: silver, gold, forest, auburn, cocoa, and charcoal colors. Rich honey notes linger and mingle with apricot, macadamia nut, and orchid notes. Some pastry-like notes are present and pairs well with the sweetness of this oolong, which provides a flavor somewhat reminiscent of funnel cake.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
The first note I noticed with my first sip of this Organic Oriental Beauty Oolong Tea from Butiki Teas was the orchid. How lovely! After experiencing the orchid, I discovered a strong peach-y/apricot-y flavor. These notes were so sweet and nectar-like that I could almost feel the fruit pulp! It amazes me how the pure tea leaf so perfectly captures the essence of the fruit.
I brewed this Oolong tea the way I usually brew an Oolong: in my gaiwan, using short steeps and combining two infusions in one cup. After a quick 15 second rinse, the first infusion was 45 seconds, and then I added 15 seconds to each subsequent infusion. The first two infusions combined produced my first cup, and the second cup was infusions 3 & 4 … and so on. I took this tea through its paces and had five lovely cups of tea (a total of 10 infusions.)
My first cup was very orchid-like. Of the five cups I enjoyed of this Oriental Beauty Oolong, the first cup was the lightest in texture. It felt somewhat thin in comparison to the other cups, but, there was a little bit of soft texture to it. The apricot notes came through after the orchid, and then there was a sweet, honeyed finish.
The second cup was my favorite. It was much more luxurious to sip, the texture was soft and sumptuous, and the apricot notes were prominent. The orchid notes remained a focus with this cup, and hints of the nutty flavors promised in the description start to emerge as well as a distant note of “pastry.” Definitely a yum cup!
The third cup was very much like the second. The orchid notes were a bit softer, and there was a little more astringency with this cup than in the previous two. The nutty tones were a little stronger, as were the buttery pastry notes. The fourth and fifth cups were less floral and more fruity/nutty. The astringency seemed to be strongest in the third cup, with the fourth and fifth cups offering a softer astringency, and a slightly thinner texture than was experienced in the second and third cups.
Overall, this was a truly lovely afternoon spent with this Organic Oriental Beauty Oolong from Butiki Teas, proving once again that this is definitely a company worth exploring. I’ve not yet been disappointed by a tea from this company. This is one of the nicest Oriental Beauty teas I’ve encountered!