Frank W. Send Message

I have been drinking Japanese teas for about 2 years but never tried Houjicha yet, nor ordered from Den’s, but Mary Lou and Robert Heiss new book, “The Tea Enthusiast’s Handbook” had recommended Den’s. Since O-Cha (my former supplier of Japanese tea) was hitting me up with a foreign exchange fee, I decided to order my sencha resupply from them and at $2.00 an ounce, figured this was worth a try since it was one of their best-sellers. I love Den’s packaging of their tea. It comes in resealable bags that give a great airtight seal, which is a huge plus since I am maxed out of Teavana containers.

Anyways, I am very pleased with what is in my cup this morning. The brew is deep bronze and very clear (unlike any other Japanese tea I’ve ever had) and smells delicious! Smells woodsy and toasty and like everything from Japan I smell a slight hint of sea life, but in a very appetizing way (think grilled herring). Tastes almost exactly like it smells and goes great with breakfast. Definitely a repurchase. Funny that this is classified as a green tea – sure tastes different from anything I’ve tried before. I read up on this after trying it…interesting how recent an invention it is (1920s) and amazing how so much of this camellia sinensis plant is tasty (even supposedly last-harvest, “trashy” leaves and stem).

Brewed much darker than any of my other oolong samples. Smells like a black tea…Darjeeling…has a very nice bouquet actually. Tastes like a very lightly steeped black tea. Not much else to describe about it. I won’t be purchasing it again, but it isn’t bad…worth a try I guess if you think the GABA stuff is good for you.

I was surprised at how much this tasted like a Dragon Well and that the company called for 185F water, but that is what I used. Just for curiosity, I am going to try one at 175F too. It has a toasty, nutty flavor, but for less price, I preferred the Organic Lung Ching (Long Jing – Dragon Well) from this company. I did the first steep for a little over 2 minutes and the second for 3. I probably won’t order again because I just didn’t appreciate the tea better than the $2.25 an ounce Dragon Well organic.

I have never had Lu An Gua Pian before so I don’t know what to compare this to except other green teas. No particular smell to the dry leaves except a faint clean cucumber type. The steeped leaves smell vegetal with a scent I would describe as spinachy. Flavor is kind of minerally, earthy and very light. Considering this was more than double the price of the Organic Dragon Well, I like this, but won’t be purchasing it again. Too expensive.

OK was some of the best Lung Ching I have ever had at the cheapest price I have ever paid for it! First of all, I was hesitant to order 4 ounces of a tea I hadn’t tasted but having read in Heiss’ new book that this was a reputable company, I got 1/4 pound each of four different Chinese green teas. Dry leaf smells like a classic Lung Ching…toasty goodness! The leaves were larger than most Dragon Well I’ve tried before so I added an extra teaspoon to about 10 ounces water at 175F. Brews golden and smells delicious. Taste is toasty-almost yeasty breadish with a nutty background. I can’t wait to try the second steep. Second was not quite as flavorful as the first — having been spoiled by oolongs lately, I have to remember the greens don’t last as long. :( Oh well, at the price of $2.25 an ounce, two steeps is good. I like that all the teas came in resealable containers too because presently, all our Teavana containers are full.

Wow, I guess Auggy and I are the only ones brave enough to try this scarey looking tea. :) I think the dry leaves smells kind of fishy, soy saucey. Not bad—rather savory smelling. I pulled out the Yixing, because after reading Auggy’s notes, I was actually worried I might kill myself if I steeped this for 4-5 minutes western style. I went with about 8 ounces water and the whole package (7 grams?) at 195F for 45 seconds. The brew was not bad…kind of like some funky Pu-erh with a toasty, salty, fishy kind of finish. I rather liked it and will steep another for longer this time. The wet leaves smell exactly like belt leather…did this one for well over a minute, but since I just received my Silk Road Teas order from the UPS guy, I’d turned the Zojirushi down to 175….so steeped at 190. Much darker steep this time! Less fishy and much more leathery salty taste. It isn’t bad, in fact, I’d recommend a sample of this just for the weirdness factor. That and it seems to be giving me a good caffeine buzz too, somehow. I am going to be brave and try another steep at 4 minutes with a little more water. Hmm..I think this one tastes the best, however, my water is getting colder as I get ready to have Chinese greens so I’ll have to end it here. Not your father’s oolong and not something I’d buy again, but all-in-all, not a horrible experience considering it was 20 years old. :) The juvenile in me likes how my son pronounced this…Wang Tan Pee.

Brewed western style…I can’t wait until I get my gaiwan from Jing’s, but things just weren’t tasting right in the Yixing pot I have. This one does smell good and the leaves really smelled good after steeping. Taste is good…almost creamy, apple taste-with a buttery note on the finish. I did it for less time (4 minutes) than I have been in the Teavana teamaker (basically just a loose leaf steeper that drains out the bottom leaving the leaves inside). This tea really gets tastier as it cools down. Not one I’d buy again (except to possibly try out in my gaiwan when I get it), but not bad.

These “milk oolongs” just didn’t do it for me, but I’ll preface that by saying I don’t have a gaiwan. I ordered one today from Jing’s Tea Shop…a 125cc model I think, so I may try these “milky” ones again later after I get my cup. As it is, I tried the sample size with about 10-12 ounces water and steeped for 5 minutes at 195F. Just not the amount of flavor I am looking for…too mild. I think the sample sizes are 7 grams. If anyone has an estimate of steeping times and amount of tea for my new gaiwan when I get it in about two weeks, I am all ears. :)

Doesn’t seem as flavorful or smell as good as the last three I have had from TeafromTaiwan. Don’t get me wrong, it is better than anything green or oolong that I have ever had from Adagio or Teavana , but I think I was spoiled by the first ones which were very good. I broke down today and ordered a gaiwan from Jing Tea shop so I could try and do “Eastern” style properly. With this one, I cheated and went “western” using my Teavana 2 cup steeper, the whole pack sample, and 195F water.

My tasting notes are entirely for me…feel free to read them, but don’t put any stock in whether the tea is good or not. I simply don’t want to buy something again if I don’t have success or didn’t like the taste. With my old brain, this Steepster website is the easiest way for me to remember what I have tried and what I haven’t.