Boutique Teas

What a great oolong. Many different notes that work so well together. Some grassy and marine. Some sweet and creamy. I brewed it hot but … was distracted by dishes so now its cold. It’s still very good though.

Backlog:

A really lovely Oolong! Delightful!

Sweet, lush, floral aroma and taste. Creamy notes to follow and that linger in the aftertaste. The first cup was very light and crisp, the second was more brothy with a sweeter, creamier note to it, and the third cup I found to be more of a melded kind of taste … very seamless.

A lovely Li Shan! Here is my full-length review: http://sororiteasisters.com/2013/04/07/pear-mountain-li-shan-oolong-tea-from-boutique-teas/

I am sipping on this one today while at switchboard. It arrived unexpectedly yesterday – I had won a Sororitea Sisters contest a few months ago and the prize was meant to be this tea. After a few months I gave up on it, but lo and behold! It looks like it was shipped on May 20th, so it took a little while, but such is the price of being Canadian. :)

I do not know a whole lot about oolongs other than that I prefer roasted ones. This one looks pretty dark in the package with long thin twisted leaves. I thought it was a roasted oolong but it steeped up surprisingly green. It must be somewhere in the middle, maybe? Anyway, I have an amber liquor which has strong sweet and floral notes, like peaches and flowers. The taste echoes the aroma quite strongly with a bit of astringency lingering on the sip (my fault as I thought it was darker!) It is quite nice and surprisingly unassuming. It doesn’t reach out and grab you but when you pay attention it is an experience to enjoy. I would prefer it to be a bit darker but for what it is I think it is an excellent oolong, just not the best one for me.

This is absolutely lovely. I’ve spent the better part of the last couple of hours with this tea. The first cup (first two infusions following a rinse) possessed slightly sharp floral tones with a sweet honey-esque tone, and background notes of peach and apricot. By the time I reached mid-cup, I also detected a lovely, sweet citrus tone.

The second cup (my favorite!) was smoother, with a soft mouthfeel. The floral tones had mellowed a little bit, melding with the fruit tones. The peach notes have emerged. So delightfully complex!

I got six infusions (three cups) out of this tea, and I suspect I would have gotten more, but, I decided it was time to move on.

I really enjoyed this!

This is lovely! I’m on my third cup (the combination of the fifth and sixth infusions) and I am loving this cup even more than I enjoyed the first two. Those were good … this one is great! The flavor is less earthy/smoky now than in the first few infusions, but there is still a pleasing woodsy tone that reminds me of a walk in the woods just after it rains (and there is plenty of opportunity for these kinds of hikes here in the pacific northwest, let me tell you!)

There is a fruit-like sweetness to this cup too – something between a peach and a plum with the faintest grape-y note … sweet, juicy, and not too floral. This is definitely a masculine cup of tea. But a smooth masculine … not what I’d call rugged. Like a charming gentleman.

Very nice way to spend the evening all wrapped up in this Big Red Robe!