Elmwood Inn Fine Teas

TTB tea! Strangely, the main flavor I taste is something like oat milk? I’m not using oat milk, so it’s strange. I taste maybe a hint of vanilla and a bit of a twang of black tea that isn’t my favorite. Maybe it’s a bit metallic.

I have many emails to go through. But first! Tea. I hate that this has flavoring. Being allergic to things makes drinking flavored anything difficult. But here we go. The smell is full of buttery toffee notes with a slight pu erh hint at the end. I’m steeping mine at 180 though it calls for 210. It’s getting a bit toasty outside so I just couldn’t bring myself to do that high. That is a dark liquor. Very opaque. Though it’s not artificial flavor it does have some artificial flavor and aroma notes that aren’t too pleasant on the tummy and palate and nose. For how strong the toffee aroma is the flavor is lacking. The pur erh has a nice touch of old wood and 1800s house notes but that toffee flavor just slips on and off the tongue leaving much to be desired.

Needed to order some bulk ingredients and they sent a good amount of samples. For whatever reason I decided this sounded the best. The dry aroma has that slight alcohol burn and bourbony smell. The wet leaf is a mix of sweet campfire, a sweet I can’t remember the name of, and artificialness. The flavor is sweet and woody with an artificial tang at the end. It leaves a slight chocolate aftertaste and the mouth feel is somewhat drying.

Milk oolong. The story and myths around this tea are as thick and interesting as its liquor. Anyone who grows oolong could try the techniques the Taiwanese and Chinese use in order to bring out the specific notes, however, the terroir will still play a role in determining different flavors. But one thing should be noted if you ever see that tea has natural or artificial flavors added in order to make it milky it is just a flavored tea and not a true Milk oolong. While they say a true Milk Oolong should be of the Jin Xuan variety, (also Jin Shuan) I have also seen delicious pure Milk Oolong from China.

The flavor is quite incredible. Buttery, milky, a bit creamy, and mineral. The steeping leaves have a slight buttered popcorn note. More like homemade than a movie theatre.
A longer steep time reveals some bitterness and a bit of astringency but also some unique charcoal notes and a bit of dark (80%?) chocolate.

Another tea from the ADV.01 class. This one is simply titled Kenya Lelsa Estate Black tea but judging from the appearance of the loose leaf and the flavor profile. It matches up with this one. The loose leaf is very rugged. A mix of leaves and stems and CTC in every which way. Dak brown leaves with light brown stems. The aroma is slightly sweet. Somewhat attributed to the packaging but also slightly woody. The infused leaf adds a nutty aroma with a hint of veggie spaghetti sauce. While the liquor aroma is reminiscent of wheat bread and spaghetti squash. Professional infusing reveals quite the astringency with a puckering like one would get from eating an orange rind. The flavor is bitter but also reminds me of burnt marshmallows. Mainly just the burnt part. There is a hint of fresh bread from the oven as well as an amalgamation of woody notes. It leaves the palate feeling a bit leathery and dry. When I infuse this differently I will come back with an update.

The tea I am currently drinking is called China Golden Tip Yunnan for World Tea Academy ADV.01, which I assumed was the same as the Gold Dian Hong Jin Hao on the main website. Based on the appearance and the description anyway. The dry leaf is twisted, dark brown with a mix of golden fuzz. The aroma is like a pine chest or maybe closer to a small mahogany box. The infused leaf turns milk chocolate and now you can really see the standard pluck of bud, 1st, and 2nd leaf. The wet infused leaf is woody and musty and kinda reminds me of a log pile. The liquor is clear, brownish rust. Slight orangeish rim on the cup. (If you ever drink black tea in a white cup look for the color where the water meets the cup side.) The liquor aroma is unique. That pile of logs turned into a pile of twigs and sticks and a pile of wet leaves with hints of apricot and rose. The mouthfeel is mostly smooth with a slight astringency and is coating. Dark woody favor with dank forest floor and hints of cacao. But when cooled it changes to squash, composting wood pile, and slight malt.

If you like a woodsy brew you’ll love this tea. It is warming and earthy in all the woodsy lover aspects. The aroma reminds me of a cabin deep in the woods with dark wood paneling. Moss surrounding and a small fire outside ready to make stew. The flavor is so woodsy. Decaying wet wood in a pine forest. Slight resin and old pine chest.

Had a bit left from the class cupping. Realized I haven’t been leaving reviews here. This is a good black tea. Would work well for milk or sugar. On its own it is mouth-filling. No astringency at the personal steeping level but you can find some by steeping it longer and hotter. It is slightly smoky, a bit brothy, and reminds me of decaying wood. Oh! and a bit of cream of wheat.