Song Tea & Ceramics

Brewing method: Gongfu with Gaiwan, 2tsp of tea (=ca 5 g) @ 205 degrees.

Lovely highly oxidized version of four seasons cultivar (四季春）（‘four seasons spring’).

First steeping has clean refreshing approach, with rose, stone fruit and very light citrus notes. Nose has hints of oats, raisin, dried rose/rose hips. Nose evolves between infusions, becoming progressively sweeter.

Liquor is beautiful rose gold to bronze, depending on length of infusion.

Progressively longer steepings yield richer, fuller notes of same flavors. Very little astringency on longer infusions.

Steeping method. Traditional gongfu steepings in a gaiwan.

This is a simple, pleasing, comforting oolong with an uncomplicated flavor profile and a clean finish. It has an open mouth feel, no milkiness and very little viscosity even in later, longer steepings.

Toasty, slightly bready aroma on dried leaves with light caramel notes.

Steeped leaves have deeper toasty, oaty, caramel-corn, banana ester and butter-croissant notes to their aroma.

The flavor profile did not evolve or deepen significantly over multiple steepings, and long steepings did not bring out astringency or bitterness. This would be a good Oolong for western steeping methods.

On the upside, this is a super complex tea. The first steeping has a caramel-like sweetness (not anything close to maple, as the Song site indicates), hints of the coconutty vibe their aged version of the same tea has + a very curious flavor I can only describe as “artificial banana”. Later steepings bring in floral elements, whiskey-like tones, and more woody notes. The downside is that it’s a fairly bitter brew, even when steeped to the letter of Song instructions: 1 minute first steep, 2 minute second, etc.

I’d give this about an 80 were it not for the bitterness and faux banana flavor. But those really knock it down considerably.

For a key to my rating scale, check out my bio.

Sure, it’s a pricey tea ($92 USD / 100g). But I can say without reservation that Song Tea’s Buddha’s Hand is worth every cent. An incredibly unusual crafting method for Taiwanese oolong – this tea is from Alishan (Mount Ali, like the ubiquitous lightly oxidized “high mountain” oolong from the same peak), but unlike most Taiwanese oolongs (which use the Qing Xin cultivar), this tea comes from plants of the Fo Shou or “Buddha’s Hand” cultivar. While it is ball rolled like other high mountain styles, this tea is a dark oolong (very uncommon in Taiwan aside from Taiwanese Tieguanyin and Bai Hao Oolong), achieving its richness of flavor and color through extended oxidation (>60%) and a full week of low temperature convection roasting. The resulting flavor is luxurious and absolutely delicious. Notes of dark chocolate, brown sugar, and malt are balanced by citrusy brightness, and all held together by a mouthfeel that’s as smooth as it gets in the world of tea. A must try!

For a key to my rating scale, check out my bio.

Very complex and unusual green – HIGHLY recommend.

For a key to my rating scale, check out my bio.

When I got this, I didn’t pay much attention to the story behind the tea. I simply brewed as directed and noticed that, despite being a red tea, it tasted A LOT like an Alishan oolong. I went to Song’s site then and discovered it is indeed a Formosa high mountain variety. Alishan? They didn’t specify, but the flavor is pretty on-the-money. It’s otherwise a pretty nice red tea. Citrus notes within it are abundant and obvious. There’s almost a bergamot quality. Red teas aren’t usually my thing, and oxidized Alishans really don’t do it for me, but this is very nice in spite of it.

Drinking it again and paying more attention to the subtleties, I’d say the first steeping has a very artificial cherry aroma. The second has less of that and a more pronounced sweetness. The third gives way to a more woody/leather vibe, but that doesn’t necessarily translate to the flavor.

Long finish.

It’s impressive. The first steeping it sweet, with the exact butterscotch/caramel notes Song’s site references. You MUST savor this first steeping as a tea unto itself. It changes dramatically afterward. The 2nd and later steepings have much more of an earthy, coconutty, woody vibe to them. Delicious in their own right. Even at $75 for 2oz., it’s worth it as a special treat to keep on-hand.

The scent is vividly malted barley with a waft of sweetness and a hint of chocolate. It’s one of the few times I feel like a tea vendor totally nailed the scent/flavor profile in their description. There’s also a very Assam-like quality to it. Sipping your way through the tea, the barley is still the prominent note, together with the overlall Assam vibe. It’s also SUPER smooth. That said, the malted barley tone isn’t the most appealing flavor to me. I think I’d rather have a Formosa Assam, and at $46 for 2 oz., I can’t think of a reason to ever snag this again. Nice enough tea though.

The scent of the dry leaves is reminiscent of a delicious sheng pu’er + soap. Steeped, you can pick up on minty notes and soap. On the palate, you get the same: mint and soap with earthy notes. Did I mention the soap flavor? And yet I bought 2oz. of this, after a tasting at Song tea. I felt like it would be a good challenge to get to like it. And yet every time I drink it, I kind of hate it more.

I think my tongue has experienced just about every flavor the non-animal kingdom can throw at it, and to-date this tea and muguet/lily are the only natural flavors by which I’ve been revolted.

Note: There’s nothing “wrong” with the tea. It’s in fine shape and was clearly stored well. I just think it’s disgusting.

Among my favorites, this winter sprout tastes unmistakably like cotton candy. Not that it’s super sweet; it’s literally the flavor of cotton candy. And it’s very forgiving of temperature, even given how green it is. I used to be very careful with cooling the water to 205, but I’ve found you can just throw boiling water on and get what are arguably more interesting experiences out of it.

I received this tea as a sample. Thank you, Song Tea! Sniffing the dry leaf made me think of Nag Champa incense. It didn’t truly smell like Nag Champa, but made me think of it.

The theme with this tea overall is “evocative” – there are no obvious flavors, just haunting notes. It is elegant.

Notes that come to mind are muscovado, cocoa, caramel, again, incense.

It is very warming. At the end of the cup, a pleasurable tang appears.

It was beautiful.

I bought this after a tasting of both this and its aged 1992 harvest, assuming this was the lesser of the two because it seemed to have sharper edges. The dry leaves have only a faint scent of malty chocolate, even when warmed.

Skipped rinse.

1st infusion: (1:45)
This infusion, standing alone, merits 95 points. It tastes creamy, rich, and sweet like a baked good (but not too sugary sweet like Song’s Shan Lin Xi Winter Sprout). There are notes of milk chocolate and graham cracker. The texture is insanely smooth, light, delicious yet unpretentious. I can’t wait to try this in an Yixing teapot.

2nd infusion: (2:05)
Smells roasty and comforting, like a malty milky beverage. Less sweet than 1st infusion, but equally smooth.

3rd infusion: (2:15)
Leaves are a beautiful coppery purple-green colour. They smell metallic, but liquor smells milky and buttery.

Tasted this directly after its 2015 sibling, Formosa Yancha. The 1992 has an incredible dry leaf scent of musky raisins and savoury seaweed, though we didn’t taste much of that in the tea.

Redder liquor and the taste was slightly sweeter and a lot smoother overall than the younger one. But due to this one being twice the price (coming to about $7 per brewing session), I ended up buying the younger one anyway. Maybe if I keep it for long enough…

A solid Dragon Well, but seems to be prized more for its subtlety and I like my Dragon Wells ferociously lively, nutty, and flavourful. This one is more like an uber delicate, subtle white tea (probably because the cultivar is related to Anji Baicha). At $88 for 2 oz, totally not worth it to me there are far tastier Longjings out there. But Song is for the tea enthusiast who wants something out of the ordinary so if you’re tired of typical Longjings you might get a kick out of this.

This tea has a complex, sophisticated set of flavors. Definitely some dark sugar, but I would go with the more mineral and grainy taste of sucanat rather than muscovado. Candied lemon peel at the back of the sip, and eggy custard at the middle. Really, really enjoying it. I keep sniffing my empty cup between steeps.

This is for people who have the time and inclination to savour a gradually unfurling tea journey. This Buddha’s Hand can last probably over ten infusions. It has some of the most tightly rolled leaves in Song Tea’s collection. It is also one of the most beautiful smelling teas I have had the pleasure of experiencing: a roasty chocolate that gives way to caramelized fruity notes. Unfortunately, the taste is blunter than its fragrance, so take care to brew with a light hand. Some infusions of this tasted like dark bitter coffee. Later infusions are brighter and fruitier. Overall a wonderful, complex, darker tea for a long afternoon in.

This tea was sweet like a baked good, hits you in the face with wonderful notes of brown sugar, cornbread, caramel, etc. The downside is it only survives 2 or 3 infusions. I can see why it has a cult following, especially among Westerners with more of a sweet tooth. (2016 harvest)

This is the winter sprout from 2014 (I need to note this as Song currently has their 2015 winter sprout available). Subtle oolong flavor with a slight sweetness to it, almost berry-like. I suppose this is the kettle corn flavor they mention in their notes, but it’s coming across as more of a fruity sweetness to me. Very mild, delicate flavor, and the scent of the dry leaves is lovely. I had several steepings, I think maybe five or six, and the flavor held up well, not transforming really, but just intensifying a little with each steep. Could be because I kept increasing brewing time.

Strong intense smell, complex flavour. Says it has noted of lemongrass, muscovado sugar, and lemon custard but I don’t think I managed to catch all of that. It’s not a beginner’s red tea, in fact one of their most premium ones, but I actually preferred the simpler red tea “Eighteen” from the same store.

This oolong smells amazing—notes of orchid, and buttery sweet rice mochi. Compared to its fragrance, its taste is a bit bland and anticlimactic although it is still nice, subtle and herbal.

Wow, a completely 180˚ from my first impression of this tea. I feel like I brewed it stronger at home and that made all the difference. This is the 2016 harvest of the Lishan Winter Sprout. Warm leaves smell so deliciously savoury and fragrant like something that would draw me at a gourmet food fair––olive oil popcorn.

1st infusion: (1:00)
Liquor is the bright yellow-green colour of olive oil. Savoury and oily fragrance like umami seaweed seasoning, or vegetable broth.

2nd infusion: (1:10)
Savoury spinach vegetable broth. I wish it were more floral, maybe I’m craving something like a Tieguanyin.

3rd: (2:00)
Liquor is still bright olive-oil yellow. More vegetable broth, slightly salty. The first steeping was the best, when it still tasted buttery.

I remember this tasting pretty vegetal, grassy and unmemorable for me. I personally would not buy it, but my partner, who is more of a tea connoisseur himself, liked this the most of all the teas we tasted at Song that day.