The Simple Leaf

This is another sample from Kristin.

The dry leaf almost smells like dark chocolate. At first I assumed it was a flavored tea sample for Liz. But when I looked it up, it was clear that it was not. So, that’s a pretty neat trick for dry leaves.

The wet leaves have that sharp, roasted, almost citrus-y aroma too them that many darker oolongs have, in spite of this being a black tea on the listing.

It tastes more like an oolong than a black tea, as well. No astringency at all and the kind of roasted notes that have a sweetness to them. The way sugars caramelize in roasted garlic or grilled vegetables. Not that this tastes like either garlic or vegetables! It just has that same kind of sweetness to the roasted flavor.

It reminds me of Barley tea, is what it does. Except not that subtle.

At any rate, this is a good, soft black tea if you prefer to ease into your morning, rather than yesterday’s one-two punch with the mountain malt.

This is another sample from Kristin, for which I am grateful. :-)

I do not drink a lot of black tea, much less very many breakfast blends. So I can’t do too much with this tea comparatively. I can say that after the 3 minute steep, this cup is on the brink of being just a bit too astringent ~ but not quite. It is a big, bold, wake you up cup of tea, which as far as I understand it, is what breakfast blends are all about.

If nothing else, it goes perfectly with today’s dreary weather.

After my week of work tea divine decadence (jasmine! violet! cherry! chestnut!) I decided to have a plain green today. I got a very nice sized bag of this free with my Dawn order. Thanks Simple Leaf!

This tea smells SMOKY!!

It tastes earthy and smoky, the slightest bit asparagus-y, but I like it! It’s not my usual “profile” at all, but it’s really nice after days of sweetness and refinement. This tea would be excellent with a meal. As it cools, it is a little less smoky, a little more asparagus-y and slightly sweeter.

2nd steep: (3:30) Nice! It’s more subdued and very delicious. I don’t know if I prefer the first or second steep! The first one is so interesting, but the second one is very harmonious. I am wishing I had a bowl of rice with salmon and bok choy (yeah – I know! specific!) to go with this tea!!

3rd steep: (4:00) Sweeter! even less smoke. I am so full, but I think this tea could go on to yet another steep (but I won’t save my leaves because I have dark chocolate covered graham crackers for my afternoon snack, and that would be an awful pairing!!). I wanted to mention it though, because if you are having guests for a meal, you can keep on refilling your teapot at least 4 times imo with this tea.

Look at me – evolving!! ;)

I needed a green tea tonight and this one was the first one I grabbed. This tea actually smells and tastes slightly smoky and I love smoky. The tea is very smooth and vegetal and smoky. I like this tea much better this time than when I had it last. No bitterness or astringency and a slightly peppery finish. Very nice.

This is a very smooth vegetal tasting tea. The tea smells a little smoky but doesn’t taste that way. Very enjoyable cup.
3g/8oz

This tea does smell slightly smoky and there is a smokiness to the flavor along with a vegetal note. I’m used to drinking strong black teas so sometimes when I sip a green the first thing that hits me is that this tastes like yellow/green water. I have to remember that green tea is delicate so I slow down and as the tea cools I get more flavors. I also tend to get the water too hot and then I have to wait. Waiting is not my strong point. Overall this is a nice drinkable tea, Next I intend to double the leaf like Teaequalsbliss did and see how I like it. I do like the Maharani much better though.

Decided to do a HUGE mug full of this to finish it up! Tastes fairly mossy today but with a smoother finish!

Apparently I am in the minority…but I really like this tea! It’s another selection from the goodie-bag I received from SoccerMom. It’s extremely juicy – VERY mouth watering. A nice relaxing cup!

I doubled the suggested amount of loose leaf, however, and infused for about 4 minutes.

In my book…this is YUMMY…thanks SoccerMom for sending this my way…

Being a white tea, Decadence is understated, and just a little sip won’t get you all that far. But a mouthful brings out some very nice flavors. In short, the main flavor that comes out is caramel, but it’s a very specific flavor of caramel.

I tried this one too-expensive “Righteously Raw” cocoa bar one time, and it was all right. The outside was 90% cocoa and bitter, but the inside was really delicious. The ingredients were lucuma fruit, pink salt, agave nectar, dates, and vanilla bean. I’m not sure if it’s the lucuma (never had it alone) or just the combination of everything, but it made a unique caramelish flavor that I loved. Took me a minute to figure it out, but Decadence totally has this flavor going on. It is not harsh or astringent, and I am looking forward to steep #2.

EDIT: Steep 2 was not too different. 160 degrees for 3:30. A little bit of red grape started coming out. While a tiny bit of astringency happened, it was still very smooth and not at all bitter. I bet you could steep this more times and still get nice, subtle cups. When I was done with the leaves, they smelled bright and grassy. This is really not a tea for you if you like ’em with a kick – I let my gf try it, and she thought it was more like water than tea.

I’m not so experienced with white teas – I sort of quit them a few years ago – but I’ll keep drinking them if they’re like this. Now, if only it were cheaper.

This is my last bit of tea from The Simple Leaf and its really too bad as they had fantastic tea. The tea steeps up golden in color with a floral honey smell. The taste is nutty, vegetal, buttery and slightly spicy. This is a very nice tea and I wish I could buy more, but alas they are no more.

This tea is smells like flowers and honey but the taste is more vegetal and buttery. The tea has a slightly sweet taste and is golden in color. The taste is also slightly nutty. A very nice evening tea.

This tea is very smooth and mellow. It brews up an amber color which is unusual for a green. I’m not really into green teas very much but I do like this one. Taste is slightly peppery and floral.

I drank this last night. This tea is very smooth and I actually used enough leaves to get a spicy taste. The tea brews up golden and smells of honey to me. The tea tastes slightly peppery and floral. A very enjoyable tea.

The leaves smell grassy but the tea doesn’t taste grassy at all. The steeped tea has a very fresh smell of honey and flowers. The tea is very smooth and mellow. The brew is very dark for a green tea, kind of a golden hue. There is a slightly buttery taste. This is the best green I have had so far, but please remember that I don’t usually drink green teas.

Interesting tea when you get chocolate notes and there is no chocolate in the tea. Tea steeps up dark and smells a little earthy. The taste I get is an earthy chocolate with no bitterness or astringency. Very smooth and mellow tea.

This tea smells like chocolate. When steeped I got a dark amber color that smelled a little nutty with chocolate notes in it. This tea reminds me of a dark creamy Oolong.

This is a very nice change of pace tea. It smells like chocolate and the taste is silky and cocoa-like. No bitterness or astringency I could find. Tea gets a little earthy as it cools.

This is a very unusual tea. It smells of chocolate even though it has no additives in it. The leaves are very long. The tea is delicious and has a toasty chocolate taste. The tea has a heavy mouthfeel and tastes very rich. I really like this tea. This tea reminds me of a chocolate flavored coffee with chicory.

This is a light oolong with honey notes. Very nice and tasty in the afternoon or evening. The tea has a sweetness to it and the aroma is very different than most teas I have had. A very interesting cup.

I’m actually getting to like this tea. I read LiberTEAS tasting note and used his directions, thanks by the way. I used 180 water for a 2 minute steep. The tea was a honey amber color, and I actually got some honey and fruit notes. The tea was silky tasting with a light mouthfeel, something I’m not used to as I usually drink black teas. But, I liked the second steep even better, I used 190 water for 3 minutes. The tea was golden in color and more woodsy tasting. The tea had a subtle sweetness to it and I enjoyed it.

So this is what the Daphne bholua and Rhododendron plant smell like. This tea smells intriguing and unusual for an Oolong. This tea brews up golden in color but the taste is very light for an Oolong. I get the taste of honey and other flavors that I cannot place. I like this tea but I wish I could tell more about it. Very mysterious.

First of all I’m not an Oolong expert by any means. That being said this tea is very good. I really can’t explain any of the flavors although I get a touch of honey and fruit. The tea has a sweetness to it. The smells are alien to me but the tea is smooth, mellow and tasty. It tastes nothing like Formosa Oolong by Harney and Sons. It taste much lighter with a light mouthfeel. The flavors seem to come through the cooler the tea becomes.

Very nice tea with a nutty smell and a light grassy taste.