Verdant Tea

I adored this one.

And it’s a belatedly posted sipdown!

#long time ago internet hiatus sipdown

This was extremely enjoyable. Other than that, as I sipped it down a long while ago, I can’t recall.

And it’s a sipdown!

#long time ago internet hiatus sipdown

Stellar!

And it’s a sipdown!

#long time ago internet hiatus sipdown

Brought this to work, as I tend to crave straight black teas while I’m working. So tasty. Rich, chocolatey. Very easy to drink.

From Shae, thanks for sharing!
Yum, this is chocolate malt in a cup, and very smooth. I started with 4 grams in 6 oz of water and am on steep number three right now. A nice bread, yeasty taste to this too. Way too easy to sip this down, its gone before you know it. I would certainly consider this one for purchase, but its been a long while since I’ve made a Verdant order.

2021 Sipdown 80/365!

Sadly, I don’t remember this one anymore, but I’m sure it was good. I didn’t drink it that long ago, it has just fully escaped my memory. :(

This was a 5g sample pack from the Autumn 2018 harvest.

2021 Sipdown 77/365!

Apparently haven’t written a note for this before, but I remember it being toasty/nutty and quite tasty. One of the better traditional TGY’s I’ve had; I generally like them but don’t always love them, but this was a favourite.

This was from one of the sub boxes, waaay back.

Pouch from the Autumn 2019. It’s good; everything you’d expect from an LB. Rich, chocolatey, malty, very tasty.

Ha, I missed that this said “yabao” when I grabbed it yesterday – explains why it both looked and tasted like it! It was a delicious couple cups, with that distinct yabao flavour that I’m terrible at describing, and lightly sweet.

My package says Qianjiazhai – I assume it’s the same thing.

Anyhow, I’ve missed yabao, and this was very satisfying. I don’t really know how to describe it – kind of smoky, a bit cedary, earthy? A very unique flavour.

I did the last little bit of this tea gongfu and it made a difference. First steep was yeasty and wheaty. Second steep was mellowed out a bit with malt and dark chocolate. I’m bumping my rating and I’d be tempted to add this to a purchase. Certainly a candidate for grandpa style brewing.

This one is from Shae, thanks for sharing!
A cold front is bringing showers, clouds and cooler temperatures, pretty soon it will be fall tea drinking weather. This tea reminds me of a big red robe, with more toasty bread or hay notes. There is a harshness underneath that is smoothed over by the sweetness of the toasty hay, with a slight nutty aftertaste. Overall not bad, but I expect a bit of chocolate from a laoshan black so I’m wondering if it’s the autumn or the way it was processed. It’s an enjoyable cup, though if I had a whole bag I’d be tempted to blend it with something savory or sweeter to get a more interesting flavor profile. Glad I got to try it.

This year’s Laoshan green is once again a stellar tea. It’s sweet and savory with an interesting interplay of soy milk, honey, toasted grain, and fennel. Deliciously creamy and nutty with mild vegetal tones. Enjoyed this a lot more than the pricier Laoshan Reserve Bilochun.

First steep; 5 seconds: Little sweet, but mostly savory vegetal. Mild astringency.

Second steep; 7 seconds: I under steeped, but not bad. Mineral spice and more subdued savory green. Maybe faint floral. Some astringency, but pleasant.

Third Steep; 12 seconds: Smooth, savory, and a little grassy. Creamy mouth feel developing.

Fourth Steep; 17 seconds: Less savory, more sweet with some grassy flavors. Maybe vague honey notes.

Forgot to log the rest of my notes for this one. This wasn’t bad, and it’s from 2015, but it basically tasted like a green tea mostly. I think I might brew this one western style as said on Verdant. The other times I brewed it like that I got better flavors.

This is from an ancient bag from when I had a Verdant subscription that most likely dates pre 2015. Not gonna rate cause it’s so old, but I did enjoy it.

First steep; 6 seconds: floral, mineral, and honey notes.

Second steep: Creamy mouth feel, cinnamon and other sweet wood spice notes. Darker flavor over all. Some vegetale notes.

Third Steep; 8 seconds: Same as the second steep, but less creamy mouth feel and stronger vegetale notes. Some very mild black tea like astringency.

Fourth Steep; 12 seconds: Seems to have lost a lot of flavor. Mostly just bland mineral with faint tasting notes from before. Seems to taste better as it cools. Mostly just spicy wood notes and maybe camphor.

Fifth Steep & Sixth; 14 seconds: Mild sweetness and spicy minerally, with vegital taste. More sweet and spicy cinnamon when cooled.

Seventh and 8th steep; 20 seconds: Reminds me a lot of the first and second steep combined. Maybe vague vanilla sandalwood sweetness? Maybe it’s floral honey? Tastes better when on the cooler side.

Ninth, Tenth, and Eleventh; 30 seconds: Finished it off this morning. Very minerally with some sweetness, woody spice, and hints of cardamon. Wasn’t bad, and went well with a stoop waffle.

This one is more toasty than chocolatey but still an enjoyable cup. I’m on the second brew but it might be able to go for a few more. Caramel, hay, butter, and toast. Pretty yummy, but I don’t know if I’d go out of my way to purchase.

EDIT: I dumped the leaves in my go cup for grandpa style brewing. still toasty warm bread to the last sip. This tea sure goes a long way. Thanks Shae for sharing!

Fantastic. This aroma is gorgeous. Mineral. Toasty. Slight roasted caramel. And this only with the dry aroma. The aroma cup reveals clear and crisp fall notes. The flavor starts off with some roast and then switches to mineral notes as it disappears into the after taste. It lingers on your tongue for quite while. Leavening one feeling refreshed. With each steep the roast notes come out stronger. Third steeping or maybe it’s the forth… Either way brought forth some slight freshly baked sweet bread notes. Cinnamon sugar. Wow! The sixth pour now has some astringency along with some tannic notes. Heavy on the charcoal and burnt buttercream. Better burnt then sour. I experimented with pouring milk on a lime once. Won’t perform that again. What is this wet leaf aroma?! So unique I can’t quite explain it.

#tiffanys2021sipdown Tea #214 overall / Tea #38 for May
Wednesday 5/26 — Verdant Tea Spring Tieguanyin 2020 25g packet. I like this tea, it was so pleasant as two cold brew pitchers (not at once, just to use up the packet). It has a light floral taste which is okay considering I’m not generally a floral person. I might pass the other packets I have of this tea into the next TTB or swaps with other tea people just because I have soooo many other teas to go through.
#tiffanydrinkstea #tiffanys2021 #tiffanysfaves #tiffanyinthe614 #tiffanysteasipdown

Autumn 2020 Harvest
Date of Picking: October 2020

I again failed to write a tasting note for this as I was drinking it, but my main takeaway was that it tasted like bread crusts. Is that weird? Or even a thing? It’s not the fluffy middle, but the darker almost burnt ends that I’m getting here. I noticed that lovely chocolate aroma from the dry leaf but was completely missing it in the cup. Compared to yesterday’s tea, this one didn’t quite rise to meet my expectations.

2020 Harvest
Date of Picking: May 2020

I didn’t take many notes on this one as I was drinking it. Instead I wrote down some words as I made my way through the cup. The dry leaf had a chocolaty aroma, but the flavor was surprisingly fruity. I was able to narrow it down to berries and then strawberry and finally strawberry jam. That’s it – it tastes jammy! What a really delicious tea with so many layers. I’m sure those with a more refined palate could find so much more.

oh now, THIS is tasty! sent as a free sample with my recent order of some oolongs, i hadn’t really ever tried green tea of this style. i used my glass easy gaiwan and after a quick rinse in 175 degree water, steeped the 5g sample in around 6 oz of water for the recommended 6 seconds. it was yummy, but it wasn’t until rounds 2-5 that the tea really bloomed into a brothy, buttery, vegetal harmony. i’m done for the day, but going to put the gaiwan in the fridge and see if i can get a bit more out of this particular tea sample.

Spring 2020 Harvest
Date of Picking: Late May 2020

On to my next Laoshan Black from Verdant. This time I made it the way I would normally steep my black teas. In the bag, it has that chocolate syrup aroma that I love so much. Baked bread while steeping, that same mineral note in the first sip that I found in the Autumn 2019 harvest. The chocolate is more forward in this cup than in the last, which I enjoy, but I also did a poor job steeping the last one so it wouldn’t be fair to compare them too closely.

Autumn 2020 Harvest
Date of Picking: October 2020

Dry leaf smells nice and chocolaty. The taste isn’t doing it for me today though. I know in my mind I’m comparing it to the Jin Jun Mei I had earlier this week. I guess I should have had that one last, since none of my other Verdant teas can seem to compare.