Prepared this morning as bowl tea in my largest teacup. 1g, 140mL, ~185F. From a sealed sample packet, best before date of a little over two years ago.

The dry leaf smelled floral-sweet with nutty-sweet chocolate overlaying a very light vegetal-earth tone. The brewed aroma was chestnut-floral with hints of citrus and earth.

I realized with the first few sips that this tea is not to be had as a flavor experience. This tea is gestalt. By the second pour, my usual approach was dissolved by the delicate, silky-oily broth. Gentle in every way. It was cleansing with astringency and mineral salts. Beany-vegetal sweetness mingled with a very mild, underlying bitterness. The tender leaf and bud sets left a strong, sweet smell of tarragon in the bottom of the cup. I realized then that I had been misattributing as anise this aroma in other green teas. A gentle calm emerged with the arrival of returning sweetness. With the third pour, a sun-warmed sweet apricot aftertaste emerged.

Prepared in this way, the tea was perfectly balanced. Highly recommended.

Thank you for sharing Leafhopper :) What a pleasant experience. I am looking forward to drinking the remaining amount in this manner.

Flavors: Apricot, Astringent, Beany, Broth, Butter, Chestnut, Chocolate, Citrus, Coconut, Floral, Grass, Green Beans, Hay, Herbs, Mineral, Mint, Nutty, Rice, Salt, Sugarcane, Sweet, Vegetal

Preparation
185 °F / 85 °C 1 g 5 OZ / 140 ML
Cameron B.

Do tell, what exactly is “bowl tea”? Inquiring minds want to know.

derk

Idk about other people but what I do is basically like grandpa-style brewing where you use a small amount of leaf and add more hot water as you sip down. Or just sip down a bowl completely then refill. I don’t do it often because I mostly drink a lot of teas that for me brew best with with other methods.

Cameron B.

Ahh I see. Maybe I’ll try the bowl approach the next time I do grandpa-style steeping. I generally use a double-walled glass tumbler.

derk

I like the aesthetic of sipping from the bowl. It’s like a view into a shallow tidal pool or something, seems to bring the leaves to life. Different than just tossing leaves into a glass or tumbler which is what I usually do.

Cameron B.

That does sound lovely, and I like that it’s more mindful than normal grandpa-style. I wonder if it would work well for aged white teas?

Leafhopper

Wow! I’m glad you like this tea! I have three more packets and have been avoiding them because I didn’t have gongfu steeping instructions. I might have to try bowl brewing.

gmathis

I’m thinking ashmanra shared some of this with me a while back, and if it was, oh…baby…yes, it was very good!

derk

Cameron B.: I haven’t yet tried it with an aged white. I’ll have to try that and I hope you do, too! :)

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Cameron B.

Do tell, what exactly is “bowl tea”? Inquiring minds want to know.

derk

Idk about other people but what I do is basically like grandpa-style brewing where you use a small amount of leaf and add more hot water as you sip down. Or just sip down a bowl completely then refill. I don’t do it often because I mostly drink a lot of teas that for me brew best with with other methods.

Cameron B.

Ahh I see. Maybe I’ll try the bowl approach the next time I do grandpa-style steeping. I generally use a double-walled glass tumbler.

derk

I like the aesthetic of sipping from the bowl. It’s like a view into a shallow tidal pool or something, seems to bring the leaves to life. Different than just tossing leaves into a glass or tumbler which is what I usually do.

Cameron B.

That does sound lovely, and I like that it’s more mindful than normal grandpa-style. I wonder if it would work well for aged white teas?

Leafhopper

Wow! I’m glad you like this tea! I have three more packets and have been avoiding them because I didn’t have gongfu steeping instructions. I might have to try bowl brewing.

gmathis

I’m thinking ashmanra shared some of this with me a while back, and if it was, oh…baby…yes, it was very good!

derk

Cameron B.: I haven’t yet tried it with an aged white. I’ll have to try that and I hope you do, too! :)

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This place, like the rest of the internet, is dead and overrun with bots. And thus I step away.

Eventual tea farmer. If you are a tea grower, want to grow your own plants or are simply curious, please follow me so we can chat.

I most enjoy loose-leaf, unflavored teas and tisanes. Teabags have their place. Some of my favorite teas have a profound effect on mind and body rather than having a specific flavor profile. Terpene fiend.

Favorite teas generally come from China (all provinces), Taiwan, India (Nilgiri and Manipur). Frequently enjoyed though less sipped are teas from Georgia, Japan, Nepal and Darjeeling. While I’m not actively on the hunt, a goal of mine is to try tea from every country that makes it available to the North American market. This is to gain a vague understanding of how Camellia sinensis performs in different climates. I realize that borders are arbitrary and some countries are huge with many climates and tea-growing regions.

I’m convinced European countries make the best herbal teas.

Personal Rating Scale:

100-90: A tea I can lose myself into. Something about it makes me slow down and appreciate not only the tea but all of life or a moment in time. If it’s a bagged or herbal tea, it’s of standout quality in comparison to similar items.

89-80: Fits my profile well enough to buy again.

79-70: Not a preferred tea. I might buy more or try a different harvest. Would gladly have a cup if offered.

69-60: Not necessarily a bad tea but one that I won’t buy again. Would have a cup if offered.

59-1: Lacking several elements, strangely clunky, possess off flavors/aroma/texture or something about it makes me not want to finish.

Unrated: Haven’t made up my mind or some other reason. If it’s pu’er, I likely think it needs more age.

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