I’ve tried a few Tie Guan Yins before and this one is in my top 2 choices as far as leaf quality and taste. The aroma is fresh, sweet, and the leaves are truly whole – it only took one steep to see the original leaves come back to life. The oxidation of this organic variety is lighter than some, which might explain the fresh, bright quality I’m picking up from it. More green leaves than browner ones in Shanti’s version, it’s therefore perhaps not as “deep” of a flavor than some might be looking for, but I’ve prepared 28 ounces’ worth of good tea from the 2-cup measure of dry leave. Not too shabby.
If you’re not a fan of traditional senchas or chinese green teas, this oolong would be a good alternative as it retains many “green” vegetal qualities but with a sweetness the regular green teas don’t normally have Almost as if it’s been perfumed, but not as strong as a jasmine.
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Bio
Still fairly new to the life-long process of learning and appreciating tea. Got into loose leaf a number of years ago after health concerns cut soda and sugared drinks from my repertoire. I’ve been blogging about and exploring tea more in-depth for the past several years and I just plain enjoy it. I keep an eye out for French tea trends as well, so if you parlez, bienvenue!
My ratings tend to fall into these categories:
I don’t bother discussing teas that I wouldn’t recommend to other folks on some level. Not worth drinking, not worth wasting time, so you won’t see many yellow light scores from me. I will, however, post if a tea is marketed as something it’s not. There are a couple of examples in my tea log.
50-70’s : Fair. Either a quality or grade issue or perhaps not suited to my personal preference. Wouldn’t turn it down if it were a gift, but wouldn’t purchase it for myself.
80’s: Good teas. Enjoyable and well-crafted, but maybe some slight room for improvement or maybe a notch below another of the same type that I’ve tried. Would buy again if the price were reasonable.
90’s: Excellent teas. My personal favorites that I’ve fallen in love with and have been surprised by.
I don’t know that I’ve ever rated a 100, which is why the 80’s and 90’s are more representative of the teas I like and would recommend. A 96 is just about perfect.
