9 Tasting Notes
Very pleasantly surprised with this oolong. Most oolongs I have tasted have that earthy taste which I love, but not this one. It is very light tasting, yet flavorful. I think I will try to taste this oolong without the flavoring to get a feel for the true flavor of the oolong.
Preparation
Yummmmm. I brewed this up and tasted it without honey and determined that it did not need any. It is definitely sweet on it’s own. However the directions did say to add a touch of honey, so I did. I always follow directions on the first steep of a new tea. I am glad I did, because after adding just a half teaspoon of honey, the melon flavor really popped. This won’t be my favorite tea, but I will be returning to it often.
Preparation
I made a big pot of this tea this morning. I just noticed that there was still 16 oz left! Of course it is no longer warm, so I put some honey and ice in it. It is excellent as an Ice Tea ! Once again, I brewed this tea at 1/2 tsp per 8 ozs of water. Yummmmmmmm !!
Drinking Lapsang Souchong while snacking on pretzel sticks dipped in Jack Daniels Horseradish Mustard. I am a flavor hound, big flavor! This time I steeped the tea in my large cup (16-20 oz?) with only one teaspoon of tea. The flavor was quite pleasant !! Not as overwhelming as before.
Wow! I now know why they say you will either like this tea or you will not. BIG smoky flavor! So smoky that you will not taste the tea in the first infusion. Oh, but the second, third, and fourth infusions are great !!! After the fourth infusion, you really don’t get much out of it. I began by brewing this 3 minutes at 185°, which is not as recommended. The recommended temp is 212°, which is fine if you like astringent tea. I do not like astringency, so I cut the temp to about 195° and that seemed to be perfect for me. I would suggest that if you try this tea and you do not mind the taste, but just find it to be too overwhelming, toss your first steep and try it at the second or third steep.
Preparation
I got a pound of this tea from China and was pleased to see that it was packaged in a foil lined zip lock bag for freshness. I immediately opened it and took a whiff. Fresh fruity and floral smelling overtones.
I prepared it while I was cooking dinner. The water was hotter than recommended and I steeped it longer than recommended. But WOW, the fruity and floral overtones carried over into the taste! I sweetened this tea with an off brand of sweetener similar to “Equal”. There was a little bit of a bite to this tea and the taste buds on the tip of my tongue became a little dry, but I believe that to be a result of improper brewing. I can’t wait to try this tomorrow, brewed properly with Orange Blossom honey to sweeten.
I originally bought this tea to share with my husband (a non tea drinker). He has cancer and I thought it would be good to increase his antioxidant intake. I am going to have fight with him over it since he loved it so much! I have been married for 31 yrs. and I am amazed as I thought I would really have to talk him into drinking it.