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“Sipdown (243) This is a sample that Sil shared with my years ago. It is still okay though given that it is one of my oldest teas. Okay being the operative word. At the start of the sip it seems...” Read full tasting note
“Not enough sleep last night. Must be the cat’s fault. Running a little late this morning, about to leave, when that inner voice asks… Do you have tea in your purse for work? Shrug, Dunno Reach...” Read full tasting note
“I’ve been sipping on this tea all morning and it’s still going strong. The dry tea scent promises cocoa, a roasted note and a grainy bready note. These notes do appear in the brewed tea but the...” Read full tasting note
“This is a sample from the wonderful Dexter3657. Oh, this is a good one. I keep Bailin Gungfu from Teavivre in stock at all time, I drink it often and it’s easy to compare the two for me without...” Read full tasting note
Appearance, Flavor & Aroma:
This Fujian Black tea is an attractive mix of twisted, black leaves and gold buds. The aroma of the dry leaves is sweet with a hint of caramel. When infused, the deep red infusion carries the caramel-sweetness from the dry leaves into an almost creamy-sweet aroma. In the cup, it produces is a super-smooth, mellow and sweet infusion with a long, soft, sweet aftertaste with a hint of caramel and just a touch of cocoa.
Overview:
Bai Lin Gong Fu is a black tea that comes from the mountainous area near Bai Lin Zhen (Bai Lin town) in Fuding County, Fujian Province. It is said to be one of the earliest black teas produced in China for export to Europe.
About the Name:
Bai Lin means “White Jade,” and “Gong Fu” means something that has been done/made with skill. There are two explanations for the “Gong Fu” designation that I have come across. One common explanation for the gong fu designation has to do with the fact that this is a tea that requires great skill to process correctly. The other story says that when this style of black tea became popular in the domestic market, most people assumed that it was a type of oolong because of the long, twisted leaf shape (similar in appearance to Wuyi and Fenghuang Oolongs), so people automatically infused it using the Gong Fu method like they would with an oolong. Either way, the name Gong Fu stuck with this tea style, so we have Bai Lin Gong Fu.
Preparation Guideline:
For Gongfu steeping, start with about 7 grams of tea in a 150 ml Gaiwan or teapot, and begin your steeping process with a 20-30 second steep using 190-195°F water. Gradually increase the steeping time and temp with each subsequent infusion.
Western Style: use approximately 1.5-2 tsp per cup (2-3g), water just under a boil and a 3-4 minute infusion time. Please be sure to adjust the amount of leaf, steeping time, and/or water temperature according to your taste.
Company description not available.
Imperial Grade Bai Lin Gong Fu Black tea of Fuding * Spring 2017
Yunnan Sourcing2015 CLASSIC BAI LIN GONG FU BLACK TEA OF FUDING * GOLDEN MONKEY * SPRING 2015
Yunnan SourcingClassic Bai Lin Gong Fu Black tea of Fuding * Golden Monkey * Spring 2017
Yunnan SourcingClassic Bai Lin Gong Fu Black tea of Fuding * Golden Monkey * Spring 2018
Yunnan SourcingImperial Grade Bai Lin Gong Fu Black tea of Fuding * Spring 2018
Yunnan Sourcing2017 ‘Bai Lin Gong Fu’ Fuding Black Tea
Green Tea GuruSipdown (243)
This is a sample that Sil shared with my years ago. It is still okay though given that it is one of my oldest teas. Okay being the operative word. At the start of the sip it seems like it is going to be astringent but that doesn’t follow through. Instead it gives way to blandness. It is okay. Nothing amazing but perhaps that is age since this is one of the oldest teas I have, well had. Thank you Sil for sharing!
Not enough sleep last night. Must be the cat’s fault.
Running a little late this morning, about to leave, when that inner voice asks…
Do you have tea in your purse for work? Shrug, Dunno
Reach out and grab a random tin of black tea off the shelf and walk out the door.
An hour and a half later, letting a client vent about something that has nothing to do with us, I’m reaching into my purse for that tin of tea.
Some tea gets dumped into my infuser basket. Hang up with client.
Take basket to kitchen, add hot water, return to my desk. Answer 3 questions.
Crap forgot about my tea. Remove leaves. Take a sip….
AND THE WORLD STOPS
It’s like the stars aligned, the atmospheric pressure is perfect, the clouds part, and the sun shines through. I have the perfect cup of tea. Exactly what I’m in the mood for at the exact time that I need it the most.
I actually said out loud – What the hell am I drinking?
Co-workers look at you weird when you say things like that…. don’t care, I spent a few minutes basking in the moment, then went back to work.
This is easily in my top 5 favorite black teas. Amazing.
Haha darn cats! Mine ruined my sleep last night too lol..but this sounds like an amazing cup of tea. Love those star-aligning moments with tea haha, especially at work, because no one understands how tea can make you soo happy.
Priceless!
Blame it on a cat! I know why you couldn’t sleep. Spreadsheet! That’s why I refuse to make one.
I LOVE my new spread sheet!!! I’ll never look up a tea in my Steepster cupboard again. Looking for a fruit tisane to cold steep – it’ll show you just them. Looking for something to sip down – not problem. I can find anything in seconds. Really wish I had done this a year ago, then I would have that much more history (favorites, things to rebuy, what I thought of…) of all the teas I’ve tried. This was the best investment of my time.
The cat gets blamed for everything that goes wrong in my house…. ;))
I see. You are like my hubby. Whatever happens I’m responsible one. Kids got sick, bad grades, bad groceries, etc.
poor kitty
Lol. Love this review : -) you deserve your best teas all the time. And yay for awesome spreadsheet!
LOVE this note. Now I need to get some
What a great way to express how you felt while drinking this tea. I see that you are in Canada also. Where do you order your teas? Do you pay high shipping fees. Waiting to hear from you, I’m in Ottawa and used to work in Portage-la-Prairie for 4 yrs.
Hi Helene – I order tea from all over the world. Online shopping makes it possible to get almost anything from almost anywhere. There are tons of amazing tea vendors out there. Shipping can be very expensive or it can be free, depends on where you order from and how much you order.
What types of teas are you interested in? China blacks? Japanese green? Taiwan oolongs? Fun flavors? If you let me know what you are interested in, I might be able to recommend a vendor for you or point you to a forum thread on the subject. :))
I finally updates my cupboard. At the moment I have teas from TeaVivre. I received one box of tea samples from Tea Sparrow. Was expensive and I did not order another one. Then I order a box of tea samples from Amoda and did not renew. I find these monthly boxes get expensive. I like white, green, my family likes flavour teas. I am starting to drink black. Not a big fan because I love coffee. Do you know of any monthly box companies in Canada that are worth buying? Maybe you like the price of Amoda or Tea Sparrow. I think it’s expensive but I might be wrong. I will receive samples from TeaVivre soon. I like the quality of their teas. I want to explore more companies that does not charge us to much for shipping in Canada. Waiting to hear from you. Thanks in advance.
I think all subscription boxes are expensive, and then you end up with tea that isn’t your style. I would much prefer to order samples and try tea on my own – but that’s just me.
Teavivre is awesome, glad you found them. I would also check out Tealux:
http://www.tealux.ca/
Really nice straight teas – nice quality, reasonably priced, flat shipping $7.50 under 60.00 or free over 60.00. I find their flavored tea hit or miss, but the straight ones are really good.
Capital Tea Ltd.
http://www.capitaltea.com/shop/home.php?cat=6
Free shipping over 49.00 and they sell all their teas in 20g sample sizes. Great way to try a bunch for a little cost.
Camellia Sinensis:
http://camellia-sinensis.com/en/tea-store
Their tea is more expensive – more high end, but amazing. Free shipping over 50.00
Those three are Canadian Companies, that I really like.
I also LOVE, LOVE, LOVE – favorite source of pu’erh – but nice oolong and teaware. Mandala:
https://shopmandalatea.com/
Shipping is 9.00 flat to Canada – they are out of Minnesota – my favorite tea store.
That should get you started – if you would like more info, please follow me and shoot me a PM.
Dexter: I will have a look at the different sites and will probably place an order soon. This whole tea experience is addictive. I prefer to pay a bit more for more high end tea. At the moment I have the budget because I saved. I am following you. If I have more questions I will send you a PM. Thanks for the help and great info. I think my saved money might dissolved soon in a cup of tea :)
The best advice I can give you is SMALL Samples – try lots of different teas, by swapping or buying samples. As you explores your tastes will change, you’ll find tea you like better, don’t buy large quantities until you know for sure what you LOVE and what you don’t. :))
I’ll echo Dexter here. Small samples! Or you’ll end up with 250+ teas way faster than you think possible, kinda like we have. :)
When you say buy small samples you mean the smaller pack of a tea. Per example a White Tea on Mandala is $8 for 1 ounce. Is that what you call a sample? If so that it not cheap if I want to try a lot of samples.
White tea is expensive and Mandala is high end. Tealux has 1oz/25g white teas from $4.50. The only straight white at Davids is 14.50/50g – smallest amount you can buy online….
Usually is anywhete from 10-25g as the smallest size. Sometimes you can get < 10. Some companies sell these as intro packets is Mandalas is listed under sale items and right now it is only for shou but it is $9 Canadian including shipping for Canadians https://shopmandalatea.com/sale-items/ripe-puerh-sampler-pack.html, Verdant has a 5 for 5 deal that is 11 for us. Sometimes you have to search for sizes ie at Capital tea Ltd. The default size is 100g but when you click on this a menu comes up with available sizes. Prices from under 2 and up for the sample depending on the company and the tea.
I guess I have expensive taste because I like White Tea. At least I know now how to order tea online. Now I’ll have to chose a company and start from there.
Helene Tao Tea leaf had 5g samples some under 2$ for white tea.
http://www.taotealeaf.com/white/
I might order some, great price on white teas. Hopefully they are good.
I’ve only had some of his blacks but they so far have been really good!
5g will not last long :)
I’ve been sipping on this tea all morning and it’s still going strong. The dry tea scent promises cocoa, a roasted note and a grainy bready note. These notes do appear in the brewed tea but the grainy note does not make a strong appearance until later steeps. A lot of my other Bailin teas have been very fruity, this one is not although it does have some nice plum notes. What it does have are notes of molasses(more than caramel to me), a roasted note, cream, sweet potato , plum, a floral note, a hint of hay, grain notes, a hint of leather(in later steeps), cinnamon and malt. The tea tasted more robust in later steeps, but remained very smooth throughout.
I brewed this tea using 1.25tsp in a 150ml Gaiwan and used a water temperature of 92°C.
I used steeping times of 30,40,50,70, and 120s and will probably get at least one more good steep out of it. The tea brews to a pretty deepening maple shade.
This is a nice mellow tea, that has made a pleasant companion this morning. Thanks Sil for sharing!
This is a sample from the wonderful Dexter3657.
Oh, this is a good one.
I keep Bailin Gungfu from Teavivre in stock at all time, I drink it often and it’s easy to compare the two for me without having to do a side by side. Teavivre is more chocolaty and this one more caramely.
It’s grainy and bready with very sweet notes. It’s almost a dulce leche kind of caramel, it lingers in the mouth. I made a strong infusion and there’s no astringency whatsoever, very smooth.
How do I know I really, really enjoyed a cup? In no time, it’s empty, so I run out of words for a proper description cause it’s all gone.
Thank you Dexter3657 for allowing me taste such a wonderful tea :-)
dulce de leche, just had Haagen-Dazs last night. Guilty…
I should try this one. I like Teavivre Bailin Gong Fu, but it’s not my favorite. The only black from my Norbu order that I’ve tried is Ye Sheng Hong Cha – I didn’t really like it… This one sounds more my style. LOL pretty sad when I’m reading your reviews to decide which of MY teas to try….
Boychik, don’t temps me…I’m not a dessert freak, but ice cream is a big weakness…Haagen Dazs rocks…chocolate cherry…mmmmmm!!!!!
Lol, Dexter, try to remember that before placing your next order (look at me giving you advices!)
They also make green tea, but i cannot find it in the supermarket . Pineapple coconut was very good. i only eat 2-3 tsp. just to taste
http://www.haagendazs.us/Products/?utm_campaign=Google|Branded|Exact&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_content=haagendazs+portfolio&utm_termhaagen+dazs+green+tea
Btw, have you tried Shang Bai Lin?
Balanced but exploded cupboard = NO MORE ORDERS ;))
Dexter, i say it to myself every day,when i open my eyes. Like mantra, no more orders
Boychik, stop trying to corrupt me with both ice cream and tea!!!!
:-) :-):-) (haven’t tried shang bai lin)
Oh Dexter, Dexter, if only things were that simple…
Boychik – I’ve been saying it for six months now, doesn’t seem to be working for me. I wish you all the best, and if you figure out a way to actually stop ordering, please let me know.
Fairy – LOL it really should be that simple. Just don’t order, but it just doesn’t seem to happen. Paypal is just WAY too easy….
Lol, think about your Paypal annual statement…SHOCKER!!!!!
I’m in denial about my annual Paypal statement…. it couldn’t possibly have been correct. What’s really scary is that I didn’t really start ordering online/Paypal until about April last year – I will have four more months on this year’s…… I’m not even going to look at it.
I think I’m in more trouble because I have puerh addiction. I see tuocha and bricks and cakes in my dreams. It’s serious, no joke. I need help.
You can do group orders. Cheaper and less tea to consume.
At least, if stored properly, those puerh cakes will get better with age!
You are right Steph, time to build a pumidor
My husband has a special fridge for beer, only seems fair ;)
The Ben & Jerry’s limited edition cotton candy ice cream is really good.
dexter – i have a few from norbu you can steal some of :)
Thanks Sil but I have an entire Norbu order here that I haven’t tried yet. :)) I have TOO MUCH TEA!!!!
I drank the first half of this sample quite a while ago but was distracted while doing it so I didn’t write a tasting note, vowing that I would do better with the second half of my sample from Sil. Then yesterday it came up in my chronology so I drank it, but was again distracted. Augh!
See, it’s quite a tasty tea so I wanted to do it justice. But I was distracted so I can pretty much just tell you that it was tasty. It hit the notes that I look for in a Bailin Gongfu tea. Honey, grains, molasses, check. I would very happily drink this one again. I also happen to have 100g of Teavivre’s Bailin Gongfu so I’m pretty much set on it for now, but this is also quite good. Thanks for the sample, Sil!
this tea needs another review from me. This will not be a good one. Long story short? Norbu teas make me happy. Happy in the same vein as yezi teas and a few others. I love nofarS for introducing me to these teas via terri. now to go have ice cream for lunch and dinner.
I suspect age
Probably