Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: The Essence of Tea
Tea Description:
This Tie Guan Yin comes from an old plantation on Lao Cha Shan, YaoYang village, Xiping, Anxi. We’ve struggled for a while to find a traditional, authentic Xiping, Tie Guan Yin that is grown without chemicals. So many Tie Guan Yin’s are grown intensively and need large quantities of chemical fertilisers. This is grown naturally, without any chemical fertilisers and pesticides and has been processed in a more traditional style than the modern super green oolongs, being very lightly oxidised then rolled and very lightly roasted.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Even though I’ve had a lot of Tie Guan Yin Oolong teas over the years, I’m still amazed at how different they can taste from one Tie Guan Yin to the next. Taste is affected by so many factors, from where it is grown, to how it is grown and harvested, and how is is processed after harvesting. Even with each new harvest, Tie Guan Yin grown on the same estate can taste different.
This particular Tie Guan Yin was harvested in 2011, and even though it’s been almost a year since it was harvested, I am impressed with how delicious it tastes. It is sweet and smooth, with a pleasantly silky – almost broth-like – mouthfeel. The floral notes are crisp and clear, reminiscent of honeysuckle and orchid.
There isn’t a strong vegetal quality to this cup, instead, I taste more of a slight toasty note to the background of this Tie Guan Yin, which highlights a hint of nutty flavor to the cup. This accents the honey-like sweetness of the cup. There is relatively little astringency to this, and no bitterness.
A lovely, spring-like tea to enjoy on this gorgeous spring afternoon.
Tie Guan Yin – Diamond Grade – Fall Harvest from Norbu Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Norbu Tea
Tea Description:
This is our “Diamond Grade” Fall Harvest 2011 Tie Guan Yin from Anxi County’s Gande Town. Upon opening the package, the intense floral aroma of this tea is almost overwhelming. The dry leaves are dark green and are fairly tightly rolled into the characteristic ball shape of Anxi Oolong.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I do love a good Oolong, and while Ali Shan tends to be my favorite, Tie Guan Yin Oolong teas are right up there. I love their floral notes and that sweet, buttery flavor.
And this is one mighty fine Tie Guan Yin!
As the above description suggests, the floral aroma is incredibly powerful. The floral fragrance translates to the brewed tea – and it completes the experience to deeply inhale the scent of the tea prior to taking a sip. It smells so good that I found myself smelling the cup for hints of that beautiful bouquet after the tea had been consumed!
Deliciously floral, I taste the sweet notes of honeysuckle and orchid, but without that sharp tone that sometimes accompanies a floral note. The texture is silky and smooth, reminiscent of melted butter. There is also a buttery flavor to the tea, which further accentuates the texture, giving this an almost buttered-popcorn kind of taste.
There are hints of vegetal tones to this tea as well, they start out very subtle and as I continue to sip I find these flavors develop. With subsequent infusions (I managed six full-flavored infusions from one measurement of leaves, and with the seventh and eighth infusions, the flavor was lighter, but still very delightful) I noticed that the floral tones began to really emerge, and the flavors become even smoother. My favorite infusions were the third and fourth – the combination of these two infusions made for a very rich, flavorful, broth-y kind of tea with gorgeous floral high notes.
Since my first encounters with Norbu Tea several years ago, I have come to associate this company with nothing but the very best in Oolong teas. If you’re an Oolong enthusiast, you really should be shopping with Norbu!
Shade Grown Tie Guan Yin from Norbu Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Norbu Tea
Product Description:
Our Shade Grown Tie Guan Yin is a green style Anxi Tie Guan Yin that was harvested and processed* in the Spring of 2011, but the way it was grown makes the mouthfeel and particularly the aftertaste quite different from traditionally grown Tie Guan Yin. Our Shade Grown Tie Guan Yin was grown very much like Japan’s Kabusecha (a partially shade-grown green tea). It was grown in full sun like a regular Tie Guan Yin until 2-3 weeks before harvest. At that point, a cover/net was rolled out directly on top of the tea plants to block about half of the sunlight. The reduced exposure to sunlight increases amino acid & chlorophyll levels in the leaves, resulting in a finished product with a fuller mouthfeel and an exceptionally rich, penetrating and mouth-coating bittersweet aftertaste.
Taster’s Review:
Norbu Tea has an excellent collection of high quality teas, and I’ve always been very impressed with teas (and especially their Oolongs!) that I’ve received from them. So, when I received this Shade Grown Tie Guan Yin in my Oolong October Steepster Select package, I was thrilled. I had very high expectations, and again, I find that Norbu Tea has not only met those expectations, but exceeded them.
The brewed tea smells beautiful. Very floral! Hints of lilac that remind me of my gramma’s backyard in the springtime. Orchid. Honeysuckle. It is a very lush floral fragrance.
The flavor is sublime. It tastes sweet and floral, and the mouthfeel is thick and rich. Creamy. I want to say “buttery” but it really isn’t quite like butter, it is more like sweet cream. The aftertaste is sweet, but with a slight savory tone to keep it from coming across as too sweet. It is a very luxurious tea to sip.
Generally, you would find me recommending Norbu Tea’s Ali Shan Oolong (and my preference is for the spring or fall harvest Ali Shan) … and I still do! But, I now need to include yet another onto my list of recommendations for Norbu Tea: Shade Grown Tie Guan Yin! If you are a fan of Tie Guan Yin, you MUST try this one. It is likely to become your favorite!