Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Darjeeling Tea Lovers
Tea Description:
Goomtee Black Dragon, an OOLONG comes from a prestigious tea estate of Darjeeling. Gomtee produces some of the best teas that we have tasted so far. This oolong is a stand alone tea from their house. Long semi fermented leaves when steeped for 3 minutes gives a roasted chocolate flavour which makes this tea a must try for tea lovers.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
So far, the teas that I’ve tried from Darjeeling Tea Lovers have been all Darjeeling teas, so I was excited to finally be trying this Goomtee Black Dragon Oolong First Flush from them! An Oolong from the Darjeeling Region, even! Exciting!
The aroma of the dry leaf was earthy and sweet, with notes of an indistinguishable fruit … it had a fruit-like sweetness to the scent but, it was difficult to place exactly what fruit I was smelling. The brewed liquid smells more fruity … a fruit note that lies somewhere between plum and apricot and nectarine. I also smell a distinct “sweet” note that reminds me of cocoa with hints of burnt sugar.
The flavor is superb! Peach-like notes with floral hints. The promises of chocolate from the fragrance come alive in the flavor as well. Not a strong chocolate-y presence but certainly a welcome one. The chocolate notes seem to be more distinct when I aerate the sip with a slurp, so this is a tea that is definitely worth slurping! Yeah, don’t worry about it, nobody’s listening … go ahead and slurp!
The chocolate notes are not “slap you in the face” kind of chocolate notes … but, that’s OK. Yes, the chocoholic that always says more chocolate = better just said that! That’s because I love it when I find a pure tea like this that has natural notes of cocoa. This tea is pure joy!
The texture is soft and smooth and there is some astringency toward the finish. The aftertaste is sweet with just a hint of “tangy” from the stone fruit notes coming through. Subsequent infusions bring the chocolate notes into the foreground! Chocolate lovers … you’ll want to indulge in several infusions with this tea!
I am in agreement with the description above – this tea is definitely a MUST TRY for tea lovers … and for chocolate lovers too!
Organic Nonpareil Ming Qian Dragon Well Long Jing Green Tea from Teavivre
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Teavivre
Tea Description:
The fresh Organic Nonpareil Ming Qian Dragon Well Long Jing Tea provided by Teavivre is picked before Tomb-Sweeping Day, an important solar term in Chinese agriculture. Ming Qian (Pre-ming) tea is seldom damaged by insects. Its buds and leaves are delicate and tender. With a mellow taste, it is emerald green in color and quite beautiful in appearance. Since the weather is relatively cold before Tomb-Sweeping Day, the number of fresh buds is limited and they grow slow. Therefore, a few leaves can meet the picking standard. Compared with those picked after Tomb-Sweeping Day, Ming Qian (Pre-ming) tea is of top grade.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I’ve said this before, but it bears repeating: Teavivre is one of my favorite tea companies. The reason is quite simple. They offer some of the very best teas available, and it is obvious to me that this is a company that cares about the teas that they sell. This is evident in their careful packaging that protects the tea quality and integrity of the tea. This is evident in their responsive customer service. More than that … this is evident in the FLAVOR of the tea itself.
As this Organic Nonpareil Ming Qian Dragon Well Long Jing Green Tea from Teavivre brewed, I could smell the strong, fresh vegetative aroma. The scent filled the kitchen, smelling of steamed vegetables … it smelled delicious!
The flavor matches the fragrance with its strong, vegetative overtone. It is pleasantly sweet but with a nice contrasting savory tone that is almost like salt. I taste nutty notes, reminiscent of a freshly roasted chestnut: creamy and sweet, with hints of butter.
The texture is smooth and silky, and there is very little astringency to this. It is not bitter (although I wouldn’t recommend steeping it in water too hot or for too long a time. I recommend a temperature of 175ºF and a brew time of 1 – 1 1/2 minutes for the first infusion, and increasing the brew time by 30 seconds for each subsequent infusion.)
I like that this tea holds up well through multiple infusions too. This is definitely a tea that you want to spend some time with … take your time and savor it! It will submit several very flavorful infusions that will make it well worth your efforts!
Black Dragon Oolong Tea from The Tao of Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: The Tao of Tea
Tea Description:
From the famous oolong producing area of Anxi in Fujian, China. Sometimes the anxi oolongs are also refered to as “se zhong,” meaning a blend of several oolongs. The processing of this tea is quite similar to the more popular Tieguanyin oolong tea. Oolong teas range in their flavor and color spectrum from light green to dark. Tea merchants will refer this color spectrum to the level of oxidization in the tea leaves. Low (5% to 25%) oxidized teas are more green. Black Dragon is a 40 percent oxidized oolong. The leaves are tightly rolled into small pellets. When infused, the leaves unfold into their original state and provide many infusions.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
It’s Oolong time again. Of the different tea types … Oolong is right up there with my favorite. (Yellow tea is my #1 fave, but, Oolong comes in at a close second) But I do limit myself to one Oolong a day, usually, because I brew it in a gaiwan, and as much as I do enjoy my tea time and the act of brewing an Oolong, I just can’t devote that much time to the brewing process for more than one tea per day. I’ve got too much to do! That’s why I do love my Breville One-Touch, it takes much of the time that I’d need to spend babysitting my tea … it allows me to enjoy more tea and still do the things that I need to do.
But I digress, because I don’t brew an Oolong in my Tea Maker; Oolong teas definitely benefit from brewing in a gaiwan.
And this Black Dragon Oolong Tea from The Tao of Tea is absolutely lovely! It is sweet with a char-roasty kind of taste to it … it is somewhat mineral-y, with notes of wood. It is one of the more masculine Oolong teas that I’ve encountered. Earthy, with notes of sweet fruit (peach!) and while there are the faintest hints of flower in this first cup (which holds a combination of the first and second infusions), what I taste mostly are peach … and the charred notes give it kind of a roasted peach kind of flavor (Imagine grilling a peach over charcoal!)
The second cup (infusions 3 and 4) is quite different from the first! Now, I’m tasting less peach, and more floral notes. The peach notes are still present, but, not nearly as strong as in the first cup. This cup still has some of those mineral-y notes and the charred notes. It still has a warm, roasty-toasty kind of taste.
The third cup (infusions 5 and 6) is softer … not quite as focused as the first, nor as sharp as the second, here, the flavors have sort of come together in a united way to produce a really lovely, seamless flavor that is both fruit and flower, with a deep, earthy undertone.
A truly lovely Oolong – one that is definitely worth taking the time to put it through its paces! You should absolutely take the time to infuse this tea multiple times and get all the flavor you can from it.
Organic Silk Dragon Jasmine Green Tea from David’s Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: David’s Tea
Tea Description:
Made from premium green tea, our Silk Dragon is a limited-edition treasure. To create it, night-blooming jasmine is gathered in the morning and kept cool all day. In the evening, when the flowers burst open and release their scent, they are placed with the tea until midnight. This is repeated with fresh flowers over the course of five nights, infusing the tea with a most magical flavour.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Ahh, Jasmine. The last jasmine tea I had (a day or two ago) was made using a jasmine scented oil … and I know I’ve told you how much I detest that kind of jasmine tea. This Jasmine tea though … this Organic Silk Dragon Jasmine Green Tea from David’s Tea – it was scented properly. And when I have a jasmine tea that was properly scented like this one on the heels of a jasmine tea that has been flavored with jasmine oil … it makes me appreciate the efforts that go in to a properly scented jasmine tea all the more.
The jasmine here is sweet and soft … and absolutely LOVELY!
The green tea is earthy, sweet, and has a nice vegetative tone to it. It tastes slightly more on the “earthy” side than on the vegetative side … which is a bit unusual for green teas, but, I’m not finding it to be too earthy for me. It is smooth and has a very silky texture. It isn’t bitter, and there is very little astringency.
The jasmine is really pleasant. It isn’t an overly strong jasmine – those of you who don’t like an overly strong jasmine flavor would probably find this jasmine to be right up your alley. The jasmine notes are evident but not overwhelming.
This tea isn’t anything fancy … but then … sometimes, there’s nothing quite like a pleasant, simple cup of tea and that’s what I’m liking about this tea. It’s jasmine … and it’s a very enjoyable cuppa. I also like that this is an organic and fair trade certified tea. It’s good hot or cold, but, since the weather has been warm lately, I’ve really been liking this one iced!
Organic Superfine Dragon Well Long Jing Green Tea from Teavivre
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Teavivre
Tea Description:
This Organic Dragon Well Long Jing tea origins in organic tea base of Tianmu Mountain in Lin’an, Hangzhou. The organic tea base of Tianmu Mountain, has passed the organic certification of European, USA and Japan, is a significant base of planting organic dragon well and green tea. This dragon well long jing tea persists a high level in picking and producing while meeting the standard of organic certification. The tea should be picked as one bud and two leaves or three leaves in order to reach the standard. Tea workers also have excellent skills, which help keep the natural features of fresh tea leaves. Combined with the advantages of organic tea and high grade tea, this dragon well long jing tea is suitable for tea lovers of organic tea as well as dragon well green tea.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Oh how I love Teavivre! Why? Because they never fail to impress me with their high quality teas. This Organic Superfine Dragon Well Long Jing Green Tea is absolutely stunning!
It tastes so deliciously sweet, smooth, and there isn’t even the slightest hint of bitterness. It is sweet from start to finish. It is vaguely reminiscent of tender, freshly roasted chestnuts. The buttery smooth, sweet flavor of chestnut! YUM! There are also notes of savory vegetation in there too … not really grassy, or even like steamed veggies … but just that subtle touch of “green” to it. This is the way a Dragon Well should taste!
I love the freshness of this Dragon Well and this is typical of all the teas that Teavivre offers – their teas are just so very fresh and delicious. (Except for their pu-erhs which are aged and delicious.) I also love that this particular selection is an organic offering. Without having compared a conventionally grown Dragon Well versus an organically grown Dragon Well, I can’t say that there is a difference in taste between the two. But, I know that I feel better knowing that this tea is organic.
This tea is delicious served hot, but, it’s also quite nice when chilled – which is how I’m drinking it now. I had brewed a teapot of the tea this afternoon, and drank one cup of it hot, and then refrigerated the rest of it, and am able to enjoy a frosty glass of tasty iced tea. While I do prefer MOST teas served hot versus iced … since the warm weather is upon us now, it’s nice to be able to enjoy this one iced. It’s very refreshing!