Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Teavivre
Tea Description:
Bailin Gongfu is the highest quality Fujian black tea. This Bailin Gonfu is a premium quality tea produced at Mt. Taimu in Fujian, and is crafted from Fuding DaBai and Da Hao trees. This delicious tea has a great refreshing sweet taste and fragrance.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I have enjoyed many different types of tea. When it comes to pure black teas, there are many that I consider “favorites” – but if I had to narrow it down to one pure black tea that I could have – that and only that for the rest of my life, I think I would ultimately end up choosing a Fujian black tea like this Bailin Gongfu Black Tea from Teavivre.
Fortunately, that is not a choice I’d have to make… and don’t get me wrong, I have enjoyed many different pure black teas and I hope to continue to do just that. But a good Fujian like this one – well, it’s hard to beat.
This has all the qualities that I want in a black tea, and none that I don’t want. It comes as close to perfection in a black tea that one can get! It is rich, smooth, a little malty with pleasant baked good kind of notes throughout. It has a very luscious caramel-y undertone – sweet and unlike some other teas that have this caramel-y tone, it is a strong, unwavering kind of flavor that stays with you from the first sip right through to the last sip.
But there’s more. What really draws me in to with this tea is the cocoa notes. This tea tastes as though it has been coated with the highest quality dark cocoa powder. Of course, it hasn’t been, but it tastes like it. It has such a pleasing dark chocolate flavor. Of course, for those who prefer milk chocolate, you can remedy this by adding a splash of milk or cream and this tea takes that addition quite nicely.
I happen to prefer this tea straight up, it doesn’t really need sweetener, it doesn’t really need anything other than the brewing process to make a perfect cup of tea. And that is what I have before me right now. I love this!
Yongchun Fo Shou (Bergamot) Oolong Superior Grade from Life in Teacup
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Life in Teacup
Product Description:
Production Year: 2011
Production Season: Spring
Production Region: Fujian Province, Yongchun County
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This is a very interesting tea for me, one that I was very excited to try. Oolong tea is one of my favorite tea types, and if you’ve read very many of my tea reviews or tasting notes, you’re probably also aware of my love for bergamot.
I brewed this as I usually would an Oolong – in my gaiwan using short steeps. I started with 45 seconds, and increased each subsequent infusion by 15 seconds. I then combine two infusions into one tea cup.
The first two infusions, I found myself searching earnestly for the bergamot flavor. I could taste the flavor of the Oolong, certainly, with a lovely vegetative flavor and hints of floral. It is a remarkably smooth Oolong with very little astringency. It is a delicious Oolong, and there are hints of a citrus tone in the distance, but, it is not a strong, palpable flavor.
By the third and fourth infusions, the bergamot was more apparent. Still not a strong presence, but certainly more evident than in the first two infusions. The flavor was tangy and citrus-y but also pleasantly floral. The Oolong had become even smoother than the first cup, with much of its vegetative taste melding with the other flavors of the tea to create a very harmonious, seamless taste.
With the fifth and sixth infusions, the bergamot was stronger than the second cup, but, this is still not an Earl Grey kind of bergamot where the flavor is very obvious. It is more like the essence of the bergamot fruit, and I appreciate that it offers a different perspective on the bergamot. This cup seems to focus more on the bergamot and less on the Oolong, with the soft mouthfeel being the most distinct characteristic from the Oolong.
A very lovely tea experience … from start to finish. I like that it surprised and challenged me as a tea taster, and that it gave me a different look at a fruit that I had become very familiar with … but, now I realize it was in a very limited way. This has opened my mind and eyes to the beauty of bergamot.
Premium Sencha Fuji Green Tea from Shizuoka Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Shizuoka Tea
Product Description:
Premium Sencha tea bags have the same outstanding taste as the loose leaf teas. The pyramid-shape fine-mesh teabag makes brewing quick and easy. Each tea bag is individually packaged in a foil wrapper to insure freshness.
Taster’s Review:
This is a delicious Sencha tea. The flavor is light yet rich.
This Japanese Sencha has a clean, vegetative taste – not quite grassy, but more like steamed vegetables. Broccoli! As the sip approaches the finish, a slight grassy tone presents itself, although it isn’t a bitter grassy taste. The aftertaste is sweet with notes of butter that deliciously coats the palate.
The overall flavor is sweet with a slight creaminess from the buttery note, and a fresh, leafy kind of taste that is both vegetable and grass. I like this Sencha very much, while it does have a lot of flavor to the cup, it has an enchanting lightness to it. It isn’t overpowering, making it the perfect cup for mealtime… or any time!