Why has it taken me so long to review Scarlet Honey Oolong Tea from Dachi Tea? Because it’s one to ponder. Because it’s complex. Because it’s IMPRESSIVE. I could go on and on! This Scarlet Honey Oolong Tea from Dachi Tea is for the BOOKS, folks!
Right away I have to share with you the AROMA experience of this Scarlet Honey Oolong Tea from Dachi Tea! It’s UNREAL! Keep in mind that this is NOT flavored. This is a natural aroma! The dry leaves kept me guessing for a while. It smelled like sour fruit. After minutes of thinking about it I came to the conclusion of sour cherries! Once infused for about 2 or 3 minutes the sour cherry aroma pushed the envelop a bit more and seemed to morph into a sour cherry and lychee combo. The cooler the infused tea got the more wine-like the nose was!
As for the taste of Scarlet Honey Oolong Tea from Dachi Tea it continued to please! It was an incredibly smooth, sweet oolong with slightly sour fruit and honey notes underneath. I’ve now enjoyed this both hot and cold and I don’t know which one I like better! Could Scarlet Honey Oolong Tea from Dachi Tea be one of my FAVORITE straight up oolongs of the year? Perhaps!
Here’s the scoop!
Leaf Type: Oolong Tea
Where to Buy: Dachi Tea Co.
Description:
Naturally bug-bitten and carefully bruised, the high-mountain tea leaves are then deeply oxidized, rolled into scarlet black beads and then slow baked, resulting in a tea with bursting summer fruits sweetness amid woodsy wisps which dance across the tongue. From the first to the final sip, velvety swells of pure honey remain on the upper palate and a cherry and lychee aftertaste lingers, making this tea as captivating as it is complex.Rare in the literal meaning of the word, the batch size of this oolong is limited to the consistency of the weather during the days of picking. All of the leaves must be in a similar state of life and energy as the process starts. To Mr. Yeh, consistency is what gives this tea its tantalizing depth. This is a shining example of the delicacy that can be achieved when tea leaves grown in an alpine climate are combined with thoughtful and patient work. It’s a divine confluence of climate, cultivar and craftsmanship. We couldn’t resist including it in the collection.
Learn even more about this tea and tea company here!
Jungle Fire Assam from Condundrum Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Conundrum Tea
Tea Description:
This Orthodox (whole leaf) Assam tea is a lot different from your typical Assam. The tea leaves are hand-picked and hand-processed. This results in a bold, flavorful, and complex tea. It tastes malty and woody with hints of honey. The brewed tea has a nice sunset orange color and it smells of a subtle campfire.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Ever had a tea that made you appreciate the little moments life? I swear this tea just did that to m
Conundrum Tea is a new tea company to me but I’ve heard rave reviews about them. After trying this tea, I can see why. This tea is like heaven in a cup!
Jungle Fire Assam doesn’t have the same flavor notes and profiles like other Assams I’ve had in the past. This tea has a malty sweetness that you pick up from the very first sniff of the package and keeps on going right until that last drop. The honey like flavor is remarkable and really something memorable. The woodsy flavor is present but more in the background. No astringent factors at all. Just a smoothness that I’m devouring.
I can honestly say this is one of the best Assams I’ve ever had and it will be one I’ll be visiting and wanting again and again.
I think I found my new best friend in a tea!
Mint Chamomile Rooibus from Simple Loose Leaf
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Roiboos
Where to Buy: Simple Loose Leaf
Tea Description:
Our Mint Chamomile tea will put a smile on your face regardless of the day you are having. Brew a cup of this floral, sweet and soothing tea and enjoy a wonderfully fresh finish of this beautiful cup of tea.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Mint and Chamomile seems to be an unusual combination – I think I’ve only ever tried one other similar blend. Based on that experience, I’d say that this surprises me. It sounds a little odd to begin with, for sure, but they’re ingredients that do actually work well together. I used 1 tsp of leaf for my cup, and gave it approximately 5 minutes in boiling water. I made no additions. The dry leaf itself is very herbal-looking – there are whole yellow chamomile flowers, green shreds of peppermint, red rooibos leaves, and a smattering of creamy white chamomile petals. The scent is predominantly minty, with an underlying sweetness from the vanilla flavouring.
The main flavour to taste is, interestingly, the chamomile. It’s sweet and almost thick-tasting, with the characteristic flavour of honey and hay. It’s a flavour I find instantly calming, whatever I’m doing and wherever I am when I taste it. Underlying the chamomile is the sweet creaminess of vanilla. This pushes it almost to the point of too-sweet, and the mid-sip is slightly cloying. Thankfully, though, the mint emerges at the last moment and completely saves the day. It cuts through the sweetness instantly, adding a cooling, refreshing edge that sets this tea back to rights. The combination lingers in the aftertaste, where it unmistakably resembles the flavour of a buttermint. Delicious!
I was expecting to taste more of the rooibos base, given that the liquor is a tell-tale bright red-orange, but I actually can’t pick it out at all amongst the other flavours. I do find rooibos a little woody sometimes, so its absence is no bad thing in my book. I think it’s testament to how well blended this tea is, also, in that the flavours are allowed to shine without interference. I was also expecting the mint to be the main flavour, but I’m pleased that it didn’t take over – the three together are a good pairing, and are balanced enough that they complement rather than compete.
I thoroughly enjoyed this tea, and it’s definitely one I’d consider adding to my cupboard for late evening drinking or just times of stress. It’s a sweet, calming cup with hints of candy – a real winner in my book.
Ancient Forest Black Tea from Art of Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Art of Tea
Tea Description:
A specialty of the southwest province of Yunnan, this unique tea is harvested from ancient trees on the protected land of Jingmai Mangjing’s Blue Mountains. 100% organic, hand picked and sorted, this black tea steeps a rich, earthy infusion with notes of cedar and honey.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
The description of the “creamy texture and notes of amber and honey” this tea purports to provide made me particularly eager to try it. It certainly sounds divine, after all. I was even more interested when I learned that the base tea is Yunnan, as it’s one of my favourite black tea varieties. The dry leaf is relatively small compared to some I’ve tried, with no leaf over 0.5cm and some decidedly smaller. They’re mostly a uniform black-brown, but there are a few golden-flecked leaves as well. I used 1 tsp of leaf for my cup, and gave it 3 minutes in boiling water. The resulting liquor is a medium golden-brown, the scent a touch mineral and a touch spicy, with a deeper woodiness underlying.
I liked this one so much straight off that I hardly realised nearly half of it was gone before I’d even really started consciously thinking about the flavour. The first thing to say is that it really is creamy, and that’s with no additions. It has a very smooth, silky texture and an underlying richness of flavour that really makes “creamy” an appropriate word, even if it’s not quite the same creaminess I’d associate with dairy. It’s the only word for it, nonetheless. The initial flavour is a mild earthiness, a little like wet forest floor only not so pungent as that perhaps suggests. I’m reminded of an aged black or a pu’erh, although the flavour here is milder than either of those typically are. It’s definitely in the same kind of territory, though. I get a woodiness in the mid-sip; resinous and a little cedar like. It pairs really well with the underlying earthiness – it seems like they’re two flavours of a kind. The aftertaste is a touch mineral, in the way of wet rock, and is again in keeping with the damp, earthy, fresh flavours I’ve tasted so far. It’s a tea that really holds together well, and one where all the flavours are complimentary.
I enjoyed this one, and it’s a tea I’d definitely drink again if the opportunity arose. It’s flavourful and fairly unique among the teas I usually drink. Certainly an encouraging experience for my first Art of Tea!
Jungpana Special Spring Darjeeling Chinary Black Tea from TeaBox
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: TeaBox
Tea Description:
With prominent chinary characters, this black tea comes as an opulent offering from Jungpana this spring.
Its dark amber-colored liquor makes for a beautiful sight to behold. Look for sweet notes of honey in its refreshing aroma. Its smooth, full-bodied liquor boasts prominent flavors of citrus and green chili. This tea signs off with fruity accents, particularly those of citrus, that linger on for the good haul. Savor a cup of this medium caffeine spring delicacy at any time in the day.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This Jungpana Special Spring Darjeeling Chinary Black Tea from TeaBox is lovely. This is one of those teas that I was intrigued by the origin of the loose leaf and found that Jungpana is within the hills of the Darjeeling Region so it seems these little leaves were once smack-dab in the middle of everything.
I found out that Jungpana is a small estate nestled in the hills of the Darjeeling region and is known for the muscatel flavor of its teas. Pure china bushes is primarily used, coupled with different manufacturing techniques resulting an the finest example of richness in flavor and bouquet that Darjeeling teas are renowned for. Jungpana is a garden of highest quality in Darjeeling, it enjoys the most unique micro climatic and soil conditions. This location and climate produces a distinct flavor and consequently has been established as the the leading quality estate of Darjeeling.
I appreciate the freshness of this tea. It has a delightful aroma – both before and after infusing. It has a smooth body with unique flavor featuring this high quality loose leaf tea. Eventho this is a black tea base it’s a weaker black tea base but can be enjoyed morning, noon, and night. Be careful with this one, tho, it can get a bit bitter if oversteeped.
Back to the aroma because I think that is what really caught my attention with this one – other than the flavor on the tongue – of course. Pre-infusion the aroma is sweet and toasty but also floral and hints at subtle chili notes. The post infusion adds the warmness of honey to the mix. The best part is the long lingering fruit-floral finish.
This aroma and flavor may be a hard one to pin point as you can see. So I guess that means you will have to try it for yourself to see what I mean!
