Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: T-Oolong Tea
Tea Description:
Our Taiwan Sun Moon Lake Black tea #18 is organic, handpicked and handcrafted. The tea is produced from Hong-Yui varietal grown in Yu-Chih township in Nantou County near the Sun Moon Lake. The steeped Taiwan Sun Moon Lake Black tea #18 has a characteristic and attractive natural mint flavor, a delightful, complex and pleasant taste without any bitterness and a sweet and mild aftertaste. The Taiwan Sun Moon Lake Black tea is of extremely high quality and is lovely in its rich and smooth taste.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This is so lovely!
This is one of those comforting types of teas – the type you want to drink while its hot, and with which you want to curl up under a big, fluffy blanket and sit in front of a roaring fire in the fireplace. And as I write this, we are experiencing one of our chilly spring days here in the Pacific Northwest, so it is quite a nice cup to enjoy today.
The website description of this tea suggests a minty flavor, and I am tasting that. It isn’t an overwhelming mint note, but it is cool and crisp and very refreshing, offering a nice contrast to the smooth, rich, malty notes of this tea. The cup is sweet, reminiscent of molasses. I notice hints of smoke in the distance, and these slight smoky tones meld beautifully with the molasses notes.
I notice that this tea is currently out of stock on the T-Oolong Tea website, and I do hope that they’ll get it in stock soon, because it’s really quite amazing. This is a tea I’d recommend to everyone. If you like tea – you’ve got to try this! It has such a rich, enjoyable flavor that I think every tea drinker will appreciate it.
China Moon Palace (Chun Mee) from Tea Frog
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Tea Frog
Tea Description:
This popular green tea is also known as Chun Mee, which translates to “Precious Eyebrows”, so named because of the shape of the rolled leaves. After being rolled, the tea is pan fried to halt the oxidization process in the leaf. The flavor of this tea is slightly sweet, with notes of plum, and a fragrant scent. The liquor is a pale yellow, and the tea is produced in the Anhui province of China.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This is a very pleasant Chun Mee.
The flavor is consistent with other Chun Mee teas I’ve tasted. No big surprise there; however, I seem to be noticing more of a fruity tone with this Chun Mee. In other “Precious Eyebrow” green teas, I usually notice the vegetative flavors immediately – and yes, those vegetal notes are here as well – but, the first thing that really stood out for me was a very appealing fruit-like flavor. The description above suggests plum, and I get that … for my palate, I taste a cross between plum and apple, complete with a hint of tart green apple flavor that weaves its way in and out of each sip.
It has an earthiness to it as well, not an extraordinarily heavy earthy tone, but a light, musky kind of earthiness that provides a compelling contrast to the sweet fruit tones. It’s one of those teas that keeps me sipping for the interesting layers of flavors it presents.
And as I continue to sip, I notice the thick, smooth texture of the tea. It is a mouthfeel that is similar to a broth, and it is very satisfying. I am finding that not only is the flavor soothing but this texture is incredibly comforting to sip as it is cold and rainy outside.
Of course, this would also make a very pleasing iced tea – I’d recommend serving it with a thin slice of your favorite citrus fruit! If you enjoy a good Chun Mee, I’d recommend visiting the Tea Frog website and trying this one!
Moon Swirl White Tips from Imperial Tea Garden
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Imperial Tea Garden
Product Description:
At 16.65% by dry weight, moon swirl green tea is one of the highest polyphenol antioxidant teas rated by independent lab tests. The quality of this hand made luxury green tea is evident from the fuzzy white tips that slowly unfurl with each steep. Moon Swirl White Tip is grown at nearly 5000 feet above sea level in the mountains of the Hunan Province. The early spring growth is hand plucked from only the top buds and skillfully rolled by hand. When infused, the grass, wheat, and mild sweetness are well balanced with assertive astringency. Due to these conditions, only a few thousand kilos are manufactured per year.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
This tea is incredible. Truly enchanting; this tea seems to draw me in deeper with each sip, revealing more of itself to me as I sip it.
The first couple of sips were remarkably sweet and smooth. By mid-cup, a dry, cleansing astringency develops, which prepares the palate for the next sip. The flavor is of sweet grass and hints of hay, reminding me of the air in the hay fields of the small town where I grew up. On the days when the hay would be harvested and bailed, you could actually taste the hay in the air.
But, this tea has a lightness to it too, which makes the aforementioned comparison to the air quite apropos; it has a clean, pure kind of taste to it that reminds me quite a bit of a white tea.
Overall, I’m finding this tea to taste incredibly fresh and delicious. No bitterness to speak of, although if you wish to keep the astringency to a minimum, steep at a lower temperature. I don’t find the astringency bothersome, in fact, I like the way it refreshes the palate. It has a natural sweetness to it, this is one that doesn’t need sweetening as the addition may overwhelm the delicate balance of flavors here.
An excellent green tea, not too vegetative a flavor, but enough to remind you of what you’re drinking, and a very memorable sweetness. Very nice.