Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Green
Where to Buy: Rington’s Premium English Teas
Tea Description:
Our modern version of green tea. The unfermented tea leaves are processed gently, encouraging the mellow tea flavours to come through to give a smoother flavour with no harshness. Ideal with or without milk!
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I had my reservations about this Everyday Green Tea from Rington’s Premium English Teas. I think that by now, I’ve shown that I’m a little less than enthusiastic when it comes to bagged tea. That said, I do occasionally find not only what I’d deem ‘acceptable’ bagged tea but what I might even call tasty!
This is one such bagged tea. Sure, I’d be happier if this were a loose leaf tea. But, for a bagged tea, this is pleasant. It’s tasty.
To brew it, I heated my kettle of freshly filtered water to 175°F and put one tea bag into a mug. Then I added the heated water and let it steep for 2 minutes.
It tastes like ‘green tea.’ It’s smooth, sweet and buttery. It has vegetal notes that are a little grassy and a little like lima beans.
The tea is not bitter but there is a fair amount of astringency to this – much more so than I’m used to experiencing with a green tea. It starts out rather subtle and it develops and now that I’m halfway through the cup I’m finding this to have a dry, astringent finish.
Overall, this is alright. It isn’t something I’m likely to stock in my pantry but it’s not something I’d refuse if I were offered it, either.
Organic Premium Keemun Maofeng Black Tea from M&K’s Tea Company
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: M&K’s Tea Company on Etsy
Tea Description:
Like an ancient Chinese secret, this tea is an ancient Chinese secret. More or less. Different from black teas of India or Sri Lanka, Qimen (or the anglicized Keemun), features a hint of orchid fragrance and lingering fruity notes. Balanced and complex, Chinese Qimen tea is an ancient Chinese secret you should discover.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Mmm! This is a really good Keemun!
As promised in the above description, it does have a really good balance of characteristics. I taste notes of flower and fruit as well as a subtle smoky note in the distance. It’s really quite enjoyable the way the flavors come together in my cup.
The dry leaf is beautiful! I don’t think that the above picture really does these beautiful, long, slender, wiry, glossy black leaves justice. I can see by the appearance of the dry leaf that these are of superior quality.
To brew them, I grabbed my Kati Tumbler, although I argued with myself for some time as to why I wouldn’t use my gaiwan to brew these. Ultimately, it was a decision that came down to the skin on my fingertips: When I steep teas at such a high temperature as is best for a black tea such as this, my gaiwan gets really hot to the touch – even though I have the little “fingertip handles” on my easy gaiwan, those get really hot when I steep with boiling water and I wasn’t in the mood for scorched fingers.
So, I grabbed my Kati Tumbler and by the looks of the sampler, there were just enough leaves in the sampler for my 12 ounce tumbler. I poured the leaves into the basket and added 12 ounces of boiling water and let the tea steep for 3 minutes.
And this is a marvelous cup of tea!
The sip starts out with notes of sweet and savory. The sweetness is fruity and slightly honey-esque. The savory is slightly smoky. By mid-sip, the smokiness emerges a little more. The fruity notes remind me of a combination of plum with a hint of grape.
I find myself trying to determine if it’s grape that I taste, or raisin? It’s almost like it’s somewhere in between. Like eating a grape that’s only been partially dried to the raisin stage. It offers that sweet side of grape, but also a savory, almost black currant, wine-like flavor of grape. It’s really quite enjoyable.
The plum with the smoky note is quite intriguing – a smoked plum! Yum!
Just after mid-sip, I pick up on floral notes: orchid! The orchid becomes more distinct as I continue to sip. Now that I’m more than halfway through my cup, I am really tasting the distinct notes of orchid. There are still hints of smoke that linger into the aftertaste, and I like the way the floral notes mingle with those wisps of smoke.
I keep going back to the “smoky” notes and I don’t want to mislead anyone into thinking that this is a strong, smoky tea. This isn’t like a Lapsang. The smoke is subtle throughout. But it’s the way the hints of smoke dance in and out of the sip that I am marveling over. I like this level of smoke – light notes of smoke that seem to charm their way into each sip.
This tea has a really satisfyingly round flavor. Balanced, yes. The fruit balances nicely with the floral notes and the smoky notes mingle throughout the sip, keeping the palate interested. A really nice Keemun, and I love that it’s organic!
Taiwan Sun Moon Lake Formosa Black Tea (Premium Grade) from Cameron Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Black
Where to Buy: Cameron Tea
Tea Description:
Region: Sun Moon Lake, Taiwan
Type: Black Tea
Oxidation level: Fully oxidised
Taste: Strong and refreshing flavour.
Terroir: Sun Moon Lake is located at altitude of 700m, surrounded with mountains and lakes with remarkable environment and typical climate for growing black teas. Heavy moist and stable yearly average temperature make the tea trees grow thick and rich tea leaves which produce carmine and perfectly clear liquor.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
I know I’ve mentioned this more than once, but I LOVE the teas from Cameron Tea. They are the very best that Taiwan has to offer. And this Sun Moon Lake Formosa Black tea is no exception.
You might recall that I previously reviewed the competition grade of this tea back in July. Since it’s been a while that I’ve tried the competition grade, when comparing the two grades, my opinions will be based off what I can recall with the help of that review and my tasting notes.
The leaves look very similar to the competition grade tea: they are long and chocolate-y brown in color. The leaves are whole and have been rolled into slender, curly forms. They slowly unfurl to release their flavor.
Also similar to the competition grade: the dry leaf had very little discernible aroma. Mere hints of earthy tones. The brewed tea has more fragrance, it smells warm and earthy with notes of spice. It’s a sweeter smell, and in the aforementioned review I suggested notes of molasses. I’m getting that with this tea as well.
I used my Breville One Touch to brew this tea. Because the leaves are so large and curly, they’re difficult to measure or scoop out with the bamboo scoop into any type of measurable tool. I don’t weigh my teas and since I don’t utilize a scale, it’s difficult to tell you how much tea I put into the basket of the tea maker, so I’ll just say that I put three pinches of tea into the basket. Then I looked at it and it looked like it should be enough tea. Sorry for my less than precise measuring method but I am very adamant when it comes to tools for my tea. The less tools, the better, in my opinion, because tea is meant to be a simple pleasure and I feel like the more gadgetry used to make the tea – the less simple it becomes.
I brewed this tea at a slightly lower temperature than I would normally steep a black tea. I guess I found myself feeling that this tea needed a little less heat – I was worried that these beautiful leaves might find boiling water to be too hot a bath for them. So I went with 195°F and steeped the tea for 3 minutes.
The result is an absolute delight to sip. Sweet! It’s smooth and there is no astringency. No bitterness. Just smooth, sweet molasses-y goodness. It tastes as though I thinned some molasses rather than brewed some tea! Maybe added a couple of warm, gentle spices to accent the delicious, deep flavor of the sweet molasses with hints of caramel.
Beneath these sweet flavors, there’s a savory “earthy” note that has notes of chocolate and leather. I infused this tea a second time and I found that the second infusion was a little less sweet and I discovered more complexity as a result. I picked up on layers of fruit and as I continued to sip, I started to notice a dry astringency toward the tail. This astringency is quite soft and for those of you who are sensitive to that dry feeling that the astringency delivers, I think you’ll find this tea to be quite acceptable as the astringency is barely there.
It’s a very smooth and delightful tea to drink. This isn’t the kind of black tea I’d want as my first cup of the day because it doesn’t have that “shake me awake” kind of quality that I want in that first cup. Instead, this is the kind of tea that you want to brew when you want to sit and reflect. As I sit here on a chilly afternoon, I realize what an autumnal taste it has – the molasses, the spice … even the stone fruit notes … remind me of the early days of autumn when the weather becomes crisper. When the late summer harvests deliver those delicious stone fruit to enjoy in warm cobblers and the weather is just cool enough that those warm desserts are the perfect comforting thing.
A really delightful tea.
Taiwan AliShan Jin Xuan Oolong Tea (Premium Grade) from Cameron Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Cameron Tea
Tea Description:
AliShan is one the famous oolong tea growing areas in Taiwan. Located at altitude of 1500m, the mountain has a rich soil and ideal climactic conditions. The cool climate and moist from daily mists make the plants to grow very slowly and produce tender, flavourful tea leaves and buds.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Having previously reviewed Cameron’s AliShan Jin Xuan Competition Grade Oolong tea (and absolutely loving every sip of it!) I was very happy to try the Premium Grade of the AliShan Jin Xuan from Cameron.
I wondered how different the two grades would be and since it’s been a little while since I had that tea (back in June), I wasn’t sure that my memory would be as quick to recall all the nuances of the tea. Thank goodness I have my notes to fall back on!
I steeped this the same way I steeped the competition grade (and for the most part, this is how I steep most Oolong teas. There are occasional exceptions, but the exceptions are quite rare!) I used my gaiwan and started out with a 15 second rinse and then started steeping. The first infusion was 45 seconds and I added 15 seconds onto each subsequent infusion. Since this is an AliShan, I used my special AliShan Yi Xing mug which holds four to five infusions. This time, it held five infusions.
So this – my first mug of this tea – is the combination of the first five infusions.
Mmm! This is so lovely!
I’m finding this premium grade to be slightly less creamy than I remember the competition grade tasting and feeling. The mouthfeel is a little lighter here than the competition grade, which was rather creamy and thick. This is still creamy and thick – just not as thick as I seem to recall from the competition grade.
The creaminess doesn’t linger the same way, either. This feels much cleaner and even a little more refreshing than the competition grade. The palate feels cleaner and less coated by the tea when I sip this.
That is not to say that I don’t enjoy that thick, creamy texture – I do! I loved the competition grade! But I’m enjoying this one too and am also enjoying the differences between the two teas.
As the tea cools slightly, I find that the texture and flavor thickens somewhat. It’s still considerably lighter than the competition grade, but if you’re wanting a thicker texture from this tea, just let it cool off for a few minutes longer and you might find that you are getting more texture.
Sweet. Hints of vanilla. Lovely, soft floral notes. A really beautiful tea.
Just as I experienced with the competition grade, I find that the second cup (infusions 6 – 10) is just as lovely as the first cup was. Still sweet and creamy with subtle vanilla tones and floral notes that are emerging a little more in this cup than they were in the first.
As I make my way to mid-cup, some fruit notes develop on my palate. At first, I thought of a fruit that is something between a sweet apple (flavor wise) and a ripe nectarine (texture wise with hints of the flavor). But after I read through my review of the competition grade and I compared the fruit notes to a melon, I would say that comparison would suit these fruit flavors quite well too.
Another truly remarkable tea from Cameron. I’m nearly finished with the set of Cameron teas (I think I have but one more to review!) and I have truly adored each one that I’ve tried. This company is one that all of you tea lovers out there should check out! If you want a top notch tea – this company has got you covered!
Taiwan AliShan High Mountain Oolong Tea (Premium Grade) from Cameron Tea
Tea Information:
Leaf Type: Oolong
Where to Buy: Cameron Tea
Tea Description:
AliShan is one the famous oolong tea growing areas in Taiwan. Located at altitude of 1500m, the mountain has a rich soil and ideal climactic conditions. The cool climate and moist from daily mists make the plants to grow very slowly and produce tender, flavourful tea leaves and buds.
Learn more about this tea here.
Taster’s Review:
Not too long ago, I reviewed the Competition Grade of Cameron Tea’s AliShan High Mountain Oolong Tea. According to the website, one notable difference between the two grades is that the Competition Grade has been lightly roasted. And tasting this Premium Grade AliShan, I can say that the roasting definitely does make a difference in flavor.
That doesn’t mean that this one is better nor does it mean that it’s not as good. I really enjoy both! This tea has less of the roasted, nutty flavors that I discovered in the Competition Grade. But I’m tasting more of a creamy note here as well as a floral tone that melds beautifully with the natural vegetal tones of the green Oolong tea.
As I’ve said many times, AliShan is my very favorite type of Oolong. I love the creaminess of the tea and how that almost vanilla-esque note softens the somewhat sharp flowery tones. I love how the two flavors meet on my palate – sweet and sharp – and how they interact with one another. And I love the soft, silky, lush texture of AliShan. I love AliShan so much that I bought a special mug just for AliShan tea!
And this AliShan is simply magnificient.
The dry leaves look very much like what you might expect from a greener Oolong type tea: they’re tightly wound into pellets and they’re a dark, forest green color. They are very aromatic, smelling of flower and vegetable.
I brew these leaves in my gaiwan using 180°F water and short steeps. The first infusion – the “rinse” cycle as I sometimes call it – lasts for just 15 seconds and I strain off the liquid and discard it. This process is often referred to an ‘awakening’ of the tea leaves and it’s something that I think is crucial to ensuring a properly brewed cup of tea.
Then I infused the leaves again, this time for 45 seconds and I strained the liquid into my special Yi Xing “Ali Shan” mug, and I started infusing the leaves again … and again … and again! I added an extra 15 seconds onto each subsequent brew time, and kept on resteeping until my mug was full (this usually takes 5 steeps).
The combination of the first five infusions (following the rinse cycle) is smooth, sweet, and amazingly good. There is sweetness from the floral tones as well as the aforementioned vanilla-like flavors. There is a lightly savory aspect to the flavor from the very faint vegetal tones, although there is definitely more sweet than savory to this cup. It’s like a blanket of sweetness that envelops the palate. Like liquid candy, except that it’s not cloying.
Love this tea!
And I got 2 mugs full of tea from the same leaves. This is a very high quality AliShan, one of the finest I’ve had the opportunity to taste. I highly recommend it to all you Oolong fans out there … and if you love AliShan the way that I do, then you simply must – I said MUST – try this tea!
Well, what are you waiting for? Put it on your must try list now! Once you try it, you’ll be glad you took my advice!