What Oolong Are You Drinking

Semi-oxidized tea
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TeaGrove
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Thu Mar 24, 2022 11:17 am

Baisao wrote:
Wed Mar 23, 2022 7:16 pm
The Huan Pian has a lot of stems is it especially sweet tasting? My experience has been that very stem-y teas are sweeter.
Yes, it is quite sweet and even sweetens. I find it just the right balance of sweet and savoury and, while not complex, it offers some lovely seaweed/plum/earthy aromas whilst it deepens into itself.

Twiggy teas may well be sweeter. I've got quite a few types to try, so I'll keep that in mind :)



For comparison to the tea from yunnancraft:

https://www.nannuoshan.org/products/dan ... 6494886056

It looks like they will be opening a US site this August so maybe they'll be more well known.
Andrew S
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Fri Mar 25, 2022 5:16 pm

Daxue Jiadao's 2017 full roast zhengyan tieluohan for breakfast.

I've tried brewing it a few different ways (a bit lighter, a bit stronger, very strong...), and I think that it rewards being pushed a little bit harder than my 'usual' method for yancha.

It also has a fairly potent feeling for me, a relaxing kind of pressure that feels forceful without being too powerful.

I've read somewhere that tieluohan often conveys a stronger feeling than some other kinds of yancha. I have no idea how accurate that kind of assertion is, although it does seem to accord generally with my limited experience (which is probably why tieluohan s my favourite kind of yancha so far).

Perhaps others around here have more experience in that area.

Andrew
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LeoFox
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Sat Mar 26, 2022 11:09 am

@Ethan Kurland's father's love

Andrew S
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Sun Mar 27, 2022 7:17 pm

A gold medal competition shui xian from Yi Yan Ji He yancha factory (壹岩即合岩茶厂), part of the EoT sample pack of gold medal competition teas.

It is very fruity, smooth, with a 'bright' mouthfeel, a nice lingering aftertaste. and a pleasant feeling that crept up on me. The shui xian character comes across more in the finish and the aftertaste than in the upfront flavour.

It is not nearly as heavily-roasted as what I'd normally drink, but it is very enjoyable within its style (which perhaps might be the style that this competition aims for).

It reminds me of something that Bok said around here, which is that the level of roast is only one factor in yancha, and it is important to bear in mind other things, such as the level of oxidation (or the style of the roast). When I saw the dry leaves, I was a little bit hesitant and feared that it might be a bit too 'green' for my tastes, but it has none of those green characters that I dislike in yancha. It is hard to discern such things from across the internet, though (and it's hard enough discerning roast and oxidation from dry leaves, or even from other people's descriptions).

Something I'm curious about, though, is whether these competitions are given much weight by yancha drinkers in Asia, or whether they're the sort of thing where everybody gets a medal in some category sooner or later. Wine competitions come to mind - usually, the more medals on a bottle, the more nervous a consumer should get...

Andrew
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Bok
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Sun Mar 27, 2022 7:38 pm

@Andrew S I was gonna say that: gold medal in what competition? Yancha is so excruciatingly expensive already in its top tier, I find it hard to believe it would be available at swallowable prices for the Western market. So in all likelihood it’s a kind of smaller, not really important competition.
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Bok
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Sun Mar 27, 2022 7:40 pm

Coincidentally, I had the silver medal just last night… while a very good tea, I wouldn’t say it’s even close to the best Yancha I’ve had. So similar to the Zhuni thread: pay no mind to special stories, let the tea speak not the vendor.
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Baisao
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Sun Mar 27, 2022 8:02 pm

Bok wrote:
Sun Mar 27, 2022 7:40 pm
Coincidentally, I had the silver medal just last night… while a very good tea, I wouldn’t say it’s even close to the best Yancha I’ve had. So similar to the Zhuni thread: pay no mind to special stories, let the tea speak not the vendor.
Was this a DHP?
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Bok
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Sun Mar 27, 2022 8:11 pm

Baisao wrote:
Sun Mar 27, 2022 8:02 pm
Bok wrote:
Sun Mar 27, 2022 7:40 pm
Coincidentally, I had the silver medal just last night… while a very good tea, I wouldn’t say it’s even close to the best Yancha I’ve had. So similar to the Zhuni thread: pay no mind to special stories, let the tea speak not the vendor.
Was this a DHP?
Shuixian (not via EoT)
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Baisao
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Sun Mar 27, 2022 8:45 pm

Bok wrote:
Sun Mar 27, 2022 8:11 pm
Baisao wrote:
Sun Mar 27, 2022 8:02 pm
Bok wrote:
Sun Mar 27, 2022 7:40 pm
Coincidentally, I had the silver medal just last night… while a very good tea, I wouldn’t say it’s even close to the best Yancha I’ve had. So similar to the Zhuni thread: pay no mind to special stories, let the tea speak not the vendor.
Was this a DHP?
Shuixian (not via EoT)
Just a coincidence then. I’m drinking a DHP from 2021 that “placed 2nd” but it doesn’t come from EoT. It is a gift so I don’t know more other than it is unobtainable.
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Baisao
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Sun Mar 27, 2022 9:22 pm

Baisao wrote:
Sun Mar 27, 2022 8:45 pm
Bok wrote:
Sun Mar 27, 2022 8:11 pm
Baisao wrote:
Sun Mar 27, 2022 8:02 pm


Was this a DHP?
Shuixian (not via EoT)
Just a coincidence then. I’m drinking a DHP from 2021 that “placed 2nd” but it doesn’t come from EoT. It is a gift so I don’t know more other than it is unobtainable.
Starts off with vanilla and lilacs with a green twig flavor but then by the 3rd steep it is a bushel of ripe pears with intense minerality. I didn’t understand what minerality was before but boy to I know now!
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teatray
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Sun Mar 27, 2022 10:14 pm

From Tea-Masters:
  • 2021 Spring Qingxin Oolong Da Yu Ling 104K
  • 2021 Spring Jade Oolong from Zhushan
Discovering Taiwanese oolongs this year. Journey began with purchase at Sazen (intriguing Dong Ding with a spiciness I now realize may have been a feature of the non-traditional cultivar, Ying Xiang). Then, exploring a good number of 25g-50g packs from two vendors (TTC from TW, Klasek from CZ). Without knowledge of these teas, nor any experience selecting for my tastes, I shouldn't judge too much. There were definitely some enjoyable ones there (more so from Klasek), but, basically, it all came down to relaxing afternoon teas exploring the "new thing", that I would never swap for my morning sencha. Then came the order from Stephane and, out of the 5 ordered*, these two stood out and completely changed my perception. Curiously, one is the most expensive, the other the cheapest, not only among the Tea-Masters order but of my entire TW tea exploring. Both standard Qing Xin Oolong cultivar. (Correction: Jade is Jade cultivar, duh, aka Cui Yu/Tsui Yu.)

The two 25g packs were gone very fast. It was my morning tea, afternoon tea, feeling-good tea, comfort tea, etc. Both products did the trick, and no other tea would do (incl. another Da Yu Ling that may have been fake though). As different as these were in their flowery scents, they shared a certain nut/seed note that hit right at some spot in my brain and made me crave them more than any other tea, and in quite a different way. I would say I enjoyed them equally, though the Da Yu Ling definitely has a nobler bouquet that stays this way throughout numerous steeps, whereas the Jade gets off-tastes after 3-4 steeps (though, considering the price difference, that's a non-issue, as you could drink only 1st infusions and still pay less per ml of drink).

I included another bag of the original Dong Ding that started my journey in my last Sazen order. I do not enjoy it as much: spiciness is there but not the fresh, noble aroma, which was actually somewhat similar to Da Yu Ling or Taiping Houkui the first time around. I wonder what part of it is quality variance and what may be just changed tastes/expectations. All I know is I can't wait for Taiwan Post to resume shipping to my destination (my Tea-Masters order had to be sent via courier, but I'd rather spend the extra money on tea).

____
* As a beginner, I'm just getting reference points and finding out what I like, so very happy with 2 out of 5, which included Oriental Beauty and others I found out I'm not a huge fan of, but decided to try from multiple vendors anyway, so that I'm not fooled by a random bad sample.
Andrew S
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Mon Mar 28, 2022 3:52 am

@Baisao: I'll try to remember to share my thoughts after I try the da hong pao from my little EoT samples pack. Perhaps soon...

@Bok: thanks; it sounds like any kind of competition, not limited to the world of tea (and I know that I have said this before, but I am very grateful that the world of tea does not yet have any online 'tea connoisseurs' or 'professional tea tasters', at least so far as I can see).

@teatray: my tea adventure began with Dong Ding and high mountain Taiwanese wulong (plus old puer), so I'm glad that those kinds of teas give you the kind of excitement that I had back then (even for someone who is obviously quite well-acquainted with other kinds of tea already). I drink less and less of those kinds of tea as my consumption of old tea and yancha goes up, but it's always a pleasure to go back to a nice example of them that reminds me of why I got into tea all those years ago.

Andrew
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Baisao
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Mon Mar 28, 2022 9:33 am

@Andrew S, I was told specifically that this did not come from EoT.

I was told it was DHP (a blend in this case), that it placed 2nd in a regional competition (I don’t know which one), and that it is unobtainable now if I wanted more.

It was a generous gift that was shared with me. So a gift of a gift.
Ethan Kurland
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Mon Mar 28, 2022 10:03 am

Baisao wrote:
Sun Mar 27, 2022 9:22 pm
Starts off with vanilla and lilacs with a green twig flavor but then by the 3rd steep it is a bushel of ripe pears with intense minerality. I didn’t understand what minerality was before but boy to I know now!
Too wild a description for me to tasting what you be confident that I could be tasting what you taste. I have smelled lilacs, not eaten them. I don't associate pears w/ minerality. I'm confusing myself writing.

Most recently as a vendor I hesitate to list flavors. I am more attempted to say a tea is very good or the best or write about value for $. (Hesitancy comes from being a vendor. I fear being a huckster. You & others should remain helpful & charming w/ your descriptions. "A bushel of pears" is fun to read. No one says a "peck" of ripe pears. You use the fun words. How many pears are in a bushel!)

I seem to notice minerals lately after they were hardly noticed nor mentioned by me for years. Most recently I have been using water around 92C (down from around 96C) to steep leaves 10 - 30 seconds. This seems to allow many more flavors to be noticed by me. Also, drinking gaoshan from Spring 2021, it seems that some w/ maturity present characteristics now that they did not feature strongly or at all when they were younger. Years back I did not like > a light note of minerals. Now I can enjoy intense minerals. (I stopped selling the DYL that now gives that partly because I want what little I have for myself.I)

I am using a bit more leaf than I did & fortunately getting 1 or 2 more infusions than I was getting.. (I care about economy.) What I write is not really beautiful. For the most part, this is how I think about tea, Baiso. "Vanila and lilac" is nicer to imagine even I don't think I will taste them together drinking tea. Cheers
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Baisao
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Mon Mar 28, 2022 12:15 pm

@Ethan Kurland, I was a bit sloppy when I wrote my description, no doubt chazui. It was an aroma of lilac and ripe pears rather than a flavor. I do eat fresh rose petals and other uncommon edible plants so I may sometime say that something tastes like a particular flower, leaf, or twig but in this case I was merely sloppy in my description.

It’s tricky for a seller to give precise descriptions like this because many people will not taste or smell these things and be disappointed. Some will throw fits for not smelling pear like Veruca Salt over snozzberries.

As Willie Wonka said, “We are the music makers... and we are the dreamers of dreams.”
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