ETS Green Tea Samples Arrived

We just got our latest batch of green tea samples from The English Tea Store. Actually, the package sat on our front stoop for several days, thanks to the typical inefficiency of FedEx. They just tossed it on the stoop and took off. In all fairness, they are under pretty stringent timelines for making deliveries.

The good news is that the pouches in which the teas come are air- and watertight, so the teas are fine. I’ll be steeping them up for my humans tea-tasting pleasure as part of a special Springtime Green Tea Tasting Extravaganza. Should be a total tea-tootin’ event. Don’t miss it!
Also, check out the fabulous green tea taste experiment on the Association of Tea Bloggers website.

More Teas and Herbals to Sample

My humans are SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO good to me. They just bought some Zhena Gypsy Sencha (Japanese Green) Tea. At the same time, a bunch of samples of Kalahari Herbals (yeah, they call ’em “teas” but that’s a misnomer, since they don’t contain any Camellia Sinensis leaves) arrived finally. They got a little behind in their shipments. No problem. I’ll be including these as part of the Springtime Herbals Extravaganza. Lots of tea and herbal tasting adventures ahead. I’ll be steeping and my humans will be tasting. What a team!

Zhena Gypsy Sencha (Japanese Green) Tea

Kalahari Herbals

Review: The English Tea Store’s White Eagle Long Life Tea

© 2010 A.C. Cargill photos and text – All rights reserved.
No copying, posting on other sites, or other uses allowed without written permission of the copyright holder.

The Subject: White Eagle Long Life Tea from The English Tea Store.


Rating:

Water temperature: 180° F

Steeping time: 3 minutes (Don’t oversteep!)

Tea type: White
Scents, flavorings, etc.: N/A
Aroma, dry: Freshly harvested alfalfa
Aroma in the cup, plain: Pale alfalfa
Taste, plain: Full feeling in mouth, buttery (similar to lemongrass herbal), dried alfalfa, peachy/apricotty
Aroma in the cup, enhanced: N/A
Taste, enhanced: N/A

2nd Infusion: Same color, slightly more delicate taste

Comments:

Someone said he didn’t like this tea but, ever true to my goal of objective assessments, I set that opinion aside as hubby and I embarked on another tea tasting adventure (with the help of the Little Yellow Teapot).

Since this is a white tea, we treated it with kid gloves, that is, water heated to no more than 180° F, and a steeping time of no more than 3 minutes. The leaf pieces are large and unfolded nicely floating loose in the teapot.

The tea “liquor” is pale yellow but full of flavors. Since white tea is made from immature leaves of the Camellia Sinensis plant, I was a bit surprised at the complexity of the tastes that greeted us. However, some of them are probably the result of how the leaves were processed.

What greeted our noses first and foremost was the smell of freshly harvested alfalfa. Having lived in rural areas, this was a fragrance well-known to us both. The taste goes beyond that, though. There is a fullness and buttery quality similar to a lemongrass we tried awhile ago. Hubby even detected a bit of fruitiness that is like apricots or peaches (he says it’s hard to tell which). There is also some astringency and tanginess, but no bitterness. The second infusion was about the same in taste with a slightly lighter “liquor.

Hubby thinks this tea would a great one to have with steak or lamb. Might have something to do with alfalfa being a common feed for cattle and sheep.

Definitely an occasional tea. You could try it chilled, but I’m not sure that the delicate yet complex flavors would come through cold.

We couldn’t go to 5 teapots on this one, since there were quite a few stem pieces, probably contributing to the “tang”.

Disclaimer: This tea was provided by the company named. However, the rating of the tea and any opinions concerning it are always strictly objective.

Our Thanks to Thunderbolt Tea

© 2010 A.C. Cargill photos and text – All rights reserved.
No copying, posting on other sites, or other uses allowed without written permission of the copyright holder.

We were extremely pleased with the teas from Thunderbolt Tea, each being a distinct taste experience yet retaining that overall quality which distinguishes teas from Darjeeling, India, from Assams, Chinese, Japanese, Ceylonian, etc.

We want to thank Benoy for sending them. Our best wishes to him and everyone there for a successful tea future.

Review: Thunderbolt Tea’s 7 Darjeeling Teas - #7

© 2010 A.C. Cargill photos and text – All rights reserved.
No copying, posting on other sites, or other uses allowed without written permission of the copyright holder.

The Subject: Arya Clonal Exclusive ’09 — Autumn Flush from Thunderbolt Tea.

Rating:

Water temperature: 200° F

Steeping time: 3 minutes

Aroma, dry: Planty, a hint of sweetness akin to cocoa

Aroma in the cup, plain: Planty, slightly cocoa-ish, hint of smokiness

Color in the cup, plain: Reddish amber

Taste, plain: Planty, slightly cocoa-ish, hint of smokiness, mild, no bitterness

Comments:
This tea, like #6, is an “Autumn Flush” (the last harvest before the tea plants go dormant). The brew surprised us with a hint of smokiness that was not presaged by the aroma of the dry tea. However, the cocoa scent did carry through to the cup and lent a natural sweetness to an otherwise planty tea. Like the other six samples, this tea is unique in flavor yet very definitely a tea from Darjeeling, India. You could get by with adding a bit of milk and sweetener to this one, but try it straight first. You will probably find that they’re not needed.

Disclaimer: This tea was provided by the company named. However, the rating of the tea and any opinions concerning it are always strictly objective.

Review: Thunderbolt Tea’s 7 Darjeeling Teas - #6

© 2010 A.C. Cargill photos and text – All rights reserved.
No copying, posting on other sites, or other uses allowed without written permission of the copyright holder. The Subject: Arya FTGFOP1 ’09 — Autumn Flush from Thunderbolt Tea.

Rating:

Water temperature: 200° F

Steeping time: 3 minutes

Aroma, dry: Grassy, fragrant

Aroma in the cup, plain: Grassy, woodsy

Color in the cup, plain: Orange/Amber

Taste, plain: Grassy, woodsy, no bitterness

Comments:
We saved the two Autumn Flush teas for last. “Flush” refers to the harvest. There is a growing season to tea plants (Camellia Sinensis). They start growing in the Spring and go dormant in Winter. The Spring harvest is the “First Flush” and is usually the least complex tasting tea. “Second Flush” is the Summer harvest and has fairly complex flavors. Some tea growers have a Monsoon harvest. The final harvest is the “Autumn Flush.” This and the other tea (#7) had true characteristics of this harvest. This tea was very grassy, both dry and when steeped. There was no trace of bitterness, but a hint of woodsy quality lingered in the mouth after swallowing.

Disclaimer: This tea was provided by the company named. However, the rating of the tea and any opinions concerning it are always strictly objective.

Review: Thunderbolt Tea’s 7 Darjeeling Teas - #5

The Subject: Giddapahar Musk ’09 — 2nd Flush from Thunderbolt Tea.

Rating:

Water temperature: 212° F

Steeping time: 5 minutes

Aroma, dry: Earthy, rich, planty, hint of natural sweetness

Aroma in the cup, plain: Floral, planty, earthy

Color in the cup, plain: Dark reddish brown

Taste, plain: Rich, full tea taste; hint of floral notes; slight edge (tang, sharpness)

Comments:
Another distinct tasting tea that still has the overall characteristics of a tea from Darjeeling, India. This and the other Darjeelings that steep up to a darker color can stand up well to a little milk and sweetener if you want to give it a try. However, like the other samples, this tea tastes very pleasing on its own. Again, very different from those other sample teas.

Disclaimer: This tea was provided by the company named. However, the rating of the tea and any opinions concerning it are always strictly objective.

Review: Thunderbolt Tea’s 7 Darjeeling Teas - #4

© 2010 A.C. Cargill photos and text – All rights reserved.
No copying, posting on other sites, or other uses allowed without written permission of the copyright holder. The Subject: Risheehat Clonal Flowery ’09 — 2nd Flush from Thunderbolt Tea.

Rating:

Water temperature: 180° F

Steeping time: 3 minutes

Aroma, dry: Sweet, earthy, planty, nice tea smell, very mild, fragrant

Aroma in the cup, plain: Sweet, earthy, planty

Color in the cup, plain: Medium reddish brown

Taste, plain: Mild, smooth, “champagne-like” taste, not bitter, no floral, very pleasant, “woodsy,” “poof” of herbalness (sage) after swallowing

Comments:
The leaf pieces are smaller, so we went with a short steeping time. Very different from the other Darjeelings yet having a distinctive Darjeeling taste. Often called the “champagne of teas,” Darjeelings have a natural sweetness, yet a planty and earthy character. This tea is not exception to that.

Disclaimer: This tea was provided by the company named. However, the rating of the tea and any opinions concerning it are always strictly objective.

Review: Thunderbolt Tea’s 7 Darjeeling Teas - #3

© 2010 A.C. Cargill photos and text – All rights reserved.
No copying, posting on other sites, or other uses allowed without written permission of the copyright holder.

The Subject: Goomtee FTGFOP1 (Muscatel Valley) ’09 — 2nd Flush from Thunderbolt Tea.

Rating:

Water temperature: 212° F

Steeping time: 5 minutes

Aroma, dry: Mild, planty, fruity, slight natural sweetness

Aroma in the cup, plain: Champagne-ish, floral, earthy

Color in the cup, plain: Reddish brown

Taste, plain: Rich, full, true “champagne-like” taste, almost a floral character, earthiness that lingers

Comments:
As stated before, no steeping guide was provided with the tea samples. We guessed at steeping for 5 minutes, but we’re now thinking that 3 minutes or possibly 4 minutes would be better. Even though we are sure we oversteeped it, this tea was extremely pleasing and a tea that can stand tall and proud with the other Darjeeling samples.

Disclaimer: This tea was provided by the company named. However, the rating of the tea and any opinions concerning it are always strictly objective.

Review: Thunderbolt Tea’s 7 Darjeeling Teas - #2

© 2010 A.C. Cargill photos and text – All rights reserved.
No copying, posting on other sites, or other uses allowed without written permission of the copyright holder.

The Subject: Arya Emerald ’09 — 2nd Flush from Thunderbolt Tea.

Rating:

Water temperature: 180° F

Steeping time: 3 minutes

Aroma, dry: Planty, fresh, very nice green tea smell

Aroma in the cup, plain: Cooked greens (very, very mild), fresh

Color in the cup, plain: Yellowish green

Taste, plain: Like cooked greens (very, very mild), almost salty, no bitterness, no aftertaste, edgy, planty

Comments:
A full leaf beauty. The Little Yellow Teapot was thrilled at trying such a fine tea. The flavor in the cup was true to the aroma of the dry tea. No surprises for our tastebuds. If you want a mild, delicious green tea, this is it. We needed nothing added to the taste, not even a little sweetener. Very distinctive taste from the other samples but still clearly a tea from Darjeeling, India.

Disclaimer: This tea was provided by the company named. However, the rating of the tea and any opinions concerning it are always strictly objective.

Review: Thunderbolt Tea’s 7 Darjeeling Teas - #1

© 2010 A.C. Cargill photos and text – All rights reserved.
No copying, posting on other sites, or other uses allowed without written permission of the copyright holder.

The Subject: Goomtee Yellow ’09 — 2nd Flush from Thunderbolt Tea.

Rating:

Water temperature: 200° F

Steeping time: 3 minutes

Aroma, dry: Sweet, sort of like cocoa yet planty

Aroma in the cup, plain: Planty, hint of smokiness, hint of natural sweetness

Color in the cup, plain: Light amber

Taste, plain: Smooth, no bitterness, slight natural sweetness, feels full in the mouth, relaxing, soothing, pleasant, hint of smokiness

Comments:
The aroma in the foil pouch is a pleasant surprise, with a definite note of cocoa-ish sweetness. In the cup, this cocoa aroma does not carry through to the taste, but is replaced by a general planty sweetness. An excellent tea on its own and certainly a proud member of this tea group.

Disclaimer: This tea was provided by the company named. However, the rating of the tea and any opinions concerning it are always strictly objective.

Reviewing 7 Samples of Thunderbolt Tea’s Darjeelings

© 2010 A.C. Cargill photos and text – All rights reserved.

No copying, posting on other sites, or other uses allowed without written permission of the copyright holder.

A little over a month ago, the samples from Thunderbolt Tea, in the province of Darjeeling in India, finally arrived after a couple of times of the package getting returned to the sender. Unfortunately, my humans had just gotten a work assignment, leaving them little time to give these samples the attention they deserved. The assignment ended, so they took the opportunity (with a bit of prodding from me) to get the tea test done finally.

They tried all teas at the same time, steeping and tasting each on its own but also comparing each against the other. Each tea was a treat in itself, yet definitely a Darjeeling.

The 7 samples in photo above:

1. Goomtee Yellow ’09 — 2nd Flush
2. Arya Emerald ’09 — 2nd Flush
3. Goomtee FTGFOP1 (Muscatel Valley) ’09 — 2nd Flush
4. Risheehat Clonal Flowery ’09 — 2nd Flush
5. Giddapahar Musk ’09 — 2nd Flush
6. Arya FTGFOP1 ’09 — Autumn Flush
7. Arya Clonal Exclusive ’09 — Autumn Flush

They’re all loose leaf (no teabags here!) in wonderful foil pouches that keep out the three tea demons: moisture, light, and air.

The reviews will be posted one at a time (to keep the posts short). Don’t miss ’em!

Note: Water temperatures and steeping times for each tea were approximated. Unlike other tea vendors such as Adagio and Chicago Tea Garden, no steeping guide was supplied. We took our best educated guess. Also, as you can guess, this process took awhile. While we tried each tea hot after steeping, we left some in the cup for the photos. By the time all photos were taken, the first teas had cooled. We were able to reheat them gently in the microwave (about 20 seconds and try, another 20 seconds and try, until they were hot enough). We’re happy to say that the taste qualities were only slightly diminished from the reheating.

Disclaimer: These teas were provided by the company named. However, the rating of the teas and any opinions concerning them are always strictly objective.

New Teas to Try from The English Tea Store

My humans and I have had the good fortune to try a number of tea samples provided by various tea companies. We have also purchased teas that sound interesting and that we just need to try. A new trio arrived recently from The English Tea Store:

• The English Tea Store’s Nine Bend Black Dragon
• The English Tea Store’s Holiday Spice
• Golden Moon Tea’s Madagascar Vanilla

Together, my humans and I will try these teas and report our findings. Don’t want to let down our fans, nor our tastebuds.

Disclaimer: These teas were purchased by us from the company named. Regardless, the rating of the tea and any opinions concerning it are always strictly objective.

Woohoo! More samples from The English Tea Store

There was a tingle in the air. Yes, indeed, I could feel that today would be special. Something good was definitely coming my way. So, I sent my humans off to the Post Office to check our box. Sure enough, the samples from The English Tea Store had arrived. Woohoo! Toot, toot! Another round of great tea tastings will be starting soon.

Me surrounded by a bevy of tea samples. What could be more exciting? Actually trying them, of course! Hey, humans of mine, let’s get going!

Disclaimer: This tea was provided by the company named. However, the rating of the tea and any opinions concerning it are always strictly objective.

There's a new online tea store in town: Chicago Tea Garden

For those of you who want to try some truly fine teas, here is a tea store site for you. Owners Tony Gebely and Erin Murphy worked feverishly to get it all ready. The site is finally online and ready to provide for your tea experience.

I got to try two of these teas:

• Competition Grade Tie Guan Yin
• Golden Bi Luo

Without a doubt, these are excellent teas. More reviews on Steepster, 39 Steeps, and Tea Finely Brewed.

Review: Chicago Tea Garden’s Golden Bi Luo Black Tea

The Subject: Golden Bi Luo Black Tea from Chicago Tea Garden. Note: the site is due to launch in late February or early March. The owners are still working on the site and hope to have it up by the end of the first week of March.

Another tea so good that I tried to get my humans to put up an extra teapot or two.

Rating:

Water temperature: 212° F
Steeping time: 1 minute per infusion (according to info card that came with tea)

Tea type: Black (from Yunnan Province, China)
Scents, flavorings, etc.: N/A
Aroma, dry: Light, planty, hint of sweetness, delicate, slightly “floral” (in a natural way, not added in)
Aroma in the cup, plain: Light, planty, hint of sweetness
Taste, plain: Varies per infusion (see comments)
Aroma in the cup, enhanced: N/A
Taste, enhanced: N/A

2nd Infusion: Recommended. Can go to 4 or 5, even. More than that is questionable (see comments).

Comments:
This tea came with a great info card with details on the tea from David Lee Hoffman (according to the card, someone very well acquainted with Chinese tea). One thing that was lacking was how much tea to use per 8 ounces of water. We took a guess and used a regular table-style (as opposed to measuring-style) teaspoon.

To give this tea a true tea tasting try, we followed Hoffman’s recommendation to steep 8 times at 1 minute each. The steeping guide provided by Chicago Tea Garden (a new tea venture from Tony Gebely and Erin Murphy) recommends four steepings of 1 minute for the first 2 and 1.5 minutes for the last 2. Our experiment shows that the steeping guide would be the thing to follow.

STEEPING 1:
Hubby and I found the flavor mild, with a hint of smokiness and a definite vanilla note. No bitterness, no unpleasant aftertaste. Also, this is not a tea that needs any enhancing (lemon, honey, milk, sweetener, etc.). Aroma in the cup was an accurate presage to the taste experience.

STEEPING 2:
We found this infusion to be about the same as the first one. The aroma and flavor were still going strong.

STEEPING 3:
Infusion started to weaken here, with the vanilla flavor being the first to disappear. Still a smooth tea, no bitterness or astringency. Mild flavor and aftertaste. Hubby liked it, but I was starting to find it too weak and thinking I should have started with more dry tea in the teapot.

STEEPING 4:
Still mild and no bitterness. Good flavor but definitely weakening.

STEEPING 5 thru 8:
Progressively weaker but still flavorful, with no bitterness.

This tea stays mild and never gets bitter, even after 8 steepings. I think that we should have started the steeping with a teaspoon and a half of dry tea. Nevertheless, the tea experience was very satisfying. This is definitely a tea that’s up to multiple infusions, a great way to get the most out of your tea dollars.

Notes from the Little Yellow Teapot About This Tea Tasting —

Teacups on Parade: I kept watch over the “troops” as my humans handled the whole infusion process. They were all lined up and waiting for each infusion to be poured. We used a teaspoon to sip them but inhaled the aroma straight from the cup.
 

Multiple Infusion Results: The results were close to what was on the info card that came with the tea. I think my humans were pretty successful here. And, of course, I did my part.

Tea Tin, Dry Tea, and Tea Leaves After Steeping:

The sign of a great tea is when the leaves look great before and after steeping. That was sure the case here. I made my humans take photos. One thing to note about the amount of tea in that tall tea tin: It’s only about a third full. These tins come in one-size-fits-all, so don’t worry, you’re getting what you pay for based on the weight of the dry tea.

Disclaimer: This tea was provided by the company named. However, the rating of the tea and any opinions concerning it are always strictly objective.