Author: Oolong Owl

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Hooty Tea Travels – 2018 Caribbean Princess Cruise

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During December 2018 I went on a Caribbean Cruise.  I love cruising. I find it ultra relaxing being able to sit in the lounge and drink tea while watching the water and the people. The boat does all the travel for me, stopping in new places giving a taste of each spot. Cruise ships have lots of things to do from trivia, movies, pools, spas, shopping, live shows, but also raffles and free stuff (I got so many free necklaces and tote bags). However, my main priority on cruises is not swimming (this owl hates water and beaches) but eating… Continue reading, hoot!

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2018 Mengsong Spring Sheng Puer from Bana Tea Company

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I purchased Bana Tea Company’s 2018 Mengsong Spring Sheng Puer a few months ago. This tea is from 100 year old trees in Mengsong. When I see a Vesper Chan production on Bana Tea’s site, I never hesitate to purchase as they are always reliably excellent teas. Leaf and Steeping Method 2018 Mengsong Spring’s leaf smells lightly floral sweet but also has a savory tang to it. Do we have another sweet and sour sheng? I did gongfu style tea brewing, using 1 gram of leaf per 14.5ml of vessel size. That extra 0.5 was an extra bit of tea that broke… Continue reading, hoot!

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Alishan and Fern Stream Amber Oolong from MEM Tea

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MEM Tea does online tea sales, wholesale, and has a physical tea shop in North Cambridge, MA. MEM Tea sells unflavored tea, but they also carry a number of flavoured black and herbal teas. I homed in on their oolongs today, but they have many interesting options. Let’s try two of their oolongs today. Alishan Oolong from MEM Tea MEM Tea’s Alishan Oolong is from Nantou, Taiwan. I’m going to do gongfu style for oolong then bowl style after. For gongfu style, I used 1 gram of leaf per 15 ml of vessel sizes, flash steeped in boiling water. The… Continue reading, hoot!

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2018 Intrigue Sheng Puer from Crimson Lotus Tea

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I first tasted Crimson Lotus Tea’s Intrigue Sheng Puer before release at PDX Tea Fest and it was my favourite tea out of the haul. Something, like the art, called to me. I recall the tea was thick with a great aftertaste, but something also just mysteriously sang to me in this tea, making it a standout. I was ready to buy it then but had to wait. When this tea was finally released, I made the purchase ASAP. I love this wrapper. I don’t know why, but the texture just vibrates with my brain, making it pleasing to the… Continue reading, hoot!

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2018 Chirping Bird Sheng Puer from White2tea

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Of all the White2Tea 2018 spring puer teas, 2018 Chirping Bird and Lucky Puppy caught my eye the most. I am ultra slow this year reviewing these new puer teas as I waited to have a bit longer time in China storage on young tea, then I waited for a sale. My tastes are expensive this year, so giving teas the best chance will make my buying choices easier. Unlike previous years, I could not sample the entire line or all of the expensive line. I would not have any money to buy a full cake if I did. 2018… Continue reading, hoot!

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2018 Cactus Sheng & Mushroom Shou Puer from Puerh Panda

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Today’s review is a pair of puer cakes from Puerh Panda. I have a Raw/Sheng and a Ripe/Shou Puer to review. First off, how cool are these puer wrappers??? I love them both! Puerh Panda’s 2018 Cactus Sheng Puer Cactus is a 200gram 2018 sheng puer blend. It is promised to be a pretty forgiving steeper. Each purchase of a cake gets a donation to Friends of Saguaro National Park, for Saguaro cactus and conversation research. Well if this tea is supposed to be bombproof, I’ll give it my all… well give it my usual since I tend to always… Continue reading, hoot!

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2013 Golden Flower Dark Tea Fu Zhuan from Tea Art of China

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Today’s review is a Tea Art of China’s 5 year old Golden Flower Dark Tea, also known as Fu Zhuan. This Fu Zhuan is of Anuha, Hunan origin. I love Fu Zhuan and it is a strange dirty tea. This tea is encouraged to be covered in mold, like blue cheese. I had samples off friends and I loved how the mold adds a spun honey flavour. Fu Bricks are also pretty affordable but harder to get your hands on. Funky heicha is one thing, but moldy tea generally makes people run for the hills. I bought an 800 gram… Continue reading, hoot!

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September 2018 White2Tea Club feat. Fuding vs Yunnan White tea

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The 2018 September White2tea Club is two white teas. Not just any white teas, we got a white tea region comparison education session. I annoyingly switched my tea order for my tasting compared to the handout. The first tea is a 2018 Baimudan (aka White Peony) from Fuding. This is a classic white tea, Baimudan being an early picking with both leaves and buds. The second tea is Zhanglang Yunnan White, which is puer material processed as white tea, from the puer region of Menghai. Puer material processed as white tea are becoming more easier to find these days. Leaf… Continue reading, hoot!

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2018 Old School Baozhong from Floating Leaves Tea

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During the 2018 Northwest Tea Festival in Seattle, I sampled Floating Leaves Tea’s 2018 Old School Baozhong and it stuck in my mind well after. It was a good tea and I needed to have it again. At that time I was told it was their least popular tea. A few weeks later I went to the shop and purchased 2oz to play with. Old School Baozhong is a 2018 spring harvest tea. This oolong is from Nangang instead of more modernly being from Pinglin. Nangang apparently has a more mineral concentrated soil. Leaf and Steeping Method The tea smells… Continue reading, hoot!

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2018 Arbor White and Arbor Red Tea from White2Tea

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Happy American Thanksgiving! Forget the turkey, let’s gushu. Today is a comparison review of White2Tea’s 2018 Arbor White and Arbor Red Tea. Yes, red and white rolls off the tongue better than white and red, but I am drinking these from light to dark! Though I got the cake of Arbor White as I knew that is a safe blind purchase for me, I only bought a sample of Arbor Red for review purposes. I do like black tea, but not enough to want to shell out the cost of a full cake blind. Both teas are the same Old… Continue reading, hoot!