Author: Oolong Owl

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2016 Space Girls Sheng Puer from Crimson Lotus Tea

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So either it was my slow owl butt at reviewing things or people went ham on buying out all the Crimson Lotus Tea’s 2016 Space Girls sheng. I had the review written, then saw it was sold out, and stalled on posting even longer. Then I thought I shouldn’t let my tasting notes go to waste, and at least you all can get more of an idea of Crimson Lotus Tea’s tastes. EDIT: There was a restock!  There are more Space Girls! GO GO GO! What is unique about 2016 Space Girls Sheng Puer, in particular, is there are 4… Continue reading, hoot!

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2017 Teabook Raw Puer

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Today’s review is an entry level raw/ sheng puer from Teabook. 2017 Teabook Raw Puer is a 100 gram cake made of spring Lincang area material. To start off, this cake is affordable it is only $10.95. Teabook also has a ripe/ shou puer for 200 grams for $9.75. I got this little cake at the PDX Tea Fest and had it stashed for about a month. Dry Leaf and Steeping Method The 2017 Teabook Raw Puer is pressed loosely, so the leaf breaks off easy. No special tools needed, I was able to break a chunk off with my fingers. Close… Continue reading, hoot!

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Love Some Tea – Northern Thailand Tea

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I don’t do many of these flavored tea reviews these days unless the tea is unique. What first caught my eye of Love Some Tea is their use of Northern Thailand tea as their base. Investigating further, Love Some Tea’s tea is also wild picked and fair trade. Second, they have exotic flavoring in their line up, plus unflavored tea. I have the entire tea line up to review, so let’s get to it. Tasting of Love Some Tea Green Teas – All steeped western style at 175F/80C water temperature for 2 minutes. Kind Green – This is Love Some Tea’s… Continue reading, hoot!

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Tuffy Steeper from The Tea Spot

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I hopped on the silicone bandwagon years ago and love those silicone spatulas and muffin “tins”. I remember even special ordering a silicone Silpat before they were sold in stores. I have a couple collapsible colander and mixing bowls made of silicone, which I find very storage convenient. I saw The Tea Spot’s Tuffy Steeper early in my tea drinker days and thought it was really cool. I finally got one a couple months ago, and have been playing with it. I take it with me every time I travelled to where I know I have access to a mug… Continue reading, hoot!

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2012 Fuding Shou Mei White Cake from Teavivre

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I am always on the hunt for aged white teas. Awesomely, Teavivre has a 2012 Fuding Shou Mei White tea that I’ve heard good things about from fellow tea drinkers, plus it has a great price. Teavivre was kind enough to send me some to review. Dry Leaf and Steeping Method The 2012 Fuding Shou Mei is pressed pretty flat and my sample contained a few thin, pried off pieces. The colours are interesting on the cake, as it has more copper and silver tones. I used a gram of tea to 17ml of vessel size. I steeped with boiling water. I find boiling… Continue reading, hoot!

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2016 Chocobrick White and Black Tea from White2Tea

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For my White2tea order awhile back I purchased the 2016 Chocobricks in White and Black. 100 gram chocolate waffle brick for $15 is a pretty good deal. Let’s dive in! 2016 Chocobrick White Tea 2016 Chocobrick White Tea is a sun dried Yunnan large leaf varietal. White tea always looks great pressed as the leaves look artistic with the mix of fall colours. So far, this is the worst waffle/chocolate/whatever pressing I have dealt with. It is hard to photo, but the indentations are shallow, plus the pressing is quite firm. The tight pressing and big leaf made it difficult… Continue reading, hoot!

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Tennessee Oolong from Steven Smith Teamaker

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I purchased a box of Tennessee Oolong during my trip to Portland and the Steven Smith Teamaker shop. I didn’t know about Tennessee Oolong until Lazy Literatus informed me that it was released recently and I needed to check it out… if it was still in stock. I’ve tried a couple Steven Smith Teamaker creations, all through friends who either made the trip or were kind enough to spare a bag. I recall the Ice Cream Oolong quite fondly. I was excited to see Tennessee Oolong was still in stock when I made the pilgrimage to the headquarters. Tennessee Oolong was… Continue reading, hoot!

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Replacement Ruyao Gaiwan and Crack Stains

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Long time readers likely notice I tend to use the same Teaware.House Ruyao gaiwan for my reviews, which I bought it back in February 2016. I quite like the gaiwan’s heat retention, which I find pushes my teas harder, plus the wide bowl makes viewing the leaves easier. I also try to have my tea reviews neutral, so I prefer a ceremic gaiwan over tea pots, so readers can replicate easier, whereas years of clay seasoning isn’t replicated. Anyways, the White Ruyao Gaiwan served me well for over a year. I managed to crack the lid on my favorite gaiwan and the lip of another around May.… Continue reading, hoot!

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Spring 2017 Organic Chingjin Gaoshan Oolong from Tillerman Tea

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It is time to check out Tillerman Tea‘s 2017 Spring teas! First up, Spring 2017 Organic Chingjin Gaoshan Oolong. This tea is an unroasted Qing Xin oolong from Chinjin Mountain and grown at 1800m. Dry Leaf and Steeping Method Well, this is gorgeous leaf. The oolong is emerald giant lumps of leaves with a floral buttery scent. I went with a fast pour tea pot and 1 gram of leaf to 15ml of vessel size. To not mess around, I started with flash steeps with boiling water. Tasting of Tillerman Tea’s Spring 2017 Organic Chingjin Gaoshan Oolong First and Second Infusion: Tillerman Tea’s… Continue reading, hoot!

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2016 Wuliang H from Essence of Tea

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I was making an Essence of Tea order for a white tea I sampled and had to have. To hit free shipping (because that is not hard), I snagged the 2016 Wuliang H cake. Yes, I blind caked this to hit free shipping. I asked many tea friends, checked a few reviews, so I felt confident in this purchase. However, why did I buy the 2016 when 2017 Wuliang H is out? Well, 2016 is a 200gram cake. The 2017 cake is 400 grams, which is just too much for me to blind. Someone else said the 2016 cake is better, plus this… Continue reading, hoot!