Category: Essence of Tea

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2019 May The Essence of Tea Club feat. 2019 Dragonwell and 1990s Liubao

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Admittedly, I was hoping to dodge fresh green teas as those are simply not a thing I enjoy drinking but I failed. The Essence of Tea’s club doesn’t have a preview online of what we are going to get. This month’s Essence of Tea club is “Something Old and Something New” with a fresh 2019 Dragonwell/ Long Jing green tea and old 1990s Liubao. Traditional Variety Qun Ti Zhong Dragonwell The dry leaf smells of zesty grass and toasted rice. I did grandpa style here, so 3 grams for a small Wall Mug (around 280ml/9.4oz) in 79c/175f water temperature. I… Continue reading, hoot!

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2019 April Essence of Tea Club feat. 2007 WuZhou Liubao

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I decided to give the Essence of Tea club a try for a few months. I’ve always been a fan of Essence of Tea and want to explore more of their teas. April 2019’s tea club is a 2007 WuZhou Liubao. I got around 100 grams of tea. For $35 including shipping, that isn’t a bad price. Leaf and Steeping Method Opening the package, the tea has a wet wood and chestnuts scent. It’s has a moderate humid funky scent. I used 1 gram of leaf per 15ml of vessel size, gongfu style. I used boiling water and did two rinses.… Continue reading, hoot!

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2018 Spring Beyond the Clouds Black Tea from Essence of Tea

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My 2018 Spring Beyond the Clouds black tea came as a free sample with my last order at Essence of Tea. Beyond the Clouds is Ai Lao Mountain material. Leaf and Steeping Method The leaf is strangely a little green. Reading up on it, this black tea is lightly oxidized to give it more character. I leafed pretty hard here, using 1 gram of leaf per 13ml of vessel size, gongfu steeped in boiling water. I like leafing black tea a little harder for maximum flavour. The hot rinsed leaf smells like candied red fruits Tasting of Essence of Tea’s… Continue reading, hoot!

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2018 Secret Forest Wild White Tea from Essence of Tea

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I am in love with Essence of Tea’s 2017 Secret Forest Wild White tea that I had to buy it again when 2018 batch came. Sadly, 2018 Secret Forest Wild White Tea is in loose leaf only so I ended up with 2 monster bags of fluffy white tea totaling 200 grams. Leaf and Steeping Method The dry leaf is spaciously nutty with a strong scent of fruity floral candy. I jammed 1 gram of tea leaf per 20ml of vessel size. In this small gaiwan I used 3 grams of leaf. I’ve drunk this tea a number of times… Continue reading, hoot!

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2017 Secret Forest Sheng Puer and White from Essence of Tea

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Back in 2017 I did my first Essence of Tea order. I made a very calculated, review-read heavy buy as Essence of Tea is on the pricey side, and a bit more unexplored for me. I snagged 2017 Secret Forest sheng, but more so because I was buying the 2017 Secret Forest White, which is the same material processed differently. I sampled the 2017 Secret Forest White when I was over at a tea friends place and that tea sang to me. What makes this post a bit odd is I first sampled and drafted the review back in February.… Continue reading, hoot!

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2017 Nancai Ancient Sheng Puer from Essence of Tea

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With my last Essence of Tea order, I got a free sample of 2017 Nancai Ancient Sheng puer. This tea apparently comes from old wild trees. It is promised to have a strong flavor, qi, bitterness, and aging potential. Dry Leaf and Steeping Method The 2017 Nancai Ancient puer’s dry leaf is strongly fruity smelling with a bit of zest to it. I used 1 gram of leaf to 15 ml of vessel size. I used 208F/98C water. Why not full boil? My kettle is junk and was flipping out trying to hold 212F/100c. The hot leaf smells fruity and a touch of… 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!