Category: Floating Leaves Tea

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2019 Spring Shan Lin Xi and Hehuan Shan High Mountain Oolong from Floating Leaves Tea

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Let’s check out Floating Leaves Tea’s new 2019 Spring High Mountain oolongs. I went with Shan Lin Xi and Hehuan Shan this year, both being favorites in blind tastings. Floating Leaves Tea’s 2019 Spring Shan Lin Xi High Mountain Oolong Shan Lin Xi is generally my favorite High Mountain oolong and I buy it when it is available. I am super excited that Floating Leaves Tea got it this season, after not carrying it for a while due to previous seasons not making the cut. The leaf is floral, sweet, buttery, and a touch roasted in scent. I steeped my… Continue reading, hoot!

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GABA Oolong from Floating Leaves Tea

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Lately, GABA teas have been popping up a lot and are trying to be trendy. I don’t write about GABA oolong much these days, as the more I drank them, the more I disliked them as they all have a distinct bad sour taste to me. Most recently I’ve discovered there are a few vendors that have found the good GABA teas. Floating Leaves Tea’s GABA Oolong is one of the special ones. Leaf and Steeping Method The leaf smells golden raisins. The rolls are dark browns and plums. I used 1 gram of leaf per 15ml of vessel size,… Continue reading, hoot!

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Crimson Lishan from Floating Leaves Tea

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Today’s review is Floating Leaves Tea’s Crimson Lishan. This is a High Mountain Lishan that was processed as a black tea. I can get enough Taiwanese black teas, so I was excited to get my hands on a black Lishan. I sampled Crimson Lishan in the shop, then bought 4oz worth. Leaf and Steeping Method Crimson Lishan has a cinnamon, grape, and plum scent. I used 1 gram of leaf per 15ml of vessel size, gongfu steeping in boiling water. The hot leaf still has a plummy cinnamon scent. Tasting of Floating Leaves Tea’s Crimson Lishan First and Second Infusion:… Continue reading, hoot!

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2017 Red Peony White Tea Cake from Floating Leaves Tea

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The 2016 Red Peony was one of my favourite white teas of all time. Floating Leaves Tea’s Red Peony is a Taiwanese Ruby 18 tea, which is usually made into black tea, but processed as a white tea. I also bought the 2016 Red Peony in volume, but it is a pain in the owl behind to store big bags of fluffy tea. Floating Leaves Tea pressed their 2017 Red Peony material into 100-gram cakes in Spring 2018. With the 2017 Red Peony in cake form, my storage prayers have been answered! It took some time for this 2017 Red Peony… 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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HeHuan Shan and Lishan High Mountain Oolong from Floating Leaves Tea

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I’m late to the party on 2018 Spring Oolongs. I got quite distracted by the lure of new white and puer teas, while in the background I’ve gathered some banging oolongs. Let’s go with one of my favorite oolong places, Floating Leaves Tea. These 2 oolongs were pointed out as favorites – HeHuan Shan as the owner favorite, and many friends saying the Lishan is good. Sadly, no ShanLinXi this season, which is my usual go-to High Mountain oolong. Floating Leaves Tea’s HeHuan Shan High Mountain Oolong The dry leaf smells of sweet creamed butter with a touch of grassy… Continue reading, hoot!

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Honey Oolong and Honey Black from Floating Leaves Tea

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At my last visit to Floating Leaves Tea, I tried their Honey Oolong and Black Honey teas. I liked them both and the prices were great, so I purchased an ounce of each to play with at my own tea table. Let’s go! Floating Leaves Tea’s Honey Oolong Honey Oolong is actually Guifei Meiren (or Mixiang Oolong), the Oriental Beauty of Dong Ding oolongs. Dry Leaf and Steeping Infusions: The rolled balls of oolong smell like dried fruits. I used around 1 gram of leaf to 15ml of vessel size. Floating Leaves Tea’s oolongs love boiling water, so I used that. The… Continue reading, hoot!

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2015 Buddha Hand Oolong from Floating Leaves Tea

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I have purchased Floating Leaves Tea’s Buddha Hand Oolong a couple times. It is a tea that I find challenging to brew, as well as one that needs a good amount of rest. What frustrated me was I’ve had Buddha Hand multiple times at Floating Leaves Tea on sample, but they always steep it better than me. So I kept buying this tea and playing with parameters on days I was craving ultra roast tea, finally reviewing it today when I think I got the tea figured out. Buddha Hand oolong is a traditional cultivar, roasted strongly. It is a… Continue reading, hoot!

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2016 vs 2017 Oriental Beauty Comparison from Floating Leaves Tea

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Last year I passed on 2016 Floating Leaves Tea Oriental Beauty oolong. It sounded good, but there are plenty of other oolongs I like more, so my money went to Floating Leaves Tea’s Dong Ding, High Mountain oolongs, and Red Peony. When the 2017 Oriental Beauty came out, Floating Leaves Tea’s Shiuwen told me this year’s teas is darker in flavor. A darker flavor Oriental Beauty sounded interesting, so I purchased an ounce. She threw in a sample of the 2016 so I can compare them. With both teas in my possession, I might as well drink them side by side… Continue reading, hoot!

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2017 Baozhong Comparison from Floating Leaves Tea

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Multiple Taiwanese tea sellers and farmers have told me this year is the year for good Baozhong. Today’s review is a comparison between Floating Leaves Tea‘s Farmers Choice and Competition Baozhong. One of Floating Leaves Tea’s popular oolong is the Farmer’s Choice Baozhong. Year after year, Farmer’s Choice Baozhong is a high body and reliable oolong, that is much cheaper than the Competition grade, which makes it a great buy. With killer Baozhongs this year, Competition Style Baozhong might give Farmer’s Choice a run for its money. To be honest, I find Baozhongs just too green for me, so I usually… Continue reading, hoot!