I wanted to finish 2019 by posting my most profound tea experience of the year – Floating Leaves Tea’s Taman Hong Shui Oolong.
Floating Leaves Tea got me with their Lalashan Hong Shui. I loved that tea so much I didn’t review it as I wasn’t sure I could give it justice and now that tea is out of stock to buy (but I got a bag in my stash).
Taman Hong Shui is similar to Lalashan Hong Shui as it is the same farmer, but it is from a different, higher peak in the same farm area. This tea is high mountain, 2019 spring harvest, Qing Xin cultivar, organic/unsprayed, as well as GABA, then processed (high oxidized and then roasted in August) to be Hong Shui.
Leaf and Steeping Method
The leaf has a subtle fall colour with a buttery caramel scent.
I used 1 gram of leaf per 15ml of vessel size, gongfu steeped in boiling water. A gaiwan is used for this review, but future sessions I found Taman Hong Shui performs best in clay teapots.
After a rinse and a first infusion, I was surprised how much the leaves unraveled and they smell of sugar and boiled leather and wood. My father makes leather armor and boils it to shape it, and it smells just like that.
Tasting of Floating Leaves Tea’s Taman Hong Shui Oolong
First and Second Infusion: Dang, this is a clean tea. Taman Hong Shui tastes of squeaky sweet brown sugar and wet stones, with the calmness of a lightly babbling creek. The finish is birch wood and lingering aftertaste is that pristine rock sugar taste. The tea has a lockjaw body feel like my jaw feels crunchy from previously getting hit in the face.
Third and Fourth Infusion: Taman Hongshui continues to sip in mineral crusted sweet, with a smooth wood finish, but now has a strong aroma that penetrates my sinuses. I half thought I drank the tea up my nose. I sip and then flavor goes straight up my sinus and rattles my eyes.
Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Infusion: Taman Hongshi reached maximum flavor and is actively drinking with so much aroma and tea energy I feel like my head is underwater. All my sinuses are being pressed and my eyes are droopy. The tea seems to bypass normal drinking, filling me with the sugary woodsy aroma, crushing my jaw in a serene and calculated way. I can also feel this tea churning in my lower abdomen, which was a shock in post when I referred back to Floating Leaves Tea’s product listing and mentions it as an effect.
I smelled the leaves again, and they interestingly smell like coffee beans and tomatoes.
Eighth, Ninth, and Tenth Infusion: I finally found some peace with this tea – it has mellowed in intensity and the flavor has a light fruity heirloom tomato note.
I am not kidding on the “downer” body feel of this oolong. Taman Hong Shui is making me moody and extra ruminating gloom for no reason other than tea effect. Overall, I prefer teas that make me energetic and manic.
Eleventh, Twelfth, Thirteenth, and Fourteenth Infusion: Hong Shui, now I am finally paying attention, has an oily body leaving a lip balm coating. The tea is gentle, rock sugar sweet, and smooth tomato in taste. My ears are also popping.
Taman Hong Shui continued to be smooth and sweet. I certainly cut it short on resteeps as my body had enough downer chill. I need to eat a chocolate bar to perk me up.
Taman Hong Shui Round Two
I revisited Taman Hong Shui after listening to Floating Leaves Tea’s podcast and felt it would be good night tea drinking. This time I did a casual session in a clay teapot, way past my tea time drinking cutoff.
In my teapot, Taman Hong Shui has a more banana profile but still just as smooth mineral calm and sweet. By steep five, this tea was making me ruminate and I had to use the spinning wheel to get out of my head. Once I got out of my head, the tea entire session was amazing. My teapot loves this tea as it is thicker, fruity and more vibrant than gaiwan but still with a smooth softness like warm water giving me a hug.
Though occasionally the tea’s effect freaked me out. Owls don’t normally swim.
Comments
Floating Leaves Tea’s Taman Hong Shui is a pristine and smooth oolong with incredible aroma and a strong calming body feel. Everything about this tea is well calculated to have a strong relaxingly meditative effect, being gentle yet powerful. I found flavor really hard to pay attention to as body effects got the most attention.
Drink this if you love Hong Shui and want the best that oolong can be. I also point to this tea having incredible strong tea drunk effects that aren’t whackjob high. Taman Hong Shui is so relaxing I had no issues drinking it late at night, and I am usually sensitive to caffeine keeping me awake.
I personally prefer Floating Leaves Tea’s Lalashan Hong Shui more but recognize Taman Hong Shui is a fricking phenomenal oolong experience and my preference is purely personal taste. 6-month post edit: I cam to love Taman Shan deeply and got addicted to drinking it despite not liking it at first. Lalashan is incredible, but this tea is just as amazing for the powerful experience.
Floating Leaves Tea’s Hong Shui are some of their most expensive teas. If that tea is too pricey, their GABA oolong is a good budget tea drinker with a similar flavor profile to Hong Shui.
