TeaChat

#18 sun moon lake black
ahhhh this one has a very strong brandy note to it and a lot of very long stems 3 inches or so , nice durability and not fully oxidized it seems (greenishness red like a nilgiri I had recently)

delicious

Tanyang Congou DingJi.

The Tea Gallery's Keemun.

I am almost out.

A couple of days ago, from YS, I had 2010 Imperial Feng Qing Dian Hong and 2010 Autumn "Feng Qing Gold Needle" Yunnan Dian Hong Black tea. I found them ok but rather sweet and simple. Maybe that is what these teas are supposed to be but I found them lacking in complexity.

Yunnan Golden Curls again today. I love this stuff! I'm nearing the end of my current supply and I'd get more, but I have so many other teas I need to finish.

Ceylon Sonata, enjoying to help keep me awake on the night shift without the coffee stomach burn.

Mim's 2nd flush Peridot. A rolled Darjeeling not unsimilar to Arya Pearl. These 2 teas are a couple of the more outstanding Darjeelings I have had. Both organic, full of sweet, floral flavors and aroma that are easily accessible. Wow, these are good teas. Whole leaf.

Darjeeling, Orange Valley. Not too expensive (relatively). The Spring Flush is pretty good.

cert organic dah yeh oolong cultivar black tea (honey black tea), I think this particular one was made by an aboriginal group in taiwan

this is different...a oolong cultivar made into a black tea, but processed in a ball shaped oolong style instead of the usual wire style that vendors like houde and teamasters offer

At a quick glance you would think this was a machine harvested roasted oolong because the pellets are incredibly small (smaller even then machine harvested pellets)

Then to my surprise they open up to reveal a whole small intact stem leaf system, gongfued heavy this was wonderful, very clear, so smooth, more complex honey/fruit/baked breadness, bitterness is almost non existent even when brewed 4 mins on steep 6, and good lingering sweet aftertaste. This seems like a tea that would be both suitable for gongfu and bigger pot western brewing since it's rolled so tightly it takes time to open up.

After going through 2 bags of lackluster organics finally I find one more then just decent.

Instead of my preferred greens I had some Yixing Hong Cha from last Spring today.

I was drinking it with my wife and Han Xiaohu, as he happens to "guard" the Dragon Kiln behind the Jun-Glaze potter art factory. He has his pottery showroom and studio in the building right in front of it and holds the keys to the gate. He offered the tea after letting us in on my investigative mission for TC, but more on that in the other thread.

2nd Flush 2010 Hattialli Golden Lion Assam; from Lochan Teas.
Absolutely the smoothest, best tasting assam I have ever had. Yum.

Keemun Hao Ya A from Teaspring. Great stuff.

Had a Margaret's Hope Darjeeling FF earlier this evening, which was great. But now I'm in the mood for something with a bit more brute force: Yunnan Black.

I love this! It's a very deep, full, earthy tea.

The last of my Nilgiri Coonoor from Camellia Sinensis.

Hou De's 2010 Spring Tai Tung "Hao Xian" Hand harvested
7 grams in 100 ml Gaiwan
Nice looking leaf. Super short brews keeping significant floral flavor and more brews going. Liquor was pretty "oily" looking.
Was good with food. I will use this one for non-teahead visitors. A bit one dimensional, but a nice tea nonetheless.