Some questions on Taiwanese mountain oolong

[futurebird]

The "worst" so far was BaoZhong from mountaintea that kinda tasted like boiled spinach water.

I've had similar issues with the greener younger teas. Part of the reason I tend to stick to the roasted and aged oolongs. If you want floral aged is the way to go...

[drinking_teas]

The "worst" so far was BaoZhong from mountaintea that kinda tasted like boiled spinach water.

I've had similar issues with the greener younger teas. Part of the reason I tend to stick to the roasted and aged oolongs. If you want floral aged is the way to go...

certain young sheng pu'erhs can be quite floral

[beanbag]

The "worst" so far was BaoZhong from mountaintea that kinda tasted like boiled spinach water.

I've had similar issues with the greener younger teas. Part of the reason I tend to stick to the roasted and aged oolongs. If you want floral aged is the way to go...

Now that I brewed it again with the better quality water, I would call the taste more like "cucumber, or some other kind of un-identifiable crunchy cucumber or raddish-like vegetable". Which is to say I still don't like the taste, but at least I can now chalk it up to preference, instead of "gross".

Can I roast or oxidize this myself to modify the taste?

Do you have a suggestion for a floral aged tea?

[futurebird]

Do you have a suggestion for a floral aged tea?

Tai yi is amazing...

[AdmiralKelvinator]

Do you have a suggestion for a floral aged tea?

Tai yi is amazing...

Are you referring specifically to the one sold by J-teas?
http://jteainternational.com/index.php/ ... ea/tai-yi/

This tea piques my interest, as its described on that site as a wuyi varietal and well roasted. Does it resemble yancha at all in taste or appearance?

[futurebird]

It is a tea with an amazing floral and honey aroma. The taste is more mild not as complex as the aroma at all. But the aroma! I like to brew it in a big tea bowl and just breath the aroma observing the changes as it cools.

The taste is less memorable, but still enjoyable.

I get maybe 6 or 7 good infusions maybe 8... towards the end I let it steep for a loooong time.

It reminds me of this tea from EoT in the aroma... but much more simple and not as lingering.

https://www.essenceoftea.com/tea/oolong ... olong.html

but the flavor is far less complex and the above tea is really just a bit better ... although both of them only last for 6 or 7 infusions.

So, I'd try this tea.

Anyone else know more teas with the lovely aroma?

[pedant]

...
The problem is that they all taste about the same to me, namely this kind of characteristic grassy, green leafy vegetable, extra virgin olive oil taste. When I read the descriptions, I see terms like fruits, honey, citrus, peach, etc etc, and I detect none of these at all.
...
one actually tasted like sweet butter and had a rich smell and mouthfeel. Still no fruit, but ok, whatever.
...

i can tell you for sure that there exist taiwanese high mountain oolongs with pretty intense fruity aroma. i've even had ones that were like pineapple.
it's not like you're drinking kool-aid or something, but man, there is no way you could miss it. it's intense. if you are interested in experiencing this, keep searching.

also, if you want, next time i come across such a tea from a vendor, i'll let you know which specific tea.

...
2) After I pour out the tea after one steeping, are the damp leaves just supposed to sit in the empty pot steaming and cooling until I pour in the next batch of water several minutes later? I took off the lid to take a smell, and MAN! Those damp leaves have this gross wet rag over-cooked leafy vegetable smell. I don't think too much of that smell gets into the liquid, but I can detect a little of it.

some people do not advocate letting the leaves steam and 'cook' in the pot between brewings. e.g. Hojo (iirc) recommends leaving the lid of your teapot or gaiwan on only halfway so that steam can escape and the leaves cool a bit. i have not personally experimented extensively with this, but my preliminary feeling is that it can reduce those gross vegetable smells in some teas from developing between brews.

3) I'm not that worried about the taste differences from one little cup to the next (at this point), so what is the difference if I brew a big batch at once, or brew a bunch of little batches one after another and dump all the individual infusions into a big cup. Blasphemy! At least the leaves don't sit around steaming...

i do that sometimes, but try leaving the lid off partway like i mention above. you might also try using a slightly lower water temperature. at any rate, you should be able to leisurely enjoy multiple successive infusions with many minutes in between them. if not, then try different tea.

4) Since I have a glass teapot, I can see that for the first infusion, the tea bundles are covered with a layer of small bubbles, so maybe that would be inhibiting the steep? If I do an initial rinse, then this effect is reduced.

i wouldn't worry about that.

[pedant]

i'd also like to reference my friend Alex Zorach's article which makes a point of distinguishing aroma from taste:

http://ratetea.com/topic/writing-about-tea/15/

drinking tea is not going to be exactly like eating fruit, but sometimes flavored teas present the illusion more convincingly -- they are often flavored to be tart in taste. so if you happen to be used to fruit flavored teas, ...

[beanbag]

Thanks for the help, pedant.

Ever since I switched over to bottled spring water, I have been able to pick out more tastes. One of the teas had a description of cream and corn. I was like, "OK, I do taste a little bit of that".

Another one said peach, and I think I caught a fleeting smell and taste of peach for a few seconds before it went away.

So I am getting there

If you find a floral and fruity high mountain tea, plz mention it here in this thread. Thanks.

[bonescwa]

I really think it comes down to experience drinking things like tea, wine, whiskey, etc. And palate sensitivity, based on if you had a lot of strong tastes in food that day. If you have no strong background idea of what gaoshan tastes like, then it makes it impossible to appreciate the varieties and levels of quality that each particular tea may have.

[bagua7]

1) I read here that after opening a vacuum-packed tea, I am supposed to let it air out for a few days?

Try keeping your tea in the fridge...I mean the greener oolongs.

4) Since I have a glass teapot, I can see that for the first infusion, the tea bundles are covered with a layer of small bubbles, so maybe that would be inhibiting the steep? If I do an initial rinse, then this effect is reduced.

Please use a gaiwan (and preferably a fine bone china) if you can. I used to use a glass pot in the past and stopped because it negatively affected the taste of the tea I was drinking back then (green varieties mainly).

[Noonie]

Please use a gaiwan (and preferably a fine bone china) if you can. I used to use a glass pot in the past and stopped because it negatively affected the taste of the tea I was drinking back then (green varieties mainly).

Initially I wanted to disagree about glass, but I recall using glass a couple years ago and not being as happy with my tea then as I am now.

[ethan]

I always keep lids off teapots & gaiwans between infusions. I've found many teas are ruined by steaming or at least knowing how long the next infusion should last is more difficult w/ heat being kept inside so much. I would like to hear what the upside is, of keeping lids on.

[AdmiralKelvinator]

I always keep lids off teapots & gaiwans between infusions. I've found many teas are ruined by steaming or at least knowing how long the next infusion should last is more difficult w/ heat being kept inside so much. I would like to hear what the upside is, of keeping lids on.

funny I had almost the opposite experience today with a tie luo han I've been working on lately. Normally I take the lid off after steeps to avoid steaming the leaves too much, but this time I left it on and the results were remarkably better and it ended up steeping out much longer. While I think further trail and error is certainly necessary, I might offer the idea that removing the lid allows a great deal of fragrance to escape the pot into the air, fragrance that you really want in your cup instead. Since fragrance and taste are really two sides of the same coin, it may be that keeping the fragrance of the tea inside the pot helps to boost the taste as well.

Leaving the lid on also helps retain the heat inside the pot obviously, which might be a good thing for some teas and not for others. But even with all that steam trapped inside, it's never going to be as hot as with actual water in it, so part of me doubts whether steam could "cook" the leaves to any significant degree. If they're tasting cooked then its probably because of the water and not the steam, no?

[bonescwa]

Something like wuyi or other roasted teas can take any extra steam/heat, but with gaoshan you need to take the lid off.