110 Tasting Notes
This is the second time I’ve made this tea. The first time I made it, I followed the supplier’s instructions and used approximately 1 tsp of tea (8 balls) for 8 oz — this was a bit too weak for my liking. This time, I used approximately 3 tsp (24 balls) for 16 oz — a slight increase, but enough to make it much better. I’d recommend using this amount if you prefer tea which is slightly stronger.
When fully brewed, the tea has a rich, dark brown color. The tea leaves unfurl from the ball shape as they steep, becoming elongated and thin. The tea itself has a cocoa or malty chocolate flavor, with a slight earthy flavor in the background. It is good but tastes a bit tired. I am sure I will enjoy the rest of the batch I purchased and might eventually buy some again — it was slightly cheaper than other black dragon pearl teas I have purchased but the quality isn’t too diminished with that cheaper price. Overall, a decent, mellow tea, but still seems to be missing something to make it one that I’d drink regularly.
Flavors: Chocolate, Cocoa, Dirt, Earth, Malt
Preparation
I am surprised this is a Darjeeling tea since it tastes so much more like an Oolong or even a green tea. Overall, though, it is very good — light and crisp. Especially nice is the caffeine level on this one — if I want a pick-me-up without the flavor of a traditional black tea, this is excellent.
Flavors: Floral, Vegetal
Preparation
My first taste of Pu-erh; wasn’t too thrilled with this style/product/brand. I particularly liked the earthy aroma—definitely a wet wood/earth smell/flavor to it. This is what I was expecting and it met that expectation well. Added to the wet tones was a hint of smoke. The infusion isn’t as strong as I thought it would be—maybe I used too much water…? The cake also broke up in the water much more quickly than I expected—the cake had disintegrated entirely before I was done pouring the water.
Overall, it was okay. Is that because I’m not a Pu-erh fan? Is it the product? I don’t know. It was an easy purchase (Amazon, an add-on to a merchandise order at the last minute) though. I’ll drink it again and next time add less water to see if that improves the strength. I don’t know if I’d purchase it again, though.
Flavors: Earth, Fishy, Smoked, Wet Earth, Wet Wood
Preparation
A good tea for the evening—light and floral (lavender-like). Very “clean” flavor. I wasn’t expecting the grape aroma/flavor so that was a nice surprise. I enjoyed it!
A second infusion brought out the rooibos flavor much more than what was found in the first infusion. By that time, the lavender was gone and the rooibos was the primary flavor.
Flavors: Floral, Grapes, Lavender
