Royal Phoenix

Tea: Royal Phoenix
Vendor: Tao of Tea
Price: $8.75 / 2.5 oz
Source: Guangdong Province, China
Vendor Description: In some areas of the Phoenix Mountains in Guangdong province, China, there are wild tea plants that remain a source for some of the best oolong teas in the world. Leaves from these old tea trees are prized for the flavor and full body. Making Royal Phoenix oolong invloves precise rolling and baking techniques to fully develop a toasty texture, fragrant aroma and taste similar to nectarines and peaches.

Leaf: The leaf for this tea is a dark brown – black leaf. The leaf is somewhat smaller than other Phoenix oolongs. The leaf is somewhat broken.

1^st Infusion Parameters: 5g, 208F, 45s, 5oz, 5s rinse

1^st Infusion: The tea has a lightly sweet aroma to it. It somewhat reminds me of a greener oolong. It has a light golden brown hue to it. It has a clear transparency to it. The aroma is sharp with woody tones to it. The flavor has a sharp almost soapy characteristic to it. It also has a medium bitterness to it, which is rather strong for a first infusion. There is no astringency and the flavor is overall somewhat weak.

2^nd Infusion Parameters: 45s, 208F

2^nd Infusion: This infusion has the same muddled woody aroma to it. It has a very sharp feeling on the tongue. The flavor is overall the same as the first infusion.

Rating: 1/10

Conclusion: This was a rather disappointing tea. For a phoenix aroma it doesn’t have the same characteristic floral characteristic to the aroma. The flavor was too sharp and bitter for a first infusion, and the flavor felt very muddled and confused. It’s not a very good flavor overall and it feels too harsh.

First Flush Darjeeling

Tea: First Flush Darjeeling
Vendor: Tao of Tea
Price: $10.00 / Chestlet (~3-4 oz)
Source: Darjeeling, India
Vendor Description: A delicate First Flush Darjeeling packaged in a miniature, wooden tea-chest. To this day, teas from India are packaged in large, foil-lined wooden chests that must be broken or pried open to remove the tea. On this mini-chest, the top is removable and can be re-used for storing tea or other items.

Leaf: The leaf for this tea is nicely sized Darjeeling leaves, there was not much of an aroma to the leaves though. The color was a bit on the darker side for Darjeeling black teas, with some light silver and green bits showing through.

1st Infusion Parameters: 5g, 5 oz, 185F, 4 min

1st Infusion: This tea came out iwth a nice floral aroma. It was floral yet thick and sweet. The tea had a rich brown hue to it. The flavor felt a bit muddled, it was rough to find distinct flavors in it, yet I kept finding a hint of a soapiness in the flavor. The flavor was dominated though by a strong bitterness. There was a long lingering aftertaste which piggybacked on the bitterness.

Rating: 1/10

Conclusion:I really was not a fan of this tea. The light character of a Darjeeling was overpowered by bitterness in this case. It wasn't a very enjoyable cup of tea and is not a very characteristic Darjeeling. I did try this tea later with lower temperatures and shorter infusion times, but I could not shake the taste of soapiness with this tea.

Matcha Latte Iced

So having had a matcha latte, the next step in the progression was to try icing it. Using the same recipe as the regular matcha latte, I tried pouring that over a bowlful of ice. The latte pictured is made with the Tao of Tea matcha, Lupicia recipe, and then poured over ice.

Infusion: The taste of the latte was very refreshing. It was cool and clean. The sweetness was a bit more hidden having this beverage cold as opposed to warm, although it does bring out the tea flavor a good deal more. There is a very creamy texture to it and the actual matcha flavor is a bit more subdued. There is no bitterness to it, just a creamy milky tea.

Rating: 4/10

Conclusion: While the hot version of this was a bit better than the traditional matcha infusion made with the Tao of Tea matcha, this version was in it's own right very enjoyable. It is a bit of a stretch from a traditional tea, and is more akin to a starbucks beverage than something a tea purist would look at. But I believe that it has it's place, it is enjoyable for what it is. I will probably be enjoying beverages such as this a fair amount when summer rolls around again.

Matcha Latte

Tea: Matcha Latte

About this Latte: After opening and trying the Liquid Jade matcha from Tao of Tea, I decided to try using it as an ingredient grade matcha for a matcha latte. I tried using the Lupicia recipe for a matcha latte which can be found here.

Latte: The latte itself had a very sweet aroma to it, most likely due to the added sugar. The color was a very light shade of green, which masked the dull color of the matcha used. There is a very sweet and light matcha flavor to this drink and no bitterness at all. The flavor is very milky and smooth with a thick feeling to it. However there is a very noticeable gritty texture to the drink.

Rating: 4/10

Conclusion: The matcha latte was a much better way to drink the matcha used. It masked some of the downsides of the matcha and brought out a very nice enjoyable beverage. However the gritty texture was a bit of a turnoff. If it wern't for the amount of effort required to make this I would consider making these more often.

Liquid Jade

Tea: Liquid Jade
Vendor: Tao of Tea
Price: $17.50 / 3.0 oz
Source: Uji, Japan

Powder: The color of this matcha is much duller than most of the other matchas that I have tried. Given the relatively low price of this matcha I wasn't expecting much more than a cooking grade/ingredient matcha.

Infusion: The made matcha had a darker green color than most of the other matcha that I have had. This went along with the expectation based on the color of the powder itself. The flavor of this matcha was not very much like other matcha that I have had. It was lightly bitter with a medium sense of astringency. It just didn't seem very good. I was more impressed by the minute matcha from Lupicia than this. It reminded me more of a thick powdered sencha than a matcha.

Rating: 1/10

Conclusion: As I expected this was pretty much just an ingredient grade matcha that shouldn't relaly be used to drink as a regular matcha. The price isn't horrible if you are looking for a cooking matcha, and it comes with a nice tin.

Genmaicha

Tea: Genmaicha
Vendor: Tao of Tea
Price: $2.75 / oz.
Source: Japan
Vendor Description: A traditional Japanese favorite. Also known as 'Brown Rice Tea', Genmaicha is blend of Sencha 'steamed green tea' and two varietals of rice. One kind of rice develops a golden color and toasted flavor, whereas, the second varietal of rice used is known as 'Mochi-Gome' and 'pops' into white kernels. The fresh vegetal flavor of the green tea is carefully balanced with the toasted, nutty flavor of the rice. Green tea is known to contain high amounts of anti-oxidants that promote a healthy lifestyle. Low in caffeine.

Leaf: The leaf for this had lots of very flat leaf for a sencha. There wasn't as much rice in it as other genmaichas. The rice that was there had a much lighter hue to it than many other genmaichas that I have been having recently. There was a surprising amount of stem in the mix as well, and the tea as a whole smelled similar to a bancha, and not of the typical rice aroma.

1st Infusion: The tea has a lighty yellow green color. There is a light sense of the rice aroma coming from the tea as well, but there is a lack of a tea aroma coming from the tea. The tea tastes thick on the front end with a light amount of rice flavor on the back. The middle of the flavor has a surprising amount of bitterness and a flavor resembling that of bancha.

2nd Infusion: This infusion is lighter green in color. The roasted rice flavor is prominent on the front end, but aside from that there is not much flavor to be found at all.

Rating: 2/10

Conclusion: This genmaicha was not very interesting. It lacked substantial flavor for the tea and the rice flavoring, it only held up to one infusion anywhere near well, and it's price is too high for the level of quality of this tea. There are many other much better genmaichas out there.

Organic Sencha

Tea: 100% Organic Sencha
Vendor: Tao of Tea
Price: $2.25 / oz.
Vendor Description: A Japanese-style Sencha grown organically in China.

About this tea: It seemed unusual that a vendor would openly admit that a sencha they offered was not from Japan, but a Chinese imitation. Curiosity (and price) got the best of me and I tried out this tea.

Leaf: The leaf for this tea has a very light green color and the appearance reminded me a lot of bancha with it's flat leaves and noticeable veins and leaf size. Even based on just looking at this tea it didn't really appear to be a normal sencha.

1st Infusion: This tea had a very bancha like aroma to it. The flavor had a medium sense of bitterness and a very flat taste to it. The infusion was yellow in color and had no sense of astringency to it.

2nd Infusion: This tea had a very yellow color this time and a very coarse flavor to it.

Rating: 1/10

Conclusion: This tea wasn't very enjoyable. I had a strong feeling that this would be somewhat bad, so I wasn't shocked by this. This tea reminded me a lot of the Miyakawa Hatsuzumi Shincha that I had a while ago. Both were rather disappointing teas and not worth trying. If you're thinking of trying a sencha from Tao of Tea, get at least the shinrikyu.

Precious Dew Pearl

Tea: Precious Dew Pearl
Vendor: Tao of Tea
Price: $4.25 / oz
Source: Japan
Vendor Description: Gyokuro, also known as "Precious Dew Pearl", is a highly famous tea from Japan. It requires more skill and careful selection of leaves than other green teas. At the end of the growing season the tea plants are covered by tarps and bamboo mats for three weeks before plucking. This shade grown process enhances the deep green color, flavor and anti-oxidant properties of the tea. After the leaves are plucked, they are steamed, giving a very sweet, creamy, oceanic taste.

Leaf: The leaf for this tea is a very dark matte green color. It has a very grassy aroma which is very characteristic for a gyokuro and the leaf size is surprisingly uniform.

1st Infusion: As expected there was a very sweet gyokuro aroma, but mixed in felt like there were hints of a sencha flavor. The tea is very smooth, but only medium bodied. It has the ideal gyokuro flavor, but it is not very prominent, and it almost feels like this is a blend between a sencha and a gyokuro where the flavors are being shared between one another. The flavor is thick, but not as thick as other gyokuros. The infusion is surprisingly yellow in color, which for gyokuro is fairly rare. There is no bitterness and no astringency as expected.

2nd Infusion: The second infusion had a murkier color, this one with a yellow-brown hue to it. There was a slight sense of bitterness to it, but the flavor was more prominent. There was a hint of a light asparagus flavor, and a light sense of astringency to finish it off.

Rating: 5/10

Conclusion: While this isn't a spectacular gyokuro, for it's price it performs well. It is quite apparent that this isn't a top rate gyokuro, but is one of the cheaper gyokuros that I have tried. The flavors of solid gyokuros are present, but they are hidden or shared with other flavors. If you are looking for a gyokuro to drink on a regular basis then this may be good for you. If you're looking for something special, look elsewhere. This tea really felt like it barely held up for two infusions where a more solid gyokuro should hold up for 5 or more.

Silver Needle

Tea: Silver Needle
Vendor: Tao of Tea
Price: $ 3.50 / oz
Source: Nan Yue Heng Shan, Hunnan Province, China
Vendor Description: Also known as 'Yin Zhen', Silver Needles is an organic, famous white tea with rich tea history.

Leaf: The leaf for this silver needle was at the same time familiar and different than most of the needles I have seen for a silver needle. The leaf is coated in the trademark white hairs which give it its name, but at the same time the leaves were much longer and thinner than most of the other silver needles I have seen. Another thing that caught my eye about this tea was the browning I noticed on the ends of the buds where they have been picked. I'm not sure how this compares to other silver needles, but for some reason on this tea it was more noticeable and prominent.

1st Infusion: This tea has a very strong and prominent silver needle aroma to it. Combined in the normal aroma was a hint at grassiness. The tea itself had a very prominent and light clean taste to it. It felt though as there were multiple parts to the flavor, each feeling like their own distinct flavor, but at the same time all representing different white tea flavors. The combination of flavors lasted for a long time for a silver needle. This tea was also very full bodied for a silver needle. There was a light sense of astringency on the back end.

2nd Infusion: The flavor was a bit lighter on this infusion. The taste had a very nice crispness to it, but it was still very full bodied. The flavor was sweeter in taste, but this was balanced by a light bitterness and a light astringency.

Rating: 8/10

Conclusion: This was a very unusual silver needle. The flavors felt complicated and convoluted, but was very good. It almost felt like a combination of different silver needle flavors in one. The price was very good, especially for a silver needle. I wouldn't consider this to be a standard tasting silver needle, but it was good nonetheless.

Maruse

Tea: Maruse
Vendor: Tao of Tea
Price: $12.00 / 1 oz. tin
Source: Japan
Vendor Description:Japan produces almost exclusively green tea, the majority of which is sencha. However, the range and breadth of sencha grades and styles is enormous ranging from coarse, everyday green tea to exquisite masterpieces of the Japanese tea-making art. Our Maruse is a premium grade, first flush sencha produced with the utmost artisanal skill in early spring.

Leaf: Like the Midori, the Maruse was packaged in a small double lidded tin with the tea vacuum sealed in a mylar bag inside of the tin. The leaves themselves are finely polished and there are a few very long needles in the mix. The appearance was not very unusual for a sencha.

1st Infusion: This tea has a very sharp and strong aroma. It has a certain crisp feeling to the aroma. The flavor is very rich and smooth. The flavor hints at the rich thick flavor of a gyokuro. There is a medium bitterness and a light astringency which pair to create a very ideal clean feeling on the tongue. There are also hints of seaweed flavor to this tea.

2nd Infusion: The tea has the same thick flavor which reminds me of a gyokuro as the first infusion, but it has a higher astringency and a medium sense of bitterness now.

Rating: 7/10

Conclusion: Like the Midori this was also a very good sencha, between the two of them they cover a lot of the qualities found in a good sencha. The packaging is very good, but the price again detracts heavily from the rating. At that price the teas should hold up better for multiple infusions and even still they seem a bit pricey.

Midori

Tea: Midori
Vendor: Tao of Tea
Price: $14.00 / 1 oz tin.
Vendor Description: Japan produces almost exclusively green tea, the majority of which is sencha. However, the range and breadth of sencha grades and styles is enormous ranging from coarse, everyday green tea to exquisite masterpieces of the Japanese tea-making art. 1Go is a premium grade, first flush sencha produced with the utmost artisanal skill in early spring.

Leaf: The leaf for this tea was nicely vacuum packaged in a double lidded tin. Interestingly the vacuum package was labeled with a very interesting label. It had the following text on it:

JAPAN GREEN TEA
SENCHA 1GO
NET WT: 1OZ
PACKED BY
KABURAGIEN CO.
PRODUCT OF JAPAN

I'm rather curious as to if this tea was simply packaged by Kaburagien or if The Tao of Tea is simply reselling Kaburagien's tea stateside. The leaf itself was rather standard for sencha. Mix of light to dark green colors, a bit of small dust and a moderately polished appearance. The leaves were nice and long, but not abnormally long.

1st Infusion: The tea had a very light and sweet aroma to it. This was paired nicely with a light and rich flavor. The flavor was very characteristic of a sencha. It was just the right bitterness with a certain grassiness. It left with a light astringency. The flavor was all around slightly sweet and enjoyable.

2nd Infusion: The flavor was very crisp and had an open ended flavor to it. Where other teas normally taper off, this infusion simply stopped the flavor as if it vanished. As to be somewhat expected there was a stronger medium sense of bitterness and astringency with this infusion.

Rating: 7/10

Conclusion: While the first infusion had a very good distinctive flavor, the second infusion was somewhat lacking of the quality of the first. The price was also a major detraction from this tea, it was something that I expected more for considering the price. Good tea, bad price.

Royal Phoenix

Tea: Royal Phoenix (Fenghuang Dancong)
Vendor: Tao of Tea
Price: $3.00 / oz
Source: Guangdong Province, China
Vendor Description: In some areas of the Phoenix Mountains in Guangdong province, China, there are wild tea plants that remain a source for some of the best oolong teas in the world. Leaves from these old tea trees are prized for the flavor and full body. Making Royal Phoenix oolong invloves precise rolling and baking techniques to fully develop a toasty texture, fragrant aroma and taste similar to nectarines and peaches.

Leaf: The leaf for this particular tea was very nicely formed. The leaves were very large, yet undamaged. They were twisted into many different long forms, but unbroken and there was no dust in the bag. The leaves were dark in color, almost black, but also contained hues of green.

1st Infusion: The aroma was very unique. I'm not quite sure how to describe it, but it felt like it had some of the hints of a Tae Guan Yin to the aroma, and another aroma which was slightly smoky. There were hints of Tae Guan Yin in the flavor, but only small hints of it. The tea has a very bold flavor to it and a light astringency, but it is hard to really put more description to the flavor of this tea. I kept trying to find the words to describe the flavor down to the last sip.

2nd Infusion: This infusion had a sharp flavor and a small tang of bitterness at the end. The tang was fairly sharp, and the tea finished off quite normally after that.

Rating: 5/10

Conclusion: I haven't had that many oolongs, but I didn't really enjoy the flavor of this one that much. It was very unusual and I need to experiment with it more as it seems this is going to be a rather tricky oolong to deal with.

Kukicha

Tea: Kukicha
Vendor: Tao of Tea
Price: $2.75 / oz.
Source: Japan
Vendor Description: Kukicha is a light, gentle tea made from the branches of the tea ‘Camellia Sinensis’ plant.

Leaf: The leaf for this tea is actually all stems. It is uniformly cut smaller pieces of stems that have been roasted. It is very apparent when you see this tea that it is all stem and no leaf involved.

1st Infusion: As I expected of this tea there was a heavy roasted flavor to it. it was very woody in taste and had a sense of smokiness to it. All of this is somewhat expected of a kukicha like this, so none of this was a big surprise. There was a light sense of astringency to it. The roasted flavor was very specific in this tea though, the flavor was quite clear which is a bit rare for a kukicha.

2nd Infusion: The roasted flavor was heavier in this infusion. The taste was the same heavy smoky roasted taste as the first one only a bit stronger. The flavor felt richer although it was the normal kukucha flavor.

Rating: 5/10

Conclusion: This was a decent kukicha. I'm not a big fan of the tea personally, but I'm not that big of a fan of the roasted teas in general. If you like kukichas specifically you might want to look into this tea. If you are looking for a sample of what kukicha is this is also a decent call, otherwise you're probably better off elsewhere.

Green Kukicha

Tea: Green Kukicha
Vendor: Tao of Tea
Price: $ 2.50 / 0z.
Source: Japan
Vendor Description: Also known as Senkukicha. This tea is a non-roasted green version of Kukicha with a creamy sweet flavor similar to mangoes. Clear bright green brew. Low in caffeine.

Leaf: The leaf for this tea has a very interesting appearance as a mix of sencha leaves mixed with a heavy constituent of tea stems. The stems are very light colored in appearance and the leaves have a normal dark green color to contrast this.

1st Infusion: This tea has a very heavy and thick aroma to it. The flavor of the tea is very strong with a light astringency. It has a long lasting aftertaste and no sense of bitterness to it. It feels very full bodied for a green tea, but the flavor feels a bit muddled. Unlike many of the senchas I try the flavor for this one has a clouded feel to it, it is not easy to pick apart the component flavors to it, but rather has a more general broad flavor to it.

2nd Infusion: This has a thicker taste to it now. The light astringency has moved up to a medium astringency and the tea is exhibiting a woody flavor. The stems are coming more into play now.

Rating: 3/10

Conclusion: The flavor could express itself as being fresher and clearer rather than the muddled flavor it expressed. It also is rather expensive for a kukicha, especially in comparison to the sencha shinrikyu.

Sencha Shinrikyu

Tea: Sencha Shinrikyu
Vendor: The Tao of Tea
Price: $3.25 / 0z.
Source: Japan
Vendor Description: Among the very best and affordable of the early season green teas. This April sencha is made from a fine leaf grade possessing a polished, deep green appearance and rich, intense aroma. Infusions of Sencha Shinrikyu have a sweet, green fragrance and a tantalizing ensemble of flavors. Shinrikyu is a connoisseur's sencha.

Leaf: The color of this leaf had a very normal dark green hue to it, with a few stems and other lighter colored elements. None of the leaves were particularly large, but it was a rather normal mix.

1st Infusion: The tea had a very strong aroma to it. The aroma was sweet smelling and it reminded me a bit of the chiran yutakamidori from Lupicia. The liquor had a bright green hue to it, clear and luminescent. The flavor ha a very sharp crisp taste to it. It was rich and tasted like a sencha should. It was paired with a light sense of astringency and a clean bitterness. This tea really brings forth the amount of bitterness and astringency needed to make a clean feeling after drinking. This is a very solid flavored sencha.

2nd Infusion: This infusion like most was darker and cloudier in color. It did though have almost a light shade of brown to it. Compared to the first infusion though there was a strong sense of bitterness, but this was paired with a strong green flavor. It finished off with a medium sense of astringency.

Rating: 9/10

Conclusion: The flavor for this tea is very good and very characteristic. The price isn't very expensive and acted as a general sencha should.