Teaful

This originally struck me as my second favorite of Teaful’s Chapter 4 box for it’s dinstinctly sweet honey flavor before I figured out how I like the Shan Lin Xi Black. It pretty much tastes like a black version of most Jin Xuans you might have had with a Gui Fei’s honeybun floral character. For those of you who have read some of my previous notes, this tea is very dang similar to the Vietnam Red Buffalo with a black tea’s malt and a slight herb quality in the very later steeps. Those new to Taiwaneese would see this as a standard tasting black tea with a sweet edge, and may get a fruity impression. Snobs would appreciate it as an enduring one that flexes a little bit of lemon and violet in the notes as Teaful Describes.

The tea does not differ too much Western or Gong fu so far because it’s honeyed flavor remains the same. Western 3 minutes is thickens it a little more at once, but Gong fu spreads out the flavor in viscous coats. Again, Honeybuns is how I would prefer to describe it albeit with a malty black tea background. I got the violets more in steeps 2, 3, and 5 gong fu while I get the herby sage in the very last three steeps out of seven after four minutes. I do not know if it is doable grandpa with less leaves yet, and although I do not think it will hold up well, the tea has very little bitterness and astringency making it more versatile than your usual black.

I do want to see more opinions on this one, and as much as I like it, there are a few other teas that are comparable to this one at occasionally cheaper prices. The $5.99 per 25 grams is a little steep, but closer to average for what I have seen for this type of tea. I probably won’t order it again but I definitely cannot say “No” if I am offered it again, and I think that everyone exploring Taiwaneese tea should try this kind of black at least once in their lifetime.

I slowly grew to love this one. A black Shan Lin Xi or ANY black version of an oolong was a knee-jerk YES for me, so the tea made Chapter 4 all the more appealing. I was underwhelmed, however, the first time western.

It was a good black, and for those who live by Taiwaneese Teas, the taste and aroma is like a cross between a #18 Ruby Assam and a Shan Lin XI’s crisp florals. I got three solid cups western using 3 minute steep time, but they all generally tasted like the drying plum malt you get in any other Assam, save for a minty aftertaste.

Gong Fu was were this tea really shined, sweetening the fruity and herbal mint notes even more. The second steep was the sweetest after 40 seconds, though the 15 minute rinse and 30 min. first steep were excellent. Purple and red plum is the best descriptor for the fruit, but blackberry and grape are not far off. The minty aftertaste was mega pronounced in steep three, transforming into more subdued tulsi and blackberry leaf in the later steeps. Steeps 7 and 8 were faint but flavorful like a hipster homemade jam, and timed out at 5 and 7 minutes in the end.

I know it’s not really original to use the company’s notes, but Teaful’s are very spot on. It is more fruity than cocoay compared to other blacks, but I could argue a case for some cocoa notes amidst the soft malt of the black tea. Plum, even sugar, and mint supersede it overall.

While it is a solid tea Western, I recommend this tea to soft black tea lovers and I especially recommend those getting into Gong Fu styling of tea to try it out with this one. It does decently with sugar, though I prefer the tea simple and straight. I do not know if I would recommend cream because it is a softer tea. I see it being flexible, but if you want it with sugar and cream, go for it strong and for yourself.

The terroir is also something that makes the tea all the more welcoming, and the price is a little high for this one, but it is worth it for the rarity and quality. I’m tempted to pick up more of this one, or at least something with the kind of profile this tea offers.

I know it’s been a while since I’ve been on here, but here are the new tea developments in the past few weeks. I got the Chapter 4 Box Set with the Teaful mug and have thoroughly enjoyed every sample. This tea is hands down my favorite out of all the samples, and if it were sold in higher quantities, I would definitely consider getting more.

Unfortunately, I plowed through the 20 grams I had of it, so I won’t detail every accent of the tastes and mouthfeels, but I will give broad strokes of how the tea went with the more pronounced details I remember. I can specify that I went with 5 grams in the Teaful Infuser Mug western both starting off with 3 minutes and 4.5, then prolonging each steep later on. Ex.: 3.5 minutes, 4.5 min, 6 min, 7.5, and 8. 4-5 steeps was the average western. Gong Fu made me lose count how many steeps I got because there were so many. I started off with a 15 sec rinse, 5 grams in 6 oz, and it was intensely sweet and creamy, almost like a sweet pudding. Consecutive steeps were 35 seconds, 45 seconds , 40 seconds, 60 seconds, and then longer and longer steeps later on.

Specific aspects stood out strongly, however, whereas the other notes were things you would expect out of a Li Shan Oolong. The brown sugar notes that Teaful describes are immensely pronounced no matter how brewed, making this one of the sweetest Li Shans I’ve had to date. Cream, Spinach, Magnolia, Rice Malt, Oak, Brown Sugar all precisely apply Western or Gong Fu. The western brews were much earthier with that spinach green quality, but the earthy notes were fresh and blended with the softening florals and dainty sweetness. Gong Fu was considerably sweeter and more floral to the point of sugaryness, but the spinachy aspects and rice malt show up early mid session and continue in the late session. The very last brew Gong Fu tasted like a fully developed Tsui Yu Jade Oolong with the Li Shan florals highlighting the background.

This tea is close to being one of my favorites, and as powerful as the earthy and brown sugar notes sound, the tea was more sophisticated yet viscous. In short, the perfect combo between suave and full bodied. I highly recommend this tea and Teaful’s company in general. I can see more experienced drinkers really enjoying this, and it is a very easy drinker for those just getting into straight teas because it is so naturally sweet. I should add that the more vegetal aspects are soft and not as harsh as they could be making me like this one even more.

I would almost rate this a 97 or a 98 because of its pronounced sweetness, its great balance of contrasting notes, its brewing versatility, and its very complete profile. I would not be surprised if it is doable Grandpa Style. The quantity is the only thing that really deters me from rating the tea higher than a 96, but that is because of me comparing it to the other Li Shan’s I have in terms of price. It also blows the other samples out of the water in my biased opinion, so I highly recommend a try of this oolong.

This oolong tasted very refreshing, and is one that I would drink again. I was surprised at how full-bodied it was, and even had amazing energy to it. This is one I would definitely try again.

Here’s a photo… https://www.instagram.com/p/BUmqKpBF__F/

I got this from teaful directly when I met them at the southwest tea festival. Im finally getting around to finishing up and reviewing the teas I got from them. This one is interesting, as its a very floral and sweet oolong without the intensity of a teiguanyin.

I started this with a rinse at about 195 degrees. Using a duanni yixing clay teapot that I have been brewing taiwan oolongs in. I got a very intense floral scent right off the bat with this one. I cant place which flower it is, but its really intensely floral, I also got a bit of honey as well.

First steeping produces a very light liqour, pale straw. The aroma is the exactly the same as the wash, tasting it I get floral, honey, sweet and a tiny bit of grass. Its really hard to describe this tea, its not quite as honey as a bug bitten, but much more so than an alishan.

Second steep was almost exactly the same, clear, light, floral and honey.. Im actually really surprised the first time I tried this tea, was when i had first started drinking tea and I thought it tasted very similiar to other taiwan oolongs, im actually surprised now that im noticing how different it actually is.

Third is mostly the same, the floral is coming down slightly but the sweetness is actually becoming even more pronounced. The tea is also very slightly darker and very impressive overall.

Im going to steep this out a few more times, but I think this tea is a winner and Im going to be getting more of it at the tea festival next year.

I highly recommend this tea for people who like lighter oolongs.

First tasting today is Biluo Chun from teaful, I picked this up at the southwest tea fest. And finally got a chance to try it today. I picked this up as part of their taste of taiwan volume 1 pack.

I started by brewing this in my gaiwan for about 30 seconds, I got a very clear very pale yellow liquor, with a very mild aroma. Tasting it, I got just the very smallest hint of astrigency, but a very strong creamy spinach flavor and aroma. Its surprisingly delicate and sweet for a green tea.

Second brew made it a bit stronger, but still very good, the vegetal notes are coming out now but not overpowering the cream or spinach. And the astrigency has almost disappeared.

The third steeping I pumped the temp up to 185 and brewed it for 45 seconds and it kept the sweet spinach and cream flavors and aromas and just slightly picked up a bit more vegetal astrigency.

I highly recommend this tea as it would be incredibly hard to overbrew this to astrigency as even pushing it resulted in a very light refreshing tea.