Lochan Darjeeling Samples (Black tea)

I was going to wait until I had all the samples tasted, but it's taking long enough that I thought I should post some now, rather than abuse Ankit Lochan's patience with me thus far. I only have three more to note after this, but will post them later.

I'm using roughly 4 grams in 8 oz of water that is 208 degrees. This seems to be the best set of parameters that I could find. All samples are 2nd flush, and all but one are from this year (2007).

Lochan Darjeeling Imperial

I don't think I could have picked a better one to start with because this one has broken many preconceptions I had about what makes a Darjeeling. This one is incredibly smooth with no bite. There is a slight aciditc bite that is typical of black teas, but it is rather subdued and does more to tie in the flavors than most. The aroma is dominated by muscatel, very strong, sweet, white grape aroma that is very clearly defined. The body is very very round, smooth, and sweet. This is one of the first black teas I've had that does not need any kind of sweetener, and I am sure that those who take milk in their tea would be able to forego the milk in this cup. The flavor is somewhat more complex than I am accusomed to, although still distinctly Darjeeling muscatel. It finishes with only the slightest hint of bitterness and absolutely no astringency. There is, of course, a slightly lingering muscatel aftertaste that feels like it evaporates off the tongue for several minutes.

I am highly impressed with this one, and find myself wondering what else the world of Darjeeling has to offer. I guess we'll find out!

Castleton Wiry Clonal

This one is as smooth as the last one, and also has the lack of astringency typically found in most Darjeelings. This one has a darker brew, but a slightly more subtle flavor. The flavor is a bit more well defined, however, and comes to a bit more of a point. The muscatel has a slightly more sweet-tart flavor that reminds me a bit more of darker grapes mixed in with the characteristic white grape. The flavor is a bit more complex, with the different nuances playing together in a bit more interesting way. Although it may not have quite the same level of quality as the Imperial, I think I do find the flavor a bit more interesting.

Makiabari Vintage Muscatel

This one is a bit closer to the typical Darjeelings I am used to, although it lacks the heavy astringency that I don't usually care for and it is a bit smoother. It has the famous muscatel flavor, but has a bit more of a sour note that reminds me of a wine. It does have more of the bite that is typical of black teas than the previous ones. While it does not have much astringency, it does leave the surface of the tongue a bit dry. While this one doesn't have the greatest complexity, it does have a nice round maturity that is true to the name.

Lochan Oolong Imperial

Now we're more in the realm of my home field: oolong. I've had some cheaper Indian oolong, including a more generic Darjeeling oolong and wasn't very impressed. While this still isn't something I would choose over a baozhong, Wuyi yan cha, or gaoshan, I was still pleasantly surprised. It has a nice mellowness that is not unexpected from an oolong. It is rather sweet flavor with a heavily subdued muscatel note in the center and a texture that is like a very light wood. In a way the woody aspect almost reminds me of the inside skin of tree bark, in a strange way, including the rusty color that matches the color of the infusion. The aftertaste begins with a quick bloom of sweetness that quickly fades to a fairly pronounced drying. The dryness is a bit more than I typically like in a tea, but it's not a profound astringency.

Margaret's Hope Muscatel Delight - 2006 & 2007

2007

Well I kind of messed up on this one. I tried using more leaf, as per Ankit Lochan's recommendation on the Tea Nerd blog, but it came out horribly bitter. I can't help but think that brewing like this may be for those that like to add milk to their tea, which I do not care for (although I will use sugar sometimes). Unfortunately I used most of the sample, but I did have some left. I mixed the last 1.5 grams of dry leaf that I had left with some of the already-steeped leaves from the first round, and between the two infusions I think I have an approximation of what it should taste like.

This one is more of the typical Darjeelings that I'm used to, although the dry leaf was a bit darker than most of what I have seen elsewhere. It has the usual astringency that is typical of Darjeelings, although it's not totally out of balance. I've found that I can take bigger sips of the tea to keep it from becoming to unpleasant for my tastes. This one can be felt in the back of the throat, which I like (but wasn't attuned to until recently). The muscatel is quite pronounced, and was noticeable with the cup a few feet away. This one is a bit more "wild" than some of the previous ones, however. It's not quite as mature or refined, but I would call it a good basic Darjeeling. One thing it does have that I don't find as much of in the others is a slightly woody character that seems to provide the foundation for the muscatel.

2006

I actually like this one a bit better than the newer one. I am actually noticing a slightly more "green" vegetal aspect instead of the woody character. This one is a bit better refined - perhaps a year of age has helped it a bit. I would also say it's a bit rounder and smoother, and the muscatel is in better harmony with the rest. The astringency is not as pronounced, and does more to clean the palate than really dry it out. The muscatel is a bit strange to try to describe, but it's like a purple grape flavor in a white grape body. The flavor overall is quite full.

Big thanks to Ankit Lochan for the samples! I will get the others tasted and reviewed as soon as possible.

Half-Dipper Tasting

Although I'm a bit late posting them, here's my notes from the 3 unnamed puerh tasting samples from Dragon TeaHouse, arranged by Hobbes of the Half-Dipper blog. Big thanks to both Dragon TeaHouse and Hobbes!


Red

I had a bit of a hard time getting this one steeped to a right balance. The first was a bit too light, although it was sweet and smooth, the second was powerfully bitter but with some sugar was nice, thick with a very slight smoky note in the aroma and a taste of light wood, mushrooms, and a light citrusy tang. I think there's some slight floral vegetal notes in the taste, but they are more of a nuance than a defining character. The third infusion I think I finally got right. The bitterness is present, but not entirely off-putting. It actually remains a bit subdued, just under the surface, until the finish when it blooms for just a couple of seconds and fades into a nice sweetness. In this infusion I can get some vague glimpses of vegetation surrounding the tea trees, but it's hard to tease them apart enough to identify. The aftertaste seems to produce a hit of rubber, and has very little astringency.

Overall this is a relatively lively but subdued sheng. It's not something I would drink often young, but it may be interesting to see how it develops with some age. It's not particularly striking, but it's certainly better than many cheap young shengs I have tried. Perhaps a decent choice as a basic addition to a collection for storage.

Blue

Unfortunately I had something of a hard time with this one. When I first got the samples I wanted to try each one first before taking notes, rather than writing and tasting one at a time. I really really liked this one, but the second time around I kept getting very bitter brews without the same sweetness of the first. I realized that beyond the first tasting, the rest of the sample got broken up to bits, with even a fair amount of dust, which was probably due to the shipping. This, of course, makes it more bitter and astringent than it would otherwise be. So unfortunately I was unable to reproduce what I liked so much about the first one I had, so I have to go with what I have and try to remember what I'm missing. I'm adding a bit of sugar to try to make up for some of the changes as well.

The dry leaf has an almost minty aroma that is quite refreshing in itself, along with a character that I can only describe as being not unlike the smell of new books (in a good way). I suspect there's some rubber tree in there, but it's not too strong unless that's the book smell. The infusion carries much the same aroma, although the rubber tree is a bit more pronounced.

The taste is quite wild, which is expected for a young sheng, but not overpowering like many others. It's actually fairly smooth, and doesn't make my face flush or cause any pucker. While it doesn't have a lot of viscosity, it seems to coat the tongue and cleanse the palate, although there is not a lot of astringency. It is quite sweet, with a citrusy flavor not entirely unlike grapefruit. I believe there is some floral notes buried in there somewhere, but it can be hard for me to pick out in a young sheng - perhaps it's just that it stimulates the same areas of the mouth that something floral would.

I would be interested to see how this one ages. I'm really regretting not taking notes on the first round, and will have to make sure to do so next time, even if I don't intend to actually do the write-up until later. I may just have to purchase a cake of this, once we know what it is.

Green

Luckily this sample seems to have made it here fully intact. I don't detect any broken leaves whatsoever, which also leads me to believe that the cake is relatively loose and easy to pull apart. I think perhaps I should also mention that I picked out a number of buds to go in this round, which do seem to have tamed and sweetened this round compared to my initial tasting. I tried to keep it balanced with what I could see throughout the sample, but it's entirely possible that I used more than what would normally be used. I will be interested in seeing what the cake looks like whole. It can be difficult to get the same proportion of the different leaves when they're entirely loose.

The aroma in the dry leaf of this one impressed me. It had a nice aroma of what I assume to be camphor trees, and not just camphor alone but the whole tree. Unfortunately the aroma didn't carry over into the infusion as well as the blue sample did, but to be fair it is there a bit, but is accompanied by something that reminds me of Italian spices, but rather softened and tamed.

The taste in the first infusion is rather smooth and not over-powering. There is a slight bitterness that swells up momentarily as it goes down the throat, but it fades as quickly as it comes and does so before becoming unpleasant in any real way. There are several flavors coming together in this one, and it's a bit difficult for me to tease them apart. I would still say there is an undercurrent of Italian spices, but it's not exactly a defining characteristic. There is a bit of citrus in it, and with a bit of sugar it reminds me of mandarin orange, accompanied by what I can only call a "wild green" flavor and a slight grain texture. None of the flavors really come out over any of the others, they are all in equal proportions and the entire experience is fairly tame. There is a slight thickness to it, but it's not particularly pronounced either and seems to be responsible for the light grain texture. The aftertaste leaves a little dryness, but not too much and it dissipates fairly quickly.

The second infusion washed out some of the 'wild green', brought out more of the mushroom and tobacco notes that I see other tasters commenting on, reduced the thick and grainy aspects, and shifted the bitterness to well into the aftertaste. The aftertaste in subsequent infusions also seem to be getting more into the sinuses - a not unpleasant experience that seems to open up my nasal passages a bit and tingle the back of my throat a bit.

The third tastes much more like the first, curiously. The bitterness is more up front in this one. I would say it's equally smooth with the second infusion, but a bit thinner. With a little sugar I'm noticing a hint of tobacco or rubber and some various fruits - the previous flavors are mixed together equally and relegated to an undercurrent. At this point I'm starting to notice that energetic quality, but lucky for me it's still the middle of the day.

While the blue was more immediately pleasing, I liked this one for the complexity that comes out through the different infusions. Individual infusions were not particularly complex, but I was struck by the changes in each. I would say that this one is overall pleasant, and I like that each infusion brings out different nuances without the overall quality deteriorating. A very interesting one indeed.