my teapot gave to me
twelve passionfruits,
eleven orchid bunches,
ten golden lilies,
nine imperial beauties,
eight pomelo peels,
seven osmanthus blossoms,
six leaves of mint,
five wen shan bao zhongs,
four types of flowers,
three sprigs of lavender,
two strawberries,
and a single cup of juicy lychee.Today's tea: Passionfruit Oolong, from Naivetea
Talk about a whirlwind week-and-some of tea tasting! I'll typically have a cup of tea every couple of days, maybe once a week, but wow...this mini-project really had me drinking a lot of tea. Not complaining, mind, given the high quality of the teas I got to drink, but I think I might skip reviews for a bit in favor of other content. Unless, of course, someone has strong objections to this. In the meantime, diving right into the next cup of oolong...
And wow, I'm glad I left this one till last. The smell is incredible! If there's one tea I wish you all could smell, it would be this one. The passionfruit scent is intense, and has actually permeated my kitchen. If you've never smelled a passionfruit before, you ought to now. It's lusciously tropical, and richly creamy. Imagine a tropical bird that has crashlanded somewhere unexpected and looks utterly out of place with its' colorful plumage. Next to the smell of regular old apples and oranges, that's what passionfruit is.
[getting up close and personal with passionflowers - via Stewart Lines]
It continues to smell just as divine when brewed, albeit less intense. This has not been the case with some other teas, which smell amazing dry but when brewed just smell like boring old wet tea leaves. But this one stays impressive. The first brew, at one minute, yields a hint of passionfruit that deepens as the water cools. This tea is slightly drying, but for the flavor, I am willing to put up with it.
With each subsequent brew the passionfruit flavor comes through more, though never enough to be overwhelming. It stands up well to multiple brewings, though at a certain point I had to stop drinking simply because I'd had enough. The passionfruit flavor remains lovely and sweetly fruity. I don't taste a lot of oolong in this, though obviously it's there. I do wish I had more of this tea, so I could make iced tea and add some hibiscus syrup (just enough to lightly flavor it). Then it would be like taking a dip in a tropical ocean somewhere. Yum.
And that's that on my ooolong series! Thanks again to Naivetea for graciously providing samples of their delicious teas. Once again, I feel I should remind my readers that while they did provide me with samples, they did not dictate how these reviews were written nor bestow compensation to me. I reviewed these teas honestly and thoroughly enjoyed the experience.
Refreshingly fruity without being all fruit. A bit of dryness, but certainly no bitterness. Good hot, and I suspect it would also be good iced.
With each subsequent brew the passionfruit flavor comes through more, though never enough to be overwhelming. It stands up well to multiple brewings, though at a certain point I had to stop drinking simply because I'd had enough. The passionfruit flavor remains lovely and sweetly fruity. I don't taste a lot of oolong in this, though obviously it's there. I do wish I had more of this tea, so I could make iced tea and add some hibiscus syrup (just enough to lightly flavor it). Then it would be like taking a dip in a tropical ocean somewhere. Yum.
And that's that on my ooolong series! Thanks again to Naivetea for graciously providing samples of their delicious teas. Once again, I feel I should remind my readers that while they did provide me with samples, they did not dictate how these reviews were written nor bestow compensation to me. I reviewed these teas honestly and thoroughly enjoyed the experience.
Refreshingly fruity without being all fruit. A bit of dryness, but certainly no bitterness. Good hot, and I suspect it would also be good iced.
Taken from http://thatpourgirl.blogspot.com/
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