Reviews of Teas & Herbal Teas from Simpson & Vail
Page 1 2 of 2 pages with 42 results
Mini Tuo-cha Pu-erh Tea from Simpson & Vail
Style: Ripened (Shou) Pu-erh – Region: Yunnan, China33 / 100 Aroma: 4/10 Flavor: 1/5 Value: 1/5
Jul. 3rd, 2012
This tea is ripened (Shu) Pu-erh, which I tend to be less a fan of than raw (sheng) Pu-erh. The dry leaf, when compressed, is very tightly packed, and relatively unaromatic. Upon steeping, it becomes evident that the leaf of this tea is finely broken. The leaf is slow to infuse while still compressed but once the ca...
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Kaori Green Tea from Simpson & Vail
Style: Green Tea – Region: China63 / 100 Aroma: 6/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 4/5
Jul. 2nd, 2012
Dry leaf is finely broken yet twiggy; has a strong, unique aroma, like celery or dried dill, very fresh and herbaceous, and quite different from what I am used to from a green tea.
The brewed cup is surprisingly similar in aroma to the dry leaf. The cup has a cooling quality, slightly brisk, with some astringency a...
Kenya Green Tea from Simpson & Vail
Style: Green Tea – Region: Kenya57 / 100 Aroma: 6/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 2/5
Jun. 29th, 2012
The leaf of this tea is broken in large, rounded chunks, unlike the shape of any loose-leaf green tea that I've seen yet.
Brewed as instructed, it produces a cup with a clear, golden green. Flavor is clean and crisp without being sharp. Seems to have a slight cooling quality, very refreshing. If steeped too long,...
Huangtian Village's Fire Green Pearl Tea - Premium from Simpson & Vail
Style: Green Tea – Region: Qimen, Anhui, China90 / 100 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 5/5
Jun. 28th, 2012
I thought this was a top-notch green tea!
Dry leaf is tightly rolled and pleasingly aromatic, with a floral aroma suggesting orchid. Upon steeping, the leaf is slow to unfurl and slow to infuse, and the more familiar grassy aromas of green tea begin to slowly come out. The leaves are completely intact and unbroken...
White Pearl from Simpson & Vail
Style: White Tea – Region: Fujian, China67 / 100 Aroma: 7/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 2/5
Jun. 27th, 2012
Smallish pearls unfurl to olive-colored leaf with lots of tip. Tea seems much more oxidized than normal for a tippy white tea.
I did not like the steeping recommendations; the cup came out quite bland when steeped this way, but this is always true for me of delicate white teas, like silver needle and others. I fo...
Darjeeling, Dooteriah Estate - 2nd Flush from Simpson & Vail
Style: Darjeeling Second Flush – Region: Darjeeling, India80 / 100 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 4/5
Jun. 26th, 2012
The dry leaf of this tea has the greenest color of any second flush Darjeeling I've ever seen. When brewed, the result is rather oolong-like.
Color is a light amber, lighter than most 2nd Flush Darjeeling. Very clean, crisp, mouthfeel, with considerable sweetness. Slightly edgy and tangy but with little astringen...
Kenya Oolong Tea from Simpson & Vail
Style: Oolong Tea – Region: Kenya80 / 100 Aroma: 7/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 5/5
Jun. 25th, 2012
This was a very interesting tea for my to try; it was the first oolong I've sampled that was produced in Africa.
A peculiar tea among oolongs, but more normal when compared to green and black teas. Dry leaf looks more like a black tea than an oolong...dark brown, and highly broken. I brewed it with boiling water. ...
Kenya OP Malaika Black Tea from Simpson & Vail
Style: Black Tea – Region: Kenya67 / 100 Aroma: 7/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 4/5
Jun. 22nd, 2012
Dry leaf has a pleasing aroma, reminiscent of some of the best Kenyan teas I've had, but not quite as strongly aromatic.
A good black tea, and a very typical example of Kenyan black teas: strong and robust, but slightly lighter and slightly less edgy than an Assam.
Brews a rich, full-bodied cup. Moderate strengt...
Vietnam Green Organic from Simpson & Vail
Style: Green Tea – Region: Vietnam63 / 100 Aroma: 6/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 4/5
Jun. 18th, 2012
A unique green tea, almost bizarre. Large but tightly-curled dry leaf reminds me of some Korean and Ceylon greens. The leaf has a strong, peppery aroma, and is also suggestive of other Vietnam green teas I've sampled. Leaf is slow to infuse and produces many infusions. Flavor is remarkably consistent through differ...
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Vietnam Imperial Oolong Tea from Simpson & Vail
Style: Oolong Tea – Region: Vietnam83 / 100 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 4/5
Jun. 18th, 2012
I agree with Simpson and Vail that this is a superior tea; it's definitely my favorite tea to come out of Vietnam yet, and is on par with some of the better Taiwanese oolongs.
This oolong has a bright green leaf, loosely rolled into fairly large pellets of unequal size. It unfurls quite quickly into medium-size, wh...
Bolivian Black Tea, Tippy Small Leaf from Simpson & Vail
Style: Black Tea – Region: Bolivia67 / 100 Aroma: 7/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 2/5
Jun. 16th, 2012
I have been wanting to try this tea for some time! I was quite disappointed to learn that the operation is being closed down, in what I see as an unintended consequence of the US "war on drugs".
Broken leaf...looks and smells a lot like a strong breakfast tea, and the brewed cup is similar as well.
Brews a rich,...
San Xia Cloud Mist Green Tea from Simpson & Vail
Style: Clouds & Mist (Yun Wu) – Region: Jiangsu, China73 / 100 Aroma: 6/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 3/5
Jun. 12th, 2012
An unusual tea among Chinese greens, almost reminiscent of some green teas from Darjeeling and elsewhere in the the Himalayan region.
Dark, curled dry leaf with little aroma.
Brewed cup has a dark brownish-green liquor, very clear. Simpson and Vail describes this tea as vegetal, with a fresh spinach aroma, and I...
Nepal, Mist Valley Black Tea from Simpson & Vail
Style: Black Tea – Region: Nepal90 / 100 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 5/5
Jun. 11th, 2012
Although the leaf of this tea was not particularly aromatic, this black tea immediately struck me as very high in quality when I sipped the cup. I'm noticing a trend that teas from Simpson and Vail often surprise me with the brewed cup, after the dry leaf fails to impress. With this tea, I was able to brew two very f...
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Nepal Sakhira, Black Tea from Simpson & Vail
Style: Black Tea – Region: Nepal73 / 100 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 4/5
Jun. 8th, 2012
Creamy, but with a bold quality to it. Somewhat Darjeeling-like in aroma, but darker in appearance and flavor than most second-flush or autumnal Darjeeling.
Aroma fruity and floral, with some of the characteristic muscatel grape qualities.
I really like the aroma of this tea. My only complaint is that this cup ...
Ceylon Blackwood Estate Organic Green Tea from Simpson & Vail
Style: Green Tea – Region: Uva, Sri Lanka80 / 100 Aroma: 7/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 4/5
Jun. 6th, 2012
Simpson and Vail informs me that Blackwood estate is part of Idulgashinna estate, if you're familiar with that one (I am not).
This tea had a similar flavor profile to other Ceylon greens that I've had: it was similar in some ways to Chinese green teas, but with a darker character, and more vegetal, but slightly les...
Vietnam Black Tea from Simpson & Vail
Style: Black Tea – Region: Vietnam67 / 100 Aroma: 6/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 4/5
Jun. 5th, 2012
Dry leaf has a mild, but very pleasing aroma, surprisingly suggestive of sweetness.
The brewed cup has a lighter golden color, than one would expect from the dark color of the leaf. Flavor is smooth, with a honey-like sweetness, a pleasing crispness, and minimal astringency. Full-bodied yet with a cooling quality....
Java Malabar Plantation Black Tea from Simpson & Vail
Style: Black Tea – Region: West Java, Indonesia77 / 100 Aroma: 7/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 5/5
Dec. 14th, 2010
Thank you Marlena for sharing this one!
Aroma is unique, and hard to describe, very clean and cool, yet deep. A suggestion of wintergreen, like I've only ever encountered in Ceylon teas from the Uva region. I can see the licorice and grilled vegetables Marlena describes, as well. The aroma suggests savory qualiti...
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