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Alex Zorach

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Member since Sep. 1st, 2009. Reviewed 1453 teas.

Reviews of Pure Tea (Camellia sinensis)

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Picture of Pure Oolong (Formerly China Oolong)

Pure Oolong (Formerly China Oolong) from Twinings

Style: Oolong Tea – Region: Fujian, China

50 / 100 Aroma: 4/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 3/5
Apr. 28th, 2010

The first sip of this oolong was delightful, but upon drinking a whole cup of it I wasn't as much of a fan. Significantly lighter than a black tea, the aroma is very floral, bordering on perfumey. Upon drinking more than a few sips, however, a lot of unpleasant qualities develop...there's a sourness, and some off qua...

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Picture of Koslanda Estate OP

Koslanda Estate OP from Upton Tea Imports

Style: Ceylon Black Tea – Region: Uva, Sri Lanka

63 / 100 Aroma: 6/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 4/5
Apr. 26th, 2010

Upton suggests that this tea has "raisin like nuances" and I'd go even father and be more direct: it smells and tastes a like raisins, and leaves an aftertaste of raisins! Smooth but without being weak. A fair amount of the rice-like quality that I find in many Ceylon teas, and almost a hint of wintergreen. Medium-b...

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Pure Ceylon Tea from New English Teas

Style: Ceylon Black Tea – Region: Sri Lanka / Ceylon

60 / 100 Aroma: 5/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 4/5
Apr. 24th, 2010

After being highly disappointed by the English Afternoon Tea of the same brand, this was a pleasant surprise. Again, very fine dust/fannings in the teabag, so I wasn't expecting much.

When I brewed the tea though I tasted an astonishingly complex, gentle Ceylon with a distinct high-grown character reminiscent of te...

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Picture of Japanese Ku-Ki Ho-Ji Cha (Roasted Ku-Ki Cha)

Japanese Ku-Ki Ho-Ji Cha (Roasted Ku-Ki Cha) from Upton Tea Imports

Style: Hojicha – Region: Japan

77 / 100 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 4/5
Apr. 23rd, 2010

Aroma powerful and enticing like a dark roast coffee. This tea foams when brewed, and the brewed cup is clearer and lighter in color than you'd expect from the aroma and dark color of the twigs. Unlike some kukicha, this tea seems to be made exclusively out of twigs with not even a bit of leaf.

Surprisingly, relat...

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Green Tea from Hsin Tung Yang

Style: Green Tea – Region: Taiwan / Formosa

53 / 100 Aroma: 3/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 3/5
Apr. 22nd, 2010

The dry leaf is flaky in appearance, meaning it is probably a steamed tea like a sencha. But the aroma is totally unlike sencha.

Brewing as I would Sencha, this comes out a cloudy grayish green, more yellowish than most Japanese teas but greener than most pan-fired teas.

This tea is packed with flavor: a rich, c...

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Picture of English Afternoon

English Afternoon from New English Teas

Style: Black Tea – Region: Blend

33 / 100 Aroma: 3/10 Flavor: 2/5 Value: 2/5
Apr. 21st, 2010

This teabag just contained dust and fannings. It was surprisingly weak, even when I brewed it for 4 minutes with boiling water, using less than one 8-oz cup with a single teabag.

Aroma weak, nondescript. Smooth...almost no bitterness, and very little astringency. But very little flavor of any sort. Highly disapp...

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Irish Breakfast Tea Bags from Taylors of Harrogate

Style: Irish Breakfast – Region: Blend

60 / 100 Aroma: 6/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 3/5
Apr. 19th, 2010

This is what I'd expect from this style: a very strong black tea, bitter, full-bodied, and very malty. It isn't my favorite type of tea but for what it is, and for the fact that it's in teabags, I think it's pretty good.

This tea really works best with one teabag per cup. It's strong enough that you can brew it mo...

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Picture of SEN-CHA Green Tea

SEN-CHA Green Tea from Maeda-en

Style: Sencha – Region: Japan

57 / 100 Aroma: 3/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 5/5
Apr. 17th, 2010

Aroma mostly of sweet corn. There's a hint of roast in there too...but it's not always pleasant...it almost resembles the stale coffee aroma you get if you run hot water through a coffee machine that hasn't been cleaned in a while. Slightly sweet and also with some pleasant bitterness, and very little astringency. T...

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Picture of Afternoon Darjeeling Tea Bags

Afternoon Darjeeling Tea Bags from Taylors of Harrogate

Style: Darjeeling Black Tea – Region: Darjeeling, India

47 / 100 Aroma: 4/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 3/5
Apr. 16th, 2010

Fruity, even for a Darjeeling, and mellow, except for some very strong objectionable qualities that emerge. There's a harshness in the aroma that I could do without...the aftertaste is also very tannic even though at first this tea tastes smooth. Astringent for a Darjeeling.

Disappointing. Definitely recognizable...

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Picture of Tung Ting Oolong

Tung Ting Oolong from Hsin Tung Yang

Style: Jade Oolong – Region: Taiwan / Formosa

63 / 100 Aroma: 6/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 3/5
Apr. 13th, 2010

I bought this in a 60g canister for $4 in Philadelphia's chinatown, and I wasn't expecting much because it seemed cheap for this style. This is barely recognizable as a Tung Ting / Dong Ding oolong: the leaves are broken, although in fairly large pieces, and although it's on the lighter side for an oolong, it seems to...

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Picture of Triple-Cup Extra Green

Triple-Cup Extra Green from Foojoy

Style: Green Tea – Region: Zhejiang, China

70 / 100 Aroma: 6/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 5/5
Apr. 12th, 2010

Aroma fresh and grassy, with a hint of toastiness and a faint suggestion of mint. Very delicate flavor: I'd call this one slightly brisk but not bitter. Remarkably full-bodied given the lightness of the flavor. The astringency builds somewhat upon drinking it but even by the end it's still enjoyable.

This tea is ...

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Picture of 'Wu Yi' Water Fairy Oolong

'Wu Yi' Water Fairy Oolong from Upton Tea Imports

Style: Shui Hsien Oolong – Region: Fujian, China

80 / 100 Aroma: 7/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 5/5
Apr. 9th, 2010

While I'm not normally a fan of "fake" teas, I'm eager to try ones that are honestly presented as imitating styles originating in other regions.

Aroma is very toasty, more like roasted Yerba Mate than other roasted teas. Nutty and earthy, with a sweet aftertaste that lingers. There is actually a lot of complexity ...

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Picture of 2005 Jing Mai Autumnal

2005 Jing Mai Autumnal from The Tao of Tea

Style: Ripened (Shou) Pu-erh – Region: Lancang, Yunnan, China

89 / 100 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 4/5
Apr. 8th, 2010

(Lot # Bing-Autumn10612-01)

This is my favorite shu/shou (ripened) Pu-erh of all time.

I did not enjoy this tea at first but it has since grown on me after drinking about a third of the cake. I found this tea to improve considerably as it has continued to age. Interestingly, I find it tastes more like aged shen...

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Picture of Pai Mu Tan Imperial

Pai Mu Tan Imperial from Upton Tea Imports

Style: White Peony Tea – Region: China

47 / 100 Aroma: 5/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 2/5
Apr. 6th, 2010

A darker white tea. This doesn't even resemble ZW56, Upton's other organic Pai Mu Tan offering. Much darker; if you just gave it to me I'd probably guess incorrectly that it was a Shou Mei.

Aroma is mostly of autumn leaves, with only a hint of peony and a faint suggestion of some other vegetal tones. Also, unusua...

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Picture of London Cuppa Loose Tea

London Cuppa Loose Tea from The London Cuppa

Style: Black Tea – Region: Blend

57 / 100 Aroma: 5/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 3/5
Apr. 5th, 2010

Very finely broken black tea--no semblance of whole leaf left in the mix. Aroma is mostly malty with a hint of rice-like tones. Fairly tannic even if brewed weakly.

The instructions on the tin said 3-4 minutes; 4 minutes yields a very strong cup, which some people may like, but I preferred 2 or less.

Overall ch...

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Picture of English Breakfast

English Breakfast from Darvilles of Windsor

Style: English Breakfast – Region: Blend

70 / 100 Aroma: 6/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 4/5
Apr. 3rd, 2010

This is a very strong black tea. While I tend to prefer slightly more mellow black teas, this tea is among one of the better teas of such strength that I've tried. Unusually malty for an English breakfast, and the malt is rich and fulfilling. Almost more like an Irish breakfast. Strongly bitter and strongly astring...

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Picture of English Breakfast

English Breakfast from Hampstead Tea

Style: English Breakfast – Region: India

63 / 100 Aroma: 5/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 4/5
Apr. 2nd, 2010

Aroma is rice-like, and very slightly malty, with a slight hint of smokiness, and somewhat fruity. Most of these qualities are very subtle. It's hard to say whether the aroma is balanced or muddled...it somehow straddles these two possibilities. I am not crazy about how the different aspects of the aroma blend toget...

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Picture of Greenfield Estate BOP1

Greenfield Estate BOP1 from Upton Tea Imports

Style: Ceylon Black Tea – Region: Uva, Sri Lanka

63 / 100 Aroma: 6/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 3/5
Mar. 25th, 2010

A solid, if somewhat generic black tea that is dark and full-bodied but tends on the mellow side of flavor.

The aroma is typical for a Ceylon black tea, and has only mild nuances of dried fruit and nut (like Upton suggests). I'm not really feeling the "citrus notes" but I do notice a sweet aftertaste. There's much...

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Picture of Huo Shan Yellow Buds

Huo Shan Yellow Buds from Upton Tea Imports

Style: Huangya – Region: Huoshan, Anhui, China

63 / 100 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 2/5 Value: 2/5
Mar. 23rd, 2010

This is the first yellow tea I've sampled and in many respects it resembles a green tea.

The aroma is fairly rich; there are some of the grassy tones that characterize many green teas, but these are weak and in the background. A bit peppery like Upton describes, and also a bit perfumey. Subtle, but with a lot of d...

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Picture of Prince of Wales

Prince of Wales from Twinings

Style: Black Tea – Region: China

53 / 100 Aroma: 5/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 4/5
Mar. 22nd, 2010

Fairly light overall, especially compared to Twinings' other black teas. There's some complexity in the aroma, in my opinion, more than their other black teas with the exception of their Ceylon (my favorite). Smooth...less astringency or bitterness. I find you can steep this one a little longer without it becoming t...

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Picture of Luxury Blend Tea

Luxury Blend Tea from Chai Bora

Style: Black Tea – Region: Tanzania

57 / 100 Aroma: 5/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 4/5
Mar. 19th, 2010

I was pleasantly surprised with this teabag; it's just fannings/dust and doesn't look like much, but even the dry teabag is pleasantly aromatic. The name surprised me--I was expecting a kind of spiced tea but then I realized that "Chai Bora" is just the brand name. And "chai" just means tea after all!

The brewed t...

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Picture of Tie-Guan-Yin Oolong First Grade

Tie-Guan-Yin Oolong First Grade from Upton Tea Imports

Style: Tie Guan Yin – Region: China

67 / 100 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 4/5
Mar. 16th, 2010

The tightly curled brown leaves unfurl only partially when brewing...producing a tea that's completely clear and golden in color.

Complex aroma, strongly suggesting apricot, and also having some skunky tones, and a hint of olive. Smooth, mellow flavor, contrasting with the aroma, which suggests a sharper tea. No as...

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Picture of Floral Tie-Guan-Yin Superior Grade

Floral Tie-Guan-Yin Superior Grade from Upton Tea Imports

Style: Tie Guan Yin – Region: China

73 / 100 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 3/5
Mar. 15th, 2010

Aroma very much like a Dong Ding Jade Oolong, very floral, but with a faint hint of a woody quality absent from those teas; this tea tastes very slightly more oxidized. Very smooth, but leaving a tingling sensation in the mouth. The aroma is very pleasing, but not terribly complex.

Using Upton's instructions I bre...

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Picture of Formosa Oolong Extra Fancy

Formosa Oolong Extra Fancy from Upton Tea Imports

Style: Oolong Tea – Region: Taiwan / Formosa

67 / 100 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 3/5
Mar. 12th, 2010

When I bought this tea it was the second-highest-priced grade of the standard "Formosa oolongs" in Upton's catalogue. They've since switched things around and discontinued this tea.

I found this tea, moving up from the lowest grades (TT11-TT17), to be the first one that offered an appreciable difference, the first ...

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Picture of Tie-Guan-Yin Oolong 2nd Grade

Tie-Guan-Yin Oolong 2nd Grade from Upton Tea Imports

Style: Tie Guan Yin – Region: China

67 / 100 Aroma: 7/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 3/5
Mar. 11th, 2010

Aroma is subtle and complex, but on the weak side: mostly of peach, with some weaker earthy tones. Flavor is tangy, with little bitterness. The aftertaste has a mild astringency. Thin-bodied.

Following Upton's recommendations I found worked alright--for a first cup. However, I tried to brew a second cup and ther...

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