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Alex Zorach

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Member since Sep. 1st, 2009. Reviewed 1448 teas.

Reviews of Pure Tea (Camellia sinensis)

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Picture of China Breakfast

China Breakfast from Rishi Tea

Style: Yunnan Red – Region: Yunnan, China

70 / 100 Aroma: 9/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 3/5
Nov. 3rd, 2009

Wow. I love the aroma of this tea...it is much more vegetal than most black teas, clean and fresh, and yet warm too. Smooth and yet relatively full-bodied, but thin relative to some breakfast teas. No astringency.

I do notice the peppery tones characteristic of a dian hong. The aroma is pleasingly complex. Ther...

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Picture of Organic Darjeeling Black Pyramid Tea

Organic Darjeeling Black Pyramid Tea from Equal Exchange

Style: Darjeeling Black Tea – Region: Darjeeling, India

80 / 100 Aroma: 7/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 4/5
Oct. 31st, 2009

Aroma spicy, unusually vegetal for a tea this dark, and unusually malty for a Darjeeling. Very interesting and complex! Dark liquor and tastes more like other black teas than most Darjeelings; I would not describe it as "golden" or "light". Remarkably bold and full-bodied and yet with little bitterness or astringenc...

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Picture of Oolong #18 / Jade Oolong

Oolong #18 / Jade Oolong from Adagio Teas

Style: Jade Oolong – Region: Taiwan / Formosa

57 / 100 Aroma: 6/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 2/5
Oct. 29th, 2009

Beautifully fragrant leaves and beautifully fragrant brewed tea. Sweet, light, orchid-like floral aroma. Weak flavor, with a very clean taste...sweet with a hint of tanginess and no bitterness. Upon drinking, what seemed like a pleasantly strong aroma becomes too weak.

Adagio recommends brewing 5 minutes with 180...

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Picture of Pouchong

Pouchong from Adagio Teas

Style: Pouchong Tea – Region: Taiwan / Formosa

43 / 100 Aroma: 4/10 Flavor: 2/5 Value: 2/5
Oct. 28th, 2009

Aroma light, vegetal, honey-like, and floral, but unfortunately, also a bit soapy. My main complaint is that this tea is so bland!

Flavor is extremely mild; a hint of sweetness, no bitterness, and absolutely no astringency whatsoever. Very clean aftertaste. More aromatic than flavorful. Although all pouchongs te...

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Picture of Dancong Aria

Dancong Aria from Adagio Teas

Style: Dancong Oolong – Region: China

67 / 100 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 3/5
Oct. 27th, 2009

Aroma very complex with a lot of things going on. The dark leaves surprisingly brew a light amber liquor that is very clear. Initially a strong fruity aroma like dried apricot, some vegetal tones. Upon drinking, a bit peppery. Very smooth and clean. No bitterness, rather sweet, but with some astringency. A bit th...

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Picture of China Pu-Erh Leaf

China Pu-Erh Leaf from Upton Tea Imports

Style: Pu-erh Tea – Region: Yunnan, China

53 / 100 Aroma: 5/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 4/5
Oct. 20th, 2009

This is not my favorite loose-leaf ripened pu-erh. It's palatable and noticeably better than random ones I've sampled. The aroma is dusty, not terribly rich or complex. Pretty smooth flavor. Enjoyable. I prefer ZH26.

And of course, I really strongly prefer Sheng Pu-erh. I do not think Pu-erh is Upton's strong ...

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Picture of Pu-erh Loose Jia Ji

Pu-erh Loose Jia Ji from Upton Tea Imports

Style: Pu-erh Tea – Region: China

47 / 100 Aroma: 4/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 2/5
Oct. 20th, 2009

Perhaps I'm not a "discerning pu-erh enthusiast" but I failed to appreciate this one any more than Upton's basic loose pu-erh, and it's about twice the price. The aroma is somehow lighter and less rich and earthy. It does have a clean aftertaste as described, but it's less intensely aromatic. I prefer ZH26 and altho...

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Picture of Organic Pu-Erh

Organic Pu-Erh from Upton Tea Imports

Style: Pu-erh Tea – Region: China

57 / 100 Aroma: 5/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 3/5
Oct. 20th, 2009

I find this pu-erh to have a richer and warmer earthy aroma as compared to both ZH20 and ZH65. Very smooth but with some nice complexity. While you can make multiple infusions with this tea, later infusions lose some of the complexity...I usually make only one very long infusion.

In the end though? I don't really...

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Picture of English Teatime

English Teatime from Bigelow Tea

Style: Black Tea – Region: ?????

53 / 100 Aroma: 6/10 Flavor: 1/5 Value: 3/5
Oct. 18th, 2009

Aroma is mellow, warm, and keemun-like. But this tea is much more bitter and astringent than most keemuns--unpleasantly so. The bitterness sinks to the bottom of the cup, leaving an unpleasant surprise ending to a tea that starts out very smooth.

I recommend brewing this one briefly, only a minute or two, for best...

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Picture of Decaf Black Tea

Decaf Black Tea from Lipton Tea

Style: Black Tea – Region: ?????

33 / 100 Aroma: 3/10 Flavor: 1/5 Value: 2/5
Oct. 18th, 2009

I swear this tastes like it has a significant amount of pu-erh in it...it has that earthy, dust-like quality to it. I never used to like lipton's decaf until I started liking pu-erh and then my appreciation of it increased slightly--but only very slightly. It really could be a lot more bland than it is. But it's sti...

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Picture of Japanese Ho-ji Cha

Japanese Ho-ji Cha from Upton Tea Imports

Style: Hojicha – Region: Japan

73 / 100 Aroma: 7/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 4/5
Oct. 14th, 2009

A rich roasted aroma, fairly mellow flavor, with only a little bitterness. Exactly what I would expect of this style. Some hints of the freshness of green tea remain. Moderate level of roast. A few mildly objectionable tones in the aroma...hard to describe...like a slight stale quality (even though overall the tea ...

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Picture of Special Grade Shou Mei White Tea

Special Grade Shou Mei White Tea from Upton Tea Imports

Style: Shou Mei White Tea – Region: China

77 / 100 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 3/5
Oct. 14th, 2009

Deep reddish brown color, and very clear. More delicate than typical for a Shou Mei, but still fairly rich and full. Very smooth flavor; no bitterness, and a clean, cool aftertaste.

Unlike Upton's other Shou Mei's for which I found the brewing instructions to be right on, this one I like to brew differently. I br...

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Picture of First Grade Shou Mei White Tea

First Grade Shou Mei White Tea from Upton Tea Imports

Style: Shou Mei White Tea – Region: Fujian, China

60 / 100 Aroma: 6/10 Flavor: 2/5 Value: 4/5
Oct. 14th, 2009

Brownish leaves with some silvery and green mixed in. Light aroma of fall leaves and honey with some vegetal tones. Some astringency and a noticeably unpleasant sourness, although no bitterness.

Of Upton's 3 Shou Mei teas of similar price (see ZW62, ZW23), this is the one I like least. This one is much more simil...

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Picture of Shou Mei Classic

Shou Mei Classic from Upton Tea Imports

Style: Shou Mei White Tea – Region: Fujian, China

80 / 100 Aroma: 9/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 5/5
Oct. 14th, 2009

Of Upton three Shou Mei's of similar price, this is my favorite. Leaves greener as Shou Mei goes. Aroma is fresh, clean and vegetal, perhaps even a bit grassy. Very rich aroma; this is the most aromatic of any Shou Mei that I've sampled. Less sweet than most white teas. My only complaint is a fair amount of astrin...

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Picture of Season's Pick Shou Mei

Season's Pick Shou Mei from Upton Tea Imports

Style: Shou Mei White Tea – Region: Fujian, China

73 / 100 Aroma: 7/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 5/5
Oct. 13th, 2009

This is one of the naturally sweetest teas I have ever tried, with an aroma of cinnamon, honey, caramel, and autumn leaves. Rich, warm, and very gentle. Absolutely no bitterness whatsoever...just a hint of astringency in the aftertaste.

This is one of 3 of Upton's Shou Mei teas of very similar price and I want to ...

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Picture of Himalayan BOP

Himalayan BOP from Upton Tea Imports

Style: Black Tea – Region: Himalayas

88 / 100 Aroma: 8/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 5/5
Oct. 13th, 2009

This tea definitely resembles a Darjeeling but it packs a bit more of a punch--more bitterness and astringency. People who like the aroma profile and lighter color of Darjeelings but find them a bit too mellow may really like this tea. The finely broken leaves have a good mix of greener and olive-colored leaves. Rem...

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Picture of Darjeeling

Darjeeling from Two Leaves and a Bud

Style: Darjeeling Black Tea – Region: Darjeeling, India

73 / 100 Aroma: 7/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 3/5
Oct. 4th, 2009

This used to be the best Darjeeling I've had in a tea bag...and better than some loose-leaf ones I've tried. I have since come to prefer Ahmad's Darjeeling though, which is much cheaper.

Fairly light, but still with some bite. This is the sort of Darjeeling tea that I like. The aroma has some interesting complexi...

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Picture of Formosa Amber Oolong Select

Formosa Amber Oolong Select from Upton Tea Imports

Style: Amber Oolong – Region: Taiwan / Formosa

93 / 100 Aroma: 9/10 Flavor: 5/5 Value: 5/5
Oct. 4th, 2009

The dry leaves were not very aromatic, but when I brewed it...wow.

This tea has a very rich and complex aroma: bold, earthy, with some nutty and woody tones, and a floral quality as well. Of all the teas I've tried from Upton, this is the one which seems to deviate the most from its lower-grade counterpart--this ha...

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Picture of Assam

Assam from Two Leaves and a Bud

Style: Assam – Region: Assam, India

68 / 100 Aroma: 6/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 3/5
Oct. 4th, 2009

Mellow, smooth, rich malty flavor. Deep red color; little bitterness or astringency. Very enjoyable. I find this tea grows on me. There is a suggestion of sweet fruit in the aroma, almost like baked apples.

Two leaves and a bud recommends a 4-minute infusion. I prefer a 2-minute infusion followed by a second 4-...

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Picture of Tamayokucha

Tamayokucha from Two Leaves and a Bud

Style: Tamaryokucha (Guricha) – Region: China

50 / 100 Aroma: 5/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 2/5
Oct. 4th, 2009

This is the only example of guricha or tamaryokucha that I've tried, so I have no idea how typical it is. It seemed a lot more like gyokuro than any other type of green tea.

I find this tea painstakingly difficult to brew in a way I like. Brewing with a very low temperature is essential...otherwise this tea acquir...

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Picture of Pouchong Tea

Pouchong Tea from Ten Ren Tea

Style: Pouchong Tea – Region: ?????

57 / 100 Aroma: 5/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 4/5
Sep. 30th, 2009

This is the only Pouchong I've ever found in teabags. Compared to loose Pouchong, it doesn't stack up. The aroma is flat and there is an unpleasant biting quality to the tea. Compared to other equally-inexpensive green teas, however, this is not bad.

The aroma is vegetal and a bit fishy. There's a bit of sharpne...

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Picture of PG Tips Pyramid bags

PG Tips Pyramid bags from PG Tips

Style: Black Tea – Region: Blend

43 / 100 Aroma: 4/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 2/5
Sep. 28th, 2009

These teabags seem to be meant for more than one cup. The tea brews very rapidly and is very strong. It wasn't terribly complex; it had a muted quality...very bitter aftertaste but initial taste was a bit smoother. Very tannic; do not let this steep too long; a very brief (1 min.) infusion I find is best. Even then...

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Picture of Premium Green Tea

Premium Green Tea from Stash Tea

Style: Green Tea – Region: Brazil

60 / 100 Aroma: 6/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 4/5
Sep. 28th, 2009

Aroma grassy, fresh, a bit fishy. There's a hint of sweetness...a lot of astringency though. More like a sencha than any other kind of green tea. Is this tea attempting to be a sencha?

This tea is very difficult to brew. It scalds easily if the water is too hot, leaving it bitter and sour; there are a generous a...

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Picture of Green Tea

Green Tea from Ten Ren Tea

Style: Green Tea – Region: ?????

67 / 100 Aroma: 6/10 Flavor: 4/5 Value: 4/5
Sep. 27th, 2009

This is a very enjoyable green tea. Although this tea is steamed, it is much mellower than a typical sencha--less sharp. Less grassy than Ten Ren's dragon well. The tea brews a more golden color, less greenish. Less bitter and astringent than the majority of teabag teas on the market. Compared to Ten Ren's Dragonw...

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Picture of PuErh Tea

PuErh Tea from Ten Ren Tea

Style: Pu-erh Tea – Region: ?????

53 / 100 Aroma: 5/10 Flavor: 3/5 Value: 3/5
Sep. 27th, 2009

I bought this tea long ago, after being impressed with the quality of Ten Ren's tea bags, and wanting to try all their teas.

Aroma is dusty but clean. Flavor is smooth. Not quite as full-bodied as some pu-erh tea bags, and not as much complexity in the earthy aroma, but this is really not bad. Pu-erhs can be hard...

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