Showing posts with label korean tea. Show all posts

Teas Unique Korean Mt. Jiri Joongjak (Third Pluck) Hwang Cha (Lightly Oxidized) Organic Single Estate Whole Leaf Red Tea

Korean Mt. Jiri Joongjak (ThirdPluck) Hwang Cha (Lightly Oxidized) Organic Single Estate Whole Leaf Red Tea
Origin: Mt. Jiri, Samsin Village, Hwagae District, Hadong County, Gyeongnam Province Korea
Harvest: Around April 28, 2016

Aroma: Malty and Raw Chestnuts
Flavor: Chocolate, Vegetal, Dates and Honey

Again I am back with another strange tea from Teas Unique, this time a red tea which historically I am not a fan of. Although this tea in particular felt like it could be a yellow tea if brewed under the right parameters. I only had enough to brew this twice; initially (this time) I did start off following the recommending brewing suggestions and then tried again using much cooler water and slightly shorter steeps.

I rather enjoyed this tea perhaps because it is so different then what I expected, even though it has some very orthodox red tea flavors. Perhaps despite being quite rich and smooth, this tea felt delicate. In fact I think I like this tea more so then the Mt. Jiri Sejak I already wrote about although not as much as the delicious Matchacolate Organic Green Tea Matcha White Chocolatebar I had that made me feel disgust with m\myself over how fast I ate it. 
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Teas Unique Korean Mt. Jiri Sejak (Second Pluck) Organic Single Estate Whole Leaf Green Tea

(Tea Provided For Review)

Origin: Mt. Jiri, Hadong County, Gyeongnam Province, Korea
Harvest: Around April 17, 2016


Dry Leaves:  The leaves are quite small and have a fairly dark blueish-green color with bits of gray towards the twisted tips. The dry leave was quite pretty, but it had quite a weak aroma. 

First Steeping
Temperature: 180oF
Brewing Time: One Minute
Aroma: Bell Pepper
Flavor: Cold Zucchini, Cold Soybeans and Brown Rice

Tasting Notes: I’ll admit I was immediately worried about how high the recommended brewing temperature was (and I am sad to admit that I did use the remainder of my sample to brew at a lower temperature and understand why Teas Unique recommends brewing at such a high temperature), but I did and it seems that most of the teas that I have sampled from Teas Unique can take quite a beating. 

The flavor was quite interesting; initially I had quite a bit of trouble describing what I tasted when my notes were entirely my feelings. I kept thinking of a hot lazy summer day and light vegetal notes. I ended up describing this tea as having a cold zucchini and cold soybean taste, but there was something crisp about it (think crisp apple), it feels like it would be perfect with a light vinegar drizzle.

Second Steeping
Temperature: 180oF
Brewing Time: One Minute and Thirty Seconds
Aroma: Bell Pepper
Flavor: Soybeans and Brown Rice

Tasting Notes: The bell pepper nose is still weak, but it is developing. While this tea still has quite a crisp taste to it, the initial zucchini taste is entirely gone.




Third Steeping
Temperature: 185oF
Brewing Time: Two Minutes
Aroma: Vegetal
Flavor: Brown Rice and Vegetal

Tasting Notes: The bell pepper nose has become either so light that I can no longer distinguish it or it has become murky, I am not sure which one I finally decided on. As for the taste, the vegetal notes from the previous steeping are still present, but no longer as developed. Although the brown rice notes that have been present since the beginning is still there, but has developed into quite an interesting thing, it sort of reminds me as a cross between a lightly roasted savory senbei and a sesame Jonbyong roll.




I am a little disappointed with this tea, I feel that I did this tea big disservice by not brewing this tea as long as Teas Unqiue recommended and using the remainder of my sample to brew at a much lower time and shorter steep, but I suppose that is what happens when one let’s follow one’s experiences before those of others. Regardless I rather liked this tea, it isn’t the punchiest of teas, but it is one of those teas that is a perfect complement to so many things.
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What-Cha's 2014 Korean Greens

What-Cha’s 2014 Korean Greens

I decided to my impressions on these three teas in a single post rather than separate ones since they are somewhat similar to each other, although each tea is distinct, perhaps not so much when comparing them to each other.


Origin: Dosimdawon, Hwagae Valley, Hadong Korea
Harvest: Sejak (Second Flush)
Dry Leaves: It’s quite obvious this tea is hand plucked, while there is nothing wrong with machine picked tea there are few tea producing countries that do so well most notably Japan and Taiwan. The leaves have a grassy aroma with floral undertones. Other than that the leaves are quite thin and remind me a little of Bahzhong crossed with Indian greens, especially the strands with the flattened tips.


Temperature: 140oF
Brewing Time: One Minute (+ Thirty Seconds for each subsequent infusion)
Aroma: Citrus Blossoms
Flavor: Fresh Corn, Sharp Citrus and Wet Grass
Tasting Notes: This was quite an interesting tea to begin with, I suspect it will either be my favorite of the three or the one I like the least. While it is tastes distinctly like a Korean green I cannot think of Senchas, it has a little bit of astringency from the citrus notes. Otherwise it feels very different from What-Cha’s 2013 Korean Greens that had more of a roasted corn taste than this. As an aside I am sad to say I ran out of the 100g of each of What-Cha’s 2013 Korean greens in March.


Origin: Soa Tea, Hwagae Valley, Hadong, Korea
Harvest:  Between Woojeon and Sejak (May 20th)

Dry Leaves: Once again another hand plucked tea, the leaves are a little curlier than the Dosimdawon Sejak and this has a stronger floral aroma than it and it feels like a much greener tea. For some reason the leaves remind me of praying mantis arms more so than sparrow’s tongue granted I have never seen a sparrow’s tongue.




Temperature: 140oF
Brewing Time: One Minute (+ Thirty Seconds for each subsequent infusion)
Aroma: Floral
Flavor: Corn and Grassy
Tasting Notes: This feels like much fresher than the Dosimdawon, although I suspect it is because it is lacking the sharp citrus notes and astringency. Other than that it had a rather unusual creamy mouthfeel, I hesitate to describe it as being thick or thin, but it stood out to me. Perhaps because it lacks the astringency it feels fresher? Regardless it was quite nice, it did feel a little light, perhaps I should use more leaves next time. This was my first Gukwoo and I rather enjoyed it; it tastes more like a Woojeon than a Sejak though.



Korea Yejeon Woojeon 2014 Sparrow's Tongue 'Jakseol'Green Tea
Origin: Yejeon Tea, Hwagae Valley, Hadong, Korea
Harvest: Woojeon (First Flush)
Dry Leaves: The leaves are a little strange; while the Soa Gukwoo and the Dosimdawon had long and thin leaves this has shorter and flat leaves. I cannot help, but notice there are quite a few smaller broken up leaves mixed in and the occasional silvery tip. I am a little perplexed by this tea, I suspect it is not hand plucked. Regardless this lacks the floral aroma the other two teas had instead it had a nice grassy scent.




Temperature: 140oF
Brewing Time: One Minute (+ Thirty Seconds for each subsequent infusion)
Aroma: Grassy
Flavor: Corn and Hay
Tasting Notes: Another Korean green that tastes like corn! Color me surprised; joking aside this feels and tastes like the 2013 Korean greens What-Cha stocks, not as fresh and clean as the first two teas of this post, and have a slight roasted corn taste. Unfortunately this tea stands out the least out of the three and I imagine it doesn’t fair well against What-Cha’s 2013 teas.


I did enjoy all three teas, but they have a very similar flavor profile. I kind of regret sampling all of these in one sitting, because I do not want to sound overly critical of the Woojeon at the same time I feel I had to sample these three teas in one setting because I knew these were going to be very similar to each other. I mentioned before that I occasionally feel overwhelmed when drinking multiple teas in one session, but at the same time I believe my feelings are stronger. Nevertheless I have yet to say which of these is my favorite and you can probably guess which I liked the least. I prefer the Dosimdawon over the Gukwoo because of the astigency and it is the one I am most likely to order again, but each has their own merits. At the time of writing this the a 5g sample of the Dosimdawon is being sold for $4.55, a 5g sample of the Gukwoo for $4.74 and a 5g sample of the Woojeon for $5.37. 
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What-Cha's Discover Korea 2013 Green Tea & Bonus Tea Flowers


So I decided to write a little on What-Cha’s Discover Korean Green tea 2013 sampler, even though I am glad I bought each tea individually. Before I get into my thoughts on these teas I have to say how astonished I am at how well this tea holds up very well for greens that are over a year old. I was surprised at how much better these Korean greens were compared to other Korean greens I tried this year. I have something of a sordid love affair with Korean teas, I enjoy the flavors often found in Korean teas, but they never seem worth the price What-Cha’s teas are the exception for me.


Korea Jukro Jungjak 2013 Sparrow's Tongue 'Jakseol' Green Tea
Origin: Jukro Tea Company, Hwagae Valley, Hadong, Korea
Harvest: Jungjak (Third flush)
Temperature: 160oF (increasing five degrees each subsequent infusion)
Brewing Time: One Minute (plus an additional minute for each subsequent infusion)
Aroma: Grassy, Floral and Cooked Spinach
Flavor: Corn, Grassy, Buttery and Ocean Air


Tasting Notes: You can tell it was made with love and handpicked, definitely the star of the three. This tastes like a yasaeng-cha (wild tea). It had a nice mouthfeel, it doesn’t feel that different from the other two teas, but there is certainly something there that I can’t quite put my finger on. It reminds me a little of a Japanese green, but it still is distinctly Korean. This is the most complex of the three and is definitely worth the price. At the time of writing this it was being sold at $20.80 for 50g and is easily worth that price. While it is the tea I have the least to say, it is my favorite of the three. It is deceptively simple, I wasn’t that impressed with my first infusion, but in my second I started to recognize the various flavors in this tea.



Korea Dong Cheon Sejak 2013 Sparrow's Tongue 'Jakseol' Green Tea
Origin: Dong Cheon, Hwagae Valley, Hadong, Korea
Harvest: Sejak (Second flush)
Temperature: 140oF (increasing five degrees each subsequent infusion)
Brewing Time: One Minute (plus an additional minute for each subsequent infusion)
Aroma: Roasted Corn, Grassy and slight wildflower
Flavor: Corn, Grassy, Lightly Roasted and Woodsy




Tasting Notes: This was the first of the three Korean greens I tried and I was kind of surprised that a Sejak is less expensive than a Jungjak. Although it is a very nice tea, the Jungjak was made with more care, but I digress. I liked this tea. It might be the one I would pick the most out of the three. I am not often a fan of roasted and woodsy teas, but I found that this had a very nice roast on it. I got eight infusions out of the leaves before it started to lose flavor. I drank until the thirteenth infusion though, it still had some left in the leaves, but it had become very thin by then. At the time of writing this is sold for $17.60 for 50g and is worth the price.







Korea Dong Cheon Daejak 2013 Sparrow's Tongue 'Jakseol' Green Tea
Origin: Dong Cheon, Hwagae Valley, Hadong, Korea
Harvest: Daejak (Fourth flush)
Temperature: 158oF (increasing five degrees each subsequent infusion)
Brewing Time: One Minute (plus an additional minute for each subsequent infusion)
Aroma: Corn and Grassy
Flavor: Corn and Grassy




Tasting Notes: While it is the simplest of the three, it stays very nice and stays relatively the same in subsequent infusions. I got thirteen infusions out of this and was quite satisfied with it before it started to lose flavor. I stopped at the fifteenth infusion, it might have had more to give, but I had stuff to do and I can’t spend the whole day drinking tea (much to my chagrin). I generally like trying more complex teas whose flavors wax and wane, but this was very nice daily drinker. This is the kind of tea that you’ll never feel an overwhelming urge for, but it is the type of tea that you can drink whenever. I am not saying to avoid this tea, but it is a very subtle tea that is not the type to dazzle you initially, but is the type that you find you really enjoy the more you drink. It sort of reminds me of the person we all know who you overlook and not realize how close you are to. At the time of writing this it cost $9.20 for 50g and it is definitely worth the price, for this very modest price it is a very introduction to Korean greens, it isn’t something that will amaze you, but it will certainly be comfortable to drink.

Whenever I do these posts with multiple teas I always struggle a bit, especially when talking about favorites. I almost want to say each tea is my favorite, but the Daejak is a good everyday type of tea, whereas the Sejak is the sort of tea I’d enjoy serving to others and the Jungjak is the kind of tea I’d like to hoard and never share. I loved all three of these, but the Jungjak and the Daejak stood out the most, the Sejak just didn’t shine as brilliantly as the other two. These are very similar teas and perhaps that is why I am having trouble with them whereas I had no trouble with comparing Beautiful Taiwan Teas Milk Oolong to What-Cha’s. I’ll admit I felt a little stressed when writing this, since these have very similar flavors. I am glad I didn’t drink these back to back or else I might have missed some of the nuances in these teas.
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