Hatvala Three Moon Estate Oolong

Hatvala Three Moons Estate Oolong
Origin: Son La, Vietnam
Harvest: 2016
Cultivar: Quingxin
 I’ve been in the mood for oolongs a lot recently and have been having trouble finding one, not necessarily because a lack of good options since almost sixty percent of my tea horde is oolongs at the moment. I decided to sample Hatvala’s Three Moon Estate oolong, I’ve had it sitting in my to be sampled pile for at least a month, recently I haven’t been as attentive to how long I’ve not touched an unopened box.
 Aroma: Floral and Toasted Nuts
Flavor: Floral, Honeydew and Vegetal

I was initially a little off put by the aroma of the dry leaves, while it had an undoubtedly strong floral aroma, there was a strange roasted smell that I tend to associate with GABA oolongs of which I am not the biggest fan. Nonetheless I soldiered on and tried the tea despite my prejudices and I liked it. There was some hard to describe taste in it that reminded me of GABA oolongs, but this definitely tastes like a green floral oolong, more on the floral side then the vegetal one. While it doesn’t have a lot of complexity it reminds me a bit of a lightly aged pouchong that has potential, but will be so much better with a couple years under its belt.  Which definitely is a possibility since it is so inexpensive that I might purchase a couple hundred grams to squirrel away to play with later on.  

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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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