When I visited the Zealong plantation I picked up a sampler of their core unflavored teas.
We broke out the sampler tonight while having a late lunch with Lady and Lord Devotea at The Fortress.
We skipped the green as everyone would not appreciate it in the lunch. We then sampled the Pure, Aromatic, Dark and Black teas in sequence with a lunch of cheese and Scottish eggs and meat pie and pickles and toast. The pickles were made by Saxon – the other Devotea employee with a gift for cooking, baking, and apparently also pickling!
We prepared the tea in a pot with a metal strainer with water boiled and then sat for a minute. We steeped each tea for two minutes, except the black which went three.
Pure (the not oxidized oolong) was light, nearly white, buttery and our least favorite. Pale yellow.
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| Pure Tea |
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| Pure sample pack |
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| Pure Leaves |
Aromatic (the lightly oxidized oolong) was silky, floral, a bit of roast. It was a very enjoyable oolong but nothing specifically memorable or unique. Slightly darker pale yellow.
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| Aromatic sample pack |
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| Aromatic tea |
Dark (the most oxidized oolong) was the most well liked by the group. It was nutty, smooth, and we went and brewed a second pot. Pale yellow-green.
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| Dark sample pack |
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| Dark leaves |
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| dark tea |
Black was a honey finished light black. It was reminiscent of a Darjeeling, perhaps closest to a second flush Giddaphar. Not exactly but the best comparison. Bright translucent orange-red.
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| Black tea |
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| Black tea leaves |
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| Black sample pack |
These plants are very reminiscent of Taiwanese.
It was a very enjoyable lunch, until the incident, which resulted in quite a disappointed and offended face from Robert.
Leaf system:
1=Bleh! not again if it were free
2=Acceptable, if it were free or there were limited other tea options
3=I might purchase this tea from time to time, or select it while out
4=A staple in our cupboard from now on, I will purchase and keep purchasing
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| Lunch |
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| lunch |
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