The Tea Flavour Wheel

Unfortunately, this week is quite busy as well and a detailed post about the next tea sibling will take a bit more time than I have. This is not to say that it has not been started, simply that it will take a bit more time and I would not want to keep my teanions waiting.

In a tea siblings place, I present to you the tea flavour wheel

Despite my love for tea, I admit that I have difficulties properly expressing and narrowing down what I am tasting (this inability expands to more than just tea...).  This is where the tea flavour wheel comes in.

This wheel is divided first into the main base flavours and slowly splits itself down into the more subtle and specific undertones. This really helps me narrow down and classify the many flavours and aromas I encounter when drinking tea. I wish the wheel had a bit more progression and linking between the categories but I must confess that it is a great resource. I still feel slightly confused when trying to distinguish some of the outermost ring, but it is a great starting point.

As you can tell, it is not strictly reserved for teas as there seems to be some serious tisane flavours included as well...unless someone knows of a tea that has pineapple undertones?

I truly wish I knew where it came from but it is an image I saved long ago for a post just like this. If anyone knows, please let me know so that I can give the proper credit.

The 5 Tea Siblings: Oolong (Wulong) Tea

First off, apologies for taking a week hiatus; I was swamped (to say the least) with work. Nevertheless, I thought of my next article and here it is!

If you are looking to showoff to your friends about your knowledge of tea, then look no further; oolong tea is the way to do it, and luckily for you, it is today's topic. So bust out your leaves, put the water on the stove, and get ready to learn about one of the most revered & sophisticated teas in the world.

(Just did a fair bit of reading and wow, I am in for a heck of a post! There is SO much to say about oolong. Only one way to get through it all!)


Oolong is a tea produced solely in China and Taiwan and, unlike Pu-Er teas that are specific to one region, are produced in a wide range of conditions and climates and with a wide range of picking and preparation techniques. This is precisely where the magic in oolong lies. The lack of standardization allows oolongs to be incredibly diverse and cover a very wide range of flavours, aromas, colours, and tastings experiences. They can be closely related to green teas (0% oxidation) with as little as 12 percent oxidation, or can be shoulder to shoulder with black teas reaching as high as 80 percent oxidation (ok, black tea is 100% oxidation, but they can almost be shoulder to shoulder!). This wide range of oxidation (combined with picking & preparation techniques) makes it so oolong spans the entire range of the tea family and contains hints belonging to other types of tea. Although Pu-Er tea holds the "most complicated tea to study" award, a well rounded knowledge of oolong tea is incredibly respectable and even holds a certain level of class and prestige among tea experts.

One intriguing aspect of oolong lies in the appearance of it's leaves. Upon first glance, they look unremarkable and may even look slightly worn compared to green tea leaves, upon second glance, they can look just as unappealing. A third glance will not chance that, nor will a forth or fifth or even a sixth.  Remember that oolong is caught in it's own world lying between green tea and black tea. This means that it's leaves can greatly range in appearance; from a fresher looking green to the older heavily fired look of black tea. Beauty pageants aside, oolong tea leaves really show their hidden qualities when they are allowed to release their aromas and flavours in right temperature of water; this is it's greatest source of pride.

Oolongs are incredibly layered, meaning their flavour changes and evolves with each subsequent steeping. Each steeping peels back a flavour layer and reveals an ever enriching & changing aroma. They are known to be earthy (though less so than Pu-Ers & Black teas), aromatic, smooth, and sometimes, sweet teas.

1/4 pictures showing the diversity of oolong tea. Image courtesy of  here

As if they were not complicated enough, oolong exists in three basic categories: strip-style, open leaf-style, and semiball-rolled style.

Strip-style tends to be more oxidized (between 50-80%) and are heavily roasted. As their name implies, the leaves are long, complete, large, and gifted with a slight curl or twist. They tend to have stronger flavours (earthy, almost fruity, with lingering aftertastes) and occupy a small range of colours (deep earthy brown to a ashy-flint like grey). This type of Oolong is specific to China and not produce elsewhere, unlike the next type which is produced solely in Taiwan.

2/4 pictures showing the diversity of oolong tea. Image courtesy of here

Open leaf-style are characterized by their open, slightly wrinkled leaves ranging from medium to large. The leaves are more presentable as they are not involved in roasting at all. This gives way to sweeter, crisper, and gentler aromas. Unlike strip-style, they have a wider range of oxidation (can be from 12-18% or from 65-75%)

The last general type of oolong bridges the gap between china and taiwan and is produced by both countries. This is the most recognizable type of oolong as it is a leaf rolled into a ball with the stem still attached. From here, it gets a bit more complicated as they can branch off into two categories: the older, more traditional style of oxidation, or the more recent modern style of oxidation. The former often has ranges of 35-65% oxidation and is slightly roasted which imbues the tea with a honey like quality. It's colour range starts from a light brown, progresses through a shade of amber, and finishes with a reddish, woody brown. Though the modern style has some similar appearances, it differs slightly, both in oxidation levels and in overall aroma. It's oxidation levels range from 25-40% and it is only slightly roasted to preserve the floral and light undertones. It's colour is quite different (due to both the lack of roasting, and oxidation) as it is on the green side of things; ranging from a gold-green to a deep jade-like shade.

3/4 pictures showing the diversity of oolong tea (I know right, creative with the captions today!).. Generously provided by these fine people

As was the case with Pu-Er, I could go on and on for another few pages. Sadly, I think this would defeat the point of a general introduction so I will expand on oolongs (what to look for when buying, preparation methods, and more facts) at a later date. I will simply end with how to make the perfect cup of oolong so that you may start enjoying steep after steep between now and then.

So pretty! 

Oolong is much less forgiving than Pu-Er (and even then some experts would have me lined up and shot for saying Pu-Er is forgiving). To make a good, relaxing cup of oolong, you have to use a generous amount of leaves (2-3 tablespoons per 180ml of water (6 ounces))....(those should really be measured in teaspoons in my opinion...). If this seems like a lot, feel free to play with what is right for you, however I beg you not to worry, running out of tea simply means it is time to explore and try a new variety. The water temperature starts at around 82C (180 F) and can go up to 93C (200F) with slowly increasing temperatures. It is recommended to do a first wash of the leaves (quickly pour the hot water over the leaves and pour it out immediately to quickly replace with new water to start your first steep). Depending on the type of oolong, steeping time should range from 10-60 seconds for the first infusion, 15-65 seconds for the second, and 20-70 for the third. It can be steeped up to 8 times though the steeping time should be greatly increased for the final few steepings (add 30 seconds or more) and the water temperature should be brought to its maximum of 93C.

There will be a follow up post to Oolongs, but I would first like to make my way through the rest of the tea family.

Happy Steepings teanions!

Edit: Quick jump!

• White
• Pu-Er
• Black
• Introduction

The 5 Tea Siblings: Pu-Er Tea

First of all, Happy New Year and apologies for overall lack of posting over the break; I was surprisingly busy. That being said, it was not a complete waste of two tea-weeks as I had some great tea experiences that I am saving for future posts. For the moment, I will be continuing with the Tea Family and it's eldest son: Pu-Er.

Pu-Er is a very special type of tea as it breaks away from the typical idea of tea. Unlike other tea varieties, Pu-Er is solely produced in China (south-west of the Yunnan Province to be exact). Though it only comes from one region, do not assume that Pu-Er is a limited-variety type of Tea as you would be completea wrong. One could spend a lifetime exploring and discovering the world of Pu-Er teas and still find new flavours and types among the collections of Old (Vintage) Pu-Ers, Young (New) Pu-Ers, Shou Pu-Ers (artificial fermentation), and Sheng Pu-Ers (natural fermentation). Though Pu-Er has a very wide range of varieties, it's appearance does not vary much. People new to tea are surprised to discover that Pu-Er tea is often sold in compressed disks; a very unothordox way to present tea (shown below). Though it is not uncommon to have loose leaf Pu-Er, the compressed disk is the most common shape and presentation. To mix things up a bit, other shapes such as domes, rectangles, and little coins are used as well.

Compressed Disks of Pu Er Tea

Why the disk (or equivalent compressed shape)? Pu-Er tea is often stored for long periods of time and the compressed shape allows large quantities of tea to be stored, and transported, very easily (though it can be very heavy). When it is time to be steeped, it is very easy to chip of a chunk of tea with a knife.

Storage of Pu-Er Tea courtesy of this very informative page on Pu-Ers 

Just like yogurt, cheese, and bread, Pu-Er tea exists thanks to a collection of bacteria, fungi, and molds found in it's native region. Do not be so quick to scrunch your face in disgust and put down your cup of tea, the bacteria simply help the tea leaves to ferment and give the tea it's aged earth undertones.

When one thinks of Pu-Er, 'earthy' is a common descriptor for the aroma and feelings one gets from a warm cup. Depending on it's age, method of storage, and whether or not it's a disk or loose tea, Pu-Er tea can inherit the following qualities along with 'earthy':

• Woody
• Musty
• Smooth
• Copper-Like
• Full Bodied

 How does one unlock the many hidden qualities of Pu-Er tea? With the perfect steep. Though I mentioned that Pu-Er tea is the most forgiving type of tea when it comes to water temperature and steeping time, this is not to say that we can do whatever we want with it, it simply means that it is quite difficult to 'burn' the tea leaves, or over-steep the leaves to a bitter end. Should we wish to experience the full character that is Pu-Er, we should still pay close attention to the conditions that bring out it's full potential and many sides.

Pu-Er requires the hottest water among it's tea siblings as the water used should be just off the boil. Infusion time depends on what steep you are about to enjoy. Generally, the very first infusion is a quick rinse of the Pu-Er tea (pour water over the leaves and immediately pour the water out). As Pu-Er tea is well aged, this helps to get rid of any dust or impurities that might be present during storage. A particularly old Pu-Er tea should be rinsed twice. After the first (or second) wash, the steeping times range from 25 seconds (from the first real steep) to 60 seconds (for the eighth steep) in 5 second increments. Believe it or not, a ninth steep is possible if the tea is left to sit for 90 seconds. As you can see, Pu-Er tea has quite some milage. For those who find numbers a bit confusing, the table of times is below.

1st real infusion (After wash) - 25 Seconds

2nd infusion - 30 Seconds

3rd infusion - 35 seconds

4th infusion - 40 seconds

5th infusion - 45 seconds

6th infusion - 50 seconds

7th infusion - 55 seconds

8th infusion - 60 seconds

9th (and most likely final) infusion - 90 seconds

I am starting to realize that a single post of Pu-Er could go on for pages and pages and as such, I will stick to a basic introduction today, saving the more detailed information and anecdotes for a later expansive post. One last thing to add for tonight's post is about Pu-Er grading and quality. Like all it's siblings, Pu-Er's quality is heavily influenced by the age of the leaf.

The largest and eldest of leaves (picked late in the season) yield grades of around 9 or 10 and are the most common when buying a disked shaped Pu-Er. As the leaves get smaller and younger, the grade (and quality) rises higher and higher (as does the price). Averaged sized leaves (and not too old) will offer a grade of 5 or 6, while the early spring buds (and shoots) will give the highest grade of 1 and 2. I hope to be able to appreciate (as in taste) such a quality tea one day.

Though I could go on and on about Pu-Er, I would like to save that for a later date and first finish the basic introductions of the Tea Family. Having a basic understanding of each type of tea will give a greater appreciation of the wonderful and unique details later on. To hold you off on your Pu-Er fix till then, I recommend that you go out and buy a basic Pu-Er and try it out! A disk should cost around $35 which is not too expensive considering the large amount of tea you are getting. Be sure to only break off a small chunk at a time and enjoy!

Edit: Did you miss the other siblings? If so, check them out here


Here is a quick link to each of their pages

• White
• Oolong
• Black
• Introduction

Holiday Greetings

Just want to wish you all the best during the holidays and new year! I'll be posting the next member of the tea family shortly; I've been quite busy with the holidays and work.

Best wishes teanions!

The 5 Tea siblings: White Tea

After our brief introduction to the tea family, I'd like to go into more detail regarding each type of tea; starting with the most gentle: white tea.

(don't worry, this post will be written with a more serious tone and (I hope) actually be informative)

White tea primarily comes from the Fujian Province but is also cultivated in Taiwan, Thailand, and certain areas of Nepal. It is a very gentle tea, lightly oxidized, and contains high levels of catechins (which are very good for you health). It is unique, both in it's preparation style and appearance.

Credit to this random site for the beautiful picture

White tea starts with a very strict selection process lasting from early spring to late spring. The chosen leaves are very young and covered with thin, wispy, white hairs. In fact, it is these hairs that give white tea it's name, and not the colour of the 'soup' (brewed tea) as most often believed. Once chosen, the leaves are allowed to bask and whither in the sun where they dry and take their shape. White tea is special as it's preparation process requires no panning, rolling, or shaking but instead, the young leaf is dried naturally. Once brewed, white tea can range from a lint green tint to a yellowish white.

White tea is a very mellow and laid-back tea, often very smooth and delicate. It has a subtle, sweet, and smooth aroma with little after taste and always leaves behind a feeling of warmth and comfort. I must admit that it is my least well-known tea simply due to my lack of exposure but it is a goal of mine to gain experience in the realm of white teas (as shown with my white tea sampler pack).

Two of the most famous white teas are Silver Needle (Bai hao Yin Zhen  白毫银针) and White Peony (Bai Mudan 白牡丹). The leaves appear as long, uniform, and thin while being covered in light-white hairs. People often describe the look as a "sparrows-tongue" as it has the same gentle spear-like shape.

Water temperature is very important when steeping white teas (as it is with most other teas). Unlike some of the more sturdy teas (black + pu-er), white tea is easily scorched if the water is too hot. This ruins the subtle hints of the tea and changes the experience entirely which is why it is recommended to use water that is around 160 degrees Fahrenheit or 71 degrees Celsius for a first steeping.

White tea can be steeped several times keeping in mind that a generous amount of leaves should be used because of it's delicate nature (2 teaspoons for buds, 2 tablespoons for leaves). Additionally, the water temperature should be increased by around 5 degrees Fahrenheit, or 3 degrees Celsius with each subsequent steeping. With care and the right amount of leaves, white tea will provide 3 beautiful steepings of increasing complexity. Make sure not to add too much water as the subtleties will be lost.

With all this in mind, I look forward to exploring the world of white teas. Stay tuned for a few white tea reviews and pictures!

The rest of the siblings can be found here


Here is a quick link to each of their pages

• Pu-Er
• Oolong
• Black

The 5 Tea Siblings: Introduction to the Tea Family

Mr. and Mrs. Tea met many years ago. It was a cool summer night, the stars were out, and a gentle breeze rustled the trees. Had you asked them back then if they could imagine where they would end up all these years later, Mrs. Tea would simply blush with a sidelong glance and giggle, and Mr. Tea would grunt affectionately while describing all the other varieties of shrubbery he could have chosen but was happy he didn't.

Despite some of their dry seasons, Mr. and Mrs. Tea stuck through it all and happily worked together to grow five rowdy little youngsters. Although the grew up in the same bush, these four brothers and their one sister could not be more different from each other.

The eldest of the five was a patient, calm, and meditative fellow named Pu-Er. He had been around a long time and knew that with patience and time, everything could be resolved.

Pu-Er Tea (Taken from this interesting blog)

Black Tea was the second son and always liked to joke that he had missed being the eldest by only a matter of weeks. Pu-Er never played along with this as he knew how much the extra years counted. This only agitated Black Tea more and often made him dark and moody.

Black Tea (Sasuke from Naruto)

Oolong was the happy middle child and liked to spend time with both his younger siblings and older counter parts. He learned much from his older brothers but still retained his youth and innocence from his younger years; never shying away from new experiences.

Oolong (Li Da Ren from In Time With You)

White Tea was the only girl out of the bunch and was the second youngest, and as such, she only related to Oolong, and her younger brother. Though she enjoyed the company of her closest brothers, she made sure to retain her unique, gentle, and lady-like characteristics.

White Tea (Belldandy from Oh My Goddess)

Green Tea was not only the youngest of the "Tea Five" but he was also the most rambunctious. This little one was impatient and always had something to say no matter what the conversation was. He often played well with others, but once in a while could be a little rascal.

Green Tea. (Meelo from The Legend of Korra)

Coming up: Meeting the Tea Five one-by-one

Edit: Here is a quick link to each of their pages

• White
• Pu-Er
• Oolong
• Black

The Ottawa 2nd Annual Tea Festival

Hello Teanions!

Last week, while doing a bit of research and reading up on tea, I came across the 2nd Annual Ottawa Tea Festival being hosted at the Ottawa Convention Center. Despite my overwhelming urge to go and frolic with fellow teavers (tea-lovers), I had mixed feelings on going. Ottawa is two hours away from Montreal and at the moment of discovery, I had no one to go with. Not only that, but I had dinner plans back in Montreal which would mean a 4 hour drive for 4 hours in Ottawa....not entirely tempting.

Despite my hesitations, I threw out a public invite on facebook to see if fellow available teavers would surface. I had many bites, but due to exam season, I only had one catch. Good enough! I bought my tickets and started to psych myself up for an amazing, immersive, and bustling experience.

...
...

Turns out psyching myself up was a little bit of a mistake. In my head, I managed to put together a massive convention, filled with suppliers, retailers, experts, growers, anybody and everybody related to tea. My dream convention was held in a massive hall with aisles and aisles of tea. The air is filled with the unique smell and aroma of hundreds, no! Thousands of unique teas brewing; their scents all playing and dancing together. Fresh batches of tea are there for sampling and the booth representative is a chatty individual, able to recite an entire adventure behind each cup of tea. Where did the tea come from, who were the farmers, what unique characteristics does it have versus a similar tea; these are all questions that the representative could answer with beautifully weaved imagery and pertinent information. In my ideal tea convention, I would need to set a budget and pick and choose which teas to bring home with painful scrutiny, never one hundred percent sure that I made the right choice and fearful that I would not see such a collection of teas again. There would be unique teas from remote parts of the world, teas unlocked only by a 5 day trek on foot through misty mountains and vast valleys. A day in the convention would be a ticket to every small corner of the tea growing world.

My ideal convention began to take shape the moment I bought my tickets, and began to grow over two days. As I drove to Ottawa and got closer and closer, my convention started to take shape and the list of questions in my head began to grow. Where did they get their tea? What set it apart from it's counterparts? What types of hidden flavours should I focus on? My list grew on and on.

I gave in my ticket, got my hand stamped and walked into a bustling room lined with tea hushed  room slightly bigger than a classroom with a few hurriedly set up booths and a handful of people wondering around. I immediately dismissed my dream convention (putting the idea aside as a future goal) and focused on making the most of what was at hand.

The tea booths did not number very high. There were around 6 different tea retailers who set up booths and the rest of the booths (around 10-15) were all tea related paraphernalia (except for the pork sausage booth...still not sure why they were there). I must admit that I was a bit disappointed at the size of the event, but nonetheless, I gave it a fair chance; I started to wonder up the first aisle and started my quest for new teas (slowly as I had all day for a handful of booths).

I was mainly interested in trying white tea as it still remains a slight mystery to me. It's subtle taste does not linger and as such, neither did it's impression when I tasted it many years ago. It was my main goal for the event; luckily, I was not disappointed in the least as two of the booths carried a small variety of white tea to satisfy my curiosity.

The first booth worthy of mention was Tao's tea leaf, a store known in Ottawa. They had great presentation and a clever concept to sell sample size packets of tea. From them, I picked up 8 different types of tea which I will drink and experience at a later date (and share on this blog):

Silver Needle
High Mountain Green Tea
(Award winning) Golden Needle
(Award winning + personal favourite) Da Hong Pao
An Ji Bai Cha
Jin Ping Gong Fu (an incredible black tea I had the opportunity to taste)
(Award winning) Imperial Pu-Er
Organic Rooibos

A Selection of Pu-Er Teas at Tao's Leaf

They had a good selection of teas to try and sample and an excellent assortment of sample sizes to bring home. I was excited to question them further (and Mr. Tao in person) about his experiences with tea, and to hear about their teas directly from them. I was curious to know about their suppliers and their relationships, how they discovered the tea, and a unique tid-bit. Sadly, when I questioned them about it (and despite the lack of people) they referred me to their website and didn't offer much else. (though I just checked and their website isn't half bad and does contain information about their teas. Still, a personalized story or two would have been nice).

Jin Ping Gong Fu, an incredibly rich and layered black tea

The next booth I visited belonged to the pleasant people at Cha-Yi. Beautiful presentation, numerous samples, and a talkative staff made this my booth of choice. I picked up a sample pack of white teas which included:

Jinggu Theiers sauvage
Baihao Yin Zhen
Bai Cui Mei
Simao Bai Cha

The staff was very helpful and informative. They informed me that they have been opened for 2 years and take a yearly trip to China, Taiwan, and Japan to find new suppliers and develop a lasting relationship with local farmers and producers. The teas I brought home were from the Yunnan province, picked and prepared this year. I can't wait to try and talk to you about the ones I brought home.

Jinggu White Tea being steeped for tasting

All in all, I had a great time despite the small size of the event. The people were quite helpful and friendly, and I squirrelled away a good number of teas to try at a later date. If you are around the Ottawa region next year, I recommend stopping by...chances are, I'll be there!

Jinggu Tea - This was the 8th steeping and still incredibly flavourful

Stay tuned for future posts where I'll talk about the teas I tried and tasted (most of which I brought home)

Martin Out!

P.s. Teanion = Tea + minions