📢 This article was translated by gemini-2.5-flash
This article was created and last modified between 2022.10.31 and 2024.09.15. It logs the teas I’ve tasted and my personal take on them during this period.
Honestly, towards the later part, I wasn’t really into this hobby anymore, so the logging got pretty casual. But hey, it was a hobby I pursued, and since the article number hit 233, why not drop something that might be a bit interesting? (Thought I’d published this way earlier, kept pushing it back)
Black Tea
| Name | Taste |
|---|---|
| Concubine’s Smile | First sip, a rather stuffy, cloying feel. After multiple infusions, a sweet potato aroma emerges. About 12 infusions. |
| Peach | First infusion, slightly more bitter than Concubine's Smile, not cloying.Had trouble breathing and nosebleeds at night; unsure if tea was the cause. |
| Xigui Black | First sip, sweet but not cloying, bitter but not astringent. Pretty good. |
| Keemun Black Tea | First sip, similar to Xigui Black, not sweet, but seems more robust/mellow.Tea leaves are quite fine/broken. |
| Jin Jun Mei | Overly mellow, even slightly bitter and astringent. But after the third cup, a lingering aroma and sweetness stay in the mouth. Tea leaves are quite fine/broken, and it doesn’t stand up to many infusions. |
| Drunken Red | Just that classic black tea taste. Decent number of infusions, but don’t steep it too long; lots of broken bits. |
| Lapsang Souchong | Definitely a smoky flavor. Bitter on the palate, but the aftertaste is sweet. |
| Old Bush Black Tea | Good taste. |
Dark Tea
| Name | Taste |
|---|---|
| Golden Award Six Categories | Tastes like Eight-Treasure Porridge. |
| Ginseng-Scented Liu Bao | Has a medicinal bitterness. |
| Tian Jian | First taste, surprisingly good (maybe because I’d just had the two teas above). Bitter and astringent, but has a sweet aftertaste. Too bitter and astringent after many sips. |
| Golden Flower Fu Zhuan | A milder “Golden Award Six Categories” + a milder “Ginseng-Scented Liu Bao”. |
| Old Green Brick | Old wood taste, too many tea bits. |
| Old Ripe Puerh | Doesn’t taste very good. |
| Old Raw Puerh | Hard to brew open, bitter. |
| Ancient Tree Ripe Puerh | Compared to the two above, it’s okay. |
| Puerh Raw Tea | Slightly bitter and astringent on the first sip, then a sweet aftertaste. Mold appeared on top after two days; noticeable bitterness and astringency when brewed. |
| Puerh Ripe Tea | Eight-Treasure Porridge taste. |
White Tea
| Name | Taste |
|---|---|
| Wild Gong Mei | On the palate, a fresh, tender crop-like slight bitterness and astringency, sweet and soft. |
| Xigui White | Block-shaped leaves, tastes honey-sweet after unfurling, lingering aroma in the mouth. Many infusions, >10. |
| Wild White (Xiao Bai) | Bitter and astringent while drinking, sweet aftertaste afterward. |
| Silver Needle | Very light tea color, first infusion has a slight grassy taste, then a bit of honey sweetness, with a lingering sweet aftertaste. |
| Rock Sugar Sweet | First two infusions grassy, then normal white tea taste. |
| Aged White Tea | Classic white tea taste, sweet enough. |
| Gao Shou | First sip grassy, then normal white tea taste. |
Oolong Tea
| Name | Taste |
|---|---|
| Da Hong Pao | Plenty of it, decent, slightly sweet. |
| Tie Guan Yin | Fragrant but bitter and astringent. |
| Orchid-Base Shui Xian | Bitter and astringent. |
| Duck Shit Aroma Dan Cong | First two infusions a faint oolong fragrance, then mild flavor. |
| Honey Orchid Aroma Dan Cong | Tasteless on the palate, then a lingering aroma, very bitter afterward. |
| Lishan Oolong | Faint woody taste, normal oolong taste after brewing open. |
| Flowing Fragrance Rou Gui | Woody taste on the palate, then a sweet aftertaste. |
| Bai Mu Dan | First whiff, an oil tea scent; woody taste on the palate. |
| Light Fragrance Tie Guan Yin | Tastes pretty similar, light fragrance. |
| Zhangping Shui Xian | Tastes pretty similar, light fragrance. |
| Traditional Tie Guan Yin | Decent taste compared to the ones above. |
Yancha (Rock Tea)
| Name | Taste |
|---|---|
| Da Hong Pao | Bitter. |
| Apricot Peach Aroma | Weird, bitter. |
| Buddha Kingdom Rock Rou Gui | Slightly bitter on the palate, then a lingering aroma. |
| Buddha Hand Snow Pear | Seems to only have bitterness, with a lingering aroma a while later. |
| Lingering Fragrance Rou Gui | Same as above, that Yancha feel. |
| Orchid Base Shui Xian | Super nice name, but the taste is still that Yancha vibe, though the sweetness is higher. |
| Qi Dan | Printed character looks like ‘上’ over ‘可’, but no idea what it actually is, and no handwritten version either. Relatively lighter flavor, keeps that Yancha sweet aftertaste. Pretty good experience. |
Uncategorized
| Name | Taste |
|---|---|
| Little Green Mandarin (Xiao Qing Gan) | Dark tea, not good, slightly sour. Terrible experience, turned sour on the third day. |
| Anji Bai | Looks good, very fragrant, chestnut flavor, slightly cloying. |
| Mengding Huang Ya | Similar to the previous one, slightly better. |
| Jasmine Snow Bud | Leaves are fragrant, tea soup is clear and fragrant, lingering aroma after drinking. Oolong tea? |