Dong Ding Dong Pian

This is the first time that I have carried a Dong Pian Oolong from Taiwan. Dong Pian Oolong is harvested after the main winter Oolong is harvested.

When I first tasted this tea, I had mixed feelings about it. The rinsed leaves smelled vegetal. I am honestly not a fan of vegetal-tasting Oolongs. After I swallowed the first sip, a bouquet showed up in the tea that was so big that it took me by surprise. The vegetal note remained in the second infusion, but some floral notes and a hint of citrus showed up. The aftertaste was very big and obvious. I have to say that this is for sure not a "boring" tea.

I enjoy drinking this tea. It is different, a welcome change, and provides a unique experience. You may initially feel like this is just an OK tea, and then just a few seconds later, the huge bouquet will hit you with a nice surprise.

Practice your Chinese with me at Floating Leaves!

Chinese Practice Night is back! We will start the Chinese practice class at the shop on February 10th. It will be a weekly practice from 6pm to 7pm every Thursday night. A $5 donation would be greatly appreciated.

Our tea shop is pretty small, so if you are interested in coming, please send me an email, tea@floatingleaves.com, so that I can save you a spot.

I will be focusing on correcting pronunciation, tones, increasing your vocabulary and helping you to communicate with some basic sentences. Therefore, I will only take people who know some basic Chinese language. If you're not sure what your level is, feel free to ask me. We will of course accompany our lessons with some good tea as well.

Looking forward to helping you with your Chinese over some nice pots of tea!

Muzha Tieguanyin

The brief number of sunny winter days have already left Seattle and we are having its usual gray and cold days. I like to have a pot of robust roasted Oolong to start my day when it's cold.
Lately I have been drinking Muzha Tieguanyin. This tea was made in 2005 and has been roasted from time to time. The first time that I had this tea, I made it in a Gaiwan. The tea is wonderfully roasted and the dried fruit notes are very apparent. In later brews, the tea turns sweet and the signature "metallic" taste from Tieguanyin will show up.

I just tried this Muzha Tieguanyin in a Yixing tea pot and noticed the tea tasted much softer. It lost some of the dried fruit notes, however, a Chinese herbal taste showed up. I found it very interesting. I like having this tea in either of the brewing styles. If you have this tea, please try it out using various brewing methods and see what you notice and like better.