Review #23: Sunday, September
20th 2009 Darjeeling SFTGFOP1 Puttabong Estate 1st Flush/ Upton Tea DJ-27
Amount of Water: 8 ounces
Water Temperature: 190 degrees
Amount of Tea: 1.08 ounces
Seep Time: 90 seconds
Water: Ice Mountain
Look of the Leaves:
Short leaves that are green and a few light
browns leaves are mixed in. They are also nicely rolled. Very strong pungent fresh smell. Woodsy and sweet smelling.
3 out of 5
Dry Leaves:
Wet Leaves:
Aroma:
Good strong aroma. Sweet and earthy.
3 out of 5
Taste:
This is a classic light tasting Darjeeling tea that is non astringent. Naturally
sweet. A very very light plum taste. I would call it refreshing.
Tea Liquor
7 out of 10
Total Score: 13 out of 20. Anything over 10 I will buy
again.
Review #22: Sunday, March 15th 2009
China Yunnan, Gen Ben Shi /Upton Tea Zy44
Amount of Water: 8 ounces
Water Temperature: 200 degrees
Amount of Tea: 3 grams
Seep Time: 3 minutes
Water: Ice Mountain
Look of the Leaves:
The leaves are short and black with bits
a light brown leaves thrown in. The wet leaves don't unfurl as much as I would like. They are a quarter inch in size. They
have a great sweet smell to them.
2 out of 5
Dry Leaves:
Wet Leaves:
Aroma: Good strong aroma. Sweet and earthy.
3 out of 5
Taste:
Right off the bat I liked the flavor. It's heart and earthy. It has a slight
bakey flavor but not enough to concern yourself with. Naturally sweet. Great morning tea.
Tea Liquor
7 out of 10
Total Score: 12 out of 20. Anything over 10 I will buy
again.
Review #21: Sunday, March 8th 2009
China Yunnan, Shui Jiu /Upton Tea Zy65
Amount of Water: 8 Ounces
Water Temperature: 200 degrees F
Amount of Tea: 3 grams
Seep Time: 3 minutes
Water Type: Ice Mountain
Look of the Leaves: The leaves are about
a 1/4 of an inch long. The tea leaves are black mixed in with some golden leaves. The dry leaves smell sweet. Carmel and malt
flavors are abundant. After seeping the leaves smell sweeter. They unfurled nicely.
Score: 3 out of 5
Dry Leaves:
Wet Leaves:
Aroma: The tea liquor has a weak aroma.
Slightly bakey.
Score: 1 out of 5
Taste: Bakey and not as sweet as I would
like it to be. It has a strong malt flavor. This tea was a little over processed. It is a Yunnan Tea but not anything close
to a high grade Yunnan Gold.
Score: 5 out of 10
Tea Liquor:
Final Score: 9 out of 20
Review #20 Sunday March 1st, 2009: China Green White Monkey King Green / Special
Teas No. 545
Amount of water: 8 ounces
Water tempature: 195 degrees F
Amount of tea: 3 grams
Seep time: 2 minutes
Water type: Ice Mountain
Look of
the leaves: The leaves are both green and white and tightly rolled. They are over an inch long. They are also furry and have
a tea dust on them. When tea leaves are fury and have a tea dust on them I consider that a sign that the tea is of high quality.
I figured out why they call this White Monkey King tea. Some of the tea leaves are white and they are furry which
refers to monkey fur. That's very clever. After seeping, all the leaves turned a bight green. The dry leaves smell fresh and
green. They also have a minor vegetable smell. After seeping, the leaves smelled sweet and mild.
Score:
5 out of 5
Dry Leaves:
Wet Leaves:
Aroma:
No bakey flavor which suggests minor processing. Minor vegetable hints. Naturally sweet.
Score: 5 out of 5
Taste:
Unbelievable green tea. I'm very fortunate to discover this tea. I like green tea but I'm more of a black tea guy. I can't
say I have had a better green tea. The taste is subtle but has the right amount of vegetable green tea flavor mixed with sweetness.
No grassy flavor.
Score:
10 out of 10.
Tea
Liquor:
Final Score: 20 out of 20.
Review #19 Monday, December 15th 2008: Ceylon FBOPF EX. SPL. Daduwangala Estate
Amount of water: 8 ounces
Water tempature: 195 degrees F
Amount of tea: 3 grams
Seep time: 2 minutes
Water type: Ice Mountain
Look of the leaves: The leaves are dark and small. Tightly rolled. The leaves unfurled nicely
DRY Leaves:
WET leaves:
2 out of 5
Aroma: Naturally sweet. Minor bakey smell. There some minor maple and molasses scents
3 out of 5
Taste: This is a decent Ceylon. Naturally sweet and sweeter than any Assam. Minor bakey flavor.
It's essentially a high grade Lipton. Be warned this tea is high in caffeine.
Tea Liquor:
4 out of 10
Overall Score: 9 out of 20. Can't reccomend.
Click This Link To Buy
Review #18 Tuesday, December 9th 2008: China Oolong 2nd Grade Tie Guan Yin; Upton Tea ZO78
Amount of water: 8 ounces
Water tempature: 195 degrees F
Amount of tea: 3 grams
Seep time: 3 1/2 minutes
Water type: Ice Mountain
Look of the leaves: The leaves are amazing. The leaf size of an Oolong sets it apart from other
tea. Look at the size of the leaf in the wet leaf picture. The dry leaf picture shows a tightly rolled leaf.
DRY Leaves:
WET leaves:
4 out of 5
Aroma: Amazing. Very floral. I smell blueberry and minor woody scents
5 out of 5
Taste: Exceptional Oolong. Very minor floral notes with a nice blueberry taste. One of the best
Oolongs I have ever had.
Tea Liquor:
9 out of 10
Overall Score: 18 out of 20. Highly reccomend.
Click This Link To Buy
Review #17 Monday, December 8th 2008: Darjeeling Tea: Tindharia Estate TGBOP1 First Flush
Amount of water: 6 ounces
Water tempature: 195 degrees F
Amount of tea: 2..25 grams
Seep time: 2 minutes
Water type: Ice Mountain
Look of the leaves: The leaves are small. You have dark green, lime green, and brown leaves. They
have a great fresh smell. When I first saw the small leaves I was concerned about the quality but the taste of the tea makes
up for the small leaves.
DRY Leaves:
WET leaves:
2 out of 5
Aroma: Very muscatel. Strong enough to be satisfied
3 out of 5
Taste: Classic Darjeeling. The taste stays on you tongue for 4 seconds. It could be sweeter for
my taste. Minor astringency. It's on the bolder side of most Darjeelings.
Tea Liquor:
6 out of 10
Overall Score: 11 out of 20. Moderate reccomend.
Click This Link To Buy
Review #16 Sunday, December 7th 2008: Darjeeling Tea: Namring FTGFOP1 First Flush
Amount of water: 6 ounces
Water tempature: 195 degrees F
Amount of tea: 2..25 grams
Seep time: 2 minutes
Water type: Ice Mountain
Look of the leaves: Very green and some brown leaves. The leaves are of medium size for a
Darjeeling. The dry leaves smell like a mountain top. Extremely fresh smelling. The wet leaves are very sweet smelling. They
remind me of a sugar plum.
DRY Leaves:
WET leaves:
4 out of 5
Aroma: Fresh, woodsy, and earthy. But a little light.
3 out of 5
Taste: One of the freshest Darjeelings I have ever had. Naturally sweet. The only drawback is that it
could be bolder. Very minor astringency, which I like. The taste stays on your tongue for 4 seconds.
Tea Liquor:
7 out of 10
Overall Score: 14 out of 20. Strong reccomend.
Click This Link To Buy
Review #15 Sunday, November 2nd: Lemon Grass Masala Chai from Yogic Chai Tea Company
Look of the leaves: Everything looks fresh and high grade. The Assam tea is a little small. The Assam
may be a lower grade but the ingredients that make up the chai are the most important. This chai mix has Assam, cinnamon,
green cardamom, cloves, ginger, and lemon grass. All ingredients are 100% organic.
4 out of 5
Aroma: Very spicy and strong. I can pick up every ingredient in the aroma.
4 out of 5
Taste: The is great. Spicy yet refreshing. I was able to pick up all the ingredients
8 out of 10
Overall Score: 16 out of 20. Anything higher
than a 10 is good enough for me.
Review #14 Sunday, July 27th: Xia Zhou Bi Feng
Meaning in English, "River Gorge Jade Tip."
Look of the leaves: The dry leaves are 3/4 of an inch. They are tightly rolled. There are a few brown
leaves. They have a nice sweet smell. The wet leaves unfurled nicely. You can tell by the picture that they turned out to
be a bright green. The smell of the wet leaves are muscatel.
3 out of 5
Aroma: It's a sweet nutty smell. There are minor undertones of a vegetable smell.
3 out of 5
Taste: Good solid green tea from China. It's not as nutty and naturally sweet as I would like it to
be. More vegetable than I like but I still enjoy a cup of this tea. I brewed it for the reccommended 3 minute time which in
my opinion was too long because it made it slightly bitter. I made another cup and seeped it for 90 seconds which helped in
the bitterness department. Brew this tea for 90 seconds and heat the water at 180 degrees.
6 out of 10
Overall Score: 12 out of 20. Anything higher
than a 10 is good enough for me.
Review #13: Tuesday, December 25th: Singbulli Estate Darjeeling 2nd Flush SFTGFOP1
Before we get into the actual tea review I want to go over what SFTGFOP1 stands for and what it means. SFTGFOP1
stands for Super Fine Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe - grade 1. This designation usually is put on teas from India. The
designation is an indication of the leaf size. It does not describe quality. Occasionally the number '1' or '2'
may be placed at the end of the letters to designate better grades among similar teas. Remember just because a leaf is bigger
it doesn't mean the leaf with make a better tea.
2nd flush means that it was picked during the middle of the growing season. Typically 2nd flush Darjeelings are less
astringent than 1st flush.
Look of the leaves: The dry leaves are brown, black, and green. Not any stems. The aroma is a woodsy
forest smell.
The wet leaves have a very sweet muscatel smell. The leaves turned a bright green and a light brown color.
4 out of 5
Dry
Wet
Aroma: The aroma has a sweet woodsy fresh smell.
3 out of 5
Taste: The taste starts out sweet. The astringency level is very low. Then you get a fresh
taste. Then at the end it has a sweet mustcatel flavor.
7 out of 10
Color of the tea liquor
Overall Score= 14 out of 20
Review #12: Monday, December 24th: Arya Estate "White Pearl" Darjeeling (Upton)
Look of the leaves: The dry leaves are bright green. You will also notice the silver fur in
the picture. The dry leaf aroma is sweet and extremely fresh.
The wet leaves smell very vegetable. That's ok. This is a under processed Darjeeling and that is normal for under
processed Darjeelings. I give the leaves a perfect rating because of the size and the fact that they unfurled perfectly
5 out of 5
Dry
Wet
Aroma: The aroma of the liquor is fairly strong. It has sweet vegetable smell.
3 out of 5
Taste: The first level of taste has no astringency. It is fresh tasting nutty green tea.
The second level is sweet. Then you get a minor astringent feeling on your tongue at the end. I would describe this tea as
green tea with sugar. This tea is awesome. Remember, Darjeeling is a black tea that is not processed as much as a typical
black tea. This Darjeeling is very close to a green tea. This tea blew me away
10 out of 10
Color of the tea liquor
Overall Score= 18 out of 20
Review #11: Sunday, December 23rd: China Green Song Zhen (Upton ZG95)
Look of the leaves: The dry leaves are dark green and light green. They are wiry and have tea dust
on them. They smell like sugar.
The wet leaves all turned a nice green color. They are about an inch long and unfurled nicely. The smell is more
vegetable but closer to nutty rather than grassy.
4 out of 5
Dry
Wet
Aroma: The aroma has a sweet nutty smell.
4 out of 5
Taste: The taste starts out sweet. The taste does linger for 6 seconds. In the middle there
is a dry taste. Then you get the nutty fresh taste. This green tea is from the Yunnan Providence of China. One of the best
green teas I have ever had. Get this one.
9 out of 10
Color of the tea liquor
Overall Score= 17 out of 20
Review #10: Saturday, December 22nd: Bai Yun Shan(Upton ZK74)
Look of the leaves: The dry leaves are black, brown, and golden. The aroma of the dry leaves
were surprisingly strong. It had a very spicy and peppery aroma.
The wet leaves all turned dark brown. They didn't unfurl properly. They opened halfway. They were too tightly
rolled. They have a muscatel smell combined with sweet and earthy notes
3 out of 5
Dry
Wet
Aroma: The aroma of the liquor is very faint. It has a slightly bakey aroma. I could pick
up a sweet and earth aroma.
3 out of 5
Taste: This is very smooth which is the only good thing about this tea. It's a little bakey.
Slightly sweet. It does lack flavor. I didn't pick up on any musty or peppery notes. A little disappointed.
3 out of 10
Color of the tea liquor
Overall Score= 9 out of 20
Review #9: Friday, December 21st: Dao Ming (Upton ZY62)
Look of the leaves: The dry leaves are black with some golden tips thrown in. They are about
a 1/4 inch long. They have a musty and earthy smell. They are also slightly sweet.
The wet leaves all turned dark brown. They didn't unfurl properly. They open halfway. They were too tightly
rolled. They have a muscatel smell combined with sweet and earthy notes
3 out of 5
Dry
Wet
Aroma: The aroma of the liquor is very faint. It has a slightly bakey aroma which is ok. That
means the tea was a little over processed. But it does have a faint sweet smell. It also has a musty earthy smell.
3 out of 5
Taste: The first level of taste is a musty/earthy taste. Then it lingers for 5 seconds and
then it turns sweet. You do get a fresh dryness in your mouth at the end. I really like Dao Ming. It is one of my staples.
I recommend this one
7 out of 10
Color of the tea liquor
Overall Score= 13 out of 20
Review #8: Thursday, December 20th: Jing Mao Hou (Upton ZY74)
Look of the leaves: The dry leaves are brown, black, and golden in color. They are a half inch
long. The aroma of the dry leaves are sweet and earthy
The wet leaves all turned dark brown. This is typical of a black Yunnan tea. The aroma of the wet leaves are spicy.
But very faint.
3 out of 5
Dry
Wet
Aroma: The aroma of the liquor is very faint. It has a bakey aroma which is not good. That
means the tea was over processed. But it does have a faint sweet smell.
2 out of 5
Taste: The first level of taste is not there entirely. It is bakey in the beginning and then
fizzles out fast. At the end you taste the sweetness. The taste of this tea does not linger.
4 out of 10
Color of the tea liquor
Overall Score= 9 out of 20
Review #7: Wednesday, December 19th: Yunnan Rare Grade (Upton ZY84)
Look of the leaves: The dry leaves are brown and golden. You also notice they are tightly rolled.
The aroma is sweet and peppery.
The wet leaves turned dark brown. The smell is of sweet sugar plums.
4 out of 5
Dry
Wet
Aroma: The aroma of the liquor is moderately strong. It has sweet peppery smell.
4 out of 5
Taste: When tasting this tea the first thing that comes to mind is the smoothness of the
tea. Zero astringency. The first level of taste you get is a sweet taste. The middle level is buttery. Then the third level
is a sweet peppery taste. Overall a great tea. If you're a fan of Chinese tea or dislike the astringency of Indian tea get
this one.
9 out of 10
Color of the tea liquor
Overall Score= 17 out of 20
Review #6: Tuesday, December 18th: Jiangxi Golden Tips (Upton ZK93)
Look of the leaves: The dry leaves are not very fragrant. They have a light sweet earthy smell. The
majority of the leaves are black. Notice the "golden" tips. In the first picture look for the golden tips. Those are the tips
of the tea leaves. The tips are the sweet part of the tea leaf.
The wet leaves have a sweet earthy smell. The leaves are very small and tightly rolled. After infusion the leaves turn
dark brown.
2 out of 5
Dry
Wet
Aroma: The aroma of the liquor is very faint. It has a slight sweet musty smell with minor peppery
notes.
2 out of 5
Taste: The taste starts out musty and earthy. Then in the middle the taste dies out. Then at
the very end the taste becomes sweet. The taste doesn't hold for very long. I wouldn't call this tea full bodied but it's
a good everyday Chinese tea. The tea is from the Jiangxi Providence.
5 out of 10
Color of the tea liquor
Overall Score= 9 out of 20
Review #5: Sunday, December 9th: Darjeeling from the Arya Estate "Topaz" Blend
Look of the leaves: The dry leaves have different colors. You notice the brown, black, and green colored
leaves. The dry leaves are rolled like Darjeelings should be. There are not tightly rolled like a Oolong tea. I would
call it a medium roll. The leaves have a good bloom to them which means they look lively and fresh. They also have a nice
twist to them.
The wet leaves unfurled properly. After infusion all the leaves turned to a greenish brown color. I was a little disappointed
because I found numerous stems rather than leaves. The leaves do have a good bloom. I give the leaves a low score because
of the stems.
2 out of 5
Dry Wet
Aroma: The aroma of the dry leaves are great. They have a distinct spicy Darjeeling aroma that
only Darjeelings have. Darjeelings have that fresh forest smell. They smell like Maine on a fall day. Fresh earthy scent.
The scent of the wet leaves have a muscatel smell. Muscatel is a sweet grape scent. The scent is very apparent and really
stands out. The grape scent is also combined with a sugar beet scent.
5 out of 5
Taste: The first thing you taste is a sweet floral bouquet. Very little astringency. Medium
body. I was expecting more of a body. The second taste I get is a sweet plum taste. The taste does not linger. The taste is
also flat. My overall impression of the tea is that it is naturally sweet but doesn't have any body. I was a little disappointed.
4 out of 10
Color of the tea liquor
Overall Score= 11 out of 20
Review #4: Sunday, December 2nd: Chocolate/Peppermint Rooibos
Look of the leaves: Rooibos doesn't really have leaves. Rooibos is a bush from South Africa that is
ground up into little particles. Rooibos is not tea, it's Rooibos. The reddish brown particles are the Rooibos. The green
particles are peppermint leaves, and notice the chocolate particles. I put two bits of the chocolate in the middle. The rooibos
bits are coarse bush type particles. When you smell the dry Rooibos you can really smell the chocolate. The peppermint aroma
isn't apparent.
The wet Rooibos doesn't change much. Since it's not tea there are no leaves to unfurl. The aroma
of the wet leaves are all rooibos. The chocolate and peppermint smell was extracted to the liquor.
5 out of 5.
Dry Wet
Aroma: The aroma has a great scent. Combination of peppermint, chocolate, and the earthy smell
of Rooibos. Nice sweet smell.
4 out of 5
Taste: Its hard to really expand on Rooibos. It's not complex like tea. You can judge tea because
it has different levels. Rooibos is a great herbal drink with zero caffeine. It's better than herbal tisanes because it has
many antioxidents. The peppermint tatse is very abundant. It has very light hints of chocolate. The rooty/earthy taste of
the Rooibos is not there. The aftertaste has a nice peppermint flavor and lingers for about 8 seconds. You have to like peppermint
to enjoy this drink.
9 out of 10
Color of the tea liquor
Overall Score= 18 out of 20
Review #3: Sunday, November 18th: Chun Mee Dao Ming(China Green Tea)
Look of the leaves: The dry leaves are short. They are about a quarter of an inch long. They have
a grayish green color.They are nicely rolled and have a flowery bouquet.
The wet leaves unfurled properly. See how the leaves unfurled in the second picture. The
leaves turned a rich gree. That is exactly what green tea leaves are suppose to do if produced properly. The scent is a sweet
sugar plum smell.
4 out of 5.
Dry Leaves
Wet Leaves
Aroma: The aroma has a nice flowery bouquet. Mild sugar plum smell. It leaves a good impression.
3 out of 5
Taste: The taste starts off astringent. It leaves a nice dry feeling. That dry feeling lasts
2 seconds. Then you experience the nice flowery taste. After that you experience the nutty taste. That taste lingers for 3
seconds. This is an exceptional green tea. There are 3 different levels of flavor that lasts for 5 seconds after each sip.Final
thoughts: Try this green tea. It's affordable and would make a great green tea to drink everyday. Click on the pictures to
go to Upton Teas.
8 out of 10
Color of the tea liquor
Overall Score= 15 out of 20
Review #3: Wednesday, November 14th: Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe China Yunnan
Look of the leaves: The dry leaves are short. About an inch long. They are generally black with
a hint of brown. The tea leaves are adhesive and well twisted. They have a nice musty/peppery smell to them
The wet leaves unfurled properly. See how the leaves unfurled in the second picture.
3 out of 5.
Dry Leaves
Wet Leaves
Aroma: The aroma is musty but a good musty. Slightly bakey. Very minor pepper notes
2 out of 5
Taste: The taste is musty bakey flavor. Bakey is not good. That means it has been overproduced.
Very minor pepper notes. It is slightly astringent. Remember that's good. Astringency is that characteristic of the tea that
leaves a dry taste in your mouth. The taste does not last very long. I would say it's an ok tea. Maybe use it for ice tea.
4 out of 10
Color of the tea liquor
Overall Score= 9 out of 20
Review #2: Wednesday, October 31st: Margaret's Hope Estate Darjeeling 1st Flush
Look of the leaves: The dry leaves are short. About an inch long. Bright green leaves mixed with
brownish green leaves. The smell of the dry leaves are amazing. It has a slight minty smell. If you had tell a person what
mountain fresh is have them smell these leaves. They smell like they were grown on a untouched mountain in India.
The wet leaves unfurled properly. They are a bright green. The minty smell went away. They
have that muscatel smell. That's a grapey smell. Very sweet.
4 out of 5.
Dry Leaves
Wet Leaves
Aroma: The aroma is floral, sweet, has muscatel, sweet plums, and sugar beets.
5 out of 5
Taste: The taste is very complex. It has three levels. The fist level is a flowery sweet taste.
Then the second level is the astringent taste that Darjeeling's have. Astringency should not be confused with bitterness.
Astringency is the lively, pungent sensation on your tongue that gives tea its refreshing quality. The third level is the
combination of sweetness and astringency. The aftertaste lasts 6 seconds. Thats a good sign of a good tea. A very well made
full body tea.
8 out of 10
Color of the tea liquor
Overall Score= 17 out of 20
Review #1: Wednesday, October 24th: China Hunnan Hao Bin Ren
Look of the leaves: They are not broken. Each leaf is about an inch long. Notice on the dry leaf
picture that the leaves are golden in color. They are also dusty. They unfurled nicely.
5 out of 5.
Tea Leaves Wet Tea Leaves
Dry
Aroma: Sweet floral smell that lingers. Very rich. Sweet almost sugar like. Similar to sugar beets.
Only gave 4 stars because its not complex enough. I need more aromas. 4 out of 5.
Taste: Floral and sweet. It taste like sugar is in it. Smoothness is unbelievable. No astringency at
all. The aftertaste could laste longer. Buttery. Very Very light peppery taste. You get the peppery taste on the aftertaste.
8 out of 10
Color of the tea liquor
Overall Score: 17 out of 20
