Tag: Masters Teas

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Masters Teas’ Rohini First Oolong

Rohini First Oolong by Masters Teas
Oolong Tea / Straight
$19.00USD for 2oz

Masters Teas has provided me with Rohini First Oolong for the purposes of writing an honest review.

First Impressions

When you get asked if you want to try out teas that were just harvested a couple of months ago, the answer is always yes. It’s such a treat to get to try out a brand new first flush tea that I will almost always jump on the opportunity to give a try. So when Masters Teas asked me about trying some early harvested 2021 teas, of course I said yes. This is Rohini First Oolong, which is described as being a very early first flush tea and comes from Darjeeling, India and is grown at 2000m above sea level.

Rohini First Oolong comes in a sealed, resealable pouch with a nice label across the front. No steeping instructions on this sample, but I was able to find that information on the product page off of the Masters Teas website quite easily. The leaves are quite pretty – there’s a wide range of colours from light to dark green, and browns throughout. The leaves are wiry, with light twists throughout. I found the dry leaf to be a bit floral, with more vegetal undertones than I was expecting based on the description of being fruity.

Preparation

Masters Teas recommends steeping Rohini First Oolong in 180°F (82°C) water for 3 minutes. I followed the steeping instructions for my initial steep.

First Taste

Rohini First Oolong steeps to a very pale yellow for the initial steep. The aroma is a light floral perfume, and grassy vegetal aromas in the background. I found the flavour to be very similar to the aroma of the tea. It has a light floral flavour, with a strong vegetal flavour that really does come through strong. There’s the sweet floral finish at the end of each sip and it just lends itself well to being sipped on. It has a full bodied flavour that has a surprisingly amount of flavour for a tea that’s so pale.

A Second Cup?

I resteeped Rohini First Oolong seven times (eight times total with the same leaves), adding an additional 30 seconds for each subsequent steep. I found that the tea became more golden yellow, much deeper in flavour but also changing at the same time. After the first resteep, the tea got much more floral and sweet with the vegetal notes fading away. There was also an increasing fruity flavour to it that reminded me of the crispness of biting into an apple (specifically gala – which is also one of my favourite apple varietals).

My Overall Impression

I loved Masters Teas’s Rohini First Oolong. While I didn’t enjoy the initial steep as much as I did the later ones, I found the increasing sweet floral flavours and apple notes to be really inviting and delicious. The vegetal flavours captured my attention, but the floral sweetness kept me drinking the tea repeatedly through the steeping session. This oolong is definitely one to dedicate time to so you can enjoy all the nuances in the flavour profile changes with each steep.

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Masters Teas’s Shi Feng Long Jing

Shi Feng Long Jing by Masters Teas
Green Tea / Straight
$29.00USD for 1.5oz (43g)

Masters Teas has provided me with Shi Feng Long Jing for the purposes of writing an honest review.

First Impressions

Shi Feng Long Jing is an offering from Masters Teas from this year’s spring harvest – which is entirely something I’m interested in because who doesn’t want access to newly harvested tea? Long Jing is also known as Dragonwell (which you may have heard of before), and is one of the more well known types of teas to come out of China. This particularly one comes from Zhejiang, China and is grown at 500m above sea level, and was hand picked, which helps to minimize damage to the leaves and the plant itself.

The tea itself has some beautiful light spring green colours – the leaves are long and flattened, which is a familiar characteristic for dragonwell teas. The colour is incredibly vibrant, and there’s just the slightest nutty aroma coming from the tea.

Preparation

No steeping instructions on the packaging, but from their product page, Master Teas recommends steeping Shi Feng Long Jing in 170°F (77°C) water for 2 to 3 minutes. I opted to do an initial steep with 175°F (79°C) water that had been cooled for about 5 minutes and then used to steep Shi Feng Long Jing for 2 minutes.

First Taste

Shi Feng Long Jing steeps to a very pale yellow colour. There’s a definitely grassy and nutty aroma to it. The flavour is quite subtle, but it’s a smooth cup of green tea for sure. The grassy notes are more prevalent while the nutty flavours linger at the tail end of each sip. There was zero bitterness or astringency at the water temperature I used, and the length of steeping time that I used – something greatly appreciated.

A Second Cup?

I resteeped Shi Feng Long Jing seven times (eight steeps total), adding an additional 30 seconds for each subsequent steep. The tea itself became more yellow as I steeped it, and the flavour got stronger. The grassy notes get strongest by about the third or fourth resteep, which is pleasant to experience.

My Overall Impression

I loved Masters Teas’s Shi Feng Long Jing. I’m a sucker for a decent cup of dragonwell, and Shi Feng Long Jing surpassed my expectations. I loved the opportunity in getting to try a newly harvested tea, and it stood up very well to being resteeped over and over again, so I would highly recommend doing that in order to experience the subtle flavour changes, and getting your money’s worth from this tea since it isn’t on the cheaper side of things. The savoury notes from this year’s dragonwell would make it a great pairing for a meal.

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Masters Teas’s Bai Hao Yin Zhen

Bai Hao Yin Zhen by Masters Teas
White Tea / Straight
$34.00USD for 1.5oz (43g)

Masters Teas has provided me with Bai Hao Yin Zhen for the purposes of writing an honest review.

First Impressions

You know who loves a good white tea? Me.

Masters Teas kindly sent me some Bai Hao Yin Zhen (better known as Silver Needle) that was harvested this year. It just doesn’t get any fresher than this! Bai Hao Yin Zhen comes in a sealed, resealable pouch that has a label across the front (and more information on their website!). This one is from Fujian, China, and is grown at 450m above sea level and hand picked from 5 to 10 year old trees (how amazing is it to get that level of information?).

The leaves of this tea are so lovely – white fuzz with some pops of spring green. It has a very light aroma to it – a pleasant blend of floral and grassy notes. I can’t tell which one is stronger than the other, it has a nice balance to it that I feel like they both play nicely with each other and I’m really hopeful that it continues to the steeped tea.

Preparation

Masters Teas recommends steeping Bai Hao Yin Zhen in 170°F (77°C) water for 2 to 3 minutes. I opted to do an initial steep in 175°F (79°C) water for 2 minutes.

First Taste

Bai Hao Yin Zhen steeps to a very pale yellow. The aroma from the steeped white tea is a very light floral aroma. It’s very much a spring aroma to me. I found the taste of Bai Hao Yin Zhen has a nice sweet floral flavour, and subtle grassy notes in the background. It’s a very delicate tasting tea, and I wouldn’t add anything to it – the natural sweetness does so well on its own.

A Second Cup?

I resteeped Bai Hao Yin Zhen an additional 3 times (4 steeps total with the same leaves). I found that the tea leaves handled being resteeped very well, as it had a more fruity note by the end of it – although the floral flavour was still very much present. It had some hints of what reminded me of melon, which has a nice crisp brightness to it.

My Overall Impression

I loved Masters Teas’s Bai Hao Yin Zhen. This white tea does not disappoint from the fuzziness of the dry leaf, to the aroma of the tea as it steeps, to the process of enjoying it. I found it did really well with resteeping, which I do think is a must to really enjoy all of the favour from these leaves. It’s such a treat to experience a new white tea and I think it’ll continue to be a treat as I finish up what’s in the bag.

Curious about the cup rating system? Click here to learn more.