Week of Jin Xuan - Epilogue

Well, that was a pretty fun project! Learned a bit about tea tasting like my limit (10 cups of tea, ugh), drinking water in between cups to prevent the flavors from mixing, using a flavor wheel, and a ton of other stuff. Ended on the last day of summer too, which was nice.

Anyway, my favorites in this project were the Taiwan Jin Xuan Milk Oolong, Vietnam Ta Jin Xuan Green, Milk Oolong (Vital Tea Leaf), Thailand Sticky Rise Khao Hom Oolong, and Rose Oolong (Tea Ave). I'll certainly buy them again if I ever get the money, but alas- I am only a poor high school student with no job.

Hopefully I can do this sort of thing again with a different varietal of tea- maybe sencha? I'll need to get a houhin or some sort of Japanese teapot first. I really did enjoy this project though, and it was great seeing the effect area, altitude, and preparation can have on the flavor of a tea. I don't really have much more to say since I'm so tired, and I got some work to do. Thanks for joining me on this project!

Week of Jin Xuan - Day 7 (FINAL): Thailand Winter Frost Jin Xuan Oolong & Alishan Jin Xuan Oolong

Last day of summer! I honestly don't know what I'm going to do today, but I will get something done. Some stuff on the itinerary is get my class schedule, watch Straight Outta Compton, go to piano class, and other stuff. I might write an update and finishing post for this project today, especially because I think it was pretty successful. Anyway, multiple albums today since they're kind of short: God of Love by Stereo Alchemy and Reptilians by STRFKR.


Thailand Winter Frost Jin Xuan Oolong - What-Cha
Type & Appearance: Dark green/brown, medium-sized balled oolong
Recommended Brew Time, Temp., Amount: 80°C, 1 tsp, 2 min.
Rating: B | 86/100
# of Brews: 7

Notes:
This tea began with a light golden yellow color and an aroma similar to that of citrus, fruits, grass, and wood. The flavor had notes of citrus, nuts, and cream with a mellow, slightly viscous mouthfeel. It's more on the sour side, with only small notes of sweetness. There's a fruity aftertaste that lingers in the mouth, but only stays on the breath for a short time. Over brews, it eventually became more bitter and grassy- somewhat similar to sencha. It became less sour and slightly more sweet, but after 6 brews, it began to lose most of its flavor. I stopped at 8 brews since it actually began to taste pretty bad, but the liquid still had color and the aftertaste. It's a good tea (better than yesterday's), but I think this tea might require more experimentation to get the best flavor; boiling water doesn't seem to cut it for this, leading to bitter notes.


Alishan Jin Xuan Oolong - Tea Ave
Type & Appearance: Unroasted Oolong - very large, bright green balls of oolong
Recommended Brew Time, Temp., Amount: 90-95°C, 8g, 1 min. + 20-30 sec each brew
Rating: B+ | 88/100
# of Brews:  8

Notes:
I've already reviewed this tea, so I'll keep this short. At the beginning of the tasting session, the liquid was a bright green with a sweet, milky aroma; I could also notice some honey, seaweed, and grass notes. The flavor was sweet, smooth, and mellow, with flavors such as grass, cream, and flowers (specifically roses and jasmine). Over time, it became more yellow and lost its sweet profile for a grassy, somewhat savory taste. I ended up stopping at 8 brews since it was losing almost all of its flavor, but it didn't get that same bad taste of the Winter Frost oolong.


Final Notes
Well, that was a good way to end this project. I got up early, drank tea before breakfast (writing only short notes), and then wrote this. I think these teas were much better than yesterday's, with my preference leaning towards the Alishan Jin Xuan Oolong from Tea Ave. I still can't get over how large the leaves were (at the beginning, I had relatively the same amount of leaves but the Alishan Jin Xuan ended up filling all of my large gaiwan. The Winter Frost was good, but it seems to be a bit finicky with time and temperature since some brews were really good, and some were marred by bitterness and just plain bad flavors. Anyway, expect a closing post on this whole project soon.

Week of Jin Xuan - Day 6: Vietnam Jin Xuan Oolong & Taiwan Ali Shan Jin Xuan Oolong

Welp, only 1 more day left before summer vacation ends. Today and yesterday, I practiced making matcha, went biking with the family and ate at an Indian restaurant. I think I'm going to go watch a movie with them after this, and then study. Oh, also, that Milk Oolong from Taiwan from yesterday's review is now my carry-around tea (used to be Rose Oolong). Honestly though, I don't know how I'm going to spend my last day of summer (I might watch Straight Outta Compton with my sister), but hopefully it'll be good before I get back to the grind. Anyway, today's album is The World! Evangelion Jazz Night by the Tokyo 3 Jazz Club.


Vietnam Jin Xuan Oolong - What-Cha
Type & Appearance: Unroasted Oolong - Medium sized, dark green balled oolong
Recommended Brew Time, Temp., Amount: 80°C, 1 tsp, 2 min.
Rating: B- | 82/100
# of Brews: 6

Notes:
At the beginning, the tea had a light golden yellow color and a wet earth and wood aroma, with some notes of burnt sugar. The flavor was a bit like dried fruits, hazelnuts, and milk/cream (only somewhat). It irritated my throat quite a bit, but left a very fruity, mango-like flavor in my mouth and breath. Over time, it became a bit more fruity and lost its drying qualities (for the most part). Overall, a pretty average oolong.


Taiwan Ali Shan Jin Xuan Oolong - What-Cha 
Type & Appearance: Unroasted Oolong - Small, light-green/brownish balled oolong
Recommended Brew Time, Temp., Amount: 80°C, 1 tsp, 2 min.
Rating: B- | 80/100
# of Brews: 6

Notes:
For this tea's first few brews, the liquid was a light straw yellow with an aroma similar to wood, a little bit of smoke, and cinnamon. There were notes of malt, peanuts, and very sweet rose with an aftertaste of caramel
It made my throat and mouth a little dry, but not as much compared to the Vietnam Jin Xuan. This tea is more earthier than the Vietnam Jin Xuan, but not stronger; they're relatively the same. After a couple of brews, this tea became more creamier, a tad bit bitter, and less astringent. It was okay, but I've tasted better.


Final Notes
So, I'm sure you can tell that today's review is a bit short. That's because my dad decided last minute to go out to the theatre (after we decided to watch at home), so I ended up rushing through. Both of today's teas were a bit average- more astringent than usual- but still enjoyable. I personally liked the Vietnam Jin Xuan more since it wasn't so dry and more fruity, but I can see some people enjoying the Jin Xuan from Ali Shan.

Week of Jin Xuan - Day 5: Fujian Anxi Jin Xuan Milk Oolong & Taiwan Jin Xuan Milk Oolong

Oh man, so I woke up super late today since I was super tired last night. I decided, last minute, to go bike ~30 miles (essentially across 3 towns) in 2 hours at 9 pm. I just finished watching O Brother, Where Art Thou?- a really good movie in my opinion- and had the idea of doing it since I had done nothing at all that day. Anyway, so this review is happening right after brunch since I just woke up and am really tired. Today's album is Sunset Blood by Starcadian. Oh, also, the reviews might be a little short too since I'm going to spend the day with family and I'll have to leave on short notice.


Fujian Anxi Jin Xuan Milk Oolong - What-Cha
Type & Appearance: Unroasted Oolong - Dark green, medium to large balls of oolong
Recommended Brew Time, Temp., Amount: 85°C, 1 tsp, 1-2 min
Rating: B | 86/100
# of Brews: 8

Notes:
Compared to the Taiwan Jin Xuan, this aroma of this oolong is much less milky and instead more fruity. The color of the liquid for the first few brews was a light, golden yellow. The flavor profile was creamy, with a bit of cotton candy (and related mouthfeel), Indian mangos, and a tiny bit of grape. It's very smooth with little astringency, only leaving a light tart note on the tongue after drinking. By the later brews, the mango flavor became very prevalent as an aftertaste, and I could even taste it on my breath long after. It became sweeter, losing the sour notes, but still retaining the fruity flavors. Overall, I liked it, but it was kind of average for what I've tried so far.


Taiwan Jin Xuan Milk Oolong - What-Cha
Type & Appearance: Flavored Oolong - Dark green, large balls of oolong
Recommended Brew Time, Temp., Amount: 85°C, 1 tsp, 1-2 min
Rating: A- | 91/100
# of Brews: 8

Notes:
Even before I brewed this tea, I could already smell the milk. The dry leaves have a smell similar to danish cookies, coconuts, and evaporated milk- and it's amazing. After brewing, the color is a light, blueish yellow with the same aroma as the dry leaves, albeit slightly more fruitier.  As for the taste, this tea is one of a kind. It tastes exactly how it smells, with notes like coconut milk, cookies, and some burnt sugar (or toffee/caramel, depending on where you're from). Over time, the flavor actually stayed relatively the same (maybe only a little milkier and slightly more sour)- mostly only weaker. Overall, a really enjoyable, unique oolong.

Final Notes
I ended up stopping the review early, but I'm pretty sure the teas can be brewed for a lot more than 8; at this point, the liquid was actually pretty brightly colored and the flavor was still strong. Both of these were pretty enjoyable, but like most other days so far, I've had a tea that's blown me away and another that's good, but nothing compared to the other. As for today, the tea that's blown me away is the Taiwan Jin Xuan Milk Oolong and the okay one is the Fujian Anxi. In fact, I was a bit suspicious of the Taiwan Jin Xuan because of how milky and flavorful it was, and I thought that it had been scented or flavored. I was proved wrong after a while, since the flavor stayed strong even after the 8th brew. Overall, today was also a good day for tea.

EDIT: Turns out that the Taiwan Jin Xuan Milk Oolong is actually flavored! I think that actually bumps up my score for it, since almost every flavored oolong I've tried has only lasted 3-4 brews max. This one was at 8 and still going strong, which was pretty amazing.

Week of Jin Xuan - Day 4: Rose Oolong & Thailand Jin Xuan Oolong

So, this review is happening right after brunch (1 PM). I honestly don't know what I'm going to do today, but I think I'll try to practice piano and do some reading/study after the tasting session. I am going to bike later tonight, though, when it cools down. As for what I have done, I've just done some cooking (fried rice!), eating, and a lot of osu! (and practice using Joy2Key). There will be 2 albums today since they're related and pretty short; they are History Repeating: Blue and Red by the Megas.


Rose Oolong - Tea Ave 
Type & Appearance: Flavored Oolong - large, dark and light green balls of oolong with bright pink/red rose petals
Recommended Brew Time, Temp., Amount: 100°C, 8g, 1 min + 30 sec each brew
Rating: A- | 90/100
# of Brews: 8

Notes:
If you've read my previous review on this tea, you can tell I really like it. This is/was actually the tea I carried around on me in a small case, until I used it at a dinner at some fancy restaurant (I ended up putting it in an empty tea pot and it lasted 4 brews while constantly brewing in western style, which was really surprising. Everyone really liked it too). So, I guess you can tell I'm pretty excited for this one. This review is going to be a bit lacking since I've already done a full review, but I'll still do some tasting notes. By the first brew, I could already smell the sweet, floral aroma coming from the light, greenish-blue liquid. The flavor wasn't as contaminated as the Milk Oolong from Vital Tea Leaf, but I could still notice very light cinnamon notes. The most dominant flavor was the rose, followed by grass, and finally cream. It's not overwhelmingly sweet and actually has a bit of bitterness, but is still very enjoyable. Over time, the color of the brew became a brighter green. The aroma stayed relatively the same, but the flavor began to lose the rose (which became an aftertaste) and move towards the Jin Xuan with a bit of a broccoli and grass flavor. It actually got a bit more astringent over time also. Overall, I still really like it (and wish that this wasn't my last set of leaves).


Thailand Jin Xuan Oolong - What-Cha
Type & Appearance: Unroasted Oolong - very large, light and dark green/brown balls of oolong
Recommended Brew Time, Temp., Amount: 80°C, 1 tsp, 2 min
Rating: B- | 82/100
# of Brews: 8

Notes:
As for this tea's first brew, it had a light golden yellow color and (surprisingly) little smell. The leaves, on the other hand, had honey and wood notes with a smell like tupig (Filipino sticky rice). It was surprisingly savory for a Jin Xuan, with flavors like raw walnut, a little almond, and (weirdly) hay. The creamy notes of the Jin Xuan weren't really coming out for the first few brew. There was also a slight bit of astringency, which made my throat feel very dry after drinking. Over time, the color became a bit more yellow and the aroma from the leaves could be smelled in the liquid. The flavor became more creamy, sweet, and Jin Xuan-like, but not as flavorful as Vital Tea Leaf's. More brews didn't help with the astringency, however. I will admit, though, that it got way better by the later brews and was still going strong by brew 7. Overall, an average Jin Xuan. It lasts long which is nice, but I don't really like the flavor.


Final Notes
I decided to end the review early since I was getting pretty full and kept running out of water (California drought woo). However, judging from the color of the teas, they could have kept going; in fact, it looked like the color of both teas was getting darker. Anyway, I think it's pretty clear that I liked the Rose Oolong much more. I just think that the Thailand Jin Xuan is too astringent and lacks a lot in terms of flavor compared to all of the other teas I've had so far. There wasn't really much special to it, and the teas it's being compared to are a lot, lot better.

Week of Jin Xuan - Day 3: Magnolia Oolong* & Thailand Sticky Rice 'Khao Hom' Oolong

So, today I've pretty much done nothing other than mail my package for Reddit's 1st White Elephant Tea Exchange and make french toast. I should really do something big before summer ends since school is coming up fast. Anyway, today's review is between two different scented oolongs. The album for the review is the Skullgirls Original Soundtrack PLUS by Michiru Yamane and others.


Magnolia Oolong - Tea Ave *NO REVIEW*
Type & Appearance: XX
Recommended Brew Time, Temp., Amount: 100°C, 8g, 1 min. + 30 sec. each brew
Rating: XX | XX/100
# of Brews: X

Notes:
To be completely honest, I screwed up. It turns out that the sample I thought was Magnolia Oolong was actually Monkey Picked Tie Guan Yin from Red Blossom Tea Co. As I started drinking, I realized that I drank the whole sample of Magnolia Oolong given to me a long time ago by Tea Ave and didn't save any of it at all. So, no review for this one today (it'll be coming later in a full review). I'll still be tasting it in order to create a frame of reference for the Sticky Rice oolong, however. Sorry again! (If I do remember though, the Magnolia Oolong was way too weak in terms of flavor, and the fact that I didn't have extra leaves didn't help; it was a really small sample.)


Thailand Sticky Rice 'Khao Hom' Oolong - What-Cha
Type & Appearance: Flavored Oolong - large, drab light green balls of oolon
Recommended Brew Time, Temp., Amount: 80°C, 1 tsp, 2 min.
Rating: 92 | A-/100
# of Brews:  10

Notes:
By the first brew, this tea had already begun to take on the sticky rice taste. The liquid had a very light golden color with a floral, sweet, and obviously rice-like aroma. The flavor starts off with a somewhat sour, muscatel flavor, then moves into the flavor of sticky rice (it's hard for me to explain, but if you've tasted it before you know what I mean; it's ). It finishes off on a sweet, light cinnamon note. Over brews, the color had begun to become darker, but the aroma stayed relatively the same. As for the flavor, the fruity notes became much more pronounced, but the sticky rice flavor remained and became even more stronger. In fact, the cinnamon notes were eventually lost and the sticky rice stayed as a very dominant aftertaste, which I could taste after drinking and exhaling. The creamy, milky notes of the Jin Xuan base began to come out, making the tea taste surprisingly a lot like milk- something which I haven't seen in a lot of Jin Xuan. The flavor began to wane after 7 brews, but it still tasted relatively the same. There was little astringency throughout the complete drinking session. Near the end, the creaminess of the Jin Xuan became the dominant flavor, and the sticky rice became a light aftertaste. Overall, a really, really great drinking experience.


Final Notes
Overall, I'm actually pretty happy, despite my blunder. The sticky rice oolong really made up for it with its flavor and I enjoyed drinking it very much. This is the longest a flavored oolong has lasted in terms of number of brews, and the taste stayed the same without changing much. I actually had to stop early (10 brews) since I ran out of water, but I'm almost certain it could go much longer. On par with the Vietnamese green I had yesterday.

Week of Jin Xuan - Day 2: Vietnam Ta Jin Xuan Green & Milk Oolong

So, today's review is between a green tea and an oolong, but that's fine! Vital Tea Leaf's Milk Oolong is unroasted/a green oolong, and anyway it'll be fun to compare. There isn't much stuff happening today other than registration for school, so this review is happening in the morning after breakfast. Today's album is THE BEST 'Blue' by Kalafina.

Vietnam Ta Jin Xuan Green - What-Cha
Type & Appearance: Green Tea - small, dark green curls; I'm guessing it's pan fried
Recommended Brew Time, Temp., Amount: 75°C, 1-2 tsp, 15-30 sec.
Rating: A | 93/100
# of Brews: 5

Notes:
So, this tea actually really surprised me before the first brew. Once I rinsed it, there was very, very strong seaweed smell mixed with a bit of a cooked meat (pork or beef) notes. It's similar to Japanese sencha, but it has a bit more punch; it's not as grassy. As for the first few brews, it had a very bright yellow-green color and moved towards a neon green. The taste was amazing; it had the umami, yet slightly grassy taste of Japanese sencha and finished on the creamy notes of a Jin Xuan. It was very, very smooth with little to no tannins or astringency. By brew 4, the tea had begun to lose its flavor and color. It began to move from the savory flavor of sencha to the milky, lightly tart flavor of Jin Xuan with a bit of cotton candy. The aroma had somehow become what I can only describe as a fresh watermelon, with a tiny bit of seaweed. I ended at 5 brews since it was becoming flavorless and I cold brew the leaves are I finish, but it could go for maybe 1 more. Although it doesn't last as long as other teas, this tea is an amazing experience for what it is.


Milk Oolong - Vital Tea Leaf
Type & Appearance: Unroasted Oolong - small, dark green balls of oolong
Recommended Brew Time, Temp., Amount: 180-190°F, 1-2 tbsp, 30 sec.
Rating: A- | 90/100
# of Brews:  up to 8 (recommended); stopped at 6

Notes:
I may have screwed this one up. I stored this tea (and actually all of the other teas from Tea Ave) next to some chai, so there is a very light cinnamon taste. I'm still getting the milk oolong flavor, but the light chai flavor is distracting. Anyway, for the first few brews, the tea, like the green tea, had a bright yellow-green color; however, I'd say this tea was more yellow than the Ta Jin Xuan. As it brewed more, it moved towards a highlighter yellow color. The aroma wasn't tainted with the chai, and smelled milky and grassy- just how I remember it. The flavor is very milky with grassy notes, like the aroma, but had a bit of tartness to it. I daresay the cinnamon actually helped the flavor a bit since it was so light, but it's good either way. By the time the Ta Jin Xuan was losing its flavor, this tea was still going strong. This began to lose flavor by brew 6, but still had a bright color. Overall, the flavor moved to a more grassy flavor with light milk notes and tart flavor. The aroma stayed a strong evaporated milk smell, and I'm more than sure you can reach the 8 brews on the box. Still one of my favorite milk oolongs.

Final Notes
Well, I think I just found one of my favorite green teas now. It might just be my craving for sencha talking, but I was just blown away by the Ta Jin Xuan's flavor. It's like two of my favorite teas combined and made an amazing flavor, with both complimenting each other very, very nicely. Kalafina helped a lot in setting the mood, heh. As for the Milk Oolong, it's still actually one of my favorite ones just because of its milkiness and green tea-like flavor, but today, the bar was just set too high by the Ta Jin Xuan. And also, a lesson learned: store smelly teas away from other teas, and pack teas in airtight bags. Today was a good day.

Week of Jin Xuan - Day 1: Guangdong Jin Xuan Mao Feng Black & Jin Xuan Pearl Black

So, while I am brewing gongfu style, I'm just going to do a short paragraph on what I think for both teas (instead of doing tasting notes for every brew). Today's is mostly just going to be a practice session of what's to come. Also, I'm relaxing while doing this after that filming session (more info in a later post), so I'm not really focused on this too much. Here's a new thing too: I'll be listening to a different album during each tasting session, and today's is ADHD by Kuba Oms- it's free on their Bandcamp, so feel free to pick it up!

Guangdong Jin Xuan Mao Feng Black - What-Cha
Type: Black - very long, thin rolled leaves
Recommended Brew Time, Temp., Amount: 95°C, 1-2 tsps, 3-4 min
Rating: B+ | 89/100

Notes:
At the beginning, this tea had sweet, honey notes along with an apricot flavor. It is very smooth and light, leaving little dryness in the mouth. The liquid was a light, golden-orange/amber color, with a fruity, almost red wine-like smell. It reached about 6 brews, but I think it could go for a few more. Throughout the drinking session, the flavor eventually became a bit more citrusy, with a flavor like lemon peel. The honey notes continued, and the creaminess characteristic of Jin Xuan came out as an aftertaste. By the end it was also becoming a bit more astringent, and felt more viscous in the mouth.


Jin Xuan Pearl Black - What-Cha
Type: Black - small, balled leaves
Recommended Brew Time, Temp., Amount: 90°C, 1 tsp, 3-4 min.
Rating: B | 86/100

Notes:
As for this tea at the beginning, it was a dark gold color with a light smoky, brown sugar aroma. The flavor was mostly smooth and sweet, with earthy caramel notes. However, it was a bit tannic, leaving the throat dry after drinking. Like the other tea, I was able to brew this 6 times. I'd say you can brew it a bit more, but at this point, the flavor was becoming very weak; the liquid still had color, however. Surprisingly, it became very chocolatey while retaining its honey notes. It never reached that creamy flavor, but it did have a slightly sweet flavor in the aftertaste/during inhaling.


Final Notes
Personally, I liked the Guangdong Jin Xuan Mao Feng Black more. I prefer the fruity sweet flavor that was present in the first few brews to the strong, darker flavor of the Jin Xuan Pearl Black. However, the Jin Xuan Pearl Black did seem a bit more available for longer brews, and I actually liked the chocolate flavor that appeared near the end of the tastings. Both are good teas, but depending on your taste preferences you may like one over the other (like I said, I enjoyed the Guangdong Jin Xuan Mao Feng Black a tiny bit more).

Welcome to the Week of Jin Xuan

What is Jin Xuan?
Essentially, Jin Xuan is a varietal of tea crossbred from the TRES #8 and Ying Zhi Hong Jing varietals. Also known as Golden Lily or Milk Oolong, this tea is known for its sweet, creamy, and milky taste. It originates from Taiwan and is usually found in unroasted oolong form, but can also be black or green tea.

So, what is the Week of Jin Xuan?
Since Jin Xuan is one of my favorite teas, I've accumulated quite a bit of it. I recently bought every type of Jin Xuan I could find on What-Cha, and I decided that I want to try to review and taste all of them. I've also added in some teas from Tea Ave and Vital Tea Leaf to make this project a full seven days. The plan is to taste two different types each day, and compare them to each other. This is also just a way for me to end summer with something

When does it start and end?
Start: hopefully tomorrow- 8/18/15 (it depends on how long the filming at UC Berkeley will take; if it will be a day long affair, I'll start on the 19th)
End: most likely 8/25/15 - the first day of school

How will you be tasting the tea?
As I said before, I'll be tasting 2 different teas each day. I'll be brewing gong-fu style using boiling (or close to it) water for about 30 seconds on the first brew. With each brew, the time will increase by 15-30 seconds. The tastings will alternate between each tea; for example, I will brew tea 1, taste, and then brew tea 2, taste, and repeat until both teas run out of flavor. I'll be using about a teaspoon of leaf per tasting, since I don't have a scale for exact measurements. I'll give an update if I ever find out. Overall, I plan to keep everything the same for science. Note that I will not use cupping for this since I'll be drinking with other people, and I want to enjoy the tea as I taste.

What are the teas?
Here's a list of the teas:
From What-Cha: 1. Thailand Jin Xuan Pearl Black, 2. Taiwan Ali Shan Jin Xuan Oolong, 3. Thailand Jin Xuan Oolong, 4. Taiwan Jin Xuan Milk Oolong, 5. Vietnam Jin Xuan Oolong, 6. Fujian Anxi Jin Xuan Milk Oolong, 7. Guangdong Jin Xuan Mao Feng Black, 8. Thailand Winter Frost Jin Xuan Oolong, 9. Vietnam Ta Jin Xuan Green, 10. Thailand Sticky Rice Khao Hom Oolong
From Vital Tea Leaf*: 11. Milk Oolong
From Tea Ave*: 12. Magnolia Oolong**, 13. Rose Oolong, 14. Alishan Jin Xuan Oolong
*The amount of tea I have might be lacking compared to the teas from What-Cha
**There is a chance this tea may not be reviewed due to my laziness regarding labeling my tea


What's the schedule?
I'll upload 1 post- containing both reviews for that day's teas- randomly that day. As for what teas when, I'll be tasting unscented teas with unscented, scented with scented, oolongs with oolongs- you get the deal. Some days will be a mix since I have an uneven number of each type of tea, but oh well; they're all Jin Xuans. I've made the schedule for each day with a random number generator.

Day 1. Guangdong Jin Xuan Mao Feng Black & Thailand Jin Xuan Pearl Black
Day 2. Vietnam Ta Jin Xuan Green & Milk Oolong (Vital Tea Leaf)
Day 3. Magnolia Oolong & Thailand Sticky Rice Khao Hom Oolong
Day 4. Rose Oolong & Thailand Jin Xuan Oolong
Day 5. Fujian Anxi Jin Xuan Milk Oolong & Taiwan Jin Xuan Milk Oolong
Day 6. Vietnam Jin Xuan Oolong & Taiwan Ali Shan Jin Xuan Oolong
Day 7. Thailand Winter Frost Jin Xuan Oolong & Alishan Jin Xuan Oolong (Tea Ave)

And there it is! I hope you're looking forward to it as much as I am.

Quick Update (Again) - 8/17/15

Sorry for the lack of posts lately- I've been busy with family stuff since my sister got back from college. Anyway, here's a quick rundown of everything that's happened and what I have in store:

First off, what I've done.

• Finished all summer homework in 2 binge sessions, so now all I have to worry about for school is the first week tests/socratic seminars/whatever and proofreading. 
• A lot of family stuff like eating and biking and crap
• Bought a ton of stuff and as a result am now broke; I bought the Protomen's Act 3 single on vinyl, quite a bit of tea (see below), a physical copy of Supernormal Step Encore (one of my first and favorite webcomics),  
• Watched Into the Woods with the girlfriend
• Started playing osu! (mostly just osu!mania though)

And what I plan to do in the coming weeks:

1. Tomorrow, I'm going to go be in an audience member in a new educational show about chemistry at UC Berkeley
2. Throughout this week & next: Jin Xuan tastings & reviews! I bought What-cha's complete catalog of Jin Xuan tea, including: Thailand Winter Frost Jin Xuan Oolong, Guangdong Jin Xuan Mao Feng Black, Fujian Anxi Jin Xuan Milk Oolong, Taiwan Jin Xuan Milk Oolong, Vietnam Jin Xuan Oolong, Thailand Jin Xuan Oolong, Taiwan Ali Shan Jin Xuan Oolong, Thailand Jin Xuan Pearl Black, Thailand Sticky Rice 'Khao Hom' Oolong, Vietnam Ta Jin Xuan Green. To stretch the tastings to a full 7 days (2 each day), I'm also going to re-review Vital Tea Leaf's Milk Oolong and Tea Aves' Rose Oolong, Magnolia Oolong, and Jin Xuan.
3. After that, review that Red Blossom Tea Co's Pi Lo Chun and Monkey-Picked Tieguanyin, What-cha's Thailand Oriental Beauty Pearl Oolong, Indonesia Harendong Twisted 'Cengkok' Green, and Nepal First Flush Clonal Delight Black. I might also throw in some instant tea reviews and Twinings' herbal tea. 
4. Study the shit out of everything, practice Japanese, etc.
5. Next week, school!!!
6. I joined Reddit's first White Elephant tea exchange, so hopefully something good comes out of that.
7. Next month, sleep study overnight stay
8. Soon (when I have enough money saved up), building an arcade stick. I've been reading up on it and I plan to buy the buttons, PCB, & wiring and put it all in a pizza box as practice
9. Other school related stuff like clubs that I'll probably put into its own post
10. Freq.Fest.Norcal in September (Crashfaster, Slime Girls, Petriform, Maxo, oh my!)

So, expect that. I'll try to start the week of Jin Xuan before summer vacation ends, but I'm trying to work out how I'm going to brew + review + all that stuff. Thanks for reading!

What's Going On? (Life Update) 8/2/15

I know I've been posting these too often lately but I really want to do something meaningful before summer ends- especially since I've been a hermit and done jack all this summer and everyone I know has gone somewhere on vacation, volunteered places, hung out with friends, got jobs, internships, whatever. I want to do something that makes me feel like I haven't wasted all this time, and August is going to be the time I do it. And so, I dub this month the "Really Get Shit Done" month and this update the "August Checklist" update. Welcome to Summer-land.

Anyway, stuff that's happened lately first. I had an interview for the sleep study, which went pretty well. They said I'm likely to continue in the study, and I got $30 in Amazon gift cards for participating so far. I'm going to get a call either tomorrow or Tuesday about staying in the study, so my fingers are crossed. The girlfriend also came back from Hawaii and I got her flowers, but both of us need to find free time before we hang out together (related, my sister came back last night and she's going to spend the month here). I also finished the SAT classes, with my last test grade being 2200 which was pretty great. Only 1 wrong on the math section, and over 700 on everything else. Other than that, not much because of the wrist and my own laziness (I did start the summer homework and am now 1/4th done).

Now that that's out of the way, here's my checklist for August, before school starts (in no particular order):

1. Finish all of the AP homework (English, History) and study for the tests
2. Practice piano (pieces I would like to learn, including this binder I got from my teacher full of songs)
3. Bike with my dad every other day; related- work out
4. Write more tea reviews and creative writing stuff
5. Hang out with friends
6. Practice SAT stuff using the books from class
7. Learn physics and maybe chem with the textbook and online videos (Khan Academy or UC Berkeley?); related- review Biology for the SAT subject test
8. Build the algae tank for the science fair or just prep for that
9. Do this project I've wanted to do for a long time (essentially, watch a movie every day/every other day for a full month and do a super quick review on it)
10. Email admin assistants at colleges about internships (thanks reddit!); related- email people about volunteer opportunities
11. Read books
12. Cook more since I haven't done too much of that lately
13. Other stuff that I can mention later

And that's it. It's a lot, but as long as I get at least a few done, I'll be happy. I do have two new life rules related to it (thanks to my British friend and also reddit), so here they are:

Everybody has the same amount of time. Everyone just chooses to do different things with it.

and

There is always more time.

Thanks for reading, and hopefully it all goes well!