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.