Review: Hua Ki - Lupicia

Type: Flavored Black
Producer: Lupicia
Origin: India, Indonesia
Brewing Parameters: 2-2.5g; 100­°C; 2-2.5 min.
Appearance: Very small, broken-up, rolled black leaves with chunks of fruit and purple flower petals
Rating: B | 83/100
# of Brews: 2

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Number three of the Hawaiian teas! I think for the rest of the reviews, bar one, the tea will be a flavored black tea. This one is no exception. Like yesterday (and for the rest of the black teas), I'll be brewing in the kyusu according to the brewing parameters.

Again, like most of Lupicia's flavored black teas, this has that vaguely fruity smell that is very artificial. The description only states that Hua Ki is "a tropical fruits flavored black tea... luxuriously blended with mango–" except it doesn't smell like a mango. It has the smell of tropical fruit juice, but if you didn't tell me it was mango, I wouldn't be able to guess. For some reason, it reminds me a bit of barbeque sauce, actually. Compared to yesterday's tea, the leaves were actually quite a bit smaller, with even the flower petals broken up. Also, I think yesterday's tea smelled better in general.

While I did think it smelled worse (mainly because it was just too artificial), I think it tastes much better. After brewing, the liquid came out a dark orange, clear enough to see the bottom of my cup. The mango, too, definitely came out once it brewed; the wet leaves smelled exactly of unripe mango juice (a bit sour, but still fruity). As for its flavor, it is surprisingly mellow for a black tea. The main flavor is an earthy, slightly woody taste accented by the tangy mango. It ends on a very strong chocolate note, which ends abruptly. Nothing really lingers in the mouth, but a very faint mango note stays on the breath. It made me a bit thirsty after drinking; however, it wasn't really astringent or bitter. Overall, I think this tea is good, but like yesterday's, not knock your socks off good. It doesn't seem to need any milk or sweetener to make it taste any better– in fact, I think adding any would overpower its fruit flavor.

Other Notes

Last day of summer! I just made a checklist of what I should do, like cook certain meals (french toast and tonkatsu!), prepare for school, read and study, and so on. So far, I've cleaned the new room so there aren't random boxes lying everywhere, cooked french toast and my lunch for tomorrow, had a friend come over, and wrote this review. It's a bit of a lazy day. I don't know if I should do anything special, and if I should, what it should be. I'll write about it tomorrow or later this week if I do figure that out.

As for plans this school year, I guess I have quite a bit since it's senior year after all. To go on a tangent right now (because I just really want to talk about it– I can always write my plan for the year later, and these reviews are generally streams of consciousness), there's an issue I have with my school. The thing is, being from a suburban upper class school, it's come to feel like my life depends on college admissions. I don't want to worry as much as other people– mainly, the people that I go to AP classes with– but there's just so much pressure coming from my peers (and my parents, to an extent) to go to an Ivy league. Like, it seems that UCs, the schools I want to go to (and pretty selective, too), are terrible because they don't have a less than ten percent acceptance rate. Some people even have schools like Berkeley and LA as their safeties.

This mindset has put me at odds with both my classmates and myself. On one hand, there's the idea that I won't be able to get into a "good" college (by their standards) if I don't take AP Calculus, but on the other hand, I just want to take classes I'm interested in, like African American literature. The other issue too is that I want to take a STEM major in college, but my standardized tests and coursework points toward the humanities, like English and History. Classes like AP Calculus probably would help me in the long term, but the thing is I just want to enjoy my senior year. With college admissions, it's just like everything is a rich man's game. Not an average person's. It's not easy for me to have access to the opportunities that the people at my school have (namely through family connections or just money), and in order to be competitive academically, I can't do what I'm passionate in. Don't get me wrong, I love to do math and research, but I think at this point, seeing the current state of science is making me disillusioned.

I want to make a difference in the world. But the issue is that, at this point in my life, it looks like the only people that can do that are those with money to afford fancy internships at colleges, or those with family members in science. I've tried to do what I can on a budget: do science fair projects, research on my own, join free summer camps, and so on. However, for the things that do get you into the schools for the programs I want, this isn't enough. I guess we'll see.

Review: Lanikai - Lupicia

Type: Flavored Black
Producer: Lupicia
Origin: India, Kenya
Brewing Parameters: 2-2.5g; 100­°C; 2-2.5 min.
Appearance: Mix of CTC cut and broken-up, rolled dark brown leaves; there are also lavender/bluish colored flower petals, chunks of dried fruit (unsure what), and light blue rock sugar
Rating: B- | 82/100
# of Brews:  3

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Second Hawaii tea! According to the brochure, this tea is "a peach, orange and mango flavored black tea. Its sweet and fruit flavor goes well with milk." For the sake of keeping things the same during reviews, I won't be drinking with milk– but for the record, I usually drink my black teas with milk and honey. I'll also be brewing western style in a kyusu since I don't exactly own a teapot for single brewing, and the kyusu I do have has a pretty large volume.

Anyway, as this is a black tea, I don't expect this tea to last past one or two brews, especially since it is flavored and the leaves are pretty small. Brewed for two and a half minutes, the liquid came out a dark, orange-amber color– but not necessarily as dark as, say, English or Irish breakfast teas. The smell was fruity and sweet, but I couldn't really pin it down to a single smell. For some reason, all of Lupicia's fruit flavored teas have generally the same smell: a bit perfume-like with a bouquet of fruits. If I could guess, the strongest here is the mango, with some chocolate from the black tea base.

As for the flavor, it didn't taste as rough as I was expecting. Rough, as in terms of bitterness or astringency, which is the norm for many black teas. For Lanikai, it starts off with that indiscernible fruit flavor, then moves into the orange– a bit tangy and bitter, like bergamot oil– and ends with a mango aftertaste on the tongue lengthening the sour flavor. The tea leaves a sort of waxy texture on the tongue, but does not create any sort of drying sensation in the throat.

In the end, I got three brews, with the second losing most of the fruit flavor (but still having some of the black tea base), and the third having little to no taste. Lanikai is one of Lupicia's better flavored black teas– their teas seem to be either really good or really bad– but I'm not exactly crazy for it. I'd make it a daily drinker for breakfast or something or have people who are not into tea try it, but it's not really my cup of tea per se.

Other Notes

Recently, my brother came to live with us after graduating from college, and so, we ended up renovating the house. As of this review, I'm now in a new room, which is pretty nice; in this new setup, I have a big desk (not just a drawer now!), workspace underneath a bunk bed, and most of the stuff I had in my old room– just more compact. Sadly, I won't be able to sleep in this room this weekend since we're missing a mattress, but I think I'll be moving in early next week.

As for school stuff, I got my schedule, but it turns out my counselor last year messed up and didn't file my papers for changing classes. As a result, I'm taking African American Lit, World Lit, Ceramics, AP Chem, AP Gov/Macro, and Competition Civics (in that order). I've turned in the papers for a schedule change (to switch World Lit for AP English Lit and Ceramics for Photography), but it looks like I won't have the change until after the first day of school. Since this is the last weekend of summer, I have no idea what to do, either. Most of this week I've been renovating the house, and today I studied chem for most of the day. I'm excited for school, but at the same time, I'm dreading it. Here's to a successful senior year?

Expect a few more reviews coming soon. I might do multiple in a single day, but my issue is not being able to put anything in this section. Maybe I'll just write the actual reviews in one day, save it until I have something to write about in this section (e.g. on the next day), and then publish it. Who knows.

Review: Hoku - Lupicia

Type: Flavored Oolong
Producer: Lupicia
Origin: Taiwan
Brewing Parameters: 2.5-3g; 100°C; 1.5-2 min. (recommended)
Appearance: Dark green ball oolong with small stems, yellow and blue flower petals, and metallic colored rock sugar
Rating: A- | 90/100
# of Brews: 4

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Woah, it's been a while since my last review of Lupicia tea. While I do admit that Lupicia isn't always the best quality since their teas are generally flavored (this tea is no exception), it holds a special place in my heart as the company that helped pull me into the world of tea. Anyway, I picked this tea up during my trip in Hawaii, which I just got back from last night. This will be the first of a set of seven reviews, covering Lupicia's Hawaii exclusive teas. I also bought a few interesting shinchas while there too, so expect some more reviews coming soon.

I ended up choosing this tea in the Hawaii set to start with because it's a balled oolong, and to be honest, I haven't had a decent oolong in quite a bit. Looking at the tea before I brew it (gongfu style), the most interesting things are 1. the silvery, metallic sheen of the rock sugar and 2. the very pungent, flowery perfume smell of the dry leaf. In general, however, the tea looks to be a standard Lupicia tea with the choice of flowers and shape of sugar.

For brewing, I decided to stick with the recommended parameters despite brewing in a gaiwan. The liquid was a light, golden cream color with a scent very similar to the dry leaf– perhaps even more fruity and sweet. Immediately upon drinking, the first thing that came to mind is pina colada; the first and last thing I tasted was a creamy, pineapple flavor. After that was a bit of tanginess, like that of a mango, some cooling sensation, like mint, and then the return to the pina colada. As for the texture, I noticed that it was a bit irritating to the throat, but I chalk it up to there being a bit of dust in the drink (not sure if it was from my set or from the actual tea).

In the end, I was able to get 4 brews from three grams of leaf– double what was expected. Being that it was a flavored tea, it tasted the same throughout the whole session, just becoming weaker as time went on. All in all, I enjoyed this tea quite a bit, which is saying something, since I think Lupicia's tropical-flavored teas are usually they're worst.

Other Notes

Hawaii was actually pretty fun; we did quite a bit of hiking, shopping, and eating. I was surprised to see that there was such a large Japanese population there– both tourist and residential– and that the food was so good (ended up having quite a bit of udon and croquettes). Our hotel was in Waikiki, but we visited Pearl Harbor and the museums there, along with the Polynesian Cultural Center (Ha Breath of Life was amazing) and a few other places. Matsumoto shave ice was also one of the highlights of the trip.

Anyway, it's the last week of summer. I decided not to go to Freq.Fest.SF since I don't really have the money (spent it on the tea, heh) and it can be streamed from DNA Lounge's website. In fact, the whole time I've been writing this, I've been listening to the show. As for school, I missed registration so I don't know my schedule yet, but I'll be going to make up registration tomorrow; I'll update you all once I get it. To be honest, I'm not really sure how I feel. For one, I'll have something to do and will be able to see my friends and all, but then again, I have college apps and tests and so on.

If you don't remember, the classes I signed up for are African American Literature, AP English Literature, AP Government/Macroeconomics, AP Chemistry, Competition Civics, and Photography. Here's to hoping I get all of the classes I signed up for. 

Review: Organic Green Dragon - Mighty Leaf

Type: Green
Producer: Mighty Leaf
Origin: Longjing
Brewing Parameters: 1 tea bag, boiling water, 3 min. (recommended)
Appearance: Square, nylon tea bag with a mix of light and dark green broken leaves and a few stems
Rating: A | 93/100
# of Brews: 2

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Yet another tea bag review today– in all honesty, I think I only have tea bags left to review since I've done almost all of my loose leaf and most of my money is going to public transit and all. Unlike most of these other tea bag reviews lately, however, I haven't tried this specific tea (or any Longjing) before now. Also, I know that since this is a green tea, it should not be brewed with boiling water, but the pack doesn't really specify temperature and I can't really control specifics anyway. Just as a necessity, though, I let the water sit at room temperature to cool a bit.

Anyway, onto the review. One nice thing I've noticed about Mighty Leaf teas is that they use much higher quality leaves than most other tea bag producers– for them, the leaves are either whole or broken into large chunks, rather than fannings or dust. I ended up brewing for only 1 minute instead of the recommended 3 because of the higher temperatures, and I think it turned out pretty well.

The color was a dark yellowish green (not as dark as some sencha when brewed nicely can get), with a smell of freshly cut grass and the sea (I'm guessing seaweed or just salt water). Even with the heat, it was only a slight bit bitter, which is on par with other greens. As for the taste, it was surprisingly good– I haven't had a decent green tea in a while. Surprisingly, I thought it tasted more like a Japanese green rather than Chinese, even though it was produced (pan fired) like a standard Chinese tea. A vegetal taste, similar to green beans, gave way to a sweet herbal and nutty flavor. Along with a very light tart flavor which lasted long after drinking, I think the main sensation was a short and sweet taste. The texture was unusually smooth for a Chinese green, and the only dryness I felt was deep in the back of my throat for a short amount of time. I did notice that if you let it sit, it gradually becomes more bitter over time.

For a tea bag, this was actually really good; I enjoyed it quite a bit. Now, I think I'll need to try a loose leaf Long jing before I give my final decision, but all in all, Mighty Leaf did a pretty stellar job with this. I might actually try brewing the bag one or two more times just to see if I can get more to drink.

Other Notes

Today's album is Left to Our Own Devices by Le Cassette, a surprisingly very good synthwave album, probably because of the vocals (it's very similar to Phil Collins and David Bowie) and pop beats.

Here's an update on my work for this week. I'm done with maybe 3/5 of the Comp Civics journal, 3 essays for college applications, watched most of the DNC and parts of the RNC, and have memorized quite a bit of stuff for AP Chem with flashcards. Today, I plan to finish the Comp Civics journals and maybe write current events or the writeups for the DNC and RNC. I was planning on having more time, but it turns out I'm heading to SFMOMA and maybe De Young with my friends tomorrow, and Saturday I'm going to a Comp Civics workshop and visiting the Museum of the African Diaspora (to be honest, in these past few weeks, I've been to more museums than in the past few years).

I think that if I work my ass off today and next week, I should be good for the last few weeks. If I haven't mentioned it, here is the itinerary for the last 2-3 weeks of summer:
SFMOMA & De Young with friends; Comp Civics Workshop & MOAD; Visit Santa Barbara for college visits and to pick up my brother; see Mark Redito/Spazzkid play at the DNA Lounge; go to Hawaii with the family; and watch Freq.Fest.SF.
Looking at it, it probably doesn't seem like much, but hey it's a lot for me. See you tomorrow!

Review: Moroccan Mint - Numi

Type: Herbal
Producer: Numi
Origin: North Africa
Brewing Parameters: 1 tea bag, boiling water, for 5-6 min.
Appearance: Trapezoidal tea bag with  dark green/yellow fannings
Rating: B | 83/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Since this is a tea bag review (and I have some work to do), I'll try to keep it short.

So, I've actually never had Moroccan mint before, despite it being a very popular tisane (or so I've heard). Having brewed it though, it does seem pretty good; the liquid is a lot darker and brown than most mint-based tisanes I've had. The smell is almost all mint– it's not too strong, but it's definitely noticeable. As for the taste, it was not what I expected. The main flavor is a slightly sour taste, which moves into the mint, and ends with chocolate. The chocolate lingers in the mouth, with a bit of a cooling sensation (from the mint). Because it is a tisane, the texture is very smooth and the tea makes the throat only a little bit dry. Overall, it's a decent tea, but I don't really understand the hype. I think I've had better mint-based teas.

Other Notes

Nothing really to say here. See you guys tomorrow!

Review: Gold Mushroom Tea - World Heritage

Type: Powdered/Instant Herbal
Producer: World Heritage (?)
Origin: Hiraizumi
Brewing Parameters: 2 g of powder, 8 oz of boiling water
Appearance: Very light brown/beige colored powder with chunks of dried mushroom and flakes of gold
Rating: D | 64/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Very interesting tea today– apparently, a cultural tea from the area of Hiraizumi, Japan. I'm not really sure on the producer since my Japanese isn't that good (and the package is in all Japanese; really, the only things I could pull out were "use 2 grams of the powder" and "mushroom gold tea"). When I did brew this tea, however, I could tell that this was going to be a very different tea, to say the least.

Essentially, the dried powder smells like Funyuns or any other onion-flavored snack food with a bit of mushroom added. However, when it's added to water, the mushroom smell becomes overwhelmingly strong (to the point where I gag when I smell it)– and it lingers, too. When I got a bit of the powder on my hands, the smell wouldn't come off until I washed them very thoroughly twice. Oh, the packaging also had a cute little spoon that was measured for exactly 2 grams (if you only got powder), which was nice.

Now, to be honest, I'm not that much of a fan of mushrooms. This tea didn't help change my mind. While I'm writing this, it's hard for me to take even a second sip; I didn't like the first taste that much. It did get a little bit better when I kept drinking, though. The only thing I can compare it to is the broth of, say, tonkotsu ramen. It's a lot like drinking straight soup, with the mushroom taste lingering in your mouth and eventually permeating into your nose. The texture is very thick, and it leaves a slightly sweet, vegetal taste in your mouth very long after you drink. Now, I get that this is a historical tea and everything, but honestly, I can't stand it on its own. It might be good if you add it to food or use it in cooking, but it is not a tasty tea. You might like it if you enjoy mushrooms, but this is not for me.

Other Notes

Crunch time now! For the week, I'm going to rush through my summer homework so I can spend August relaxing (and studying) for the most part. I don't really have much to say here today since I did my updates yesterday. Come back later today or tomorrow for more reviews!

Today's album was Petal Port Music Vol. 2.
(I think I'll bring this back too, just because I thought it was a decent addition to the reviews)

Review: Earl Grey - Trader Joe's + Ambiance

Type: Flavored Black
Producer: Trader Joe's & Ambiance
Origin: Unknown
Brewing Parameters: 1 tea bag, 8 oz of boiling water, 3-5 min.
Appearance: Trapezoidal, paper tea bags with black fannings; the Ambiance bag has a slight yellow tint to it (lots of bergamot oil)
Rating: Trader Joe's: B | 86/100 & Ambiance: C+ | 78/100
# of Brews: 1

Tasting Notes and Thoughts
Today's review is going to be a side-by-side comparison of two grocery store Earl Greys. Both of these have been brewed at the same temperature and time (3 minutes), with no additives, such as sugar or milk. For the past few months, each has been a daily drink, albeit at different times, so I'll try to be as unbiased as possible.

After brewing, both teas were a very deep red, amber color. I think the Ambiance Earl Grey had a much stronger fruity smell compared to the Trader Joe's– probably because it had more bergamot, as evidenced by the darker colored dry teabag. Both had the earthy smell of the black tea base, but the Trader Joe's had more of the sour, somewhat sweat-like smell that can come from the oil. In general, the Ambiance is much more sweet smelling, while the Trader Joe's is more deep. Note: If you've never tried Earl Grey, I'd say its smell is very similar to Froot Loops or other artificial fruit-flavored foods.

Anyway, as for the taste, both were a bit bitter (probably due to the amount of water and leaf; I'd recommend masking it by adding milk, or brewing for shorter time). For the Ambiance Earl Grey, the main taste is the nutty, earthy taste of the tea base, which is followed by the sharp, citrusy-sour notes of the bergamot. It's a bit bitter, but has a smooth texture– and also leaves a dry note in the throat which goes away fast. The Trader Joe's Earl Grey is a lot less intense; the main note is somewhat coffee-like, and is also followed up with a sour– but not as strong– flavor. Interestingly, it has an aftertaste much more fruity than the Ambiance, similar to orange peels. The textures are pretty similar.

Overall, I think I prefer the Trader Joe's Earl Grey more than the Ambiance. It's a lot more mellow, which can be good or bad, depending on the person. In my opinion, if you enjoy stronger teas or the taste of bergamot, go with the Ambiance, but if you don't, go with the Trader Joe's. Either way, both make for a good morning daily drink.

Other Notes

Welp, I finally finished my final big summer activity– that environmental sciences summer camp at CSU East Bay. All in all, it was enjoyable; while I didn't necessarily learn much about environmental sciences (it was introductory stuff/general), we got to network with industry professionals and learn how it is to work in water, energy, and so on. Probably the best part of the week was when we went to a regional park– Big Break– and spent the day doing water quality tests and getting rid of invasive species in the Delta. The funny thing is, since I don't have a business card, I ended up printing out my abstract and giving it to people instead.

Now that that's over, I have three weeks left in my last high school summer (weird to think about, right?). For my summer homework, I just need to study for week one tests in AP Chem and AP Gov/Macro, do writeups on the national conventions for AP Gov, make a lesson about Montesquieu (which is pretty interesting) for Comp Civics, and analyze quotes for the Comp Civics journal. It looks like a lot, but my goal is to finish it this week and spend the rest of August before school relaxing. I've also started on my application essays, the first drafts of which I think are pretty good; I've expanded on my beliefs on US History, talked about the science fair, and analyzed how my environment– with racial diversity, but not economic– has affected my academics. I'll keep up the reviews in the meantime as something to break up the tedium of writing school stuff, but that's what's been up with me the past few weeks.