Wednesday, August 15, 2018

AprTea Mall Tastings


 Aprtea contacted me not to long ago and asked if I would review some of their teas.
Most often I love doing it, but I had never heard of this company; so I asked.
Aprtea is located Anxi, China; the capital of the tea industry
where you can find high-quality Chinese tea with "professional tea knowledge".
The owners father had a history of tea and they decided to expand
to international trade in 2017.
I found it interesting that the name Aprtea is because April is the main
month of production for their tea.
Anxi tea is the origin of Oolong tea and Tieguanyin tea which is China's largest market.

The five teas arrived last week and the tasting began. 

1. Zhang Ping Shui Xizu Oolong Tea, Fragrant Orchid Grade One,
Zhangping Fugian, China, 2018 Spring Tea.
A compressed tea in sweet packaging smelled and tasted of flower
in springtime. Delicious flowery oolong. 
I shared this one with my tea group and they all loved it.

2. Keemun Mao Feng Black Tea Grade One, Qimen, Anxi, China, 2018.
Sometimes Keemun's are a little stringent and bitter to my taste,
but having steeped this in boiling water it was quite good.
It would make a lovely breakfast tea.
I also iced it, but liked it better hot.

3. Wuyi Jin Jun Mei Black Tea Honey, Incense Grade One,
Wuyishan, Fujian, China, 2018 Spring.
I have always like Wuyi Jin Jun Mei Black teas and this one didn't disappoint.

4. Yunnan Dianhong Tea Bending Gold Buds Special Grade One,
Fengging, Yunnan, China, 2018 Spring.
Now Dianhong teas are a favorite of mine, so I was looking forward to tasting.
Of the two here I liked this one the best, but it didn't have some of the 
background flavor which I have grown to love.
It was a beautiful tea in little spiral shapes and much care was taken in producing.
It did have a full bodied flavor that would work for a breakfast tea.

5. Yunnan Dianhong Tea Golden Needle Buds Special Grade,
Fengging, Yunnan, China, Spring 2018.
I was amazed when I opened this to see long brown needles of tea.
I had never seen a Dianhong in this shape, it was pretty.
It also was rather powdery, which I wasn't sure what that was.
I found with both Dianhongs I had to rinse well before steeping.
This tea was lighter in color and flavor and didn't have the familiar
Dianhong flavor I love.

In future ordering I can definitely recommend the first three,
but not sure about the last two.
The oolong was by far my favorite
and funny, but it wasn't one I asked for.
I guess Aprtea knew I would like it.
Thanks, Aprtea!

You can find them at
https://aprtea.com

picture: pink teacups from my shelf, rose from my garden.



.  

10 comments:

Red Rose Alley said...

The Pink tea cups are always pretty to me. Sounds like a tasty assortment of teas, especially the Oolong teas. : )

~Sheri

ps....I was wondering, do you wash the gold rimmed tea cups by hand, or do you
put them in the dishwasher?

Louca por porcelana said...

Gorgeous vignette!Love your teacups!

Margie said...

This is the first time I've heard of these teas. Glad you enjoyed the samples.

Jeanie said...

The photo is lovely. How fun to be chosen to test the teas. Very interesting!

Bernideen said...

Dear Marilyn:
I am sure they will be pleased with your in depth review. It is a skill to put words to flavors and I think you did a great job. This was unique. Thanks for sharing.

xinex said...

Love the tea cups! Any tea will taste good in them....Christine

Jean | DelightfulRepast.com said...

Marilyn, I enjoyed your review. Always like learning about new or new-to-me teas, and I know I can trust your opinions. Love that photo, very artsy!

Aprtea Mall said...

Dear Marilyn:

Thank you for your review! Looks great!

Tracy said...

LOVELY image, Marilyn... love the rosy cups and flower! And it was fun to learn about this tea company! And very exciting that you asked to taste and review their teas :) ((HUGS))

Rosemary said...

Such a pretty pink composition! Enjoyed reading your tea tasting notes, but find 'aprtea' hard to decide how to even pronounce it!