The political war extended to movie themes in the US

 

At first glance everyone already knows how this is going to play out:  there are conservative or liberal oriented movies, and then people on the corresponding side of the US political divide will watch one or the other, and reject the other.  That happens.  But there's a little more to it now.  There is a tendency for a middle group to reject anything remotely like Hollywood liberal inclinations, among people who aren't actually politically conservative.  At least that's how I see things playing out.

The early steps are well-known enough.  In movies like the Star Wars sequels, or Terminator sequels, or later Marvel movies, they tend to build up female protagonists, by "nerfing" or weakening male characters, and gender swap characters, to make white characters into minorities.  Of course this is regarded as fair and inclusive by some, or many, liberals, and rejected by conservatives.

There's a lot less to cite about the opposite trend.  Hollywood is liberal-oriented, so an example of a movie just for conservatives is harder to come up with.  Let's check with Google on that:

Major Hollywood studios rarely label or market films as explicitly "conservative," but 2025 saw a notable rise in mainstream faith-based projects, military/action features, and traditional values narratives. Notable examples include David from Angel Studios, alongside faith-themed and traditional family hits like The Chosen and House of David.

Right, I've never heard of those.  I saw a 20 year old (or so) time travel movie about conservative Christian ideology awhile back; it was odd seeing anything like that.  I had to look up what that was:  Time Changer, from 2002.  It was interesting at least seeing that opposing view, that people might re-adopt values from the 1800s (reject swearing, wearing more modest clothing, all the parts of a very literal interpretation of the Bible, etc.).

Let's skip ahead:  this is mostly about the reactions to the Christopher Nolan Odyssey film.  Of course, since they've replaced Helen of Troy with a black actor, and included a trans-man as a Greek warrior the issue is that it includes liberal signaling.  But the movie is kind of neutral, related to the rest of it, per reviews on both sides.

That brings up an interesting context:  more conservative viewers might either decide to never see the film, because of those issues, or if they did see it would need to find reasons to dislike it, even if ordinarily it would seem like a good movie to them.  That's simple enough.  You can just dislike the story treatment, the character development, any changes from the original Greek myth version, and so on.  And more liberally oriented viewers can find plenty to like as well, to justify why this socially progressive film is good, not only for being socially progressive, but also as a film.

There is a set of Youtubers who benefit quite a bit from this divide, by outlining why the liberal orientation is a bad thing, for viewers who want to feel common ground with others related to disliking that.  The twist is that they're not only conservatives (the viewers, or the Youtubers).  The guy who makes the Critical Drinker Youtube channel stands out among them, related to popularity, and to quality of content (authored by Will Jordan, the name of "the Drinker," per online inpu).  

He communicates clearly, and expresses ideas well.  His perspective seems fine, although it does tend to become repetitive.  His image gimmick is that he is Scottish, and drinks while watching films (supposedly; he has sort of moved beyond that early branding theme, although he still does reference it).

I see his perspective as matching one part of a "classic liberal" view.  This relates to someone who was liberal in the 1980s or 90s, but who then fell into a middle ground for political perspective when the left shifted further left.  There is one other complication to this:  it's normal for people to be more liberal when younger, and then more conservative when older.  This seems to happen for some of the reason I've just described, that society keeps changing, and when people fall behind the pace of the changes they are automatically a conservative.  I'll give an example.

My parents were quite liberal in the 1970s.  They were open to people of all races, nationalities, and social classes being regarded as equal.  My dad was even a social worker; that was his career.  But then as acceptance for people being gay became mainstream in the 1990s, and not just different races, that was harder for them to adopt.  A couple of my close friends were gay, and they never seemed to express disapproval for that, but they still saw people being attracted to the same sex as somewhat unnatural.

Is it possible that it is unnatural?  The question only makes sense within a conservative worldview, that can draw on categories of natural norms, instead of seeing these as assigned by society, and open to change over time.

So they don't really hate gay people, but aren't comfortable with that theme.  It's the same as for others who can't relate to transgender self-definition today, or people being gender neutral, or whatever else.  People who were liberally oriented in the 90s didn't have to accept these later designations, because they were either unheard of or very uncommon then.

I suppose some of this carries over to other minority issues, related to immigrants and such, or maybe to issues related to openness to societal class level changes, but I won't make this discussion more complicated than it has to be.  Feminism also works out to be a complicated topic.  Of course where I'm from, a conservative rural area, in Western Pennsylvania (not that it matters; rural areas are fairly culturally consistent in the US), people are more racist, and against any of the modern progressive agenda and perspective, and for most probably even the older forms of it (classic racism).

Related to that film, the Odyssey, it was interesting how the Critical Drinker, and others, were up against the challenge of explaining why they didn't like it.  It should be easy, right; any parts of the plot or character development could be regarded negatively.  Or the lighting, the action sequence development, use of CGI, and so on.  But in this case most reviewers felt that it's a pretty good film, so lots of that wouldn't work.

The Critical Drinker settled on the portrayal of the main character as the main critique, related to how Matt Damon acted out Odyssius.  Not so much as a personal criticism of Matt Damon's acting, but more the direction.  Even pro-liberal reviewers said that his character is a bit war-weary and one dimensional related to character depth, for most of the movie, so it was simple enough, and a natural choice.  Then the ending apparently doesn't match the original version, so that's easy to dislike.  And the scenery apparently doesn't look like Greece, which would mean more to me if I'd actually been to Greece (parts related to there; I guess Troy was in North-Eastern Africa, so generally near the Middle East, sort of?).

original source cited in the image, worldhistory.org

It's an interesting divide, coupling "classic liberals" with conservatives, related to one part of their media preference.  Maybe they're not so far apart, in terms of general perspective and worldview?  The US isn't set up for there to be any moderate middle ground though, politically.  People are suppose to be conservative or liberal, Democrat or Republican.  Lots of media tone reinforces this.  Trump throws that off a bit, for being so extreme, but in general the society really does break along that line, and media content does, related to news, television shows, movies, etc.

Then one other irony is that Trump isn't really a conservative.  He doesn't care about guns rights, or abortion, or really even about minority issues, although he can play the role of a borderline racist easily enough.  He is pro-Trump, and the rest is flexible.

So what does this mean?  Does this odd part of the culture war open up a space for moderate perspective?  Probably not.  It's just an idiosyncrasy, related to how some films work out, which I suppose would carry over to streamed television content.

These commentators aren't really leveling out the cultural field, in terms of saying that it's fine for people to be trans-gender, or that racial issues shouldn't matter anymore.  It's easy to interpret them as saying the opposite, even though they're not, supporting negative views on racism and transgender acceptance (with negative here meaning bad, being racist, or transphobic).

They earn Youtube views and income by saying what people want to hear.  They really do think that Helen of Troy shouldn't be a black character, and that casting a physically small trans man as a soldier doesn't really make sense.  But they're not necessarily racist or transphobic, or unusually supportive of  race or trans acceptance issues, more kind of in the middle, not particularly concerned with these themes, or against them.  It's easy to take that in different ways, as a viewer, depending on your own biases.  

That's how the 90s went; these things weren't issues, and people let others be however they wanted to be.  You could change your gender back then, and you wouldn't be hated, or seen as some sort of progressive champion.  You'd have been a social role and status outlier, which wouldn't have been regarded as good or bad, by most people.  Conservatives would have found it off-putting, as they do today.  For liberals it couldn't have seemed as normal, since it wasn't as conventional, but it still could have seemed fine.

It's interesting how "political correctness" has changed since, although it doesn't really shift the landscape of these ideas or positions all that much.  Words like "oriental" became regarded as negative (pejorative), and fell by the wayside.  The pronoun theme became complicated.  None of all of that changed the world and personal perspectives all that much though; even among supporters it was regarded as the language simply catching up to modified and updated perspectives.  Sometimes the changes don't stick, and they seem like overreach in retrospect, but often they do.

Thai wild Assamica based oolong, Jinxuan based "oriental beauty"

 

Chang Kham Thai oolong left, in all photos

This reviews a Thai forest origin Assamica based oolong and a Jin Xuan based Dong Fang Mei Ren, a tea type formerly known as Oriental Beauty.  They sell this as Golden Grace Beauty; more often vendors avoid the term "oriental" by calling it Eastern Beauty. 

These are from Chang Kham, a Chiang Mai based shop vendor, and Moychay, a Russian vendor now selling tea from Amsterdam.  Both sent the teas for review; many thanks! 

Both are sort of non-standard, but the Thai tea really falls outside of standard categories. Apparently it's tricky to make oolong from Assamica, with more on that in the review notes.  There is no product description here since this is from a physical shop, not an online source.  There may well be a sales listing somewhere for it, on a local Thai online platform like Shopee or Lazada, but I didn't look one up.

DFMR / OB usually isn't based on the Jin Xuan cultivar, I don't think, and this oxidation level seems unusually low, but the results aren't too far off the standard type outcome. 

Golden Grace Beauty Oolong (Jinxuan Meiren Cha)

Golden Grace Beauty Oolong is a rare type of Oriental Beauty tea made by Moychay order in Southern Fujian, in collaboration with Taiwanese tea artisans. 

Grown at an altitude of about 1100 meters in pesticide-free gardens, the tea is uniquely shaped by nature: the tea leaves must be bitten by a specific insect — the “small green leafhopper” (Jacobiasca formosana). This triggers a natural enzymatic response, promoting the release of terpenes and resulting in complex aromas of honey, fruit, and flowers. 

The tea is entirely handmade using the Jin Xuan cultivar and follows a labor-intensive oolong process that includes sunlight withering, oxidation (60–80%), multiple fermentations, and careful drying. 

Its distinctive appearance displays five hues — red, yellow, white, green, and brown — with prominent white hairs. The infusion glows golden like amber, with a smooth, rich, and lingering flavor. Layers of honey, fruit, floral, and tender vegetal notes unfold in the cup.

That costs 19.73 Euro for 60 grams, or $24 USD.  That's 40 cents a gram.  Is that good?  It's hard to say.  If the style is a good match to preference for someone, the changes from most typical type character, then that's quite fair, but some people might be put off by those differences, and then it wouldn't be about fair or low price.

That might be all the more true of the other tea version, that for people who happen to like that distinctive and unique style it could be a great tea, but that it being atypical might drop the level of appeal for others.

Review:

Thai wild Assam oolong:  that's interesting.  Warm tones and an astringency structure stand out first, but there is sweetness and plenty of flavor complexity.  I'm not sure what tea type this reminds me of.  It's probably not a close match to any standard type of oolong, but then being made from Assamica material is a step away from that, and material being from a wild origin source usually changes things, into a less familiar but often interesting form.  

It's hard to identify a flavor breakdown, or even to add range to this.  There's a lot going on, but warm mineral and astringency structure mask the rest.  There might be both fruit and floral range, and possibly some warm spice, and it's that complexity, so much going on, that makes it hard to identify distinct flavors.  A savory edge, and the flavor, might relate to sun-dried tomato.  I'll try again next round for more of a list.

Moychay Jin Xuan "Meiren Cha," Golden Grace Beauty oolong:  that does express a lot of the type-typical "oriental beauty" range, the muscatel oriented citrus, a raisin note, and warm spice, pretty much just cinnamon.  The color looks much lighter than I would see as standard, but the flavor range is heavier and warmer than expected.  Feel is pleasant; it includes fullness and richness already.  Aftertaste expression is even kicking in.  It's pretty good.  They might have got even better results adding just a touch more oxidation input, but you can't argue with the results as this stands.  

There's a hint of lighter floral range still, the more normal Jin Xuan character, and a good bit of creaminess.  It's not perfectly type-typical "oriental beauty."  I guess I could start writing out Dong Fang Mei Ren instead, and avoid using either the old, politically incorrect name, or else Golden Grace Beauty, which is just a work-around to not say "oriental."  It doesn't matter.

In trying the second version and then the first that astringency edge in the Thai version stands out all the more.  It's not like a black tea astringency, and definitely not like oolong, which almost always lacks any kind of edge.  So I guess it's the green tea range carrying over, in spite of added oxidation?  It's not bad; it will be interesting to see how it evolves.

Thai Assamica oolong #2:  this first sample is smaller, maybe 5 grams, while the other is 7.  For now I just poured out the second Jin Xuan infusion first, not adjusting timing by much, but I might have to.

This evolves to be a lot stronger.  It was brewed pretty fast, but it's already quite intense.  Faster infusion times may work for this, or rather the lower proportion relating to making a related change.

This is pleasant, but it tastes like a tea processing style still being developed.  Integration and balance are a little off.  Warm tones and astringency are fine, but sweetness and flavor complexity aren't there in the right level to balance those.  Sweetness is limited.  It has nice depth, and intensity is fine.  No flavors are really off; it all works, but it could balance better.  Feel is a little structured, even towards seeming dry, for this to be a normal oolong style.  

I don't think this is an early attempt at processing; I would expect that it took some work to get this to balance as well as it already does.  But converting oolong processing to work for Assamica material might be tricky.  I've tried other attempts, and only two really worked.  This is quite good in relation to the range of the rest, just not quite where those two were.  Those were from Vietnam, sold by Hatvala, prepared as rolled oolong, reviewed here in 2019.  I guess it's a theme that doesn't come up too often.

There's a unique flavor in this that's pleasant, that's hard to pin down.  It's on towards rust, a warm mineral input, but it's not that.  It's closer to a wetlands sort of variation of "forest floor."  That sounds unpleasant, like I'm saying it tastes swampy, and I don't mean that, it's nice.  It could use one or two other notes to balance it, but those may evolve over the next couple of rounds.

Jin Xuan Dong Fang Mei Ren:  that warm spice note really stands out, along with something like dried tangerine peel (or muscatel; that kind of works too).  The spice may be in between cinnamon and nutmeg.  What I interpreted as raisin is a fainter background input now.  Warm mineral supports the rest nicely, and all the other aspects integrate really well:  sweetness, rich feel, aftertaste effect, and balance of flavors.  Then it's unusual that a bit of lighter floral is in there as well.  It gives it even more complexity, but it also reduces the impact and effect of the rest some.

This is pretty good, as oriental beauty variations go, but it's hard for any version to be towards the top of that scale, which relates to an amazing overall set of integrated and balanced aspects.  These warmer fruit and spice tones could be even warmer, and more intense, and could combine differently.  A honey sweetness sometimes stands out.  The citrus note can pop more than it does in this.  It's a good version, but not completely type-typical, and not a great version, in terms of pleasantness of experience.  It's on a level above the other tea; that one doesn't come together in the same way.  But then they're producing something really non-standard, not just using Jin Xuan instead of whatever other cultivar is more standard for OB (a type of Qing Xin, was it?).

Thai Assamica oolong #3:  it's interesting how the color changes in the second version, how that evens up over the rounds.  And how this has been staying as intense as the other, even though it's around 5 grams instead of 7.

This is the best this has been.  The flavors tie together better than ever, and the feel picks up richness, with the earlier astringency mellowing.  It was never harsh or edgy, to be clear, nowhere near Assam black tea range, or sheng intensity and rough feel.  It just had a lot of astringency structure for oolong, and a touch of dryness, which is lighter now.  

That one flavor is all the catchier.  It's not so different than the one edge in black tea, towards malt, not completely unlike some cured hardwood tone.  But hard to fully describe.  It seems like floral range is filling in some depth and complexity, and spice is, but they're hard to make out as distinct flavors.  It might be more like a tropical hardwood, teak, mahogany, or the like (which I guess makes sense, for a forest origin Thai tea).  One part I'm not capturing well in description relates to spice, sort of along the line of bay leaf.  

It's pleasant.  It doesn't match any other standard tea style or type, but that's fine.

Jin Xuan Dong Fang Mei Ren:  the balance of those earlier flavors shifts a little, but they're all the same.  Maybe the citrus stands out a little more this round.  I'm brewing this quite light, for 10 seconds or so, and you could draw out the warmer and heavier flavors more just by adding more time.  I'll try that, and probably leave off notes after the next round.

Thai Assamica oolong #4:  that astringency edge is much stronger, brewed longer; no surprise there.  It leans towards a green wood effect made this way.  This tea is more suitable for being brewed lighter.

Jin Xuan OB:  warm spice does stand out a little more for being brewed a little longer, but this may be fading already, since intensity didn't really increase.  A couple of more rounds would tell for sure.  [later edit]:  it wasn't dying, but it was fading, which isn't a good sign for quality, that happening so fast.  It made a few more decent infusions, but intensity had already dropped off some.

Conclusions:

These kind of review posts probably don't work very well for vendor marketing.  For people who the descriptions ring a bell, related to them sounding great, or interesting, the teas would seem appealing, but it would be as likely that it's not enough of a strong sales pitch.  The teas were good, but not high up the scale as good teas go.

It's nice that Moychay is turning up interesting versions of some standard teas, and selling them at moderate cost, at a good value.  But I'd expect a lot of tea enthusiasts to be seeking out the most type-typical, highest quality, most pleasant versions, and this may or may not make the cut, depending on judgement.  It's pleasant, so that part works, but slightly off the most typical Dong Fang Mei Ren style.

The other tea is even more unusual.  It's fine, also good, but again few people are probably looking for distinctive oolong that has an atypical feel and flavor profile.  If it all meshed together really well then sure, and this tea version balanced ok, but it was only on the lower end of "good."

Thai Wawee Assamica black tea and Moychay Fengqing Dian Hong

 

I'm reviewing another black tea from Wawee Tea, a sample sent by them with an order of sheng and black tea, and a Moychay Dian Hong for comparison.  Reviewing two teas helps place each, through comparison and contrast, and doubles the pace that I get through teas I'm reviewing.  A large set of samples provided by Moychay helps with that first role (many thanks for that, even though it was a thanks for helping them with some editing).

The Thai tea is presented as "Assam."  It's normal for local producers to call Assamica plant type based black tea Assam, whether the style is close to that origin range type or not.  I think they kind of mean "Assamica" by that, but it doesn't matter what they mean, the teas are what they are.  

There isn't any description of that from them, since there isn't a conventional sales site to refer to.  They would have outlets on the local online shopping platforms, on Shopee and Lazada, but people in other countries couldn't use those, and people in Thailand would often already know of those if they like that style of tea.  I order from them by direct staff contact, kind of the old fashioned way, when I see posts about something that look interesting.  This is a related Facebook page; that's where I'd see such things, in others forwarding those.  I could look this up on Shopee, but I'm not going to.

I did look up another citation of a different tea bag version on that Facebook page though, here.  

Wild Assam Black Tea with Osmanthus Flowers

This is Wawee Tea's unique blend, currently served in major hotels in Bangkok.

🍂The main ingredient is Wild Assam Black Tea, produced from centuries-old wild Assam tea trees on Doi Wawee.

Guaranteed by a silver medal award in a black tea competition. International Black Tea Competition 2019, China

🌼 Blended with Osmanthus (Guihua) flowers Authentic variety from Dali, China. Grown 100% chemical-free on our own farm.

🍃 Packaged in tea bags made from corn fiber, microplastic-free.

Brewing Instructions:  Steep the tea bag in hot water for no more than 2 minutes.  For 250 ml.

20 Baht per piece

20 baht is about 60 cents, so that should be about 15 cents a gram.  The tea is pretty good; that's fair.  Again that's an osthmanthus flavored version, that looks to be made from the same black tea base, but I don't know that, and I don't know that the pricing is identical (although there's a good chance that it is).

Those brewing instructions would probably work, but it would be a real shame to throw away that tea bag after it had brewed for two minutes.  It could surely make a pleasant second infusion.

Of course Moychay lists what their tea is, and it would be sold on an online platform, here:

Black Tea DIAN HONG CHA, Chinese tea from Yunnan Province (Red Tea), 70g, 7g  (70 grams costs 7.34 Euro, or $8.35).

Dian Hong, or Yunnan Red Tea, originates from Fengqing County, Yunnan Province, a region renowned for its ideal tea-growing conditions. First developed in the late 19th century, Dian Hong transitioned from green tea production to meet the rising demand for black tea. Its unique flavor and consistent quality have earned it recognition both in China and internationally, even being gifted as a national tea to foreign dignitaries.

Cultivated at altitudes of 1800–2200 meters in Dasi Township, Fengqing County, this organic tea is hand-picked during the spring harvest (March 25 to May 5) using the traditional standard of one bud with three leaves. The tea is made from the Mengku Da Ye Zhong cultivar, and its production involves withering, rolling, fermentation, and multiple drying steps, ensuring a rich, full-bodied character.

Dian Hong brews into a deep red infusion with a complex aroma featuring honey, fruit, and floral notes. The taste is smooth and rich, with a satisfying balance of sweetness and a slight hint of bitterness. Its long-lasting aftertaste is sweet and lingering, offering a comforting experience over multiple infusions.

Let's start with that pricing; it works out to 12 cents a gram (or it would be $12 for 100 grams).  That's pretty favorable, on the low side of the range for this type.  Maybe that implies that the quality level is moderate, or maybe it's just a good deal; it just depends.  Skipping ahead maybe a bit of both, related to writing this after doing the tasting part.

atypical presentation, compared to what I'm accustomed to

Review:

Thai  Wawee Assamica:  it's pretty good.  Warm tones match what one expect from black tea of this range, the earthiness, also covering range like redwood scent.  A bit of berry also stands out, something like blackberry, but one could imagine it being interpreted as dark cherry.  Feel is full and structured, maybe more structured than full, without dryness, or being too harsh, so that part works well.  

This would be amazing as an English Breakfast Tea replacement; a much better version of that general type.  Or maybe one category over, and just better than that, but comparable in some ways.  For the leaf material being as chopped as it is astringency is still mild.  I brewed it for around 20 seconds in a 100 ml gaiwan (for 4 grams), plenty to get it started, and it's not really overbrewed, although it looks it, quite dark and red.  

This doesn't need milk or sugar, prepared like this, but you can put milk and sugar in black tea that doesn't need it, if you brew it strong, and it can still be nice.  I was in a rush yesterday and did that, brewing their Wawee tea cake extra strong, and adding milk and sugar so I could essentially gulp it down, in a very fast breakfast.

Moychay Fengqing Dian Hong:  this is brewed a little too strong.  It's 7 grams in a 100 ml gaiwan, so 20 seconds was a bit much, even though it takes 5 to 10 for teas to generally just get completely soaked.  It has more feel structure than the other tea; I didn't see that coming.  Being brewed too strong changes that; we'll see next round.  I thought that the other tea being chopped would make it brew fast, so the 4 and 7 gram proportions might balance, since this is whole leaf.

This includes a few flavors, a set that hasn't fully integrated yet.  One part is tartness, not a personal favorite in black tea range, but it can come up.  Another is fruit; that I do love.  It includes some of that conventional black tea range, I guess oriented towards malt, which I probably should've used as a description for the other one.  It seems to include a hint of black pepper; that's interesting.  Then there is also some roasted yam, or something along that line.  Maybe sweet potato instead?  Or both, combining.

It sounds quite complex, and it is, but the flavors don't combine and integrate well just yet, and there's a thinness in one part of the flavor or character profile I can't pin down.  It all might just relate to it getting started, not being there yet.  In retrying the other I'm not really noticing malt, but it seems I did miss cacao.  It will be interesting to see how it develops.

Wawee Assamica #2:  these are both all but flash brewed, using a very short infusion time, but both look kind of dark red.  This extracted faster, per the color and darkness, but we'll see.

It's actually pretty light.  It's unusual drinking this style of tea light, more of a conventional black tea, but it works, beyond not matching a brewing norm.  There's plenty of flavor, but the feel seems light.  The feel that is present works, including some richness and fullness.  Flavor includes cacao and whatever berry range that is.  This is almost a Christmas blend flavor profile, without any adjustment from other flavors.  Add some orange peel rind and cacao nibs to dial up the fruit and cocoa flavor and it's there.  Of course it's already fine as it is.

It can be hard to notice what is missing.  This doesn't taste like malt, and tea of this character would usually include much rougher astringency.  It's quite good, for the style and presentation.

Moychay Dian Hong:  this is slightly stronger, in a more conventional range, but then it is brewing 7 grams instead of 4.  I didn't adjust timing, beyond pouring the second gaiwan out first, when it had been filled second.  Tartness is dropping out already, it seems.  Even though it's really subtle that limited pepper note is cool, adding a nice effect.  Roasted yam or sweet potato is a main flavor now.  It's hard to settle on it being just one of those, even though they are different.  It's not as distinct a flavor as it could be.

Related to comparison to Dian Hong I'm familiar with this is fine, but something is missing.  It doesn't include a depth of feel, and a heavy mineral base input, to the extent those often do.  Often some versions will lack flavor intensity while they express that depth, which can seem a little strange, although that can be pleasant if you are accustomed to it.  

I experience that as a gap in what I expect.  You get a good hit of up front flavor, and it trails after some as aftertaste, but the feel just isn't there, and some flavor depth is missing.  I'm not saying that the other version includes all of that, but it covers a normal range better, so to a very limited extent it is.  But it's not a tea that could pass for a good version of Dian Hong either.  I'll push both a little more going back to a 15 to 20 second infusion, and see where they stand further along the cycle.

Thai Wawee Assamica #3:  this is holding up pretty well, for tea that I freed up from a tea bag.  The character isn't different enough to go back through it again; it's just a stronger version of what I experienced the last round.  The balance works, how it all comes together.

Moychay Dian Hong:  this is the best this has been.  Feel thickens, and mineral base picks up; that's more like it.  The black pepper note is stronger.  Or is that white pepper?  It might be.  A touch of berry like range adds to the roasted yam / sweet potato, giving it more flavor complexity, which works well with the richer feel.  

This still isn't a personal favorite style of Dian Hong example, for me, but it's much closer.  A bit of cacao and a little more sweetness would really tie the rest together better.  But it integrates the best it has, and it's fine like this.  Very limited tartness isn't as problematic (I just don't like tartness), but it's more shift in the wrong direction.

To be clear Dian Hong is my favorite black tea type.  It's very familiar.  Versions from South East Asia can be just as good, and can match typical Yunnan style very well, or they can also vary, a lot.  There are outliers in Yunnan versions and styles too.  This is sort of conventional, sort of not, in two different senses.  It lacks typical depth, mineral range isn't as pronounced as it usually would be, and the tartness isn't typical at all.  But the other flavor range is right, and the lack of harsh astringency, the tea being full but not rough or dry.  They generally don't taste malty, and this doesn't.

At this stage I like the other tea a little better.  The tartness alone might swing that balance, or it all just integrates a little better.  It's not nearly as good as the black tea cake I bought from them; for someone with my preferences it would be as well to skip this tea and just buy that.  But then this is a different thing, and for a tea to go, the tea bag form it came in, it would work well, much better than anything Twinings or similar producers make.

Both teas, infusion #4:  the Wawee tea thins a little, but then it has been a challenge brewing 4 grams of broken leaf well.  It's still good.  The Dian Hong is still the best it has been, picking up a little more depth and complexity.  

It's an overall good sign that it improves across rounds; better quality tea will do that, while lower quality versions express their best range early on, and then die.  Or maybe that also relates to material type; low elevation grown plantation tea should be more intense at first, then fade, and higher elevation or more natural grown tea tends to have more durability.  Sometimes older plant material teas can lack exceptional flavor intensity but express a lot of depth.

In the round after these, #5, the Thai Wawee tea was really dropping off, and the Dian Hong wasn't, kind of as one might expect, that whole-leaf tea would brew out slower.  But again it's also a good sign for the Dian Hong quality level.

Conclusions:

Both were pretty good.  Both had their own limitations.  For comparing to standard tea-bag tea, chopped material range versions, the Wawee tea was exceptional, but it's an odd starting point competing in that range.  It was better than that; it was fine as a conventional specialty tea.  But I suppose it could have been even better as a more whole leaf version.

The Moychay version I judged more negatively for coming into the tasting with a lot of expectations about Dian Hong style and character range.  It was good, but some early lack of some range (mineral taste, feel depth), and inclusion of tartness, seemed a lot more negative for me expecting it to be a certain way, to be different.  It's not necessarily that it compared negatively to the other version, but the other Wawee tea was better in a couple of ways.  And the Moychay tea was superior in other ways; it held up better to an infusion cycle, and came to express more complexity and depth than the other, in "later" rounds (this was a pretty short infusion sampling cycle).  

If I had to pick one that I liked more it would be the Thai tea, but they were both fairly equivalent, and that was about preference for specific flavor range, not quality.  Maybe the Moychay Dian Hong was a little higher in quality level, in spite of it also being limited in some ways.

I've been trying such exceptional teas lately that any that seem good but not great might come across as more limited to me now.  These were both good.  For anyone that actually likes a touch of tartness in black teas the Dian Hong review might seem wrong; too negative.  And without specific expectations about feel and mineral base flavor going in it could seem all the more positive.  

Dian Hong drinkers would know what I'm talking about, and anyone new to tea reading this might think it's all nonsense.  Trueness to type expectations aren't really a made up thing, but they do extend how people experience tea into an abstract range, moving beyond "how good; how pleasant?," into "does this match what I expect?"

The Moychay tea is a really good value, for as pleasant as this is.  It may not work well for spending an hour just focusing on it, for me, for it missing my main personal preference range by a couple of aspects, but this would still be a great breakfast tea.  For someone with different black tea preference it may seem much better than that.