Greengold Georgian Mze Etseri (yellow) and Qvevri Etseri gaba processed black tea

 

Mze yellow tea left, Qvevri gaba black right

I picked this first sample to review randomly, Qvevri Etseri, not knowing that it was gaba processed.  I tend to not like those.  A sourness often comes across that makes the experience less pleasant than if it wasn't there.  

I tried a second tea afterwards, their Mze Etseri (including the plantation name, per one description), to help keep moving through a broad set of samples they sent for review (many thanks for that!).  It seems to tell more of a broader story about how personal preference mixes with more objective quality themes in evaluating teas.  

Quality level is pretty good for their teas.  I don't tend to mention flaws, as much as describing tea aspects and character that one might like or not like.  Limitations in intensity or sweetness don't come up so much, but someone might see balance or refinement as issues, given the styles tend to be novel.

I can cite descriptions from a catalog that I've downloaded from their website in the past, which isn't available through the main links there to it now.  They might be updating descriptions or types range in that.  These had been listed in that reference through their main web page:

The grape flavor reference reminds me of how purple leaf Assamica tea versions tend to include sourness and fruit along the line of grape.  Probably I would've "noticed it" if I'd read that description before the tasting, inclined towards that interpretation by that.  

I don't think anyone's interpretation is a clear, objective, final description of tea aspects, but if you taste the teas a few times, and stay open to varying interpretations, the description outcome would be closer to that.  It's not practical for tea blog review; trying them once and writing and editing notes takes hours, and it's too many hours doing two rounds and then merging notes.

I interpreted that flavor as floral and then fruity in later rounds, not exactly as citrus, but that could work, as a less intense version of that.  I did mention honey and nuts; their description is fine.  Marzipan is an interesting description, and one that's not familiar to me; here is Google's description of that (surely an AI compiled version):

What is Marzipan? Marzipan, also known as almond candy dough, is a smooth and pliable confectionary paste made from almonds that can be used as a cake icing or molded into candies. It features a clay-like consistency that makes it easy to handle.

Review, Qvevri Etseri gaba processed black tea

#1:  that touch of sourness is definitely there, but it's balanced by other pleasant flavors, and not so pronounced.  There's no chance this would be a favorite version as a result but it might be fine.  Other people don't mind that aspect as much as I do; personal preference works that way.  

Other warm tones are a bit malty; that part is nice.  Mineral depth is pronounced, seeming to extent to a touch of salt.  There's never salt in tea, I don't think, but it's interesting when some mineral range can resemble it.  Some of the rest might lean a little towards cacao, but I'll do a more complete flavor list over the next round or the one after, when it all seems clearer.

#2:  that transitioned a good bit, mostly in a positive sense, but one part is mixed in pleasantness.  A wine-like character entered in; that's nice.  A kind of funky vegetal flavor range also picked up, along the line of endive or mustard greens.  Or maybe neither of those is right; I tend not to eat that kind of vegetable.  It's like dandelion leaf, if that helps, which probably doesn't since that's not something people eat.  Spice-like tones also pick up a little, but they're not easy to make out beyond the warm tones, touch of sourness, warm mineral, hint of cacao, and odd vegetal input.

#3:  it falls into slightly better balance, but this is still really strange.  It's hard to imagine someone drinking this and experiencing one of their most favorite flavor profiles, but then preferences do vary.  

People tend to drink gaba processed teas for a relaxing effect, and I won't notice that.  I'm not sensitive to drug-like effects from tea, and I'm feeling a bit hazy from experiencing an unrealistically long day yesterday.  I ran 12k (8 miles), walked 5k doing errands, watched Kalani play for two hours, then did more errands, busy from 8 in the morning until 9 at night.  I'm feeling it.  I'm quite calm but tired.

#4:  this is brewed a little stronger.  I don't think that will help with separating and defining flavors, it's just to try it made differently.  A sun-dried tomato savory aspect picks up.  This would be quite pleasant without that one sour note.  With it I wouldn't drink this just for flavor experience.  At this point that savory edge stands out most, along with a wine-like background flavor, and then warm tones below that, some mineral, that sourness, and more vague warm flavor not so different than cacao, but really not distinct.  It seems that one vegetal aspect evolved and split into a wine-like flavor and the savory sun-dried tomato part.  

I'll probably drink one more round and then set this aside; it would be nice to try another version to get through more of their teas.  Apparently they make a lot, and I'll be leaving Honolulu to go back to Bangkok in two weeks, for the summer, so it would be nice to finish more of this cycle of tastings.

#5:  maybe this balances the best that it has so far; all the flavors are evolving to integrate better.  It may be for the best to brew this Western style to get it all to mix from the first infusion.  It comes across more like a standard black tea, with those odd flavor inclusions mixing and reduced in intensity.

In a sense this isn't a fair trial because I don't like gaba teas.  Maybe a reader who does can read through all this and place how they would like it if that sourness wasn't interpreted as a negative inclusion.

Mze Etseri, yellow tea:

#1:  this is nice.  It's unusual, and interesting, but not as challenging as I found the gaba version to be.  It reminds me of trying yellow teas in the past, but I may have only ever tried three versions of those, or at least that's all that come to mind.  There's an unusual flavor aspect in them, as I remember, which is also included in this, a fermented light edge, not dis-similar to how one type of cardboard smells, like a shoe box.  But it's better than that sounds; it mixes with other flavor range in a nice way.

Brighter honey and floral tones stand out, along with dry mineral and that cardboard edge, which might be closer to balsa wood.  I suppose there is a faint hint of sourness in this as well, but it's hard to notice, and depends on judgment whether it is even that, where you couldn't miss it in the gaba version.  A flavor that I'm describing here as floral stands out; it's distinctive, and I think truly in that range, but it could be interpreted differently.  Warm sweetness makes it all integrate well, along the line of the taste of beeswax (or smell of it; beeswax is an odd thing to try and taste or eat).

#2:  it's even better.  A creaminess really picks up, in the feel, which can at times remind you of the taste of cream as well, as occurs in this.  The flavors I described last round integrate a lot better, and they were already pleasant then.  Those include rich floral tone, honey sweetness, warm mineral, towards beeswax, and then a touch of butter or cream.  Feel is a bit thicker, and aftertaste lingers in a pleasant form, even though I brewed that last round fast.  

At their best these Greengold teas can really catch lightning in a bottle, extending into really novel and pleasant range, balancing well, coming across as very refined.  Then other versions aren't quite as polished, or include flavor range I don't like as much; they vary.  Which versions are which, very novel and positive or else a bit of a miss, might vary with preference.  In some cases trying a version more than once can shift interpretation, since novelty can be very positive or else a little hard to relate to.  That might not apply as much to this version, but if someone had never tried anything similar to a yellow tea it might apply quite directly to this.

#3:  another shift; a touch of fruit seems to come out.  It's non-distinct enough that it's hard to place though; maybe along the line of yellow watermelon, a little sweeter and different than the red version.  There's a freshness and brightness to this, which is odd, since that contrasts with the warm tone and hint of extra fermentation effect, a deepening of the flavors.  But it integrates; it comes across as all one experience, even as one flavor, even though it's actually complex.  

Maybe instead of describing the fermented range as like cardboard or balsa wood it's more like how a library smells; a mix of paper and binding materials scents, complex from relating to thousands of books, but also kind of distinct.  To me it's pleasant when combined with the fresh floral and light fruit range, but then someone else might not like it; I think that part relates to personal preference (again) instead of objective judgement.

#4:  an interesting spice tone picks up, quite similar to lemongrass, just maybe not exactly that.  A long infusion might draw out something else entirely; I had planned to stop taking notes here but maybe I'll try one more round.  A richness to the feel and flavor of this might also relate to nuts, to something like Brazil or macadamia nut (probably the second).

#5:  that was a really long infusion; I got distracted and forgot the tea.  It's still ok brewed extra strong, just with a stronger underlying base, which has shifted to light green wood tones brewed so strong.  There is no astringency edge to come up but the related feel is stronger, a little towards structured or drier.

This isn't all that close to green tea character, not vegetal, without the same feel edge.  It's hard to compare it to any other tea type; it seems most like yellow tea.  The closest might be a mild green tea like Taiping Hokui, or a fresh and sweet oolong like Bao Zhong / Pouchong.  

Conclusions:

Of course I liked the yellow tea version a lot more.  Maybe it is even better (objectively), beyond just matching what I like most.  Then again I never could relate to what people see in gaba tea versions, which supposedly has to do with feel effect, and it must also relate to preference or openness to that flavor range, the distinctive sourness.

To me the second yellow tea version was really distinctive, interesting, well-balanced, and positive.  Parts of that apply to the first too, the gaba version, but it's hard for me to move completely past that one flavor note.

where I run, beside Diamondhead, with extra clouds since it has been rainy lately

the kids!  it was mix and match outfit day at her school.

Russian white and red (black) gaba tea from Egor Matchak

A friend that I've mentioned before, Alexander Panganovich, sent a few teas for me to try, and to write about.  He's Russian, living in the Sochi area for awhile, as far as I know, but back visiting Thailand again recently, although we've not met yet this time.  Two of the teas were from Russia and two from Thailand; these I'm writing about here were from Russia.  

There isn't much that serves as a bio of Alex in this blog but this post first mentions meeting him two years ago, and we last "met" online in a meetup at the beginning of the year, and of course a Facebook profile covers some of who he is.  He's a good guy, a likeable and interesting friend, and a true tea enthusiast.  In discussing his background further his more accurate name is Alexey Zykov, relating to use of nicknames.

Alex, waving.  I miss that meetup experience.

Alex may or may not be selling these; I think he does sell some tea, but that he's not really formally a vendor, in the sense that people with online sales channels are.  We haven't met in person for quite awhile, so I'm not up to date on that part.  I'll check and pass on that update along with a second review post.

In looking up what those teas are it seems there won't be a product description of any kind, but two references turned up.  One is photos in an instagram account mentioned on one label, which matches the person's name written on the sample, Egor Matchak.  There is a longer, kind of cool background mission statement in a vk.com site profile for Jiva Tea, an unfamiliar social media channel, which I will include all of for completeness:

The main objective of our project is the production of high quality organic tea.

We have revived and improved the technologies for creating tea in Rɣsi. We collect and process all tea manually, without the use of mechanical devices. The collection point is the abandoned tea plantations of the Black Sea coast, namely the city of Sochi. We do not yet have a factory for the production of large volumes, we make all tea at home, in compliance with all necessary measures affecting the quality of tea. Compete with China, India, Laos, etc. we do not need, we create an environmentally friendly and energetically correct consumer product. The high cost of tea corresponds to the quality. We do not have volumes requested by people who want to make a profit on resale, but we are actively working on this issue.

Our group is for those who are tired of Chinese fakes and tea of ​​unknown origin, with a series of hieroglyphs and imposed values.

Here you can communicate in your native language, understand all the subtleties of the freshest Rɣsi tea, there are no cultural and language barriers, so it is much easier to study Rɣi tea traditions, watch how everything develops here and now, taking on new forms. Over time, it will be possible to collect tea ourselves and try to prepare it with our own hands, we have been working on this for several years.

It sounds good.  That page has over 2000 followers, and it looks like it was founded in 2017, so this isn't a brand new initiative.  The tea was good enough that it didn't seem like early processing efforts, refined and positive in character, especially given that just setting up a nitrogen environment for processing to make gaba would involve some equipment and learning curve.  I almost never tend to like any gaba teas, so that's not the best start, a complete mis-match for preference, but some are interesting, and styles and character do vary.

Presumably this is all truly Russian origin tea; that does seem to be the theme.  It's interesting that the gaba red (black) version was pressed; somehow that makes teas seem a little more interesting to me, even though storage taking up more space and accessing an even sized amount when loose is no problem.

I could "read" that using Google Lens, but didn't

more label information

Review:

white:  not what I expected at all.  White tea like this--that appears similar, at least--always hits you with a floral or fruity sweetness first, which can be a bit subtle and whispy, sometimes lacking intensity or complexity, but that's always what it is.  This is a little sour.  Then it's interesting from there, with a depth to it, other smooth, deeper, warmer range that is like the rest of what white teas can express, a creaminess, towards a green tea base of light and neutral vegetal range.  At least it has novelty going for it; I've tried no other tea that this reminds me of.  I'm getting the sense this might evolve a bit early on so I'll do more of a flavor list next round.

red (or black, if one prefers):  equally novel, but for gaba teas this character is the consistent, normal range (more or less).  Sourness can be a problematic input in those, to me, and this includes a version of that.  From there it's interesting, the sweetness, depth, clean effect, and range of other novel flavors.  Part is towards rich dried fruit, like tamarind and elderberry, and another range reminds me of aged aromatic woods and fragrant oils.  This will probably evolve some too, so I'll skip expanding on that for a round or two as well.

In relation to match to my preference this tasting has got off to an odd start.  These teas are interesting, and clearly refined in character, with clean and complex natures, but these aspect sets aren't what I like most in tea experience, at all.  Sourness standing out is a rough start taken alone.  They're so interesting that I probably won't skip posting this review, but if they don't evolve to match what I like more this is going to make for an odd write up.

white tea, second infusion:  sourness subsided just a little, and other flavor range picks up.  Next round this might be even better, but the clock is ticking related to this maintaining the same degree of intensity.  This is very fine and somewhat broken leaf material tea, so it's just not going to brew a dozen intense and positive rounds.  Vegetal range became more interesting, moving off a non-distinct effect onto a green wood and aromatic dried autumn leaf range; that part is nice.  Sweetness picked up, and that part is ok.  Sourness is unusual in form, within that category range; it's a light edge in this, that connects to other aspect range, seemingly continuing from it.  

There's a warm depth to this that's hard to describe, maybe like a woodiness that's closer to balsa wood, or something like toasted oatmeal.  Altogether it's interesting, and not completely unpleasant, but just a bit more fruit or floral range would really make this more conventional, and probably more pleasant.  It's hard to even try to imagine what fruit or floral range this experience could map to.

gaba red:  stronger sourness, than in the first version; flavor at least related to that part is perhaps increasing in strength instead of easing up.  I'm a lot more open to sourness as a part of potentially positive tea experience than I would've been 4 or 5 years ago, but this combined tasting experience is really pushing it.  It's not on sauerkraut level but it's halfway there, a main part.  

Most of what escalated is really tartness, to be fair, a related but different effect, and that tartness has mainly already replaced the sourness.  Unfortunately I don't love tart teas either.  If someone did absolutely love tart black teas this would be ideal for them; that's at least half of the overall experience at this point.  

Rather than unpack the rest I'm going to eat something to clear my palate, drink some water, and try again next round.  To be clear there are redeeming qualities to both of these teas, and there are indicators that they are well-made, a good clean character, good complexity and intensity, but a lack of match to personal preference is unusually negative in this tasting so far.  I rarely like gaba teas, so that wasn't completely unexpected, but beyond finding silver needle / tips versions that don't taste like much uninteresting I tend to like all white teas.

white, third infusion:  now this has settled into a range I can relate to, and like.  Sourness dropped out, warmth picked up, and complexity is interesting and positive.  What I meant by "autumn fallen leaves" may or may not be clear, but that's at the crux of this experience.  It could mean different things to different people, since fallen leaves smell completely differently depending on leaf type, how dry they are, how other background scents combine, and any number of other minor inputs.  Back "home," in Western PA, there's a woody depth to that range, across all it expresses, because the scent of fall is about many types of plant material settling in many different ways.  Here tropical fragrant leaves fall and dry resulting in sweet and complex scents, that are much different.  It's probably closer to what I experience here, with lots of complexity, but in a lighter range, with less earthy depth.

Other almost intangible inputs work out well:  level of sweetness, clean character, hints of other range (maybe floral finally is factoring in), even a light fruit tone, bridging every so slightly into citrus scope.  Depending on interpretation this either is citrusy, light like lime or lemon, or it includes a touch of green wood scope, which is still how I interpret it.  Or that could be like a touch of dandelion, combining many of the other aspect themes I've mentioned, the light floral and fragrant dried leaf range.  It's nice.

red gaba:  brewing this light seemed to help tartness balance better; it still includes that but it has diminished to a minor contributing aspect.  Warmth picks up, now in a cinnamon sort of range.  It's interesting that this changed so much from last round, and that both shifted from tea experience I really disliked into such positive range over just one round.  That has to tie to that intangible complexity and quality issue I mentioned; a poorly made or low quality material tea wouldn't have the potential to transition so much in interesting ways, the flaws would be what you'd get.  I still definitely wouldn't buy this tea, but for people into gaba it could be really appealing.  

Since I've not done a proper flavor breakdown I should mention some of the rest, to get this to add up to a description.  That warm range serves as a base for this now, with tartness very limited, almost gone (strange; I think infusion intensity and round to round transition combined in an odd way).  Beyond that there is a sort of wine-like quality to this now, towards brandy, maybe only partly there, more like a tisane that's popular here, roselle.  I suppose that tastes a little like rose leaf tisane, just with more intensity and more of a tart edge, and a little towards red wine flavors.

white tea, fourth infusion:  I think a pleasant floral infusion ramped up, but the flavor mix is complex enough that it requires a lot of judgment and interpretation.  This is as good as it's been, quite pleasant.

red gaba tea:  also the best this has been; that cinnamon spice warmth, roselle tisane floral tone, towards red wine range depth are nice together.

As does tend to happen on weekends I need to get to a long task list; I'll stop taking notes there and mention changes in conclusion notes later, if those apply

Conclusions:

The teas stayed positive for extra rounds but didn't change so much.

I was considering how I probably would've interpreted the experience much more positively if that tea range had been more familiar.  I really didn't expect such novel white tea range would come up, for that broad category being a bit more consistent, covering a moderate range of styles, but a narrower scope than many other type-categories.  Gaba versions do vary a lot, with some consistency in some flavor aspect range, especially that sourness.  They're not as often so tart, but tart black tea is a familiar theme.

Then hardly any of that is a close match to my main natural preference.  If the tea characters were just more familiar I think that would've seemed like less of a gap, that I would've found them more relatable and pleasant.  They weren't unpleasant; I was clear in the notes that they had redeeming positive aspects, and were clearly well-made teas in a sense, distinctive and complex, free of a broad range of flaws that can turn up in different types and versions.  Except the sourness, I guess; it can be hard to see that as an aspect that others might relate to better and prefer.  For an even newer producer I might expect that a tweak or two to processing steps could identify a cause for that and resolve it.  It's generally not a distinctive type or area typical inclusion, although I guess that it could be that.

The white tea was quite positive after the first two rounds, clearing out that aspect.  I think for people who like tart black teas the black (red) tea would be the same, very pleasant, distinctive, intense, and complex after the first two rounds.  Maybe well-balanced and refined, even.  I just much prefer richer, heavier flavors in black teas that doesn't include tartness.  Almost every gaba tea I've reviewed includes some sort of related statement, about how the tea might appeal a lot more to someone who is on that page for preference.

In trying the first of the Thai sheng versions, which I've already written notes for, it occurred to me again that this may not really serve as a fair, objective account of what these teas are like.  I'm quite familiar with Thai sheng range, and love that style, and the aspects that are usually included.  Familiarity and bias for a certain range of experience combine to make it sound like that tea is clearly, objectively better.  I think it might work better to say that it matches my preference much better.  But I think I'm going in with expectations and openness to range of experience that favors that tea, over these I'm reviewing here, and the limitation in prior exposure represents the opposite of an objective and complete analysis.  I could like them more just for trying them a few more times; that can happen.

I wish this producer the best, based on their expressed mission and values.  For sure their level of success in producing novel and positive teas will vary across versions and seasons, and I hope that they can stick with it, continue to develop, and thrive.  I feel like the tea community that they indirectly reference in that citation, people interested in preserving prior traditions and opening the door to new forms of development, all themed around more natural production contexts and developed forms of interest, all represent themes and experiences that should be valued.  They're already making good tea, even if these two examples don't represent the closest possible match to my favorite styles.

Moychay Krasonodar (Russian) Gaba Sheng

Reviewing another interesting style of tea from Moychay, a Russian Gaba Sheng.  After reviewing this I was looking forward to checking out the Moychay description, to see what this really is, but it didn't include anything on the tea plant type or processing inputs, just about aspects:

Krasnodar gaba sheng, (spring 2021)

In appearance: large, red-brown, curved leaves with long cuttings and thin tips. The aroma is restrained, floral-herbaceous. The liquor is transparent, with a greenish-yellow shade.

The bouquet of ready-made tea is multifaceted and fresh, floral-herbaceous, with berry and spicy notes. The aroma is tender, floral-herbaceous. The taste is refined, silky and sweet, oily, with berry acidity and a refreshing finish.

The review comments were interesting, and diverse:

Wow, it really looks like a medium-rare Taiwanese gaba! Favorite cookies and light berry sourness. I did not expect this from Krasnodar tea, it holds about 10 straits, delight...

Bread crust, menthol, pleasant astringency, notes of red tea, fruity sourness. There are candied fruits too, but in the background. Differs from 2020 version...

The smell of the liquor is spicy, it reminds me of baked berries and pumpkin.  The taste is silky, buttery and sweet, with berries acidity and the notes of eggplant and nettles.  The aftertaste has a sweetness of forest berries and vegetal taste of an eggplant.

It's normal for aspect interpretations to vary, as mine isn't exactly the same as any of these, but they kind of do seem to all be describing roughly the same tea.

Review:

First infusion:  interesting, different.  I really expected sheng with an edge of sourness and that's not what this is, at least not so far.  It's completely different in character.  It's a little early to call but it tastes most like dried autumn leaves, that rich, warm, sweet scent.  I've experienced that a number of times in different teas and it's always a very pleasant inclusion.  That includes a caramel-like sweetness.  

Maybe there is as much sourness as bitterness in the rest of this, but it's early to tell, and sheng often changes character most over the first 2 or 3 infusions, as it "opens up."  I'll do more description and list next round.  The sourness and bitterness that is present carries over in an interesting aftertaste form; that and feel might be novel for this tea version.

Second infusion:  it's evolving, but more ramping up than changing.  This has some bitterness, so it's not completely out of sheng character range, but it has an edge of sourness too, and a completely novel flavor profile.  It's hard to describe.  Warm dried autumn leaf tones are still dominant, but all the rest increased while that level stayed the same, so it's more just an even part of the rest now.  Both sourness and bitterness seemed to pick up, and a warm mineral undertone.  Sweetness is ok in this but slightly lower than it could be.  It's enough to tie the other range together (a role that at least I see sweetness as playing), but low in comparison to that frequent intense sweetness, bitterness, and floral or fruit tone mix that occurs in sheng versions.  

I can do a clearer aspect list next round, but I'm already getting the impression that feel and aftertaste are going to "make or break" this experience.  Feel isn't standard, but it has some structure to it.  It's not the fullness (that varies a lot) in sheng versions, or that dry edge in some astringent black teas, or the smoother fullness of other softer and fuller black teas, or the round, deep fullness of rolled oolongs.  One part is structure, a generally full feel, and the other part is an odd way that your tongue reacts to it, like you might when tasting metal.  

Why taste metal?  Who hasn't put a penny in their mouth, as a child, or noticed that some natural spring water has such a heavy mineral taste that it seems almost metallic, but often in a very pleasant way.  Aftertaste is just about all those ranges carrying over.  It might be that subjective interpretation then makes or breaks this tea, and someone seeking to love it for appreciation of novelty easily could, or the opposite could happen, and someone could hate it for not matching existing expectations.  A couple more rounds will show how it's going to unfold though.

It seems like this tea might have been allowed to wither and "oxidize" quite a bit, so that it was intentionally made to include a lot of that transition effect.  If so this is really in between a gaba oolong and sheng version, using the pan frying as a heating step, with the same shaping and drying, but with an unusual extra input.  Sheng pu'er leaves could oxidize a little prior to pan frying but it's my understanding that it's kept very limited, on purpose, that they don't intentionally wait long for processing.  Of course I don't actually make tea, or try to keep track of such details, so all that should be taken with a grain of salt.

Third infusion:  it all integrates a little better, and a new part is developing.  The autumn leaf input is shifting to more towards a tree bark or bud version, like a red or dark peeling bark tends to smell.  It would probably be helpful to try to correlate that to a food input, even if it's not a close match.  It's in the spice range then, if one attempts that.  It's a lot like star anise tastes, but without that strong sweetness, which is kind of an odd reference, since that's the main range of star anise.  Towards bay leaf then, but warmer.  

There's essentially no bitterness in this, or it has dropped back to be hardly noticeable, and sourness is quite limited too, just stronger than bitterness.  It's in an odd range, since all that doesn't add up to what goes into a normal tea experience.  Saying it tastes like spice and autumn leaf isn't exactly it but that's in the ballpark, so close enough.

Fourth infusion:  feel even shifts now, picking up more smoothness and roundness.  It's interesting how much this transitions.  That really novel flavor profile, including underlying mineral base, then also spice, autumn leaf, tree bark, and caramel sweetness, comes across as really simple and integrated, even though it includes a lot of range.  The warmth part comes across more as a black tea at this level, the way the mineral and wood range links with that feel. 

This isn't really like any oolong I've tried, it seems to me, but it's as close to a more oxidized rolled oolong as it is to gaba versions (the "red oolong" ones, although I don't love that term use), then it also leans in a different direction.  It's not very close to conventional sheng, not nearly as similar as to those types.  It'll be interesting to see how Moychay describes it, if that "oolong" part on the label really was some sort of typo, or if they feel it's really between sheng and oolong styles.  It could just as easily be labelled as a gaba black tea, if the idea was to categorize to match pre-conceptions and the experience. At a guess the most accurate type label might be "gaba oolong," whether it was pan fried to serve as a fixing step or not.

Fifth infusion:  kind of similar to last round; it has finally levelled off from the changes.  Even though all those transitions were interesting I bet this would be fine brewed Western style, and maybe even better.  That's just a guess, but combining ranges of those rounds might work out well.  

It was never as if you needed to keep the intensity moderate to get positive results, as happens with sheng pu'er, or need to get the infusion strength dialed into an ideal to get the absolute best results, as occurs with Wuyi Yancha and Dan Cong.  For those higher quality oolongs you can still get good results brewing them Western style but nowhere near the ideal, so in a different sense it "doesn't work."

Sixth infusion:  I'll probably leave off here, and as usual skip the story of the last half of late rounds.  That should include a novel or change or two for this tea, which I may or may not mention from memory during editing.  Not changing much, but woodiness shifts form.  It might be onto losing some of the more distinctive and novel aspect range, as oolongs and black teas can do (or sheng, or any others, but those can tend to just seem woody in later rounds, sometimes).  It still strikes a cool balance for flavor aspects, feel, and aftertaste; it's not spent.

Conclusions:

Very nice!  For being this novel I would probably change interpretation of the flavors a good bit for trying it 2 or 3 times instead of once.  It's probably the wrong question to keep focus on asking what this is.  I did re-try it, and I'll mention what that changed for impression.

I was focused mostly on trying to tell what it was that first tasting, so I emphasized whether or not bitterness was present (related to it being sheng), or if sourness was (related to a conventional aspect in gaba teas).  Of course oxidation level also relates to tea type, so that was a concern.  I've ran across the idea that even for processing in a nitrogen environment (with no oxygen present) it might be appropriate to call the related transition (chemical compound change) "oxidation," since the electron exchange might be similar.  I don't know; chem classes were awhile back, and it doesn't seem to matter.

I noticed more of a fruit or sweet cooked vegetable range in that re-tasting than I've mentioned in these tasting notes, and also why I didn't pick it up more in the first round, beyond "looking for" other range, as I've just mentioned.  It comes across as non-distinct, even though it is a range that defines the experience, pleasant aspect scope that really makes it.  It might start a little closer to something like pumpkin (mentioned in one web page comment), but that transitions to tasting a lot more like persimmon, or in some rounds a bit like a mango jam.  Then in later rounds it shifts to more of an aromatic wood tone, like cedar, while never completely losing the persimmon range.  It might be as much dried persimmon as fresh, with the experience varying by round, and surely shifting with brewed infusion strength.

dried persimmons, one style (dusted with sugar?), well worth buying on a Chinatown visit

what those look like fresh

For someone completely unfamiliar with persimmons those taste in between a plum and a lot of other range, maybe in between roasted pumpkin and sun-dried tomato.

All of this probably sounds like a more complete revision of impression than it really was; it had seemed like some aspect range I didn't get around to describing in that first round, for focusing a lot on bitterness and sourness, and trying to pin down a type, and this goes into that.  It was definitely a novel and interesting tea, which made for a pleasant experience.  That repeating theme of not getting gaba versions applies less to this than to others, since an early sourness dropped out fast.  It didn't seem much like sheng pu'er but it was nice.

Moychay white and black Russian gaba teas

 

I haven't written about gaba teas for years, even though I did drink a number of them last year, from Moychay and at least one a friend passed on.  It's not a favorite type.  I tend to only write about teas I like here, unless there is a story to tell, and I kept considering what that story would be related to gaba but didn't get to it.  I'll fill in a bit of background on my history and take on gaba, with this earlier post covering what it even is.

It's odd in editing this that I've said essentially nothing about these being Russian teas, from Kraznodar.  I guess I just don't have much to add about that.  I visited Russia some years back and put some effort into turning up Russian teas and only found one green version, one like a hei cha but different, and some others from Georgia.

I have reviewed gaba oolong versions here, but it's been awhile.  They tended to be a bit one dimensional, and typically a bit sour in a distinctive way.  There was always the idea that people were feeling a calming effect from the gaba compounds, and maybe I just wasn't sensitive enough to it, or maybe not even experiencing the same physiological effect at all.  Gaba black teas I tried last year were better, and one version prior to then, maybe with a hint of sourness but nothing remotely the same.  But the one-dimensional theme remained; they lacked complexity, and some of the appeal of even moderate quality black teas in a range that I liked.

The Moychay versions that I tried last year, part of that set I said a lot about, were equivalent to the best gaba black tea versions I ever tried (the only one?).  In visiting a local friend's place once, Sasha's, he had a pretty good gaba black tea, maybe 3 years ago.  I still would have preferred a good Dian Hong, or good orthodox Assam, or second or third flush Darjeeling, a nice unsmoked Lapsang Souchong, and so on.  

Sasha!  But this meetup didn't include that tea.

I'll wrap this up at saying all that.  I don't expect to love these teas but the novelty should be something to experience.  I won't be able to really compare this 2020 gaba black--from that earlier set, I think, not from some new teas they sent to review--against the earlier versions, from 6 months or more back.  I might get back to doing more review of the last of one of the others, or comparison with a new version.  I don't remember what else Moychay sent just now (these were provided for review; many thanks to them!), but I have tried gaba sheng before, so maybe one of those.  

To be clear I don't think gaba teas are generally objectively not very good, I just think many versions seem to be missing some complexity (which probably does hold up as an objective take), most include sourness, and are a bit strange (now that part is subjective).  They just don't work well for me, versus the teas not being good.

It's been awhile since I've said this part:  in general reviewing two dis-similar teas together isn't helpful, but if you have tried that approach a few dozen times it probably doesn't take that much away from the analysis.  Adding any more dimensions to experience, even background noise, will drop back the level of detail you pick up, and that includes comparison tasting.  But I still expect that my impression will be roughly the same, just slightly less detailed.  Which could be good, since these reviews tend to run long.  I wouldn't have tried these together if the other gaba black tea versions hadn't already been familiar; it would be too much new ground to cover at the same time.

Review:

Moychay 2021 Krasnodar organic gaba white:  a bit faint and light, but then the first infusion is often like that.  I filled the white version fuller than the black, used more volume of dry leaves, to account for it being a lot less dense, but it's already clear that I undercompensated, and it should've been that much fuller.  I can work around that.  Splitting infusion times doesn't change that much in doing tastings like these; there is no reason for different tea types to be brewed under identical parameters.  

I don't get much at all from this tea just yet.  I suppose it could be regarded as slightly sour, but it tastes a lot like balsa wood smells, neutral, but with something there.  For those with less model or toy building background that's the pithy wood that such things are often made out of, which is solid enough to build things out of but soft enough to cut easily with a box cutter or craft knife version of that.  There's a hint of floral tone in this, and a touch of creaminess, so it will probably evolve in a positive way.  Sweetness is all but missing just yet; that might stay moderate.

Krasnodar black / red (their site only lists a 2021 version now):  there is some positive range to this, and it's different than the other version or two that I've tried (although it is easy to lose track).  At least one of those had a dried fruit range that was nice, beyond being a touch sour and one-dimensional.  This is more towards warm spice.  Not like Oriental Beauty, I don't mean, nothing like that straight-cinnamon Thai version that I just reviewed.  Hopefully that sourness will fade in proportion and make it easier to pick out the rest.  

Where the other had a mild sourness like balsa wood this is a bit towards musty, like cedar or redwood lawn furniture that had stayed damp or wet for a couple of months.  "Wet cedar chest" is probably about as good a singular description as I could use.  In a sense that's a good thing; if anyone ever craved a tea that tastes a lot like a cedar box smells this is it.  It would just be nice if that were a drier cedar box version, one fresh out of attic storage instead of basement storage.

It's odd re-trying the first white tea after this black version (red, to them; they are on that page for naming convention).  It being so much lighter stands out at first, and then that contrast in form of sourness comes next, with the rest of the finer distinctions triggering as a third round of what you notice.

Second infusion, white:  I didn't offset these times much, brewing the black version for about 10 seconds and the white for a few more.  I can add to that divide over other rounds if it makes sense to.  This is developing nicely, and not necessarily in a direction that I expected.  Cinnamon picks up.  This isn't all that far off the Thai Oriental Beauty derivative version I just reviewed, although it probably never will match it for sweetness level of pronounced but narrow flavor range.  The flaws in that tea match the flaws I would expect in this:  narrow range, limited complexity, lack of full feel or aftertaste experience.  

Sweetness doesn't bump much in this, just a little, but more positive wood tones join along with that cinnamon spice increase.  It tastes like a light, sweet wood tone, like fresh sassafras wood, or something along that line.  Fresh tree barks of that type, the kind that peel off as a pliable layer, have an odd sticky feel to the inside and an odd scent, and this isn't far off that.  In a good way; that's a cool range for something to be "woody" in.

black:  sourness ramped up most; that's not exactly ideal.  This is a bit like brewing a chen pi (aged tangerine peel, more or less), just a little lighter on citrus, and not as sweet.  Beyond that it is kind of towards that aromatic wood range I mentioned, or maybe onto tree bark instead, with a hint of spice supporting that.  But so sour.  I've been doing acclimation training to be able to appreciate sourness, maybe mostly in the form of regularly drinking one Thai wild tree material cake, but whenever I drink that tea it takes me a few rounds to get back in that mode, to not see that sourness as a very negative component.  Then as the sourness fades and I readjust expectation by the end of that infusion cycle I like it.  Maybe both will happen for this tea too.

Again it's strange drinking the white version after the black; with the sourness so much less pronounced you don't "get" any of that, and it comes across as mostly a strange neutral tone, more like fresh light tree bark than balsa wood, at this stage.  It's more novel than pleasant, for both, but I suspect the best of these will be drawn out over the next 2 or 3 infusions, versus them being as positive early on.  

third infusion, white tea:  the last round's description still works.  This is positive, but just barely.  Sourness is such a limited component that the other woody part and cinnamon range work, as a flavor experience.  Sweetness being so limited really doesn't help how it comes across, and there is really nothing to say about feel or aftertaste aspect range, beyond that there isn't much.  This might work well as a tea blending base for being so neutral, with just a bit of warm wood tone and spice.  Add some rose petals and cacao nibs to this and it would probably be great.  

I don't remember ever saying that a tea would be good for a blending base in a review; I must have, but that tends to not come up.  Quite often plain teas stand on their own for novel experienced aspects, and when they don't I don't publish a review of them.  A mediocre quality Tie Guan Yin might be sort of what I'm talking about here, versions where the sweetness, intensity, and floral range really don't pop.  Those can be fine as something to have with food, just not the kind of tea you would focus on as an experience.

black tea:  sourness is "letting up" a bit but it still defines this experience.  It seems likely that I could describe a more positive balance and do more justice to describing the rest in the next round.  So I'll skip ahead and say more then instead.

fourth infusion, white:  I should be getting absolutely dosed with those gaba compounds, since I am actually drinking all this, so maybe I can report on feeling calm or centered or whatever else soon.

This tea is transitioning but across such a narrow range that the old description still works well enough.  It's mostly woody at this point, which is how I described the last round, just a different version of seeming woody.  I kind of like it.  With those relatively bad Tie Guan Yin versions I compared this to there is something slightly off-putting in their character, the way a vegetal component comes across.  It's not as cooked vegetables, as can occur in some green teas, but a neutral, woody tone can be more negative than positive in those.  Here it kind of works.  

There is a faint creaminess filling in a little; that helps.  The flavor is somehow clean, and that makes it work.  Odd saying that about a gaba, which I equate with sourness, but the sourness has already dropped out of this, and I'm not as negative about sourness as an input as I would've been two years ago.

black:  the best this has been, by a wide margin.  It is odd how that sourness really dropped out of being the main thing that you experience to quite minor in this round, over two infusions.  Cinnamon is as strong as any other component, and warm wood or spice tones support that.  Even for being sour (some, still) it's clean in effect, not musty, not off in some other way.   There's essentially none of the underlying mineral that gives a lot of teas a good base, and sweetness level isn't where it would be for an average black tea range, so there are missing parts that could be seen as gaps, but what is present kind of works.  It's narrow in range; that's not necessarily good.  A tea with strong, unique, and balancing limited inputs can enable narrowness of character to work really well, but for this it's just not as negative or limiting as it might be.  

To put an example to that a third flush Darjeeling (a true black tea, as I'm describing this example) can be subtle, limited in flavor scope and intensity, and still have a limited range of experience that balances really well, and can even seem more positive for not being complex, or turning intensity up to 10.  I can't compare this to a better third flush Darjeeling; it's just not on that level.  It lacks positive flavor aspects, comparable intensity and complexity (even for that being an example of those being limited), and overall balance.  Maybe it's not that far off a medium quality version of one of those in appeal, where it all pulls together but not quite as well.  There is no shame in not matching up with one of the most distinctive and positive forms out there in tea experience range, so I don't see what I just said as insulting this tea.  It's "as good" as it is, matched against my subjective preference, and just not that good.  It seems a given that others would interpret it differently, since all this is a discussion of match to preference.

fifth infusion, white:  I'll probably leave off taking notes to have something else to attend to, giving the cats their weekly bath before afternoon rain moves in.  They live outside (the two older ones), and are exposed to "street cats" with fleas, and all sorts of fungus and other things that grow in tropical environments, so we counter that risk input by washing them every week or two.  Which of course they hate.

It's essentially the same this round.  It's nice enough, just a bit plain.  For saying over and over that these lack complexity, intensity, thickness of feel, and aftertaste it's the complex base range, slightly full feel (relatively, at least medium), and limited aftertaste that's making this work as well as it does.  Add just a bit of sweetness and any one extra flavor element and this would be really nice.  As it is it's ok.

black:  that last statement sort of works for this; tweak a couple of aspects just a little and this could be much better.  It's actually ok, but not so far from being significantly better.

Conclusions:

These both brewed more than another half dozen rounds, although the last few tasted like cardboard (I tend to stretch teas to check on that).  Both are ok as basic, decent teas, but for me buying either to drink in relation to experienced characteristics wouldn't make much sense (but then that is tied to personal preference for aspect range, to be clear).  For something basic to have with a meal they're ok.  

I tried the white version a few days later and it comes across better when you aren't breaking it down for a detailed review of aspects.  The black is probably like that too; I suspect that I'm overdoing it with comparing both to expectations in relation to regular-oxidation versions, so that when I don't think about the tea much at all it seems better.  I bet if I could come to terms with them being a bit sour all this would shift a lot, as was the case with trying Thai wild origin teas.

I was trying to notice if I felt any more calm after drinking them.  Not that I could tell, but then I'm fairly calm all the time anyway.  Maybe they do affect some people that way.  Or maybe a placebo effect could be effective, if someone only thinks that they do, that it can work to relax more if you think a drink is helping you with that, even if in terms of compounds present it's not.

One main theme in this post has seemed to be why I've not been reviewing any gaba versions for years.  They're ok, but in terms of experienced aspects in relation to my preference generally just shy of a cut-off for what I usually find positive or interesting enough to review.  The last black (/ red) gaba tea version I didn't write about from them was a slightly better match to my preference, as I recall.  It swapped out that cedar wood and cinnamon range for dried fruit and cherry, leaning a little towards cocoa, and it wasn't all that sour.  But it was one-dimensional too, not complex, a bit thin in feel, and not as sweet as is typical for Chinese black teas. 

It's a judgement call whether or not it would be helpful to Moychay in terms of promotion to pass on this feedback.  A post basically saying "I'm not that into gaba; it's so-so and not very complex" might only mean something to people who've never tried it themselves.  It's worth trying, to check out something different.  I would expect that some pressed tisane bars they sent will be more pleasant and interesting to me, and those aren't even tea, in the narrower sense.  Black teas and oolongs are favorite types too, and sheng is mostly what I'm into now.  They sent a number of teas that are more what I love, so I'll get back to doing more typical posts about those.  

It's hard to place how someone else might interpret these same teas, related to continually referring to judging these against my own preference, and why a conclusion might be different, but I think I can address some of that by referencing two website reviews of the white version.

Moychay site customer reviews

In looking up the product listings (I skipped mentioning relative value here; they're unique enough there is no market price for these) two customer reviews mentioned completely different aspect interpretations and general impressions, cited in relation to the white version:

Alexey Makarov:  ...This year, a refreshing menthol-mint bright note can be traced in all Krasnodar teas. It is wonderful. Then there is a delicious fruity sourness, a crust of white bread, softly toasted, and the crumb of the same white bread itself. There is soft candied fruit, but you can't call it pumpkin anymore. Strongly, but pleasantly knits... 

Dmitry R.:  A wonderful multifaceted white, combining the features of bych, luicha and yellow teas. Bright juicy berries, languor, dough, shortbread cookies, yellow fruits (both unripe and overripe) and almost sugary berry jam, and black bread, and sesame seeds, and garden flowers. The infusion plays with gold. The aroma of the infusion, the bottom of the bowl, dry leaf and wet leaf are of barberry and juicy berries, but the wet leaf gradually turns into a fresh rye bun...

It seems like the overall effect and flavor range could be interpreted more positively if you can tie the experience of sourness to a relatable and pleasant food experience, like that of fresh bread, mentioned by both.  Of course fresh bread contains an edge of sourness that's a positive part of that experience, along with other very complex flavors, and texture related experience (the tea won't have that, a crust).  

And that reminds me of the owner of Monsoon teas, the vendor who produced and sold the Thai wild forest origin teas I mentioned, that were sour, saying that while tea enthusiasts tend to not like their wild teas chefs typically do relate to them very positively.  Tea enthusiasts probably tend to relate to sourness as either a processing or storage flaw, for example to a tea being stored too damp, so it's hard to see it as a positive and integral taste aspect.  But in food sourness is definitely not "out of bounds" for any reason.  I like sourness in sauerkraut and Thai sour curry.  

There's a good chance that I'll like this white tea better as I try it more, as probably also occurred with the earlier gaba black teas.  Most tea enthusiasts could probably relate this expectation and acclimation pattern to sheng pu'er, in relation to bitterness, which tea drinkers typically don't value at first.  Later many come to love bitterness, in proper form and balance with other aspect range.

I'm not as sure how to place what I interpret as narrowness of aspect experience, beyond that atypical flavor range, for the set of flavors being narrow, or feel being thin, and aftertaste experience limited.  These reviewers aren't seeing flavor range as narrow.  One cites what they see as a distinctive mint flavor as central to the regional origin character, which I didn't even mention.  

These aren't minty, in the sense that Ruby / Red Jade # 18 cultivar teas are, which are very heavy on mint, to the point of that coming across as eucalyptus, often too strong.  The black gaba tea Sasha shared, that I mentioned, was based on the Ruby / #18 cultivar plant type, and that mint range was fine in that, pronounced but not overwhelming (as I remember; that was awhile back).  It will be interesting re-trying these and considering these additional interpretations as further input.

Comparing Yunnan and Russian black and gaba teas

 

Yongde Ye Sheng lower left, Krasnodar black top, Krasnodar gaba lower left

Moychay sent a number of teas for review, which I'll be talking about for a number of weeks, for as slow as I tend to get through sets.  The first review placed a 2020 Jing Mai sheng pu'er in relation to one of my favorite provider's slightly older versions (a 2016 from Tea Mania), and they seemed comparable in quality, both quite good teas.  There's always other higher range, an aspect that might be a little different, but it was quite good, and a good value for the selling point.

These are black teas (which they call red, a not-uncommon reference to the literal Chinese translation of hong cha).  One is a gaba black, processed in a nitrogen environment, causing the compounds that form in transition from conventional-style forms to differ.  In a sense they're not "oxidized" teas then, because oxygen contact has been restricted during processing.  Probably that oxidation process started at picking time, prior to that other processing, so they would be a little bit oxidized, just mostly forming different compounds based on interaction with nitrogen instead of oxygen.  "Gaba" is one such resulting compound, with more on all that in this post (from 2013; I had a lot less experience to work with as a tasting baseline back then).

This won't go any further into what gaba tea is; maybe I'll get back to that more in a later post, since I have two more versions to get to.  Reviewing three teas at once is a lot of ground to cover.  I've reviewed plenty of gaba oolongs before here, but never a black tea.  Oddly one of the best gaba versions I've ever tried was a black tea, a Ruby / Red Jada gaba processed Taiwanese black tea version, shared in a tasting session by a friend, Sasha Abramovich.  Sasha is still around, just not in Bangkok, so I never cross paths with him.  

The gaba oolongs I tried earlier all seemed to include a distinctive sourness that I had trouble adjusting to like.  It tasted a little like an old cardboard box smells, when taken out of a damp form of storage.  One even tasted like asphalt; different.  The Taiwanese gaba black wasn't like either.

I've actually already tried this Yongde black version before, and based on the first try I didn't write any notes, thinking I wouldn't like it.  It was tart instead, not something I like in black teas, although that range does come up.  Then after just a few infusions that tartness faded, transitioning to other complex range, and the tea was quite pleasant.  I had probably judged too soon.

Lately I've been considering if my appreciation for teas isn't too narrow, in rejecting that flavor range like sourness or tartness can be pleasant.  It seems like one might normally run through experience of some standard versions, then sort out which of those might suit preference best, then escalate experience in quality range, and then explore more horizontally, if that last step even comes up.  Of course tea experiences and preference transitions would vary.

Sourness comes up a good bit in relation to "wild-grown" tea versions, presumably tied to different plant type sources.  It could also relate to a flaw in processing or storage, but one particular form of sourness is distinctive, related to what I've tried from Thai teas quite a bit.  I didn't review some Monsoon "wild-origin" teas because they were sour, and I had trouble relating to that.  I just re-tried a Liquid Proust tasting set example of a "wild-origin" Xiaguan sheng, presumably from China, what was quite similar.  Now I'm guessing that it's a variation from the source plant, causing those common effects.  

Kenneth, the owner of Monsoon, mentioned that tea enthusiasts in general seem put off by that sourness from that range of plant-source inputs, but that for whatever reasons some experienced chefs have liked them.  I suppose it does make sense that someone with broad food experience and training could appreciate a very broad range of flavors, without a bias towards a narrow range of styles, as most tea enthusiasts would tend to develop.

meeting Kenneth (waving) and Sasha (right).  sorry other guy; should've taken more snaps.

I'd mentioned one of my favorite sheng versions was from wild tree sources, produced by Kittichai of Jip Eu, a version that was sour (with a Moychay Nannuo sheng also making that list).  It was sour in a slightly different form, but it overlapped, and that tea changed a lot across a relatively short span of time in storage.  I bought a second cake of that tea, to see how I like it once it's fully aged, and so I can keep tasting it from time to time to witness the entire transition process.  It's from 2012 or 13, as I remember, so within another half dozen years (stored in hot and humid conditions in Bangkok) I should see that change.  

The point here is that I really liked that  Thai tea (sheng), in spite of it being sour, I think in part because I'd reached a critical mass of exposure to other forms.  And also because it has "other notes" to experience; it wasn't that it just stood out for only that one sour flavor.  As I've drank through most of 50 grams of a wild Thai black tea from Monsoon I'm more ok with that sourness.  I don't know that I like it, but it's not bad, I can appreciate it as something else to experience.

On with it then.  I'll copy down as much as I can about these teas and look up what I can of descriptions prior to the final edited write-up.

Yongde Ye Sheng, Hong Cha, 2020  (black tea from a relatively natural source,  I think that means).  Pulling up a random vendor description for that area:

https://camellia-sinensis.com/en/blog/new-discovery-pu-er-2019-yongde-da-shan

...After visiting Xishuangbanna, Jasmin traveled up north, towards the region of Pu Er, then to Lincang. In these regions, tea production is more modest and less famous (despite the presence of big names like Bingdao or Xigui). The traffic is much lower. Local buyers are rare here. Despite superb product quality, prices remain much lower than in Xishuangbanna. The Yongde region specifically is one of the few tea producing regions in Yunnan that still escapes the growing turmoil of the terroir and the high rise in prices we have seen in recent years... 

Moychay's description (from that link):

Red tea "Youngde Yesheng Hong Cha" made in 2020 in Youngde County, Yunnan province. The first spring shoots of wild tea trees were used as raw materials...

The bouquet of the ready-made tea is vivid, berry-and-woody with hints of barberry caramel, tropical flowers, aromatic wood resins, and exotic fruits. The fragrance is bright, berry-floral. The taste is rich and juicy, sweetish, with a fine woody tartness, spicy nuances, and the lingering finish.

That's about right.  The selling price seems a bit high compare to the Dian Hong (Yunnan black) I've tried or bought, but then this was a unique version, with market prices for materials shifting final selling prices, and different people could value the experience differently.  

Often Yunnan black teas are made from later harvested material, even sometimes from a middle harvest period between the spring and fall.  Sometimes that means that versions can lose a lot of intensity, but I think in some such cases it still tends to work out well, producing very pleasant versions that just need to be pushed a little harder and can brew out a bit fast.

Krasnodar Red Organic Tea, Spring 2020  I looked for a range of Russian teas in visiting Russia awhile back but only managed to find green tea from that country, and black teas from Georgia.

In appearance: large, reddish-brown, curved leaves with long cuttings and thin tips. The aroma is intensive, floral with a fruity accent. The liquor is transparent, with a shade of yellow amber.

The bouquet of ready-made tea is multifaceted and vivid, fruity-floral with notes of rye bread, spicy herbs and honey biscuit. The aroma is warm, fruity-and-biscuit. The taste is refined and full-bodied, silky and sweet, a bit tart, with berry acidity, spicy nuances and refreshing finish.

Krasnodar Red Gaba Tea (Diagomys), Spring 2020  that gaba version; should be interesting

In appearance: large, reddish-brown, curved leaves with long cuttings and thin tips. The aroma is intensive, floral with a honey accent. The liquor is transparent, with a shade of yellow amber.

The bouquet of ready-made tea is multifaceted and vivid, fruity-floral with honey, biscuit, citrus and spicy notes. The aroma is high and sweet, honey. The taste is refined and full-bodied, oily and sweet, with berry acidity, spicy nuances and long, refreshing finish.

Review:

Yongde black left, Krasodar middle, Krasnodar gaba right, in all photos

Yongde Ye Sheng: that's quite tart; it helps expecting that.  Even though that one aspect is a bit much for me to love the tea knowing that it's coming helps.  Of course the flavor is similar to cranberry, or something along that line.  I'm from a small town called Cranberry, actually (a bit unrelated).  Being a first infusing the aspects aren't fully developed yet, and with tartness that strong the rest isn't standing out.  As I remember the tartness should dominate the second round too, then ease up, and by around the fourth the character will be completely different.

Krasnodar black:  I did not see that coming.  There's a warm, rich, earthy-into-spice sort of complexity in this tea, dominated by pronounced range that's relatively completely unfamiliar to me.  As flavor goes it includes a sort of fresh baked bread warmth, and also slight sourness, but beyond the actual flavor there's an impression of lots of other complex range headed in different directions.  It's like the smell of a very old study (den, private library), with old books, leather, and old clocks and such giving off traces of completely unfamiliar scents, mostly in a warm, rich range, with the odd unfamiliar metallic or aromatic oil based note.  A decent amount of unfamiliar root spice rounds that out.  

The slight sourness leans towards a trace of mustiness, but within the next two rounds that it takes to evolve this to where it will be all that might change completely.  It's interesting, and positive in overall effect in this form.

Krasnodar gaba:  this is kind of the opposite, striking just one particular note (in opposition to the tea prior being a composite of a lot going on).  It's not the straight-sourness I've ran across in the oolongs but it's definitely in the sour range.  It helps having been drinking sour tea for a month or so to adjust to that range.  I just re-tried that Xiaguan wild sheng from Liquid Proust, and the theme really came together as common ground to me, after drinking that Monsoon Thai black at work a number of times.

This banging on the one particular note might be an issue.  I'm sure it will evolve in the next two infusions too, but it's not a great sign having it just show that narrow a range so early.  There is a hint of nice sweetness beyond that, and earthy warmth, towards the range of leather or maybe even cinnamon, but it will need to show through better to isolate and describe it.  

I'm in the habit of using the first round as a starting point, brewing it light to see where things are going, so part of these not evolving fast relates to my own personal approach to brewing.  Anyone using a rinse would skip past all that a different way (I only rinse pu'er and hei cha, as a rule, or maybe something else if an inclination strikes me).

Second infusion:

Yongde De Sheng:  coming in nicely; the next round should be more about where this is going.  It's a bit extra tart for my preference still but much better balanced already.  A lot of the other range is pleasant, even catchy.  This is fruity as black teas go, moving off the cranberry range into richer, sweeter fruit.  It even seems like a hint of citrus rounds that out, along the lines of blood orange, something rich and sweet (like a softer and sweeter version of red grapefruit).

Krasnodar black:  this shifted to become better than I thought it could; so fast.  There's still a "rustic" sort of edge to it, a trace of sourness, but the main range is very complex with pleasant flavors, and clean and sweet.  It's really too much to unpack, and interpretations would vary so much that two people drinking it together would probably be unlikely to agree.  It's interesting how "at the bottom" a mineral edge includes a trace of salt, rounding out the rest.  

I should be able to place this better, related to at least categories like fruit or floral, but the effect is that a lot is going on, making it hard to get a clear read on any one part of it.  That integrates well; that's what makes or breaks a tea this complex in profile, and in this case it works.  I think openness to range beyond a style that's exactly what you expect is also critical; this isn't a standard Chinese black tea form.  I'll pass on a main range to help at least make some sense; I get the effect that a main foundational context flavor is along the line of sweet potato or yam (probably yam, if I remember those right).  Then some earthy and floral range fills that in, along with that unusual mineral form.

Krasnodar gaba:  at least this did evolve a secondary pleasant flavor aspect to join the other, even in balance of input with it.  It's a sort of rose-floral note, as I interpret it.  It has a sweetness and lightness to it that it's also not so far from the Japanse sakura flavor (cherry blossoms), a distinctive floral scent.  A trace of fruit flavor probably is closest to actual cherry too.  If that sourness keeps dropping out (it's essentially secondary, at this point) and more complexity picks up this could be really pleasant.  It gives up a little being tasted next to a complex version of a tea, as if it should somehow match that.  Aspects grouping into a narrower range, or even being less intense, isn't necessarily a bad thing, since it's about how pleasant the combined set and overall effect are, not reaching some sort of score for one or more ranges.  

It is odd how this doesn't show the same earthy range of flavor common to most black tea, or really expressed as a broad range.  That other wild Thai black version I've been mentioning was like that; it just doesn't seem like a black tea.  Then if you can move past that and appreciate it for how it is, versus matching or not meeting expectations, it can be enjoyable.  Of course a tea completely matching your own preference is a different thing; that's going to work better.  But experiencing a range is interesting in a different way, and preferences can broaden over time.

This third round should be interesting, since all three of these seem to have been "heading somewhere," just in different senses.

Third infusion:

interesting color variations; the third doesn't really look like black tea

Yongde Ye Sheng:  that tartness is now a supporting element, maybe even one that someone could miss in interpreting the range of what is going on, although from expecting it that does stand out.  Other fruit and floral range is quite pleasant, with warm tones balancing that out nicely.  There is no noticeable astringency, just a bit of fullness to round out the feel.  I won't be saying a lot about feel or aftertaste range in this review, in part due to that not being pronounced for any of these, and also because comparing three teas narrows the range of focus down, to mostly considering only flavor.  It will probably work better to describe a flavor list for this tea next round.

Krasnodar black:  something distinctive evolved in this; it's cool feeling like I'm one step behind in really describing the range that I'm experiencing.  The main flavor base might still be something close to a well-roasted yam, with the sweetness and warmth that would emerge from that.  Warm mineral also stands out, but I think something along the line of root spice is what I'm talking about.  Or I suppose that could be a bark spice; the other range tied to mineral and the rest tends to mix.  It's hard to describe in detail but this works well because in spite of that complexity, the broad range this is covering, there are no negative aspects to work around.  Flavors are quite clean, sweetness is good, balance works, and none of those components seems off in any way.  A bit of mustiness, or mushroom, or less pleasant mineral would really throw off this final effect.  To play the devils' advocate the set of aspects and overall character is unusual, so not everyone would love it.  Beyond that it really works.

Krasnodar gaba:  compared to the last tea this is even more unusual in character, but what stands out drinking them one after the other is the split in one being complex and the other narrow in aspect-range scope.  This hasn't really shifted further; a pleasant light fruit tone, closest to cherry, stands out most, with some limited warmer range offsetting that.  The rest isn't that warm or heavy, towards cured hay, or even balsa wood.  In the end it's an odd effect, not unbalanced, but for sure not complex.  Pushing the tea and brewing it stronger might help, but that's only going to make that narrow range stronger.  There being some thickness to the feel helps, lending it that touch more complexity.  

The relatively neutral earthy tones are adding intensity to flavor, just in a way that's harder to notice or appreciate in relation to other range (fruit, floral, warm mineral tones, roasted yam).  Related to personal preference I can't say that I love this tea but I sort of get it.  It's not like for the Taiwanese oolong versions where an odd sourness made those hard to appreciate; that part transitioned away, for the most part.

Fourth infusion:

Yongde Ye Sheng:  really this is just getting into the range of character I would like most for this tea, per my last impression.  It will keep improving, but these review notes can't really cover 7 or 8 rounds because I just can't drink that much tea.  And I'm not going to throw some of the brewed tea away; to me that's disrespectful.  I get it how for tea professionals in lots of context that would seem silly, or stupid, or impractical, but I'm a tea drinker, not a tea professional.  If I don't want to discard brewed tea I don't have to.  If this review stops after 5 rounds instead of 8 that works for me.

Fruit range is complex for this tea, and mild earthy tone will keep picking up.  It's hinting a little towards cinnamon, and it will keep developing along that line, with fruit range that's closer to tart dropping out.  

Krasnodar black:  a heavier, deeper flavor keeps increasing.  It's almost like black licorice at this stage, a spice-like aspect.  In one sense this tea is great for exhibiting a lot of complexity, although I guess for the range being limited maybe it wouldn't match what someone expects.  Feel is smooth with some fullness, but there's no astringency.  To me that's positive, but I could imagine an Assam drinker seeing this as too thin.  Not to keep repeating, but the unconventional nature is either very positive or problematic, depending on how one takes that.

Krasnodar gaba:  maybe that last statement applies even more so to this tea.  It's narrower yet in aspect range, in a way that could naturally be interpreted as lacking depth and complexity, even balance.  A limited range of positive flavor does help, the light fruit tone, edging into sweet floral, with other relatively neutral earthier tones, along the lines of cured hay or mild root spice.  It might help to not expect this to be black tea at all.  I'm not sure what other range it maps better to though.  As with the Monsoon Thai black tea, the wild version, or maybe even more so their oolongs, it's kind of on its own page.

For being so mild this might work out well enough brewed "grandpa style," in a tea bottle or glass, left to stay in contact with the water as one drinks it.  That's one of the most traditional forms of brewing used in China, although it's seen as a "lower" form by some who are into Gong Fu practice, the relatively opposite approach of using a high proportion and short times, as I'm brewing these.  I've not been mentioning timing but I've been brewing these for around 15 seconds, maybe just over, plenty of time to get good infusion strength out of them, at these parameters.  For some teas you need to moderate that to offset one or more aspects (astringency, bitterness, or even flavor intensity) but these would all work at different infusion strengths, they are all quite mild.

It might be interesting to "push" them, to brew one more round closer to 30 seconds and see how that goes.  I think as I've been brewing them is more optimum, back at standard infusion strengths.

Fifth infusion:

Yongde Ye Sheng:  tartness picks back up for pushing infusion strength.  It's still pleasant, with a good bit of fruit coming across.  Part of that seems warm and rich to me, something towards dried longan, then other fruit range is lighter and quite different, like apple range, just not that of typical grocery store apples.  As a child we would go pick fresh apples at local orchards (in Western PA), and the range of apple types and flavors extends a lot beyond what is now sold in places like Wal-Mart.  Most of the types were better, as I remember, maybe just not as well-suited for large scale commercial production.  

Since this does include a bit of tartness it reminds me a little of how a fresh cider comes across, the fresh apple juice that naturally ferments as it contacts any air at all.  That can be really catchy, that final effect.  Maybe it's not closest to the range of best cider versions in this, and not nearly that intense, but it's along a similar line.

In tasting it in later rounds it occurred to me that it tastes closest to berry.  Doing reviews based on a single tasting version can miss something like that, the most obvious flavor interpretations, or other range.  I suppose getting a general impression across is the thing anyway, since interpretations would always vary.

Krasnodar black:  one interesting part of this tea has been that the flavor shifts every single round.  A lot of the same base is present, and it only changes so much round to round, but it does transition a lot.  Brewed a little stronger some tart / sour fruit comes out a little more, but the extra intensity also lets it show flavor depth across a broad range.  A lot of that is probably the effect of suggestion, but this reminds me a little more of apple in this round too.  Woodiness picks up a little too, in a range that's not easy to describe.  Coupled with that fruit and tanginess it's closest to types of fresh cut trees that wouldn't be familiar to many, or not so different than the scent of mowing down a "briar patch."  Like crab-apple wood scent, I guess, not that the description would clarify things for many.

Krasnodar gaba:  even with the bump in infusion strength this is still really mild.  It's interesting how there is a split in the range, how the light, sweet fruit and floral range is one part, and that doesn't necessarily connect with a soft and rich base of mild flavors.  Even though the effect is that of a tea without a lot of complexity it still works, those two notes that integrate nicely together.  For pushing the brewed strength the mild cured hay and root spice does edge a little toward a fresh wood tone, but in this case a very neutral version of one.  Like cutting into a sassafrass tree?  My wood harvesting days are so far back I'm just guessing at this point.  Cherry wood matches that fruit aspect, since the cut wood does contain the fruit scent, but I'm talking about the more neutral range instead.  Nothing like pine or oak, if that helps.  Maple wood can be a bit mild but this is even more mild.

Conclusions:

Three very different, interesting teas.  These have in common being unconventional.  I think if someone valued that experience, trying something new, these would work really well for them.  There was nothing really challenging about any of them, for lacking astringency, off flavors, or any negative range.  I suppose if someone dislikes tartness, as I did more in the past, then to some extent that could be a factor.

I personally don't think it's a good or bad thing to have a broad or narrow preference in the range of what you like in tea.  It's just a preference issue, only subjective.  I suppose local tea cultures might influence someone to experience more of one side or the other, to focus in on experiencing the highest quality versions of standard types, or explore common subthemes like aged teas, or else to branch out and try varying origin and styles of teas.  Getting to it all is relatively impossible, but putting focus on making the attempt would vary.

It goes without saying, but all of these teas would be fine brewed Western style.  Maybe even better; sometimes it does work out that mixing the aspect range of the narrow infusion time "slices" can be even more pleasant.  Only experimentation determines that, and as I keep saying personal preference would definitely be a factor.  I'll mess with these to see, but I probably won't check back in to mention that, since I keep moving on to trying other things.

they also sent some teaware; they've been experimenting with making that this year

really interesting character for those pieces; one is more "organic" than I'm used to seeing