Moychay tisane bars: Caucasus blend and Da Hong Pao with Willow Herb

 

the Caucasus herbs blend version

I've reviewed a few of Moychay's tisane bars in the past, including two from a recent set.  They were all really interesting and pleasant.  I wrote notes for one version two months ago and one a few weeks back but I've not collected them into a post, which I will here.  There is more on what is in these (although the one is fully defined here, the ingredients), and a vendor description, links, and pricing, all in this post, or their website tisane section is here.  These cost about $4 for 50 gram bars; not very much, especially for how good they are, and how unique.

It makes you wonder why the tisane / "herb tea" theme isn't something more common in "the West."  I was drinking mixes of tisanes back in the 90s, that just never evolved to be standard commercial products, or at least popular versions of them.  I remember drinking one called "Immuni-tea" blend from a local shop back then; they had health issues on their mind, and were already doing tea puns.  Chrysanthemum and a few others are around in Bangkok, but not so much back in the US.

I've also been using some of a pandan leaf and lemongrass tisane tea bag someone passed on for blending recently, mixing that with inexpensive Jing Mai sheng pu'er and adding a little chrysanthemum.  It works really well for something to brew "grandpa style" and drink while driving, since the tisanes can handle being brewed quite strong, and caffeine level drops out as a concern.  I'm still drinking plenty of caffeine doing that since the quantity I use is crazy; that should be scaled way back when you don't limit brewing time, and I just don't.  I'll often add room temperature or cool water to completely stop brewing, and to dilute it, so in a sense I am limiting brewing time, part of the time.

Back to the one Moychay real tea (oolong) and herb blend, this stood out because I really like their past pressed Da Hong Pao bar (this, but of course it's sold out now), and if I'm remembering right some earlier willow herb was also pleasant.  Any tisane can seem a little odd when you expect it to be like tea, or can give up complexity in relation to "real tea" character, but what I've tried of willow herb was complex and pleasant.  

I'm not sure how this half tea and half tisane blend works out to make sense for people, but then I guess I just did explain how I've been making a variation of that myself, and why results were positive.  Maybe it's as simple as that, that results are pleasant and limiting caffeine drops out as a concern, since the starting point is on the order of half that of tea (but I don't know the actual proportion).

The other Caucasus blend might have been my favorite of the set of a half dozen or so bars they sent.  It tasted like I remember Sleepy Time tasting, but I bet it was slightly better, given how complex and balanced it seemed.  Or maybe not; I'd have to re-try Sleepy Time, since it's been ages since I tried it (that Celestial Seasoning product).

Da Hong Pao and Willow Herb / Ivan Chay Review:

It's nice.  Again if you expect it to be just "real tea" it might seem off, or atypical.  There is a fairly limited astringency edge; not much of that at all.  There's an interesting warm and fruit flavor range, like dried cherry and cocoa.  Typical dark roasted oolong flavor doesn't stand out a lot in relation to those flavors, neither the higher end slight char edge or the warm mineral base.  To be clear DHP tend to not typically taste burned; the roast input usually settles at a lower level, but that does vary.

This is very nice if someone can appreciate that extra flavor complexity and range as a positive experience.  There's a lot going on, what I take to be cherry, cocoa, a mineral layer, and some non-distinct earthiness.  Intensity is fine.  It doesn't have much astringency edge, just a bit of fullness of feel, which is a little thin as regular teas tend to go.  There aren't flaws, beyond interpreting more that could be present as missing.  Tea expresses a broad range of sharp edge feel and taste effects that this lacks.  Even oolongs, which tend to be smooth and round, have a certain type of intensity of some flavor range, typically, an intense floral range, or creaminess, or other scope for more oxidized or roasted versions.  This is closer to how tisanes come across, but in the middle.

Using really hot water might bump intensity and edge a little; I used just off boiling point water, but skipped a step of prewarming a for purpose ceramic mug that comes with an infuser basket, my favorite device for Western style brewing.  Even then it seems like it's suited for a simple and easy to approach tea experience, like that blend of pandan, lemongrass, chrysanthemum, and Jing Mai sheng pu'er I mentioned brewing grandpa style out running errands.  Brewed light or really strong both would be nice, at the cost of this probably not supporting close scrutiny of Gongfu brewing transitions as well as a well above average quality Wuyi Yancha version would.  Not so different than most random Chinatown shop DHP or Shui Xian, in that regard.

It seems suitable to serve as a comfort tea, something to brew when you don't feel like messing around in the morning, or maybe more suited for afternoon break since caffeine level must be low.  For people not touchy about when they ingest lower doses of caffeine it could be an evening tea.  I would expect this to have similar stomach calming property as shu pu'er, since it's also earthy, smooth, and mild.  I never have stomach problems so in a sense I can't really tell for sure.

a second infusion I brewed a little less inky

I don't know about using it for blending; it's already a blend.  I bring that up because it's been interesting experimenting with the other two bars I've already tried that way, which work out to be better without mixing other things with them, but it's still interesting to try.  Someone could mess around adjusting balance by adding a little black tea or shu, but it's fine as it is.  I retried an inexpensive compressed Dian Hong version recently that might be perfect for that, a Yunnan Sourcing "drunk on red" version.  That tea was not a perfect match for my preference for being a bit tart (I hoped it would fade but it didn't drop out later), but that tartness wouldn't show up much mixed with this.

Caucasus Blend Review:

This is what this is:

Ingredients: Oregano, St. John's wort (Hypericum perforatum), alpine thyme, mint, Epilobium willow-herb, sage, raspberry leaf, rose blossom, hawthorn fruit, rowan berries, rose-hip (Fructus Rosae).

Really nicely balanced!  I think the intended health effect is the thing with this, but it's nice that it holds up to a flavor review as well.  Mint stands out for being mint, but it's well-balanced beyond that.  Warm floral tones and a neutral base joins it.  I'm not going to have a lot more to add to that; it's a complex effect, a lot like chrysanthemum with another 4 or 5 things mixed with it. It's a lot like the Sleepytime mix of herbs, maybe leaning a little to the "Zen" blend from there, or maybe I'm remembering wrong and it was Zen.

And that's it; layers of subtle but complex flavor experience combine nicely. But I'm not going to describe it; it just tastes like mild herbs I'm mostly not familiar with, except the mint, and the way chrysanthemum is similar to one part of it.  Sage is my overall favorite plain tisane, and that's in this, but I can't notice it mixed together like that.  

Something in this gives it a feel not unlike that of shou mei, a bit on the full side.  Related to the overall experiential effect I could drink this every other day forever.  Anyone ordering any kind of teas from Moychay should probably add one of these to their cart, or two, since it's about $4.

As to health effects, that's anyone's guess, but it's probably healthy.  I would love to look into that part, and I will try to [which I didn't, a month later].  

I have retried the tea since and my impression is about the same.  It seems relatively complex and balanced as tisanes go; even for mixing them they often come across as one-dimensional, giving up feel and aftertaste range that add a lot to real tea experience.  I couldn't place it but somehow this comes across as complex.  Maybe it's just that a warm and mellow base, other herbs, some light floral and fruit range tones, and a high note touch of mint all balance.  Or feel could be helping.  I don't think it's just that I want and expect to like it, because that's true of all these bars I tried, and I did like all of them but not as much as this one.  It just works.

Review of sage tisane infusion (an herb "tea")

Originally posted on the TChing website (page link)

I've only reviewed two tisanes before, but both interesting ones, a mulberry leaf "tea" and coffee leaf "tea."  To keep this simple I'm going to recognize that tea enthusiasts don't like to share the word "tea."  Dictionaries are divided on whether "herb tea" is valid use of that word or not (I wrote a blog post on that), but it doesn't seem natural to use "tisane" or "tisane infusion," which is probably actually a bit redundant since the definition seems to cover the herb and the liquid, as for tea.  I'll call it "sage tea" from here on out, not trying to step on toes, but I've got to call it something.

Dalmatian sage

A little background:  I drank tisanes, which we used to call herb teas, for a long time before "real" tea, Camellia Sinensis.  Of course I had black tea from tea bags as a child too, but I mean I first drank loose tea regularly only about seven or eight years ago, after trying lots of tisanes for a lot longer than that (so I'm not exactly young now, per the math).  Sage tea was my favorite.

It's not really high on a list of popular herbs to be made into tea (still sounds strange putting it that way, but not like "made into an herbal infusion" doesn't).  I probably only ever tried sage because I experimented with so many.  Of course there wouldn't really be any limit to what could be brewed as a tea-like drink; any herbs, any flowers that aren't poisonous, berries, fruits, fruit rinds, tree barks, edible roots, etc.  My former favorite producer sold plain versions, forty six on this website version, but probably others too.  Their description for sage:

Since ancient times, sage (Salvia officinalis) has been associated with good health.* The herb’s Latin name, Salvia, translates into "to be saved." In Chinese, Indian, and North American herbal practices, tea made from sage leaves has been used as a soothing, cooling digestive aid.  ... produces a peppery fragrance with a mildly astringent flavor.


This introduces the two things I'll say more about, the description / review and health benefits.  I'll also mention the source for what I'm reviewing first.  It turns out that you simply can't buy sage tea or decent loose sage in Bangkok (who knew), so I did finally find it from a tea and tisane vendor in Croatia, Pampa Tea.  Getting out there, right, a different part of the world.  Apparently Dalmatia, essentially a part of Croatia, produces some of the best sage (remember the word on the spice bottles?), although I'd expect different sources with similar climate or other plant type variations might be fine.

Health benefits, or at least a bit on the claims:

Of course I'm skeptical of the claims, with all the same context related to Camellia Sinensis appling to that too.  In short, it's hearsay, likely partly true, or maybe not, nearly impossible to verify or to evaluate related studies as evidence.  And the claims are most often coming from people selling the products, so bias factors in.  It's an interesting twist that Alvita vendor site and product reference includes a warning:  WARNING: Do not use if pregnant or nursing.

All that said I'll cite one reference for a health claims description, which may or may not relate to actual health benefits, but still interesting to consider:

Saliva officinalis originates in Mediterranean regions, and is well known as a culinary and medicinal herb. It is largely used for digestive and menopausal problems, particularly hot flashes, and is traditionally associated with longevity: modern research has shown that it can slow the progress of Alzheimer’s disease. Garden sage is a valuable antibacterial, antiviral and antifungal agent. Taken internally, the herb will fight infection and will also diminish secretions of all kinds, including perspiration and saliva. Garden sage tea or tincture is specific for drying up milk production during weaning. The herb stimulates memory.


Wow, right.  Given my memory maybe I should drink it just in case.  In the one other tisane review I did here, for mulberry leaf tea, I did some sampling of where those separate claims stood in terms of research references, and at a glance some of it looked ok.  But again, who knows really.  I ran across a seemingly impartial US Department of Health site that took a more balanced look at what the evidence really says:

Two small studies suggest that sage may improve mood and mental performance in healthy young people and memory and attention in older adults. Results of another small clinical study suggest that a sage extract was better than placebo at enhancing thinking and learning in older adults with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease.


Good, but not based on much research.  And then also a warning against going overboard with dosage:

Extended use or taking large amounts of sage leaf or oil may result in restlessness, vomiting, vertigo, rapid heart rate, tremors, seizures, and kidney damage. It also may lead to wheezing. Ingesting 12 drops or more of the essential oil is considered a toxic dose.

Review part:

It was interesting to try the herb tea with my new-found tea-trained palate (based on two years of going overboard; moving on to in between completely new and trained).  I still liked it.  I had to make it twice to adjust brewing since it's a good bit stronger than tea leaves, and there was some expectations shift, but it will be great to as something I can drink later in the evenings.

as a radar graph

The taste is sweet, but also a little peppery.  Secondary taste components include pine or rosemary elements, pine nuts, sweet corn, and fresh hay.  Subsequent infusions tasted more like pine, more peppery, and less sweet, with less of those softer earthier components.  You might naturally say, wait a minute, it just tastes like sage, not like those things.  Or you might point out that I forgot to put pepper on this graph, but I'm not sure if the tea tends to taste like pepper or if that's a slight spiciness common to chilis and black pepper, more a feel than a flavor, so I skipped it there.



That's sort of the point; tea enthusiasts might tend to think of a lot of flavors as "atomic," singular, but tea in completely the opposite way, open to break-down into countless taste components.  There's almost an implied contradiction in that.  For me some tastes naturally seem complex, like those found in nutmeg, so at times I'm wanting to compare a tea description to part of a separate taste.

Maybe that taste analysis in graphical form would make more sense referred back to tea.  Here is an example from Tealet's site and tea analysis, related to a Sencha.


It's funny how even though I tasted that sage tea it's odd to think it tastes like corn and fresh hay but somehow more natural to think a Sencha might taste like moss, spinach, roast nuts, hay and bamboo.  More on such tasting standards can be found at this World of Tea reference page, not really related to making graphs.



All of this started me thinking about how tasting different types of things might have common elements, which of course started with comparison to wine tasting, which I've already written some about.  The next tangent is even more interesting, and much less intuitively comparable, but still in the works, so I'll chase those ideas and save it for another post.