I have been logging my teas consumed for about 10 months now.  I guess that just goes to show you how much of a Tea Freak I am.  I’m not a Tea Pro by any means… I just like what I like and I enjoy learning about the different teas, regions, cultures, and such.  I never add anything to my teas.  I drink them plain so I can taste the true tea flavors.

Anyhow… I was going back through some of my tea notes and came across Ali Shan from Adagio Teas.  I simply LOVE it!  Here are some of the notes I have logged about this tea in the past:

A first smell after the first steep: it’s very earthy smelling. The leaves expand quite a bit more than I first thought they would. The coloring is more of a white looking tea. Based on the first steep smell I was a little afraid of the taste but the first sip was totally unexpected!  It’s a soothing yet thirst quenching blend that is a bit sweet but flowery to taste.  I like it A LOT and A LOT MORE than I thought I would! Very, very nice!

Now this tea is suggested for multiple infusions so that is what I did… here are some of my past findings from resteeping…

Went for the suggested re-steep just to see what happened. Awesome! Certainly a re-steep worthy loose leaf! Excellent! Still an earthy/mossy aroma. Floral type taste. But also like a pure water type of refreshing!

And…I continued to re-steep…

Onto the 3-steep now. Starting to smell like vegetables. Still a great cup! Kind of tasting a hint of frozen peas type of aftertaste. Interesting but good.

My 2nd attempt at this tea – first infusion was:

I think this one is officially on my list of favorite Adagio Teas and since Adagio has so many good ones it takes a lot to be on my list of TOP Adagios! First steep of the day! LOVE it! Still trying to get the portion figured out. You don’t need much at all because it expands like no other loose leaf I have seen before. I have seen tightly bunched or rolled loose leaf teas before but this is beyond art! What an awesome product, indeed!

Adagio describes this tea as:

Oolong tea from Taiwan. Formosa, meaning ‘beautiful’ was what the Portuguese explorers called this island. The oolong tea grown here continues to be called as such. The exquisite bouquet of Formosa Oolong tea is regarded to be the finest in the world. Complex floral notes echo on your palate as you enjoy this product of Taiwan’s Ali mountain. Light bodied and softly sweet with an underlying complexity, this oolong will surely come to haunt. Perfect for multiple infusions.

I really didn’t meant to review two Adagio Teas so close to each other but I couldn’t resist!  I really do like this tea and wanted to share it with other tea fans.