Fantastic tea! My first attempt at hei cha, so I ordered only a sample, but now I regret not getting the whole brick. I am used to shou pu'er, and this seems very similar in the beginning, but it is much more uplifting and gives a pleasant sensation in the forehead and the body after the third steep. From the fourth steep onwards, smoky notes appear on top of the woodsy and mushroom notes.

Fresh

Wow

A beautiful floral smell, not only floral but something hard to describe in there which gives it a depth that will make you want to smell again and again. The taste is good, better than other red teas I've had, but doesn't match the intensity of the smell somehow. Still, it yields quite a few good brews and is very enjoyable. I like drinking it in the morning.

I ordered a sample to see whether I like this kind of tea before ordering a whole bag. I was a bit skeptical first: the smell reminded me of a certain brand of peppermint bubblegum and of a wooden house's basement. The tangerine peel had a white splotch on it which I learned is not mold, but crystallized citrus oils, so actually a sign of quality! Anyway, after the first two steeps I am quite happy with it: a long-lasting, mellow, woody pu'er taste that still lingers in my mouth a few minutes after drinking, balanced by a subtle citrus note that gets stronger with more steeps.

VERY GOOD

VERY DELICIOUS

Fresh

Nice

Excellent

Decent tea. Plum taste. Left me somehow bland, with nothing bad to say about it, but also nothing to distinguish it.

This tea needs a time to wake up. Once you steep it, leave it for few minutes without water to start growing. Then it can offer its full potential. It is complex tea, offering a blend of tastes. Good, but not my favorite.

Decent tea. Plum taste. Left me somehow bland, with nothing bad to say about it, but also nothing to distinguish it.

I usually brew the entire Teavivre sample at once, so 10g for this one. The infusion is weak and lacks depth.

Excellent.

This tea needs a time to wake up. Once you steep it, leave it for few minutes without water to start growing. Then it can offer its full potential. It is complex tea, offering a blend of tastes. Good, but not my favorite.

Well thought out sampler covering Dian Hong in breakfast tea range, from more mellow and floral, to more upfront and even decadent experiences. Really good value for exploring this type of black tea. Fengqing Dragon Pearls was my favourite from this bunch.

This one never falls back on expetations. I've had it over the years and it has a strong impression of a cup of hot cocoa. If I remember correctly, in previous years this tea was made from more plump leaves, this year the leaves are on the thinner side. After the initial steep which just gives a thin infusion with some cocoa notes, the following two steeps are on the intense side. The taste is full and exploding in the mouth. From the strong dark chocolate note, to roasted coffee impression to slightly furity, tarty finish. Last two steeps give more smooth and mellow drinking experience followed by a gentle note of honey, really nice tea overall.

A very good tea; the tea was smooth and mellow with subtle notes of woodsiness and autumn with a hint of sweetness in later infusions; it had a nice fragrance of autumn leaves; the liquor went from a yellow gold to a red from the first to second infusion; the cha qi was felt with the 3rd infusion; the Fu Zhuan was good for many infusions although I stopped at 5 it could have continued for a few more infusions.

Fantastic

The best

excellent

A pale colored liquid that is smooth with a thick mouthfeel. A clean tasting green tea.

I remember how this tea captured my attention years ago. It was a tea that gave me a different perspective how can taste profile shift within a same tea type, in this case - Dian Hong. I've been coming back year for year and re-sampling and noticing that some years are better, some are less so. This time around I guess 2026 picking is missing some of that floral intensity that I remember in some previous years but it has an interesting oily and smooth mouthfeel with a sweet finish, and it stays like that throughout the session. It's a decent tea, still showcasing slightly different from the usual Dian Hong and I'm looking forward to what 2027 picking will bring.

From a sample bag, using the gongfu method, slightly longer steeps than the brewing guide Dry: shaped as you would expect, dark with plenty of gold highlights. Smells very good, and as described: floral, fruity, and smoky In the cup: 1: pleasant, nuanced, and (somewhat) distinct flavor, obviously a fine quality tea, although the intensity of flavor is lower than expected. 2: more fruitiness emerges, nice orange color and orange flavor as well, more sweetness, but still a fairly light or medium-light body. very light smoke, not even close to cloying like smoky lapsang. 3: fruity/sweet, starting to recede a little 4+: gradually shifting toward the more tannic, cacao/woody notes - the classic black tea flavor some other reviewers have noted. Verdict: A very pleasant black tea, which I enjoyed and would happily drink through a full bag of. Admittedly, it's lighter than I prefer, and I've tried about 4 other TeaVivre blacks around this price that I was more into. So it's not a new favorite, but it is still quite good. For that unique orange + light smoke flavor/fragrance, particularly in the early steeps, I might try to work at least one full-bag purchase into the rotation someday.

Excellent tea! I will continue to order it!

Excellent tea! I will continue to order it!

Excellent tea! I will continue to order it!

Excellent tea! I will continue to order it!

Excellent tea! I will continue to order it! It's been one of my favorite teas for the past few years!