Top 10 Best Teas I've Had in 10 Years of Tea

Hello hello!!

With my blog’s 10-year anniversary coming up, I began to reflect on some of the best teas I’ve had over the years. Over the past 10 years, I’ve had a wide variety of teas from all over the world. While all of this is subjective, this is my list of the top-10 best teas I’ve had throughout my 10-year blogging journey!

Criteria:

For the criteria, I'll be ranking my top 10 best teas based on flavor profile, quality, drinkability, and memorability. Although most of the teas below are no longer available, they still stick out in my mind as some of the best.

This list is entirely subjective. This list is completely unnecessary, except I like being authoritative and this is one of the healthier outlets for it.

Honorable Mentions:

Although they didn’t make the top 10, these teas are still notable and add to some of the best teas I’ve ever tasted.

~ 2015 Alter Ego, by Bitterleaf Teas

~ Alishan Jin Xuan High Mountain Oolong Tea, by Taiwan Tea Crafts

~ Black Magnolia Tea, by The Great Mississippi Tea Company

~ 2023 Zero Sum, by White2Tea

~ Simple Shou, by Crimson Lotus Tea

In random order, below are my top-10 teas that I've had in the last decade!

Tea: 2015 72 Hours

Company: White2Tea (link)

Why It Made My List: 72 Hours was gifted to me by a dear friend. This tea was nearly sold out when I received it, and it was my first experience with luxury puer tea. This tea was not only 3-dimensional to the taste buds, but it was the very first time I recognized that puer tea is the most complex tea type in the entire industry. This tea is legendary.

Tea: 2015 Colbert Holland

Company: White2Tea (link)

Why It Made My List: The famed Colbert Holland made my list because this has got to be one of the best teas White2Tea has ever released. Not only was this tea flavorful and complex, but it was also smooth and easy to drink. I really wish this one would make a comeback.

Tea: 2015 Brown Sugar

Company: White2Tea (link)

Why It Made My List: I have a history with this tea. When White2Tea initially released this tea, they described this tea as something that would taste like dates when it had aged to it. Despite never having shou puer before this point, I blind-ordered 3 bricks of this tea. When I received it in the mail, I tried it, and it tasted like fish and dirt. I was so disappointed, because I didn't expect it to taste like compost. I even trashed it in a review right after. So, I stuck all 3 bricks in my storage and forgot about them. Well, two years later, I rediscovered it in my storage and decided to try it again. To my surprise, it was rich, smooth, creamy, and sweet. I then did more research and discovered that when I initially tried it, it still had the wet-pile taste to it, and I needed to let it rest. I eventually took down my bad review of it and drank one entire brick in less than 1 month. To this day, no other shou puer has matched that flavor profile and has brought that much magic to my palate.

Tea: 2016 Secret Garden

Company: Bitterleaf Teas (link)

Why It Made My List: This tea made my list because this tea had everything. This tea was juicy, creamy, fruity, and lightly floral. This tea was rich, but smooth and relaxing. I can't say I've had a sheng quite like this one before. This solidifed for me, being the tea that made me full-on fan boy of Bitterleaf Teas.

Tea: 2018 NaKA

Company: Bitterleaf Teas (link)

Why It Made My List: NAKA!!!I don't usually talk about this tea often, but NaKa is my favorite village in China for sheng puer. There's something insanely magical about this tea, and it's something that everyone should drink once in their lifetime. Many companies carry versions of NaKa, but Bitterleaf Tea's consistently releases the cleanest and juiciest version of this tea -- more than any other company.

Tea: 2017 Cloud 9

Company: Bitterleaf Teas (link for this tea doesn't exist anymore)

Why It Made My List: Cloud 9 is a Huang Pian white tea. Huang Pian is the large-leaf material that's usually picked over during harvesting and is usually called a 'poor man's tea'. However, Bitterleaf Teas managed to obtain a white-tea version of this tea, and it was the smoothest and most airy white tea I've ever had. I've gone through 2 cakes of this already, and am savoring the last 2 cakes I have left of this. No other white tea is as addictive as this one.

Tea: 2018 Honeymoon

Company: Crimson Lotus Tea (link)

Why It Made My List: 2018 Honeymoon is so special to me, because this tea is the very first tea collaboration I've ever done with another company. I worked with Glen from Crimson Lotus Tea to create this tea blend, and I was very proud of the result. This tea has a higher price tag, but it is worth the price. Maybe it's the nostalgia factor for this tea and my involvement with it, for why I'm biased towards it? Either way, it's still one incredible tea.

Tea: Aromatic Oolong

Company: Zealong Tea (link)

Why It Made My List: Zealong Tea is a New Zealand tea plantation, and around 8 years ago, they released a rolled oolong called 'Aromatic Oolong'. The tea was sweet, creamy, and full of flavor. It tasted very similar to a Taiwanese High Mountain Oolong, except, it had a stronger note of sugarcane that helped carry this tea forward. There's something awe-inspiring and magical about New Zealand-grown tea, and although they don't carry this particular one anymore, this tea still lingers in the back of my mind as a reminder of why I love oolongs so damn much.

Tea: Hawaiian Green Tea

Company: Mauna Tea (link)

Why It Made My List: Hawaii is known for its Kona Coffee, but what about its tea? One of the best green teas I've ever had was Hawaiian Green Tea from Mauna Tea. This small tea plantation grows and processes a green tea that tastes naturally sweet and tropical, and opened my eyes as to how delectable and delicious green tea can be. This still stands out in my mind, and is something every tea drinker should try at least once.

Tea: Competition Grade Tie Guan Yin from Gande Village

Company: Yunnan Sourcing (link)

Why It Made My List: This is the oolong of all oolongs. Tie Guan Yin has a hearty reputation as being one of the most popular oolong teas to come out of China. However, this particular version of it is the best that exists and is also one of the best oolong teas I've ever come across. With notes of sweet honeydew melon, sugar cane, and creme, this oolong is jaw-dropping, and makes it easy to fall in love with oolong teas.

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Have YOU had any of the teas listed above? Join the conversation HERE on Instagram!

~Cody

aka The Oolong Drunk

"Blissfully Tea Drunk..."