Tea Tasting Journal
A tea tasting journal — tea type (green / white / oolong / black / pu-erh / herbal), origin + harvest, brew method (Western / gongfu), dose / water temp / steep time, tasting notes (dry leaf, wet leaf, liquor, taste, mouthfeel, finish), multiple steeps for gongfu.
Live preview
TEA TASTING JOURNAL
Taster: Morgan Lee Date: June 15, 2026
TEA
Name: Tieguanyin "Iron Goddess of Mercy" — 2024 spring
Type: oolong green
Origin: Anxi County, Fujian, China · spring 2024 first flush · purchased Yunnan Sourcing
Storage: Sealed pouch w/ oxygen absorber, cool dark cupboard; ~14 months from harvest
BREW
Method: gongfu
Vessel: 120 ml gaiwan, glass
Dose: 5 g per 120 ml (~1:24 by weight)
Water temp: 195°F (90°C) — soft spring water; rest off boil 30 sec
Schedule:
Rinse: 5s, discard
Inf 1: 10s
Inf 2: 8s
Inf 3: 12s
Inf 4: 18s
Inf 5: 25s
Inf 6: 40s
Inf 7: 60s
(Total 7 infusions, tea still has body but fading)
LEAF + LIQUOR
Dry leaf: Tight emerald-jade pearls, glossy; aroma sweet floral orchid, butter, fresh herb
Wet leaf: Intense orchid, gardenia, light cream, faint chestnut
Liquor: Pale-gold to light amber, brilliant clarity
TASTE (per-infusion)
Inf 1: bright floral, light buttery, very clean — opening note
Inf 2-3: peak — gardenia + orchid forward, cream, sweet finish, mineral underpin
Inf 4-5: floral + butter sustaining, hint of stone fruit emerges
Inf 6-7: thinning; floral fading, sweetness lingers, mineral closing
No bitterness or astringency at any infusion.
MOUTHFEEL + QI
Silky, lightly viscous; cooling sweetness on the swallow (huigan); calm warming sensation chest + shoulders (qi)
OVERALL + RECOMMENDATION
Outstanding spring Tieguanyin — top-tier modern green oolong. Will rebuy. Save for relaxed solo afternoon sessions when the flavor evolution can be tracked across 5+ infusions.
BREW REFERENCE (typical Western vs gongfu)
Type | Western (g/ml/temp/time) | Gongfu (g/120ml/temp/time)
-------------|---------------------------------|--------------------------------
Green | 3g / 250ml / 175°F / 2-3 min | 5g / 175°F / 10-30 s
White | 3g / 250ml / 185°F / 3-5 min | 5g / 185°F / 10-45 s
Oolong (gn) | 5g / 250ml / 195°F / 2-3 min | 7g / 195°F / 10-30 s
Oolong (dk) | 5g / 250ml / 205°F / 3-4 min | 7g / 205°F / 15-45 s
Black | 3g / 250ml / 205°F / 3-4 min | 5g / 205°F / 10-30 s
Pu-erh shou | 5g / 250ml / 205°F / 3-4 min | 7g / 205°F / 10-30 s (after 2 rinses)
Pu-erh sheng | 5g / 250ml / 200°F / 2-3 min | 7g / 200°F / 10-30 s (after 1 rinse)
About this template
**Tea tasting works across two axes**: **brew style** (Western infusion vs gongfu) and **tea type** (green, white, yellow, oolong, black, pu-erh). The same leaf brewed Western (3-5 g per 250 ml, single steep 2-4 min) yields a different flavor profile than the same leaf brewed gongfu (5-7 g per 120 ml gaiwan, 10-30 second infusions across 5-10 steeps). The log captures both styles + every variable: **vessel** (gaiwan, yixing for pu-erh / aged oolong, glass for visual), **dose** (in grams), **water temperature** (green 170-185°F; white 175-195°F; oolong 195-205°F; black 200-212°F; pu-erh 200-212°F; the wrong temperature is the #1 home-brew error — boiling water cooks green teas to bitterness), **steep schedule** (gongfu: a typical schedule starts 10-15 s and lengthens by 5-15 s per infusion). **Dry leaf** is the first read — appearance + aroma reveal harvest quality, hand-rolling vs machine, season (spring teas tend more floral, fall more roast / depth). **Wet leaf** opens after the first rinse and gives the fuller aroma. **Liquor color** indexes oxidation + roast — pale gold for green / lightly oxidized oolong; amber + reddish for medium-oxidized; deep mahogany for dark oolong + sheng pu-erh aged; reddish-orange for shou pu-erh. **Tasting** uses vocabulary borrowed from wine — floral / fruit / nut / chocolate / spice / earth / mineral — with tea-specific terms: **huigan** (returning sweetness after the swallow), **yun** (lingering complexity), **qi** (perceived body sensation, especially from aged pu-erh + high-mountain oolong). **Pu-erh** has its own world — **sheng** (raw, ages like wine, can mature 20-30 years; bright, fruity young → deep / earthy / smooth aged), **shou** (ripe, post-fermented; chocolate, earth, smooth from the start). **Storage** matters — vacuum sealed + dark + cool for greens (1-year peak); breathable for sheng pu-erh (continuous aging); sealed dry for finished teas. **Source quality is the foundation** — specialty tea is sourced direct-trade from farms or co-ops (Yunnan Sourcing, Wuyi Origin, Postcard Teas, etc.); supermarket bags are typically blends optimized for cost not for tasting notes. Save the log — a year of gongfu sessions across origins is the personal sensory library.
When to use it
- Per-session tea tasting log (Western or gongfu).
- New-tea evaluation + rebuy decision.
- Side-by-side comparison of harvests, origins, vendors.
- Pu-erh aging tracking (annual taste of the same cake).
- Tea club / community tasting documentation.
What to include
- Taster + tasting date.
- Tea name + type + origin + harvest + vendor.
- Storage age + condition.
- Brew method + vessel + dose + temp + steep schedule.
- Dry leaf, wet leaf, liquor color.
- Per-infusion taste (gongfu) or overall (Western).
- Mouthfeel + qi + finish.
- Overall + recommendation.