Spring finally arrived and with it came a delicious oolong from +Global Tea Hut. Jing Shuan is often called milk oolong because it has a subtle, natural creaminess. I drank it three different ways; using a gaiwan, yixing and bowling brewing. There isn’t always enough leaf to experiment in this way but I found the results really interesting. The gaiwan brew was enjoyable but this tea really shined in my yixing and while bowl brewing. It had an incredible fruity sweetness. The one taste that kept coming to mind was cotton candy. That aspect intensified even further when I munched on some leftover Peeps from Easter. Global Tea Hut is not a tea selling enterprise but there are times when I wish they were. I’d love to get my hands on a lot more of this tea!

The theme of this month’s magazine was community. The articles focused on the plans are for their new center and how these envelopes connect all of us. Their descriptions of what they plan to offer for visitors in the future make me want to visit even more. I’ll make it to Taiwan someday. I really enjoyed reading about the story of  Mr. Xie, the farmer who donated this tea. His struggles and eventual successes with organic farming are truly inspiring. The gift this month was a beautiful wooden tea scoop. One can never have too many of these handy tools.

In case you don’t know, past issues are available for free download. They are a wonderful resource for tea lovers. I often browse through issues from before I started my subscription. The thirst for knowledge (and tea) is never ending.