This is my last Song sample from Derk. I’m always a bit wary of roasted teas, but I’ve had decent luck with them lately. I steeped 6 g of leaf in 120 ml of 195F water for 25, 20, 25, 30, 30, 30, 45, 60, 90, 120, and 240 seconds, plus some long, uncounted steeps.
The dry aroma is of chestnuts, ginger, cookies, florals, and vague fruit. The first steep has notes of toasted rice, chestnut, butter, honeysuckle and other florals, ginger, cookies, and very pronounced mango. I’m impressed by how many dimensions this tea has instead of knocking me over the head with roast. The next steep has more of that Dong Ding nutty/buttery/charcoal/toasted rice profile, but with mango, orchid, pine, and ginger. It has a thick, silky texture and an aftertaste that lasts for minutes. Steeps three and four give me green banana (thanks, Derk!), mango, chestnut, florals, and toasted rice. That mango aftertaste is especially lovely! More mango shows up in the next couple steeps, though the roast is slightly more apparent. I get some grass, banana, toasted coconut, and the caramelized sugar sweetness that Derk mentioned. The next couple steeps are a bit drying, but still have that lovely chestnut, butter, and mango profile. The tea starts to lose its florality and acquires more toasted rice, grass, and nutty notes, but the mango is very persistent, lasting well into the long, uncounted final steeps.
As I mentioned, I haven’t had much luck with roasted teas, but this one is exceptional. I love the mango, but even without that, it has lots of nuance and texture while letting the roast play out in the background. Whoever roasted this tea is a master of their craft! It’s also $45 for 30 g, although price doesn’t always equal quality when it comes to roasted teas.
Flavors: Banana, Butter, Caramelized Sugar, Charcoal, Chestnut, Coconut, Cookie, Floral, Ginger, Grass, Honeysuckle, Mango, Nutty, Orchid, Pine, Roasted, Silky, Sweet, Toasted Rice
