90

I received this sample from Tea Ave prior to their grand opening. The leaves are gorgeous little twirls ranging from dark brown to fuzzy white. The scent is of autumn leaves and spices. I’m reminded of Bai Mudan.

After letting the dry leaves sit in a warm gaiwan for a moment, the scent that arises is of honey, lemons, and warm cream. I’m also getting subtle notes of cucumber and dry leaves (haha, sounds funny since they are dry leaves).

The aroma of the wet leaves is incredibly fragrant, with honey, warm grass, and so many wonderful tropical flower scents.

I’m enjoying this tea with an incredibly well-made and gorgeous Taiwanese aroma cup set that was sent to me by Tea Ave. They are white porcelain, hold a couple ounces of tea, and rest on a beautiful oak wood saucer. These cups are used by pouring the tea into the tall aroma cup, then pouring it from there into the wide, short drinking cup. The aroma is sniffed from the tall empty cup as a column of vapor exits it after pouring, then the tea is drank from the short cup.

The aroma from within the aroma cup is a very sweet one, reminding me of the scent of honey. Moving back to the drinking cup, the aroma is creamy with little drops of spice. On my first sip of the tea, it has a very smooth and mouth-coating texture, very clean. The color of the liquor is pale gold. The flavor is light and reminiscent of white tea. There is an intense hui-gan, or recurring cooling sweetness in the mouth, more so than I’ve experienced with any other tea, and in that regard it is very refreshing. The overall taste is not quite as sweet as the scent. There’s a mild dry praire grass and fallen leaves kind of characteristic to it, once again reminding me of a Bai Mudan or White Peony tea. The little notes of spice in the flavor are very reminiscent of chrysanthemum.

On the second infusion, the aroma cup starts with a strong smell of peat or bog. I had thought I detected this on the first cup, but it was much lighter. After just a few moments of gently rolling the cup between my hands the flavor evolves into a sweet honey scent once again, with bright floral notes. The brewed liquor in the drinking cup is now a deep golden yellow, nearing orange. The taste is again very clean and crisp, deeper and more earthy this time with more of the chrysanthemum notes coming through. If you let it sit in the back of your mouth and hold your breath, wonderful floral aromas rise up into your nose from inside. This may be one of the cleanest and lightest tasting oolong teas I’ve had. It is not at all lacking in flavor, but it registers in a subtle and gentle way on the palate.

Third infusion , the scent and flavor are even more complex. It is hard to describe. I will leave it at that. This is definitely a great tea and one I would recommend.

Many thanks to Tea Ave for the wonderful samples and cups!

Flavors: Autumn Leaf Pile, Cucumber, Flowers, Grass, Honey, Spices

Preparation
185 °F / 85 °C 0 min, 45 sec 4 g 3 OZ / 100 ML
Shae

An aroma cup sounds like such a neat idea!

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Comments

Shae

An aroma cup sounds like such a neat idea!

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Bio

Hi there, fellow tea lovers.

My name’s Lion and I’m a Gongfu Cha practitioner, so I usually brew with a gaiwan for reviews unless there’s a more suitable brewing method, like using Japanese teawares for Japanese teas. I tend to stick to straight loose teas and scented teas in general, seldom dabbling in herbal and flavored teas. My favorite tea is Kenyan Silver Needle.

Aside from tea, I’m a generally creative person. I love to cook, write fiction, draw, decorate, garden, and do just about anything creative I can get my paws on.

Animals are really important to me. I’m a lion at heart, and I strive to better understand, respect, and appreciate other animals as best as I can. I advocate for better stewardship of wildlife and captive animals. We’ve still got a lot to learn.

For a long time I rated every tea I tried, but these days I don’t rate them unless they’re exceptional and deserving of a high rating. Here’s my rating breakdown for my reviews with ratings:

0 = Unpalatable, harsh
25 = Unenjoyable
50 = I’m indifferent
75 = Enjoyable, average
90+ = The best, would buy more
100 = Incredible, a favorite

Location

Kansas City, USA

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