This tea was decent after I figured out the ideal way for me to brew it. I haven’t had particularly great experiences with huangpian puerh yet, and this tea wasn’t really a step in a new direction in that regard. I was able to enjoy it after I learned that it’s a wussy lil tea that wants to be babied. At my normal sheng parameters, it got sour-ish and rough, as most huangpian do for me. I instead used 200F water and kept steep times below 20s for the whole session.
Doing the session differently was allowed me to avoid most of the rougher flavors that have made me dislike other huangpian I’ve tried. This tea’s aroma was wonderful – sweet and floral. I tasted notes of honey with a floral backbone for the most part in this tea. Towards the end of my first session, the sour notes in this tea died down a bit and took on almost a fruity character, like white grapes, and the tea developed a bit of a straw taste. Using cooler water and shorter times, I also got some starchy notes, almost like potatoes or unsalted french fries (yes, I know french fries are made of potatoes).
So this tea, while not my favorite, is not a bad tea. It was alright once I figured out how I prefer to brew it, but not one that I would need to order more of.
Flavors: Floral, Honey, Potato, Sour, Straw, White Grapes
