First impressions:
The wet leaves greet me with a complex and mysterious aroma. It’s deep, vegetal, fruity, sweet.
1
The aroma makes me feel like being in the middle of a forest. It’s summer, the sun is high but I’m in the shadow of the trees. An intense heat intensifies the strong scent of this dark and humid place. It’s a low-toned aroma. The liquor is sweet and light, I get some flowers and steamed vegetables.
2
Aroma: Toasted rice, hojicha and other stuff that I can’t name properly.
Liquor: I think of some green oolong/toasted green tea. Medium-rich chicken stock texture. Good balance of savoury/sweet. Light tannins gently coating the mouth with a floral aftertaste.
3
Aroma is not super intense, now I get more hay.
Liquor: fairly smooth, medium thin, floral bittersweet. Toasted. Delicate aftertaste, semi rough texture in the roof of the mouth.
I feel focused and grounded. My brain activity is slowing down.
4
Aroma feels alive but very delicate. Vegetal, hay, possibly some mint, yellow fruits.
Liquor: roasted green oolong (can’t be more specific). It’s fresh, toasted. Balanced game of bitter-sweet-tannic. Very likeable but maybe a bit boring for me.
5
Aroma gets earthy and sharp. Roots, artichoke.
Liquor: more tannic and bitter, not much sweetness. “The equaliser needs some adjustments”.
Cooling sensation, mint. Still approachable. I feel slow but there’s some tension in my chest.
6
Aroma is fading, the bitterness calmed down leaving an astringent/floral tie guan yin like liquor.
7
I get more pungency and some vanilla at this point. There’s not much sweetness. Feels fresh and cooling. Lemon balm aftertaste.
I could keep going but feels a bit boring at this point.
Final thoughts:
To me this is a friendly and fairly interesting tea. It’s still fresh but has a “calm” nature. At the moment tends to be quite floral, with a white sugar sweetness. I’m curious to see how this will age.
Flavors: Floral, Forest Floor, Green, Hay, Popcorn, Roasted
