I agree with tperez that this is pretty much a perfect black tea. It has the savoury, woody and bitter aspects of Ye Sheng blacks, it has the sweetness and maltiness of standard Yunnan blacks and has the smoky and leathery notes of Fujian blacks plus much more, all contributing to its complex yet balanced nature. Other notes one can find include medicinal/herbal ones, mostly in the aroma, citrusy sourness mostly in the early steeps and the aftertaste, vanilla, honey, tropical fruits, metallic and decaying wood flavours. The aftertaste is very long and a touch biting in the throat, as well as quite floral. Of course, one of the hallmarks of this tea is its full body and creamy, smooth and thick mouthfeel. On top of that, you get a very nice warming and relaxing qi. All round high quality tea with no noticeable drawbacks. I only wish it was cheaper, but I can’t say it’s overpriced. I would highly recommend this tea, especially to people who are already familiar with the landscape of the standard Chinese black teas. Relative to those, one can really appreciate how special this tea really is.
I need to drink the white version of this tea once again to see how they compare, but at the moment this one wins for me by a mile.
Flavors: Alcohol, Berries, Biting, Bitter, Citrus, Creamy, Decayed Wood, Floral, Herbs, Leather, Malt, Medicinal, Metallic, Oak, Pleasantly Sour, Smoke, Sweet, Thick, Tropical, Umami, Vanilla
