I really enjoyed this tea! To me, it was like a more interesting, less floral and vegetal high mountain Taiwanese oolong. What I mean is it was very sweet, but it had more complex flavors that changed with each steep. Also, after a single sip, the flavor would bounce back and forth from sweet to sour notes. It’s mildly dry, which seems to help the flavor coat your mouth and last after swallowing. This is a tea I would always like to have on hand.
The curled dry leaves are dark and small, with a sort of sweet fresh pastry/nutty aroma. Maybe a little fruitiness, too.
I brewed gong fu style in a gaiwan, with 5-30 second infusions. I kept the water near 90-95 C most of the time.
After a quick rinse, the first steep had a honey and green apple (?) aroma and tasted like a fruity sweet nectar, with a little sourness in the center of the tongue. It was only slightly dry, and had a moderate thickness. The leaves started opening up a bit after the second steep, and I was able to see the leaves were a mix of green and purple. Initially the aroma was like fresh sweet pastries again, but then had a slightly sour and spicy fruitiness. The taste became sweeter and a little more dry (but still only moderately). It again had a slight sour, fruity aftertaste, and the dry cup smelled like honey.
After the third steep, the gaiwan’s lid smelled like cornbread and brew was a very clear and bright yellow. This steep was even sweeter than the last, a little less astringent and less sour, and more viscous. The brew smelled very sweet, like a light honey. The fourth and fifth steeps were similar to this one, maybe even more sweet and honey-like. I brewed 8 times, and it was enjoyable until the end, but the flavors started dying off with the 6th steep.
Flavors: Fruity, Green Apple, Honeysuckle, Nectar, Pastries, Pleasantly Sour, Sweet, Toasty
