First let me preface this by saying that I don’t like to rate teas this high. I really won’t ever give a tea a perfect 100 score, so 99 is essentially saying that it’s the best thing I’ve had to date. A perfect 100 would in essence be stating that nothing could possibly be better than this tea in all existence, and I’m not ever going to make that claim.
I remember the first time David from Verdant Tea made me this particular tea. I remember the emotions it evoked and how it brought me back to a place of comfort from the past. I tend to relate things to good music, as I am a musician. When I write a particular piece I tend to write something that envelopes all emotions, making myself feel completely content, heartbroken, moved, and yet hopeful without sounding forced. In a weird way this tea does that for me. The aroma and essence of this tea reminds me of sitting in in an old library with books that have absorbed the flavors of the weathered wood surrounding them. It also brings about the memory of sitting on a particular dock at camp growing up, talking with my best friends while fishing and relaxing.
I think because of the pure nostalgia that this tea has brought about for me and everyone I know that has tried it, puts it in to a category all its own. It is not flavor, it is emotion, aroma, and beauty. I only bring this tea out ever so often for a very special conversation or time…to brew this everyday for me would be to make it commonplace, and I dare not offend the tea in that way.
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I almost always forget this tea is a shu; it’s just so different and feels much more like an old sheng to me. More impressive is that this one was created in 1998, when shu’s generally still tasted terrible. I sure hope Verdant can find some more stuff from the folks at Xingyang, especially since they were creating such great stuff so early on.
It’s true. The leaf material for this one is spectacular. I think the fact that the body and color of this tea are so light is deceiving. I have never seen a shu of this age act in such a pleasing and crisp way.
Definitely. Most things I’ve tried in the States that are this old taste simple and predictable: old and like pleasant dirt. This one tastes old, sure, but it also tastes like you’re on a sparkling trip to the moon where you find a hidden library like an abandoned city that holds the secrets of all of your memories for all time. And you get to drink this feeling and share it with friends.
What will this taste like in ten more years? Will we even have the self-control to find out??
I almost always forget this tea is a shu; it’s just so different and feels much more like an old sheng to me. More impressive is that this one was created in 1998, when shu’s generally still tasted terrible. I sure hope Verdant can find some more stuff from the folks at Xingyang, especially since they were creating such great stuff so early on.
It’s true. The leaf material for this one is spectacular. I think the fact that the body and color of this tea are so light is deceiving. I have never seen a shu of this age act in such a pleasing and crisp way.
Definitely. Most things I’ve tried in the States that are this old taste simple and predictable: old and like pleasant dirt. This one tastes old, sure, but it also tastes like you’re on a sparkling trip to the moon where you find a hidden library like an abandoned city that holds the secrets of all of your memories for all time. And you get to drink this feeling and share it with friends.
What will this taste like in ten more years? Will we even have the self-control to find out??