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Pre-Qing Miocene drank Tieguanyin Xiao Zhong by Verdant Tea

38 tasting notes

One of the first loose leaf teas I tried was a black tieguanyin— an unusual introduction to loose leaf, but I was fortunate to have a good tea store for my local brick and mortar. I cracked this open and smiled- it is so close to the original black tieguanyin I had it’s like opening up an old friend. It smells sweet and deeply plummy, with a hint of soft wet wood. Imagine stealing away into a favorite spot in the forest to eat chocolate-covered dried stonefruits. In the cup, caramelized sweet potato on the nose, autumn leaves and faraway bonfires on the tongue. The magic a touch of smoking adds.
Autumn you can pour in a cup. I’ll never tire of it.

Flavors: Autumn Leaf Pile, Caramel, Dark Chocolate, Plum, Smoke, Stonefruit, Sweet Potatoes, Wet Wood

Preparation

205 °F / 96 °C 3 min, 0 sec 2 tsp 16 OZ / 473 ML

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Bio

Getting back into tea after a hiatus of a few years, thanks to some friends. Aside from tea, I enjoy zoology, fish and orchid keeping, writing and the odd bit of art.

My ranking criteria:
100: Floors me. Something I can drink over and over again without it ever becoming routine. Things I’d buy again without hesitation after running out.
90-95: Impressive, very solid. Something I’ll drink more than once, although I might not always drink it while paying attention. Things well worth buying again when the mood strikes me but not things I always pine for when out of them.
80-85: Good, enjoyable to drink casually but still interesting enough to have a meditative session with. I don’t really care to utilize anything I like less as a daily drinker. I’ll rebuy these if I find myself missing them but don’t always miss them.
70-75: Nothing wrong with them, but they don’t really hold my attention long. I don’t rebuy these when I run out of them, though I might look for a ‘better’ version if I felt they had merit that could be brought more to the fore. I usually reserve them for times when I want my tea but will be too distracted to notice anything fine.
60-65: Okay. Not repulsive or extremely disappointing, but nothing special. Things I’ll drink if I don’t have to pay for them. They don’t inspire my feelings towards either pole.
50-55: Has some flaws, usually limited to disagreeable dry smell or lack of complexity. Still drinkable, but does not clear the bar. Did not upset me.
40-45: Committed the unforgivable sin of grabbing my interest and then letting me down. Bland, one or two note teas. Not bad tasting so much as boring. I’m much more likely to score an unimpressive tea here than an unmemorable tisane, which usually land a category higher due to my lack of emotional investment in them.
30-35: Bad notes on the tongue that can’t be overlooked, or a funky order that throws everything off. At some point I consider putting it down the drain, especially if they’re tisanes.
20-25: Probably would score a notch or two higher if they succeeded in avoiding my scorn, but for whatever reason, they’ve bothered me. Not expressly terrible but drew my ire.
10-15: Major flaws. Gross.
1: Wretched, miserable sinful waste of vegetation. Major flaws and it made me angry.

Location

Massachusetts, USA

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