Midday pot of tea.
This is one of several Dian Hong teas I nabbed from teabento after their generous offer to send samples to people in exchange for reviews. I tried the last one Gong Fu but this afternoon I’m more in the mood for something super casual/where I wont have to time anything. So I’m having a larger, Western style teapot of this one. I used 3.5g of leaf, and let it steep for about four minutes.
The dry leaf is really pretty for this tea; not as visually striking colour wise as the Golden Fox but I’ve always deeply loved the appearance of tea that’s as twisty and softly curled as this one is. It smells lightly malty, with some stonefruit notes and this also stays true as it’s steeping: warming malt notes with a sweeter fruity element.
Flavour wise, I’m immediately drawn in by how smooth this one is both in flavour and mouthfeel. It feels like drinking liquid velvet; very rich, and soft. I feel like it coats my whole mouth in the most pleasant way. To take it even a step further poetically, it’s not the sparks/fireworks of a first kiss sweeping you off your feet but the intimate and deep, flowing molten lava of a kiss from someone who’s not only swept you off your feet but caught you, and continued to hold you close to them.
Flavour wise, I don’t think this is nearly as chocolate-y as Golden Fox. I mean, you have to keep in mind that these are too very different prep styles but I have a feeling that regardless of how you steeped them this would be the less chocolate-y one. It’s definitely a lot more fruity; a mix of plummy stonefruit notes and more jammy red fruit notes. Red currant also springs to mind. The finish is a little more malty with accompanying wood notes, and the slightest hint of lemon curd. I’m enjoying the mix of sweet fruit notes and more savory/umami woody elements in this tea immensely!
Honestly, so far between the two Dian Hongs I think I might enjoy Golden Fox just a little bit more, but only because I tend to lean in hard to those chocolate notes in a good black tea. Both are REALLY good though – and I think could probably have a place in my cupboard if I didn’t already have so many DH teas on hand already. Plus, I think because they’re so different at least in regard to that key chocolate note that someone could also deeply love one but not like the other, if they weren’t like me and a fan of both of them.
