Rich, thick, and complex. Pay attention to this tea’s depth, mouthfeel, structure, and aftertaste rather than just flavors. It brews a clear orange liquor that is thick and velvety. The aroma is heavy — mineral-like, floral, and lightly roasted.
I do a flash rinse with this one, as initial steeps are immediately thick and complex. The tea coats my entire mouth but lingers in the cheeks, back of the mouth, and throat. Notes are savory-sweet zhengyan minerals, florals, red velvet cake(?), cannabis, roasted barley, and a hint of fruit.
Steep 3 onwards reveals the tea’s qi, depth, and structure. Sensations intensify from the back of the tongue into the throat and in the cheeks. The qi is relaxing and warms my core. I can feel the tea’s presence for long time after drinking. Prominent notes here are more floral, zhengyan minerals, cannabis, and hints of roasted barley.
After steep 7, the tea needs to be pushed, and that’s fine. Later steeps are moderately thick and have depth, structure, and a very pleasing zhengyan mineral and floral aftertaste. I recommend taking breaks in between steeps to extract the most flavor. Nice lingering tea buzz!
