Golden Eyebrow

Man, the last day has been a whirlwind of emotions! Last night my computer had an accident and I thought, well crap, there goes the blog since I lacked the funds to get a new one for at least a month, let’s just say I did not go to bed happy…or woke up happy. But lo and behold Ben fixed it (at least temporarily) so hooray for that! To celebrate (and get my agoraphobic self outside of the house…going to try for at least once a week) we did my favorite thing, visited a thrift store. I got a really cute little cup, oh yea, and A FRENCH HORN!!!!!!! For those who don’t know, this is a really big deal, I go into a full explanation of why here, but after many years I own a French Horn, its a double so it is what I played, needs a mouthpiece and some oiling, but wow. I am practically exploding!

Ok, I can focus long enough to blog (and then go back to playing Ark because it is all I do, it is all I know) and today I am looking at 3 Leaf Tea’s Golden Eyebrow (Jin Jun Mei) and for those who have been reading my rambling for a while, you know how excited I get over my favorite Wuyi Red Tea (sorry Lapsang, I love you too, but that is Ben’s favorite) with its oh so delicate fuzzy leaves. The aroma is delicious. blending sweet notes of cocoa and sweet potatoes with malt and peanuts. Jin Jun Mei has a resinous woody quality that reminds me of pine sap, and the finish is starchy and sweet.

Into my dear little Petr Novak pot the leaves go for their bath, the gold is no longer fuzzy, but it is worth altering their appearance. The aroma of the soggy leaves is really sweet, nice notes of brown sugar and sweet potatoes with malt and peanuts. The finish is sappy and pine like adding a bit of woodiness to the sweetness. The liquid is a sweet blend of dates, malt, brown sugar and sweet potato with a roasted peanut finish. These aroma notes please me.

First steeping is made of yum, it starts soft in both texture and taste, with notes of malt and molasses and I swear a touch of maple syrup. Towards the end it picks up notes of sweet potatoes and dates with a touch of roasted peanuts. The mouthfeel at the end almost has a sticky quality, reminding me of sap, not sure why but this tea always comes off as very resinous to me.

For the second steep the aroma is rich and malty with a strong resinous and roasted peanut undertone. This is carried over into the taste as well, it starts rich and sweet and stays that way til the end, luckily this is a rich tea without a hint of bitterness, no astringency either which is probably why I prefer Chinese reds to the more robust Ceylons and such. The finish is a blend of molasses and malt, with a lingering honey aftertaste.

Third steep, though it was not my last, this tea had a few more steeps in it. Sadly I find that Red teas are kinda in the middle with longevity, I have never really had one that lasts more than seven (and not just tasted so watered down and boring) where as most Puerhs, Whites, and Oolongs can go much longer and most greens putter out at about three-four. This steep carries on from the second, going strong with rich and malty notes, not really changing but being very tasty and soothing. The fourth steep is the real change, it looses some of its rich maltiness and is replaced with wonderful honey sweetness that lingers.

For blog and photos: http://ramblingbutterflythoughts.blogspot.com/2016/02/3-leaf-tea-golden-eyebrows-jin-jun-mei.html