I am a little bit conflicted about this Dan Cong. It has a complex and nuanced character, long-lasting aftertaste, a super interesting texture and a strong cha qi. This is no doubt a high quality tea on multiple levels. Yet, on the whole, I am not super thrilled about drinking it and I am not even sure why. Maybe I will warm up to it later, my second session today was already much more agreeable than the initial one.
In terms of aromas, there are notes of stonefruits (peach), yeast, milk, tropical fruits and orchid before the rinse. Afterwards, the smell is pungent and flowery with hints of rose and straw. Finally, there is a nice spicy scent of vanilla, cinnamon and scones in the empty cup.
Taste-wise, the session starts off sweet, floral and very mineral. There are flavours of apple, wet rocks, rapeseed and fruit tree flowers. Later on, I also found notes of cloves, hazelnut and fermented fruits. The aftertaste is spicy and warming with additional flavours of apricot and kumquat.
Some of the most interesting things about the tea is clearly the mouthfeel. It is very soft and creamy with a sort of misty quality to it. Body is medium to full and has a drying finish. Another notable fact is the sedating and heady cha qi. In my experience, it’s a tea to zone out rather than to keep you focused.
edit: Yet another mark of quality is just how long the tea lasts without getting flat or overly astringent. Today, I got 17 infusions pretty easily, more than 300ml/g.
Flavors: Apricot, Cinnamon, Citrus Fruits, Cloves, Creamy, Drying, Floral, Flowers, Fruit Tree Flowers, Fruity, Hazelnut, Milk, Mineral, Orchid, Peach, Rose, Stonefruit, Straw, Sweet, Tropical, Vanilla, Wet Rocks, Yeast
