Wen Shan Bao Zhong

Ahh, this is an absolutely delicious tea. I grabbed it today thinking it was a dark oolong (yeah, didn’t read the name carefully), and felt silly when I realized it wasn’t… but it was a perfect selection for me today. I steeped it for a bit longer than recommended, as I prefer a stronger flavour, and I think I got it bang on. The aroma is of sweet rock sugar and a bit vegetal (much like Verdant’s Dragonwell-Style Laoshan Green?), but the flavour is sweet, light, vegetal classic pouchong, so with that lovely oolong flavour that envelops your mouth and lingers as an aftertaste. Delicious. The only thing that would make this better would be not having a headache, which I think is because I let myself waaaayyyyy oversleep today.

Had my mom try this one, and not too surprisingly, she thought it was quite pleasant, and went back for a second sip. She made the comment that she seems to have enjoyed all the Butiki teas she has so far tried… I’m not surprised at all :)

ETA: Second infusion (2 min/190C) was given to my mom. I think it was still pretty good, though a touch light. I dumped the leaves out after though, as they had little aroma left.

What a wonderful and delightful tea from Butiki Teas!

I was quite surprised by the recommended water temperature for this one, as it appears to be a much greener oolong for that temp range(normally speaking). One thing I have learned and never hurts to try, is the company’s steeping instructions. The instructions did not guide me astray. They were perfect!

The tea’s leaves are medium darkness, but certainly leans more to green than roasted. Once you add the water and give the leaves its first rinse, you really see the nice spinach color come to surface.

The taste is sensational, with its floral, creamy and very light, but thick fullness. There is a cleanness, almost mintiness to the tongue. Has a lot of similarities to a First Flush Spring Green Tea, yet with a butteriness. Very satisfying and comforting, especially to the tummy. I really need this tea right now, so I’m glad to have this one on hand to keep me relaxed. Last week was a very long one. Monday’s are usually the days that we feel the impact of the preceding week. Glad for this cup.

One last thing, I’ve been working on these same leaves all day and they show no signs of depleting its great quality liquor. I will definitely have to come back to this one again later on in the week. It has a great character and shows great promise to becoming a favorite. Thanks again, Stacy at Butiki Teas for your excellent service and outstanding products!

This is a very light oolong. I normally prefer the darker oolong but yet it has such a rich buttery flavor and I LOVE butter so I am enjoying this cup.
It has a very silken like mouthfeel. Of course creamy, and somewhat full, but its just so smooth that it makes me think of velvet, silk, something like that as it slides gently down the throat. Not drying more juicy.
There is a light vegetal flavor and a savory note that is coming through much like sesame – I have had sesame on the brain lately though.
The after taste is lovely. I am not sure I can do the tea justice in explaining it but something of a rock mineral sort of cleansing note.
It makes me feel fresh lol.
As for floral – I don’t know if it is floral as one would expect – it does not have any specific floral flavor but you know how I just said it made me feel fresh? I think that the flavor – the after taste I am getting is the way a bouquet of fresh flowers SMELLS! YES in fact its like when you get one of those really fancy salads with orchis on it … yup that is it – ORCHID!
Whew glad I got that figured out lol
This is a nice tea and the more I sit here enjoying it while writing this review the more I am appreciating it!
I am sorry Wen Shan Bao Zhong! I have kept you hidden away for far too long.
I don’t know what I was thinking.
You are yummy!

Additional notes: Sample sipdown! Oh wow, I just saw the last tasting notes date and it was May 5, 2012! Exactly a year ago! I’m not sure how that happened. I followed the steep instructions this time.. (no three minutes) 50 seconds first steep, 70 seconds second steep. The flavor wasn’t the same as the last time (since I didn’t steep it correctly last time). The flavor still wasn’t your typical oolong, but it didn’t have those pumpkin notes like last time either. It’s tough to describe this one! It isn’t really peachy, floral, or vegetal. Not sure what is going on… but I kind of liked the pumpkin flavor better. Also, the new blends from Butiki sound AMAZING.

Now this is the kind of oolong I like. :)

Light, greenly vegetal, buttery, smooth…perfect.

Here’s a tea I purchased a few months ago but evidently forgot to review. I’ve had a few bao zhongs from other companies but I wasn’t terribly impressed with this one today. Flavor is very light, slightly buttery with a hint of orchid but weak overall. I think I’ll try gong fu’ing this before I make up my mind about a rating.

4/5 (see my bio for more info on my new pared down scale)

Oh man, I love this one! I love the color—light and pretty, almost like if a green mixed with a peachy oolong or a white—and while dainty, the flavor is delicious, full of wonderful elements like butter, cream, nuts, and light, clean sweetness, like really delicious sweet clean water (yay Memphis artesian well water, “sweetest in the world”!)—so sparkling clean it reminds me just a little of fresh mint. And there’s the lightest hint of floral, for once a floral I can get behind—indeed, orchid! Yesss. This is a fantastic early afternoon, femmy without the usual roses-and-jasmine-perfume cup. Refreshing without being astringent, nice and smooth, delicate but full.

When I made my purchase from Butiki Teas, I received a small free sample of this oolong tea. I was so excited to try it but wanted to be in the right mood for it as I am generally a mood based tea person. The dry leaves look pretty. They are dark green, slender, and slightly spiraled. The scent is light and floral, which I love.

This held up to multiple small steepings. The liquor was a nice pale yellow, almost like the color of egg whites. The taste is very light with a hint floral notes. It is very refreshing and smooth. The aftertaste was a little small hint of green and nuts.

Good tea. I’d describe it as “dainty”. :)

Oolong is so great. This is a lighter one with a sweet floral flavor that reminds me of a fine white wine, but without the alcohol flavor. I would say very good for a light Oolong…

This might be the first bao zhong I’ve tried, or at least the first one I’ve made for myself. This one is very much like a green tea – it reminds me of a dragonwell, but more floral. Very smooth and fragrant, with a buttery quality in the first steep and assertively vegetal without being overpowering, and it gave my tongue a nice tingle. The butter subsides and the orchid-like florals become stronger in the second steep.

Not a very interesting write-up, but a very nice tea. I think this would be a good gateway for people who haven’t developed a taste for green tea – it’s very similar, but on a different level than most greens.