Fenghuang Shuixian

Thank you Ashmanra for this tea sample!

One of the goals in my fathers life was to “See the Country he fought for” which meant…in July, we drove in our 1950’s era Chevy from California to New York City and back. (I remember hearing talk of this desire to ‘see the Country’ from many Vet’s when they retire.)

It was HOT! AND, I had to sit next to my brother Steve who had better not cross over to my side of the car!
There wasn’t air conditioning in the car as we traveled Route 66 through Arizona (stopped at the Grand Canyon), New Mexico and the Painted Desert (explain that one to kids), down into the humid Southern States (ate buscuits and grits). We saw the KKK march down the street in Colombia, S.C. and I was afraid.

I wrote about this adventure some time ago and how my mom made balogna sandwiches for lunch along the way. We stayed in cabin style motels (which were common in those days) and I saw my share of
strange places to eat. Hamburger and hotdog joints shaped like Oranges, Trees, Hamburgers, Hotdogs, Dogs and Dinosaurs.

Dad was looking for historical places. Williamsburg and George Washington’s Church, Lady Liberty, Gettysburg and the crown jewel, Washington D.C. (that was full of cool places like the Smithsonian)!

For my father, going to the tomb of the Unknown Soldier and the
Iwo Jima Memorial was his duty. Wandering through Arlington Cemetery alone for a long, long time was something I didn’t understand as a young girl. “Dad…come on!”

This was his trip of a lifetime and a dream come true.

I appreciate him now and what that meant to him.
My quiet father had a great life. He was loved and respected by everyone. He had a wonderful life for the son of the town drunk, raised in a shack. I have a lot to live up to.

Tasting:
Ashmanra sent me a lovely tea sample that I’ve held onto for the right time to try.

This is an Oolong, fragrant with the scent of peach and apricot as soon as I opened the packet.
I steeped the beautiful long wiry leaves in 175F spring water for
2 minutes after a quick rinse.

Oh the delicious ripe sweet fruit…amber peaches, freestone’s with all the honey rich juiciness. This was one of those ‘got to have it’ Oolongs!

I steeped it longer, then shorter in a Gaiwan, tasting and testing the flavor. There was a hint of spearmint in the aftertaste. Yes, going back later…it was still there…that spearmint. AND, a toastiness that I love in Autumn tea’s.

Yes, this was one Oolong that I wanted to have in my cupboard!

Thank you Ashmanra, this is a uniquely beautiful Oolong!

Wow. Everything about this tea is amazing. From the peachy tastes to the spicy finishes to the roasty taste yum! I want more! Unfortunately its super expensive but (to me) so worth it! Was definitely the highlight of my tea filled day. On 6th steep now and still going strong. Steeped (rinse) 30, 15, 30, 45…

I love everything about this tea. So much so, that before I came here to write this review, I went online at Harney & Sons and purchased some more as I only had a sample.

The scent of this tea when dry reminds me so much of autumn leaves when first dropped from the trees. It’s almost a toasted scent, but not quite.

I have been having temperature issues with the Breville and discovered that it’s best to choose a lower temperature. My water boils in it at 195. Really boils.

At any rate, I steeped this one for three minutes. It’s still a lightish color. The scent is really something special. It’s like a fruity, floral aroma all wrapped up into one delicate punch. The taste is stellar. I can taste a fruitiness as in apricots, without the syrupy sweetness. Just a light, fruity addition. The floral notes are also lighter in flavor, more like lily or gardenia or cherry blossom, without being cherry. It’s difficult to pinpoint, but it is a delicate flavor, not heavier like rose that demands your senses’ attention. This is more like flirting and teasing. Each sip leaves me wanting more. The toastiness in the scent, it’s like a whisper in the taste. This is an oolong for me. Smooth, sweet, floral, divine.

This does indeed have an intense peach flavor. Not sweet candy peach, but like smelling the skin of a fresh warm peach. There’s a big fat sense of “JUICE!!” here. More intense than I was expecting. Quite lovely, would be nice in the afternoon or after dinner; it’s not sweet and “opaquely” flavored like a dessert tea so much as a femmy sweet, natural-world sort of unfurling evocation, yet not soft either. Hard to explain that balance but it’s pretty great. If sweet treat flavored dessert teas are like thick oil paintings this is like a haunting watercolor that, while in some ways more delicate and gradual in making an impression, ultimately reveals a luminous depth of color. To be all pretentious in my struggle to describe, ha.

The tea leaves are long, adhesive and a mix of dusty gray and gold. This smells strongly of apricot with a slight mossy note.

The leaves plump to three times their volume so save enough room for them to swim. This brews to a pale gold and still has a strong fragrance of stone fruit. The taste is clean, snappy and the fruit and floral notes hold up well. Unlike others that present themselves to be somewhat buttery, it appears this oo-longs to be more of a darjeeling.

I loved this tea! Darn you H&S, I see myself now regularly spending a small fortune with you.

This is a splendid oolong. It boasts aromas of fresh stonefruit that almost fizz like a Bellini of Champagne and peach nectar. Its body is medium full, with very little astringency and tastes of gardenia and roasted apricots.

For those that like a darker oolong, this tea will not disappoint. The leaves resemble Da Hong Pao in appearance, though somewhat lighter colored with hints of an evergreen tone, and slightly thinner. The aroma of the dry leaves is rather pleasing and I imagine they’d do just fine as a component of a potpourri. The scent is of an elegant toasted dried peach liqueur and is rather inviting.

For this tea, I use almost boiling water and steep for a good 4-5 minutes. Unlike other oolongs it takes the hotter water quite well and returns a beautiful amber colored brew that is aromatic. It is somewhat similar in appearance to Wuyi Cassia as it is from that region, but has a more robust flavor with a satisfying bite (but not astringent) if one prefers a deeper steep. The tea fills the mouth shyly with a medium body and leaves behind a soothing finish. I find I favor this tea in the autumn and winter and tend to gravitate towards the lighter Ali San or Ti Quan Yin varieties in spring and summer, though the flavor is enough to satisfy any season.

As with all teas I consume, I do not use milk or sugar, and prefer to gain my insights from the pure tea itself. This no doubt is an insightful tea.

So this is basically hot peach water, which is remarkable considering that there is no ingredient other than tea. But more than the taste of peach/apricot is a roundness or fullness I can only attribute to a high amino acid content. This is the IDEAL tea to accompany dim sum. This is my favorite darker oolong. I’ve tried other shuixian/“water sprite” oolongs and none compare to this one.

I have to say that I do not understand the high rating this tea has. It is massive Lychee both on the nose and the palate and little else ( maybe a bit of lemon zest and other citrus ) mildly astringent, I found it to be completely one dimensional and uninteresting.

Excellent tea. Very smooth and relatively light. Definite scent of grapefruit. Tastes of peach and grapefruit, of course without the citric acid. Has some natural sweetness. My kind of tea – a bit of natural flavor, but not “flavored”!

I also noticed that this tea is devoid of the typical “earthy” oolong taste. Not a bad thing, but be aware if that’s what you’re looking for.