Hu Shan Yellow Buds

Sipdown, 191. Even though I had this one recently I am having it again because there was only one serving left. Stash-busting!

This really does remind me of a white tea, especially with those hay notes, but also of a woody, slightly earthy puerh. This time I also get almost a jasmine-like floral in the aftertaste, and slight notes of honeysuckle. Glad I got to try this one.

It’s Friday, so I decided I deserved a little treat! Yay for Yellow Tea!

Ahhh… now this is tea! I love Yellow Tea! The smooth, soft, mellow flavor is unparalleled.

Drink it hot, no sweetener, perfect, perfect, perfect!

Multiple … err … um … infusions … yes, infusions! That’s it! Multiple INFUSIONS to follow. And that’s all I’m admitting to.

Tea of the late morning……

I have yellow tea! I do think this tastes somewhere between white and green. I am actually not really sure where this is supposed to fall, but It tastes like a mix of Long Jing and Silver Needle White. Kind of like green tea without astringency. I get vegetal notes, and notes of hay, and maybe a note of honeysuckle sweetness. No additions.

I might be brewing this one wrong. I just checked and Harney recommends boiling water for 4 minutes. I did about 175 water for 2. I guess I will try hotter and longer for the second steep.

Very cool! I have yellow tea!

Sipdown no. 61 of 2016 (no. 272 total). A sample tin.

The leaves are gorgeous and look like a cross between silver needles and dragonwell leaves.

I had two servings left of this and took one to work last week. Taking the last bit with me today. My original note on this is still my opinion. I’m interested in trying other yellow teas for comparison.

Smooth, soft flavors of baked fruits blend with a gingery spice, which resolves into a bright yet oolong-like finish. This tea leaves a beautiful savory aftertaste, which entices you for another cup. After steeping, the leaves have a rich swirling aroma, and can be used for another brew!
-RA

This was the first time that I tried yellow tea. I brewed the Hu Shan Yellow buds to 175 degrees fahrenheit. I steeped it for three and a half minutes. It has a similar vegetal taste that I experienced when I drank green tea. It also has a slight sweetness with a nutty taste with a bit of spice.The liquor ranged from a pale yellow color to a bit of golden yellow.

The leaves are long and slender, and very fluffy. They are green and white with yellow hues, and covered in fine white down. They let off little to no aroma, though the smells that do seep forth are light, fruity, and very pleasant (observed before my stuffy nose).

The wet leaves are a little less fluffy, and the down is gone, but they retain the beautiful range of light greens, light yellows, and whites. I can’t describe the smell too well today, because I am stuffed up, but I bet it is nice!

What a pretty liquor! It’ a pale, delicate yellow. Very transparent. The flavor is very subtle. As with many of the lighter whites and greens I’ve tasted, the first thing I notice is the flavorless water base. Then, right as I think, “hey, is this tea or water?” the flavors blast in through the mid-tones. I’m not sure how to describe it other than earthy. It’s like the smell of rain, but in flavor, with freshly turned dirt. There are hints of sesame on the backside of the middle, and the sip finishes with an almost fruity essence and an aftertaste of backed apples. This is a crazy tea, and I love it. I would advise that more seasoned tea veterans go after this one, as it is a bit pricy, hard to track down, and is very, very subtle. I’ll definitely stock this again, if I can find it.

Another nice tea from Harney and Sons!!!
The leaf sets are nice and complete and have a bit of fuziness on them. The color (very light yellow), flavor (mild w/ some slight sweetness), and aroma (light earthy mildly sweet smell) of this tea are very similar to a white tea, but the tea does have some vegetal notes characteristic of green tea. Along with the chatacteristics mentioned, this tea has some other unique flavors present that I’m still trying to figure out.

Of note, I prepared this tea using the instruction on H&S website which state 4 min. at boiling, the H&S Tea Store notes below indicate 3.25 min at 175° seems to be a descrepancy here?

Made this the other night. I guess I forgot that I don’t really care for it. My husband drank three cups. I wound up dumping mine and making some mint chocolate instead.