From the product description, it appears that Fong Mong has developed this tea varietal independently of the TRES, and I’m kind of impressed. Thanks to the company for providing a sample. I steeped 6 g of leaf in a 120 ml teapot at 190F for 25, 20, 25, 30, 30, 45, 60, 90, 120, and 240 seconds.
In the teapot, the large, loosely rolled green nuggets smell faintly floral. (From the consistency of the spent leaf sets, I can believe that this is a hand-picked tea.) The first steep has the beany, vegetal notes of green tea along with the milky, floral qualities associated with Jin Xuan. It also tastes kind of starchy, maybe because of the beans. This is a wonderfully soft tea with no astringency. Notes of kale, cream, and maybe gardenia show up in the next couple steeps. By steep six, the tea starts becoming more vegetal, though it’s still very pleasant.
Although I gravitate toward fruitier, less vegetal oolongs, this is a unique and easy-going varietal that would appeal to green tea drinkers. I love trying “experimental” teas from Taiwan and am glad I got to sample this one.
Flavors: Beany, Cream, Floral, Gardenias, Kale, Milk, Vegetal
