Bai Mu Dan

I had this one yesterday and went to leave a review. Had it almost all done and switched into a different screen to do something else for only a minute. When I went back it was gone! I didn’t have time to redo so I’m getting it in today.

This was a really fluffy white tea. That little bag was really packed full to get it all in!

This tea made me think of a spring day. It was light and refreshing with a light floral aroma. There was the typical hay notes I often find in whites along with cucumber notes (which is what made it so refreshing). Even though this tea was light , it still had lots of body. The colour of the brew was amber.

A very enjoyable cup of spring. I just want to say too, that I’ve never before brewed whites at these higher temperatures. The results have been great and I want to see now how some of my other whites in my cupboard brews at that temperature.

Almost through all the samples now. Thanks Nannuoshan for some great teas!

My second white tea from the Nannuoshan collection. The dry leaf aroma has sweet and slightly sour notes of fresh cut hay. My sample had very little settling so the leaf is mostly intact, long and straight. The leaf is light green to olive, while the buds are silvery and covered in fine downy hair.

A 30 second steep produces a very light yellow liquor. The tiny fuzzy hairs are seen throughout the mug. Once the tea cools for a moment the fuzz all settles to the bottom leaving an otherwise clear brew.

The wet leaf scent matches perfectly my memory of mom’s peony bushes that bloomed outside my bedroom window when I was a wee lad. I have honestly never caught this before in a white peony. So, much love.

Sipping I get a light melon/cucumber taste. There is some amount of floral notes that are more in the background. The longer I sip the more I pick up on the slightly sweet hay noted in the dry leaf aroma.

I veered off course with the second cup and steeped for 1 1/2 minutes instead of the recommended 45 seconds. The flavor is more intense but I learned I really prefer the shorter steep taste. The brew is a much darker golden color with a green tint. The flavor seems to match the first cup but as I mentioned is more intense. It is accompanied by a peppery spice note at the front of the sip. I catch fleeting glimpses of fruit. It seems to jump back out of range before I can fully lock in on it and identify exactly what type fruit.

I have enough for another session with this one. I intend to stick with the recommended time and temps.

Thanks so much for the samples, Nannuoshan! This is the last one! I didn’t think I’d be able to write reviews for all eight within a week but somehow I’ve managed it! I hope I’ve done a well enough job that Nannuoshan is glad they sent some samples my way. I’ve enjoyed all of the teas from Nannuoshan – some high quality leaves here! This is another white tea that suggests a high temp and time on the site (five minutes at 194 degree water?), so I didn’t really follow that. The huge leaves are silver with hints of green, sometimes fuzzy. The bright yellow cup tastes like a sweet lemon dessert, something fluffy with meringue or marshmallow with a bit of a dried grass flavor to bring it back to Earth so you remember you’re drinking tea. The scent of the steeped leaves are super vegetal – I’m glad that doesn’t appear in the flavor of the tea though. The second steep has even more flavor – brighter, crisper, a little more buttery or savory — less delicate than the sweet lemon dessert of the first cup but in no way oversteeped or bitter. It has a lot more flavor than the Dian Yin Zhen that I tried the other day. This one is a great Bai Mu Dan – the type of white tea that made me realize how much I LOVE a great quality white tea.
Steep #1 // 3 grams // 22 minutes after boiling // 12 ounce mug 2/3 full // 2 minute steep
Steep #2 // 20 minutes after boiling // 3 min steep
nannuoshan.org