I think? this was a freebie provided a few orders ago.
Dry leaf in the bag has the strong floral aroma other Old Ways Tea’s hongcha — sunflower and orchid plus a nut butter and eggshell undertone. Once in my hand, I smell the same florals, malted barley, old wooden furniture and a tangy cranberry tone.
Warming the leaf brings, in addition to the florals, nut butter and cranberry, aromas of oatmeal cookie and artichoke. Hm. I don’t like that vegetal note.
The aroma is woody, vegetal and sour like canned artichoke hearts on wooden furniture.
The taste is very, hm, vegetal tangy, rather savory-leather. No sweetness is present for me. A mild alkalinity stays at the back of the back of the mouth and in the throat, where a strange bitterness also arises.
Despite drinking several more steeps, I ended my notes here. Can’t say I’m a fan of this one, even though Roswell Strange and Togo seemed to really enjoy it. I feel like the tea fell from it’s dry leaf aromatic grace once brewed. The strong artichoke vibe , or I can see olive as Togo mentions, was very strange. It’s like a disjointed amalgamation of an aging sheng, a first flush Darjeeling and a Wuyi red tea. Oh well. I’m glad other people are enjoying it!
Flavors: Artichoke, Bitter, Cookie, Cranberry, Floral, Flowers, Leather, Malt, Nuts, Oats, Olives, Orchid, Savory, Tangy, Vegetal, Wood
I didn’t purchase any of the 2020 Old Ways Tea offerings because I had so many of their 2018 and 2019 teas to get through, but had I done so, I probably would have avoided this one. It may just be me, but I have noticed a huge step down in quality from 2016 forward. I loved the 2016 tea and thought the 2017 tea was also very good if a little lacking compared to the previous version. The 2018 tea was still enjoyable for me, but it felt like a noticeable step down from the 2017 tea. I haven’t tried the 2019 version yet, but I have seen mixed reviews from several sources.
I remember being impressed by the 2017 and a little less so with the 2018. In general, though, I feel like the quality of Chinese teas has gone down in the past several years. The decline in quality also coincides with when I started really paying attention to tea characteristics and tastes, though. I think areas of China (and Taiwan) have been experiencing droughts and/or flooding during this time as well. If Old Ways Tea’s offerings that I really enjoy continue declining in quality, I don’t know what I’ll do. I think they’re a great vendor and want to support them since they’re located in my region. For now, I’ll stick it out and hope this is just part of nature’s cycle and not other factors.