I bought this tea based on its description, which promised orchids, berries, and citrus. Maybe I should have paid more attention to the part where it said it was charcoal roasted… I steeped 6 g of leaf in a 120 ml porcelain pot at 195F for 7, 10, 12, 15, 18, 20, 25, 30, 40, 50, 60, 90, 120, and 240 seconds.
The dry aroma is of citrus, honey, coriander, orchids, herbs, and roast. The first steep has notes of citrus, honey, roast, almonds, butter, wood, orchids, coriander, cloves, and herbs. The next steep has more citrus and clove and is quite pleasant, and there’s even a hint of berries. Steeps three and four are pleasantly citrusy and floral, with warming herbaceous and spicy undertones, though the tea is getting a bit drying. There’s a lingering honey aftertaste. The next couple steeps have citrus, orchids, and cantaloupe, with a nice fruity aroma at the bottom of the empty cup. Roast, minerals, and nuts start to take over as the session goes on, although the citrus, florals, and spices stick around for a while. The tea also develops that typical dancong bite/astringency in the final steeps.
As Derk mentioned in a previous review, this is a nice, welcoming, inoffensive dancong that isn’t particularly memorable. It’s more roasty than I expected, though that could be because I didn’t read the description properly.
Flavors: Almond, Astringent, Berries, Butter, Cantaloupe, Citrus, Clove, Coriander, Floral, Herbaceous, Honey, Mineral, Nutty, Orchid, Roasted, Spices, Wood
