Huoshan Yellow Buds

This is the second of the samples I received from Peony Tea S while they were testing shipping to Canada – Thank you! I have never had a yellow tea before, so this is a very new experience for me. The dry aroma put me in mind of delicate teas such as whites and greens, but the “leaves” were quite unusual. They were covered in a downy fuzz and looked almost like really thin pussy willows. They unfurled a bit during the inital steep and have more of a leaf shape now but they are clearly still buds.

Since I am at work I steeped this western style in my perfect tea mug. I gave it approximately 3 minutes to steep, which yields a lightly peachy coloured liquor. The aroma is reminiscent of sweet hay but it is a very light aroma, I had to hover over the cup to pick it up. First sips are mild but very tasty. It is very fresh tasting, and has a cumulative effect, with the flavour seeming more bold with every sip. There is no bitterness (which I like, even if I may have been a bit light on leaf) but a very light sweetness that is unassuming but refreshing.

This does remind me in some ways of greens (but lighter) and whites (but stronger) but not quite the same as either. There is a light, natural sweetness here, it reminds me a bit of fruit but without any bold flavour assocaitons. Maybe like the rind of watermelon, but not bitter? This is a weird thing for me, but I think this would be excellent iced. I don’t enjoy iced tea typically but this is so refreshing, it would be excellent on a hot summer day.

I didn’t really anticipate enjoying this one as much as I do, but it is lovely to have a new flavour in my tea cupboard, especially one that surprises as well as this. I really look forward to trying this at home with my gaiwan. Thanks again, Peony Tea!

I’ve never had yellow tea before, so I have no basis to compare this to any other yellow, and so I can only describe how this particular tea is for me.

At first I was a little confused with the instructions. 5gr of tea for 100ml water. Seems like the quantity for gong-fu brewing. But the package also said a 2.5 minute steep, which is odd because that sounds like steep time for western style brewing – I had been expecting 30 seconds or a minute. But that’s what it said, so that’s what I did.

The leaves are light and fluffy and seemed to fill up almost half my little yixing pot. I added less than boiling water.

Wow! This is so sweet! If I was one to sweeten my tea, I would have thought that I had already put in sugar. But since I never add sweetener, there is no chance of that. In the description of this tea, it says that it is initially slightly bitter. I got none of that. I got initial sweetness.

This is one great tea. It is delicate like a white tea, but it’s flavor is more prominent like a black. It’s slightly vegetal like a green. It has a hint of floral. Luckily not more than a hint, as I’m not a big fan of the floral teas.

Sweet and gentle, a little nutty, a little floral, a little vegetal.
Wonderfully balanced and refreshing. I am looking forward to seeing it develop in the next infusions.

I will be getting more of this!
Thank you Peony Tea S. for the sample