(From the UTTB.)
The leaves are very pretty: tiny, curled little things that are a dusky brown color. Some have an orange tint, others are touched with silver. As soon as the leaves hit they all turn a deep autumnal orange. They’re still dark in tone.
The smell…wow, to describe the smell. Very complex. I kept sniffing while it steeped because I was so surprised by all of the scents I was picking up. At first it was fruity with this tart, astringent undercurrent. Then it was like bell peppers. It was peppery, both like crushed black pepper and bell peppers. Kind of earthy. Then it was sweet and fruity again. Now, it’s sweet and spicy on a backdrop of cinnamon. It smells kind of like bread. There’s also this other quality that I can’t describe…I’m guessing it’s muscatel. It reminds me of olive oil. It’s blowing my mind over here.
I’m sipping now and it’s not going to be any easier for me to describe the taste! There’s so much going on. Here are my impressions, in order: light body, green, fruity, sweet, cream, olive oil, more fruit, silkiness, soft, bread, lingering sweetness. It’s even a little malty. It covers your mouth with softness and a sparkling fruity taste. There’s also a certain earthiness to it. That bell pepper thing I was talking about. It’s got spice and pep. It has the qualities of both a black tea and a white tea! I love it.
Second steep, smells light with a little fruitiness and spice. It has a roastiness about it. It tastes like fruit with the same olive oil/muscatel notes as before. There’s more spice and pepper in this cup. There’s a touch of nutty roastiness too. In the aftertaste there’s something that makes me think of apple skins…the crispness of them, the fruit taste matched by a sort of darker, bitter note. (The tea itself is NOT bitter.) There’s some earthiness with a lingering sweet cream flavor. It’s soft with a guava-like sweetness.
I’ve got to run but I’ll probably be back for a third, or even a fourth steep. This is just too good. No words can describe. None. (:
