Keemun Reserve

Compared to two other keemun I have recently tried this is better – less bitter, less charcoal. It is a tiny bit malty with cocoa and bread flavors. Not sweet but pleasantly black.

I’ve got this huge project due tomorrow night, so I’ve spent the entire weekend chained to the desk and drinking tea. I wanted to start off this morning with something high quality, but I also felt like checking a tea off my cabinet, so I chose one of the free samples from Soleil.

The first thing I noticed about this tea is the smell. It’s an aroma that I’ve only noticed on a sheng before, which is squash and a sort of burnt brown sugar. Sometimes I can smell a bit of almond in there like the website suggests, but it’s very faint. I think butternut squash is predominant for me.

For flavor, there is the slightest, SLIGHTEST hint of bitterness, but it’s a smooth bitterness. I honestly didn’t know there was a difference between good bitterness and bad before this morning. There’s a tangy astringency that lingers on the back of the palate that reminds me of cranberries, but I wouldn’t say that the tea tastes like cranberries. The chocolate notes seem to build the more sips I take.

There’s something buttery about the mouthfeel.

I like this tea. I think it would be interesting to defile it with a bit of sugar and milk. But I don’t think I would order it to keep around.

Edit 1: Second steep added a bit of raw Ohio Fall Harvest, and suddenly I’m drinking a slice of whole wheat toast with a bit of honey butter.

Edit 2: Third steep with 1 demerara cube and the tiniest touch of half and half, and it’s a delicate honey breakfast tea. I have to say that I am loving the diversity. I’ll probably take it back to black after this to see what has happened in the last couple of steeps.

Edit 3: Fourth steep black, and there isn’t much left. It’s sugary sweet though, with honey notes, a tiny bit of chocolate, and maybe some cinnamon. But the leaf is almost spent.