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“A sample! I was very intrigued by a tea named after my favorite oolong, Wen Shan Bao Zhong, but as a black tea! I had to try it. The leaf is huge and wirey. The fragrance of the dry leaf had...” Read full tasting note
Made in small artisan batches, our Taiwanese Wen Shan Bao Zhong grown in the Pinglin mountain region is some of the highest grades in its category. This Wen Shan Bao Zhong is oxides at 100%, it is processed with minimal handling, from hand picking to rolling to drying; these leaves are handled as little as possible to ensure the freshest taste! This process allows the leaves to retain their vibrancy.
Once steeped, incredible freshness is the first taste that the tea drinker experiences as the warm liquid rolls into the mouth. This freshness is followed by sweetness, butter, floral and as the tea unfolds through multiple infusions to even fruity, this is a wonderful example of a fresh, spring Bao Zhong made from the Qing Xin (Chin Shin) cultivar.
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A sample! I was very intrigued by a tea named after my favorite oolong, Wen Shan Bao Zhong, but as a black tea! I had to try it. The leaf is huge and wirey. The fragrance of the dry leaf had such a scent of added fruit flavor, that I thought there was flavor contamination from something else. But steeping up the tea, I don’t think there was scent contamination. The brew is very light for a black tea — it almost looks like a roasted oolong. The flavor is mostly like a Ruby 18 varietal (which is what the dry leaf looks like, now that I think about it, including that hint of scarlet in the leaf). But it’s also fairly fruity, like plums, or maybe something even odder like passionfruit, and also a bit starchy, the second steep is actually very tangy. It’s very clear in the lingering mouth flavor. Or a better word than “clear” might be vibrant, which the description mentions.
Steep #1 // 1 1/2 teaspoons for a full mug // 20 minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep
Steep #2 // 3 minutes after boiling // 4 min steep
I left the above note in a draft for a while, long enough to forget what I said… so here is a second steep session a while later, without peeking at the note above: there is a sort of tangy fruit scent to the dry leaf and flavor of the first steep: tamarind + lychee or something. It reminds me how a Taiwanese Assam tastes like strawberries. Maybe these varieties with huge leaves usually taste like mostly fruit. The second steep is mostly tangy fruit again, then as it cools is like tomato soup with some starch. The third steep is a deep red and tastes like mostly like hot tomato soup! It’s definitely a unique tea. Though it’s a light brew which I normally wouldn’t like, I DO like the complexity of flavors. And it certainly doesn’t remind me of any oolong, Wen Shan Bao Zhong or otherwise. Now that I typed up all that, I read the note on the first steep session above and I’m amazed the flavors have seemed to evolve THIS much already in only a couple months. Second steep session: no thoughts of plum, passion fruit or Ruby 18! Tea is weird!
Steep #1 // 2 teaspoons for a full mug // 25 minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep
Steep #2 // 10 minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep
Steep #3 // just boiled // 4 min
I adore Wen Shan Baozhong! Try to always keep it on hand. I can really see a black tea version tasting as you describe here.
Yep, I was intrigued to see what my favorite oolong could do as a black tea. :D
Had no idea that Baozhong black tea existed! On my list of teas to check out..