Yi Wu Wild Buds Yabao 2009 Pu'er

Yabao!!! This was the first one that i tried in this tea box. I have never had Yabao and have been very interested in trying but could never get ahold of any. Finally my day has come :D Now I opened the package and it was mostly odorless. I could hint at a very light dry grass aroma. I brewed in my gaiwan with near boiling water. The aroma of a sweet and savory emitted from my vessel. This tea is unlike a lot of teas. The taste is somewhat cooked and syrupy. Its like an anise honey flavor. The best part of this brew is its colour! Its an iridescent green topaz! It’s very beautiful! I am so happy to have finally tried Yabao and I definitely will be purchasing in the future!

It was storming outside – hence I felt it was a perfect opportunity to brew some tea and feel the goodness of pouring rain and windy weather. So I set up on the verandah, grabbed some Yabao Pu’er cus its always great for times like these for its floral, intimate-with-nature qualities. And it was wonderful. Little to no color in the liquor, subtle flavor, perfect for gongfu brewing or for drinking all day as its unlikely to go bitter for a long time. Brewed about eleven times before I ran out of water.
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Its definitely not for everyday drinking. But its lovely when had occasionally and great for beginners as it has a scented-with-flowers feel to it. One of my first picks to share with a guest. A rare underrated tea, I must say I love Yabao in nature.

Directions on this tea said to brew 6-8 grams. I think I went conservative and only brewed 5 grams with about 4 oz water. I used boiling water initially but then tried a lower temperature.

This tea brewed up so extremely light—only a pale yellow. It was also very light on taste. I could pick up a little sweetness, hay & pine and some faint peppery notes. I could smell citrus but could not pick out anything citrus in the flavour. I did many infusions but this tea was just way too light for any flavour to come through. I’ve checked reviews from other people on this kind of tea (from other companies ) and I’m seeing many different ways of brewing (iced sounded interesting). I think I’m going to try some different things before rating this tea. I liked the flavour but it was just too faint. I plan on going up to 8 g the next time. I really need to play around with something that works for this tea.

I’ve been intrigued by yabao, so I was really happy to get a great deal on this as my first opportunity to try it.

The dry leaf is pale, uniform buds, with a faintly peppery smell.

99C, 7g, 100ml. Rinse, 10s, 15s, 10s, 15s.

The steeped leaves smell very strongly of pine, must and drying wood. It’s an intensely outdoorsy smell that reminds me of the Canadian shield.

The liquor is very pale yellow – there’s almost no colour to it. It smells both musty and peppery, like old books. The flavour is really interesting. Very light, sweet, with a slightly sour note that I find in some white teas. There’s mustiness, earth and some of that pepper spiciness, that lingers into the finish, after the sweetness goes.

Second steep has a stronger pine & wood flavour. The sweetness and sour note are toned down, as is the mustiness. Still nice and spicy.

Third steep was a bit more mild than I was hoping for, though it build as I sipped. Toward the very end, a peachy or maybe apricot note made a brief appearance in amongst the pine.

I want to keep drinking this, but sadly, I’m getting some wicked heartburn. Hopefully not from the tea, as it’s delicious, but I think I need to stop either way. Boo!