Shui Xian (Spring 2016)

(5g/4 oz/205/10 sec +5)
Really enjoyed this. The dry leaves smelled toasty & a little sweet. Did a rinse, then brewed 5g in 5 oz (per Verdant’s directions) in just-off-boiling water for 5 seconds. The color was very pale yellow. Flavor was faintly sweet, a little toasty, with a woodsy & dry effect at the end. It also tasted fairly diluted, so this infusion seemed more like a second wash.

For the 2nd-4th steeps, I reduced the water to 4 oz & started with 10 seconds, adding 5 each time after. The sweet & floral aromas & flavors really started to jump out in the second steep and increased each time after. Each infusion also became smoother, and notes of hay or sweet grasses came out in the third, and some mineral in the fourth. By the fourth I was thinking that it just tasted “yellow” – golden honey, dandelion, hay – and sunny. And the wet leaves between infusions smelled heavenly!

I’m sure there’s a lot more in these leaves, so when I ran out of time after 4 steeps, I put them in 12 oz water to cold brew overnight. Hope to get few more infusions still.

Update: Cold brewed in 12 oz overnight after initial 4 steeps. Flavor is a little muted compared to hot, but still good.