Lishan High Mountain Oolong, Spring 2018

Thanks so much, Kawaii433! Always happy to sample… even if it takes me a while. I really need to focus on new-to-me teas! I haven’t even been caught up on reading any tasting notes for at least a week… I was doing well with that for a long while too! So I hope everyone is doing okay. A hot day seemed like the perfect day to brew this one up. The leaves are the brightest green (did I ever mention green is my most favorite color? Probably because of tea… mostly because of trees… and from a young age… Return to Oz when Dorothy had to touch all the emerald items and say “Oz” to get the heck away from the Nome King.) ANYWAY this tea is fantastic. As lovely as an oolong can be: all four steeps are fairly steady. No astringency or bite. Throughout I’m tasting mostly fruit, like pineapple or pear. Then hints of floral, but only floral in the way of something like a buttercream frosting infused with flowers might be. I don’t know if that’s a thing, but it should be. Minerals and sweetness throughout every sip. I haven’t had many Lishan oolongs but this is certainly what I expect of them. The unraveled leaves are huge, full and healthy… and taking up the infuser basket — quite a feat since I started with only a teaspoon. An awesome tea for awesome weather.
Steep #1 // 1 teaspoon for a full mug // 20 minutes after boiling // rinse // 1 1/2 minute steep
Steep #2 // 18 minutes after boiling // 2 minute steep
Steep #3 // 15 minutes after boiling // 2 min
Steep #4 // just boiled // 3 min
2019 sipdowns: 51 (and almost the middle of the year… how the heck did that happen?!?!)

Kawaii already nailed the notes on this one. I got this on pre-sale, and I can safely say it compares to other high quality Li Shans.

I was not too impressed at first because it hit all the trademarks I associate with the varietal gong fu, including a strong umami and an ever shifting fruit blossom character in the hints and midsips, shifting between melon, mango, and apple amidst a creamy texture. Florals, greens, and umami characterized the tea overall. Western, it was much the same, but thicker. The Evergreen Oolong was becoming my preference for the past few days, but that eventually changed. Grandpa style surprisingly brought about some more complex notes out of this tea.

The florals, fruits hints, and thick viscosity combined into something very close to coconut water. The finish was sweeter and more pronounced, but it was thick and a hint acidic in the aftertaste without being sour. There was some evolution in the florals, between lilac, iris, honeysuckle, and hyacinth, but not too much. It lasted me four more rebrews grand pa.

Although I haven’t paid full attention to the exact notes yet gong fu, I know that the tea is durable and flavorful. This is no surprise given the giant size of the leaves. I am a little critical of the price on the regular website, but it’s not unreasonable for what you get. Some companies might charge as much as $15 or $20 for the same quality. Like my other notes of late, I will write more in the future. I’m rating it as a solid 90 to show it’s a quality tea worth trying.

Wow. Super super silky Lishan.

The light to medium green leaves were tightly rolled into little balls. Some tea dust, nothing major. Some stems, nothing major. The wet leaves were highly aromatic: Floral, orchids, vineyards, cream, vegetal, umami.

The liquor was a very light, clear, yellowish-green color. I found it had a really great flavor profile that suits me. Light floral (not heavy at all), some mineral, umami, buttery, cream, steamed greens. The super silky, creamy texture, the rich body with very light floral notes that were long lasting, as was the natural sweet aftertaste. It continued to linger in my throat and back of my tongue. Throughout the infusions, no bitterness, light or no astringency, and remained silky smooth throughout. Sometimes some Lishan has sour notes at the end, this one didn’t at all.

6g, 190°F, 110ml, rinse, 9 steeps: 10s, 15s, 25s, 35s, 45s, 55s, 65s, 75s, 120s