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“Gongfu Sipdown (718)! This was a free sample in an earlier W2T order this year – I liked the 2018 pressing of this tea quite a bit so I was excited to get to try the 2019. It’s actually something...” Read full tasting note
The 2019 Milan Maocha is a bit of a misnomer, how can a tea be both maocha [loose tea] and a brick? In this case, the term maocha refers to the Dancong oolong tea being left in its raw form before pressing. We commissioned this production to be left with stems and large leaves for this pressing. The roast is medium-heavy, roasted for 24 hours with the highest temperature at 125 C. The heavier roast will evolve and calm in the coming years, despite having a slight bite at the time of pressing.
The brick is incredibly fragrant, with deeper honey and floral flavors emerging throughout the course of a session. This tea is still slightly punchy, but the tea has a complex interplay between the roast and the brighter aspects of a traditional Milan Dancong. Excellent endurance, this tea can be re-steeped for a very long time. Drink now or age as you please.
Each brick is 200 grams. Each tong is a bamboo leaf packed with two bricks.
Gongfu Sipdown (718)!
This was a free sample in an earlier W2T order this year – I liked the 2018 pressing of this tea quite a bit so I was excited to get to try the 2019. It’s actually something I’d have likely ordered for myself at some point anyway, so it was nice to get my hands on some for free!
I used the whole sample for the session in a larger gaiwan – so about 10g/150ml.
I find the 2019 pressing a little more drying than I did the 2018, in terms of mouthfeel. However it’s still a beautiful tea with a really pleasant and intense transition from woody/roasty notes and astringency to aromatic orchid & lilac with deep juicy sweetness in the form of muscatel grape, lychee, and overripe plum notes. The astringency might linger on the sides of the mouth, but so does that sticky sweet fruit note and in my opinion it’s a more than fair trade off!
I don’t think I’d buy this one – but it was a good session. I’d definitely feel more inclined to just pick up more of the 2018 pressing if I were to consider ‘bricking’ something like this tea…
Photos: https://www.instagram.com/p/B4-HTU6gv97/
Song Pairing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8eo-73037xY
Wow, an oolong brick. I never heard of that before. And the flavors sound awesome.