I’ve had a handful of Thai oolongs, but I believe this is my first Thai black tea. Thanks, Derk and White Antlers! Though the leaves look long and twisty enough to gongfu, I followed Derk’s recommendation and steeped them Western, using roughly 3.5 g in a 355 ml mug at boiling for 3.5, 4.5, and 8 minutes.
The dry aroma is of sour cherry, grain, and malt. The first steep has notes of cherry, raisins, molasses, barley, malt, wood, and tannins. There’s a slight floral hint that I wouldn’t have picked out if Derk hadn’t mentioned it. This tea is a little astringent, which suggests that I should have gone with a three-minute steep. Subsequent steeps emphasize the molasses, malt, and wood.
Partly due to user error, this tea didn’t seem that interesting to me. I’m glad I got to try it, but I don’t think it is one of the more memorable offerings from Whispering Pines.
Flavors: Astringent, Cherry, Floral, Grain, Malt, Molasses, Raisins, Roasted Barley, Tannin, Wood
Nice to see tea making the rounds among friends. : )
Absolutely! You’ve made a lot of tea people happy.