Backlog:
The aroma of this tea reminds me of the smell of the air here in the Pacific Northwest on an early evening in autumn. You step outside and there is a crisp edge to the air and it is scented with the fragrance of smoke rising out of chimneys … it smells rustic: like wood and smoke and crisp, cool air. Not overly smoky … just like this tea.
In my first cup (infusions 1 and 2), I got that burnt hazelnut caramel sort of flavor that Steepster suggests in the tasting notes. There is a deep, nutty note. A lovely caramel-y flavor to this. There is some smoke to the flavor too, but not an overpowering presence of smoke. This Da Hong Pao has a pleasing, clean finish.
Subsequent infusions offer more flavors. I still taste the smoke and woodsy tones, but they are softer now. A sweet-tart fruit note in the distance that begins to emerge and come closer in later infusions. Those fruit notes later reveal themselves to be a bit like a cross between a nectarine and a plum … there are some tart notes but mostly sweet.
A really nice Red Robe.
