This sample from AprTea was marked as Zhang Ping Shui Xian, which it clearly isn’t. Like the previous one, I am fairly confident I could identify it from the selection they offer. When I opened it, it had a distinctive charcoal roast aroma that has dissipated after the few weeks that I gave the tea to air out. Now the dry leaf smell is a kind of generic greenish oolong scent. However, the rinse does smell like a lightly charcoal roasted oolong again. The wet leaves have an enticing smell that is indeed somewhat floral and cooling, but also fairly heavy and earthy at the same time. It reminds me of clay bricks a little bit.
The taste is balanced – sweet, grassy and floral with the characteristic TGY sourness. Overall, it’s a little flat and somewhat boring though. The body is medium to light and the mouthfeel is slightly milky. I get some astringency in the finish, but only in the mouth.
To sum up, this is a balanced and easy to drink light to medium roasted TGY that’s anything but exciting.
Flavors: Char, Clay, Floral, Milk, Sour, Sweet
