Wuyi Origin

There is no truer tea tasting note for this tea than the one #tanluwils posted, and it was on his recommendation that I purchased this. Iron Arhat is another of the WuYi 4 that’s hard to find in a good representative state, it’s either too smokey, not roasted enough, a blend of other material, so on. This tea has such clarity and as my friend states in his notes, “I recommend taking breaks in between steeps to extract the most flavor.” I brewed gongfu with a small gaiwan and yes I drank the rinse, I know eeew but I can’t help myself sometimes. The tea holds tight the first 3 then relaxes and at 6 really needs to be told what to do. Flash, 10sec, 15, 20, 30, 45, 60, 90, 150, using 7g in 110ml over 4 different sessions. I did go further in 2 of those sessions and added minutes to the steeps and a bit of demerara, chilled, for ice tea tasting but was not enough tea to make a splash. Overall goodness, enjoyed immensely.

I had stopped trying Xing Reng because I could never “get” the almond fragrance the tea is named after. Time after time it was probably a blended inferior Bai Ye varietal and it would invariably have too much floral perfume. Well I’m glad to say this is a true representative of this fine Dan Cong. For the first pour it is imperative that you place your schnozzola just above the vessel, be gentle, as the hot water hits the thin threads of tea, bingo, almond fragrance. The soup has a lovely flavor, with almond, butter, floral tones, sweet, orange slight sourness in later steepings, just an all around enjoyable brew. I am really impressed by the offerings from this company and will continue my forays into their terroir.

I’ve been waiting to find some free time to try this one. As expected from this vendor, the tea’s quality has surpassed my expectations.

The brewed leaves are some of the most beautiful I’ve ever seen – expertly processed. They’re very green and plump. The aroma is fruity, floral, and subtly grassy in a white tea sort of way. Nice pale tea soup. It’s a very gentle, rich, full bodied, and well structured tea that is delicate yet robust. It’s extremely fresh, lively in the mouth and uplifting with a gentle qi. Initial steeps are typically sweet and floral in a way that is unique to white teas.

But, this one offers something else. There is depth, mellow qi, and structure with lingering sensations and aftertaste. I prefer the later steeps (passed steep 5), which are increasingly spiced (cinnamon, nutmeg, and pears), a bit tingly and cooling with interesting karst-mineral and complex woody notes. This is indicative of high quality tea leaves from well-established plants. This is a proper white tea.

Rich, thick, and complex. Pay attention to this tea’s depth, mouthfeel, structure, and aftertaste rather than just flavors. It brews a clear orange liquor that is thick and velvety. The aroma is heavy — mineral-like, floral, and lightly roasted.

I do a flash rinse with this one, as initial steeps are immediately thick and complex. The tea coats my entire mouth but lingers in the cheeks, back of the mouth, and throat. Notes are savory-sweet zhengyan minerals, florals, red velvet cake(?), cannabis, roasted barley, and a hint of fruit.

Steep 3 onwards reveals the tea’s qi, depth, and structure. Sensations intensify from the back of the tongue into the throat and in the cheeks. The qi is relaxing and warms my core. I can feel the tea’s presence for long time after drinking. Prominent notes here are more floral, zhengyan minerals, cannabis, and hints of roasted barley.

After steep 7, the tea needs to be pushed, and that’s fine. Later steeps are moderately thick and have depth, structure, and a very pleasing zhengyan mineral and floral aftertaste. I recommend taking breaks in between steeps to extract the most flavor. Nice lingering tea buzz!

I’m glad I asked Cindy whether there was an oolong version of her wild growing lapsang souchong; she said there was a very limited quantity and that there was already a line of orders before the tea was even completely processed. I’m glad I got in line on time!

The closest thing I can compare this to is a very lightly roasted Wuyi oolong, as it has a distinctive savory-sweet mineral/rock quality to it in both aroma and flavor. The leaves have an intriguing fragrance that reminds me of roasted sweet tomatoes and orchids. Initially, the tea soup is a dark gold tiptoeing towards light orange.

The tea is very pure and lively in taste and feel. Very nice mouthfeel and qi. It’s crisp and decently thick in texture. It’s also well structured and persistent in the mouth after drinking.There is distinctive Wuyi mineral/rock taste, shuixian-like floral notes, vine tomatoes, brown sugar, and roasted grain. It goes for about 9 steeps but can be pushed further. Flavor, mouthfeel and aftertaste are consistent throughout. I need to do a few more sessions using slightly different parameters. Very unique and tasty oolong!

Bright, deep and persistent with subtle, delicate flavors. The dry leaves have a candied, woody scent. After the first rinse, the leaves exude more succulent, fruity and orchid aromas with a hint of roasted pine nuts. The tea brews a very clear and pale yellow brew.

The first steep was sweet (lilies and roasted grains) and almost tart; it seemed to lack structure and body, but after the 3rd steep the tea begins thicken and coat the roof and back of the mouth, revealing the tea’s structure. The next 5 infusions convey much more body and were much more floral and woody with sweet grain notes. The aftertaste and lingering sensations extend way into the back of the mouth, which are very pronounced and intensify at the 8th and 9th steeps. They induce a mouthfeel and qi that is uplifting, clarifying, and very relaxing. By the 5th steep, the drinker is experiencing a tea that is thick, well-structured and has real depth.

That strong sensation in the back of the mouth and top of the throat remain even in later steeps. It needs to be pushed a bit after steep 10 — I’ve been flash brewing the entire time. This is a very subtle tea that will reward those who take their time.

Another fine Yancha from WuYi Origin. This is their premiere RouGui from the flight of three (Cinnamon, Flowery, Fruit) as it has the highest price tag. I echo tanluwils with the comments on its fine structure and flavors. One thing I can add is the first pour released the quintessential cinnamon aromas I really love in a good RouGui. I can’t wait to try the next two RouGuis they have to offer.

This green tea is buttery sweet! The dry leaf is fruity and vegetal. When the water hits the leaves, sweet and nutty notes emerge. The taste is like buttered fresh picked peas. A lovely, simple tea.

This is the 2017 spring harvest. On smelling the dry leaves, I noticed honey, sweet potato and some pastry or baked sweets. The aroma of the brewed tea was more honey, malt as a sturdy foundation and a sense of richness. The sipped tea is smooth, malty, sweet with Demerara or coconut sugar, with a background note of sweet potato. It’s complex but not too challenging. Just delicious. The brown, carmelized sugar character was what made this tea special to me and it is one I’ll want to keep on hand.

When I tried it last six months ago, it was lighter and more floral, a soprano Wuyi: predominantly high notes. Now, a lower register is developing, with floral just a suggestion rather than dominating the conversation.

Warm, embracing, roasted grains and mineral, there is still a bit of lightness, a lilt at the end of the sip that I have not had in a Da Hong Pao before. It’s almost a drawing up of my soft palate in response to the tea as I end my swallow.

Ah, Da Hong Pao, the big daddy of all cliff tea. This being a blend will certainly not taste like anything I’ve had before, and the mystery continues. Deep, sultry, but not overly forceful as some I’ve tried. A faint sweetness in the back of the throat and some red stone fruit flavors too. Baked 4 times which for me is on the lower side, but they must’ve been watching this like hawks because the amount of roast in the mouth feels like 6-8. Leaf structure held up nicely after 10 steeps, the minerality hits just perfectly at steep 4 along the lateral tongue. A blend for all seasons, cause I love me some DHP.

Bai Ye is just one of those teas that if you buy it from 7 vendors you’ll get 7 different teas. This is fairly representative with a good amount of florals and sweetness and a hint of cashew. Brewed for extra length which is always a plus, but it was not the best I’ve had, still I will drink the rest of my stash with reverence.

I had the 2016 version of this tea and am told by the vendor they are very similar, but that waiting a year for it to develop will change it and is preferred.

My notes will echo to BigDaddy’s. These leaves were skillfully processed and are from good terroir. The honey, orchid, and wild rose fragrance of the brewed leaves is pungent and intoxicating. It reminds me of what a proper, upper tier Dan Cong should be. I used my chaozhou pot, gaiwan, and glass tumbler at work—while the chaozhou clay enhances the purity and depth of the tea, the experience consistent across brewing devices.

Definitive and distinct structure in both texture, flavor, and depth — it coats the center, sides and back of the tongue revealing an interesting confluence of rock sugar, orchid florals, crisp peach, and complex wood and mineral notes presented together. There is real depth and presence that is felt in the sides of the tongue and back of the throat. This one is something to experience and won’t empty your wallet.

Smoooooth! Highly enjoyable, sweet with a hint of nut and oat/wheatberry. Has all the structure of a fine Yancha with the rock appearing in the mid-late steeps, a slight increase in salivation throughout. Glad I bought scads of it.

First time drinking this company’s teas.
Free samples, don’t you just love the anticipation of trying something different with no expectation except they don’t usually give it out free if it sucks. I purchased a sizeable order and this was the free sample sent along. I like oolongs, and generally the higher the quality the more expensive the tea. So oolong drinking can empty the pockets fast. This is listed at 100 gr for $40 bucks or somewhere about $3 a session for me. A session lasts about 3 hours of pleasure so it’s in the realm of affordable. I start from this point in my contemplation of future purchases, the deciding factor being the flavor. Now for the session.
I used my Dan Cong Yixing pot and had at it. As the water hits the leaves an ambrosial cavalcade of honey orchid hits the nose, “dude, quick, put the lid on and stop whiffing.” The first brew is sweetish, it tastes as its fragrance does, over bounding with orchid floral aromas. The next 4 steeps are why I drink tea. Pure bliss, the leaves open up and pour out their beauty. All are over the top floral with a sweet honey at the start of the sip and ending down the throat. There is a gentle dryness slash astringency that is to be expected and in this case relished in the middle sides on the tongue. The aromas and florals hang around it seems forever. Did fall off like I thought after the 7th steep but still managed to brew a few more after that. Nice tea sessions set up the day, makes you smile, relax and face the day.
This is a good, good tea and for the price will definitely be in the cupboard when next I order.

It is always important for me if I can purchase teas directly from the grower. From John B’s blog I found Cindy Chen and her family tea farm. Upon her recommendation of choosing something that is traditionally consumed by her family I purchased this tea. A really delightful tea with rich malt and sweetness that lingers on the the tongue. The tea holds its tastes for many steeps. One of my favorites to date. If you have the funds, I recommend this one to try.

The tea soup is clear. Exactly the color I think of when I say amber. Perhaps a bit watery looking. The brewed aroma is not very strong. It’s almost neutral in it’s aroma. Subtle amount of minerality, but barely anything else.The initial mouthfeel is thick, and a bit dry. This quickly develops into a more smooth, thin feel. Though, it’s still dry. Towards the back of the mouth, I get an interesting pop-rock effect. The flavor is of a sweet minerality, with a pretty forward roast characteristic. Don’t let the tea cool down too much. It becomes a complete mineral bomb if you do. The finish is a strong, almost tongue bite of minerality. There is a also little chocolate bitterness in the finish. It’s a pleasant taste, if a bit one dimensional. I will say, the finish is really long lasting. A little bit more sweetness comes through after about a minute.

Big switch from about the sixth infusion on. I also changed the water source, which is probably the bigger factor. A lot more sweetness. The minerality is finally taking a back note. Now, it’s almost sugarcane(brown) like sweetness, with some light sided florality. The texture is also much less dry. It’s almost velvet like now; heavy like an embrace. The finish is quite a bit more complex now. You get layers of that sugarcane sweetness, with the a light florality, and strong (but mellow) undertones of minerality. Really, a big difference. The only thing that hasn’t really changed, is the aroma. In both the gaiwan, and the cup, it’s almost non existent.

Cha qi (tea energy) is very mellow. It’s a sort of radiating heat from the mid point of the sternum. I can feel the cha qi slowly enveloping me as I drink more. Moving up from the chest, and into the arms. Eventually, It sort of sits in my forehead. Which is common for me. A sort of pleasant heaviness.

Soup is clear, with a dark red, maybe cinnamon, hue. The gaiwan leaves (brewed) are not super aromatic. There is a bit of maltiness, and a hint of stone fruits, but not much else. Initial taste of the tea is a bit underwhelming. First taste is malt. A bit tannic, but not unpleasant or overwhelming. Which is a surprise. I’m brewing this tea longer than I typically do for hong cha. That heavy malty flavor is joined by a strong minerality on the finish. Beneath that, there is a melon sweetness. Like a very sweet honeydew, or cantaloupe, or something similar. Texture wise, the tea also mimics the watery-juiciness typically found in melons.

Pretty much zero chaqi.

Leaves are on the small-medium side. Jet black, with a slightly metallic sheen. Steamed aroma is a deep, fragrant orchid. Brewed aroma is sweeter, with more honey notes. Tea liquor is dark, muddy black-red. Not very clear, but not impenetrable. First taste is bitter, that rapidly evolves into a thick, honey sweetness. On the finish, a slightly bitter orchid is mixed up with the sweetness. It is so incredibly sweet. Like I was sucking on a crystallized piece of honey. Finish is long lasting. Throat feeling is negligible. No noticeable cha qi.

This tea isn’t super complex. What it is, is tasty, and a pleasure to drink.

Dry leaf is small, twisted, mostly matte black leaf. Pretty uniform leaf size. There are a few odd dark brown leaves thrown in, and a few untwisted partial leaves. I assume this is due to the “wild” nature of the product. Steamed aroma is unremarkable. The gaiwan aroma (post first brew) is also unremarkable. Maybe a bit of stone fruit, but that’s being generous.

Initial taste is a cacophony of fruits. It’s syrupy like fruit punch mix. Important to note, there is no chemical, or artificial taste. The tea soup is viscous. It feels oil like on the tongue. Taste develops into an intense sugarcane, fruity sweetness There’s also a bit of citrus taste in the finish. More shaddock, than, say, lemon. This citrus flavor also comes through on the lips. The finish starts off sweet. That sweetness is joined by an undertone of citrus, and a cool sensation towards the back of the mouth.

Longer steeps don’t seem to change the flavour much.

This is an incredibly complex tea! You can tell just by taking a whiff of the steam after pouring it into a cup.
The tea is quite thick, sweet like some sort of honey, somewhat chocolate-like, it has a somewhat hearty base, maybe malt? The tea can also be re-steeped soooo many times. I use 5g in a 120ml gaiwan, and you must quickly pour out the water after so it doesn’t over-brew the tea for the first 3-4 steeps. Every steeping is aromatic and flavorful, even at the 10th steeping (although I sometimes stop drinking this tea before the leaves are completely exhausted).
The leaves themselves are uniform buds like you would expect of a good Jin Jun Mei tea. Because of this, I think maybe its better to not use boiling water. Perhaps 90 degrees Celsius.

So if you like black teas, then I think you will really love this one!
All this being said, I am not a huge drinker or appreciator of black tea. I usually prefer drinking them very casually without paying much attention to them. And occasionally I brew good black tea western style. I pre-heat my gaiwan with boiling water, put about 1g of leaf in and then steep the tea in boiling water. I let it steep until its barely hot, basically just warm. Then the tea is very strong, and if the tea is good it will also be smooth. It has a lot of richness overall and a lot of sweetness will also come out where when brewing gongfu style it might not be noticed (perhaps some complexities are dulled because of this). Then the tea can sipped very slowly, just like how I would imagine people would sip on whisky (I don’t drink alcohol, but in my mind it seems analogous, also similar in color). Each sip will have a veeeery rich flavor. Only works with fine black teas or else it will go very bitter. Works fine with this Jin Jun Mei!