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Alright, I am in the process of getting rid of some of these aged oolongs. I only had a sample of this one and I ended up drinking it yesterday evening. For me, these aged oolongs from Verdant have been so hit or miss. I thought the aged Mao Xie was pretty much excellent, but the two aged Tieguanyins I had prior to this one I found to be more or less awful. This one turned out to be a pleasant surprise.

I prepared this tea gongfu style. After an approximately 10 second rinse, I steeped the full 5 grams of loose tea leaves in 4 ounces of 212 F water for 10 seconds. This infusion was followed by 14 subsequent infusions. Steep times for these infusions were as follows: 13 seconds, 16 seconds, 20 seconds, 25 seconds, 30 seconds, 40 seconds, 50 seconds, 1 minute, 1 minute 15 seconds, 1 minute 30 seconds, 2 minutes, 3 minutes, 5 minutes, and 7 minutes.

Prior to the rinse, the dry tea leaves gave off pronounced aromas of vanilla and flowers. Verdant describes the floral characteristic as being similar to lilikoi blossoms, and I have to say that I found that description to be eerily accurate. There were also traces of cedar, citrus, and aloeswood incense on the nose. After the rinse, the floral aromas grew stronger, as did the aromas of cedar, citrus, and aloeswood. Aromas of sticky rice and wood began to emerge as well. The first infusion produced a similar bouquet that once again saw the vanilla assert itself. In the mouth, robust notes of vanilla, lilikoi, and sticky rice dominated the entry before giving way to an interesting combination of aloeswood, cedar, wood bark, butter, and citrus notes. The finish was long and smooth, emphasizing vanilla and sticky rice notes underscored by aloeswood, cedar, and lilikoi. Subsequent infusions grew fruitier and somewhat more floral. The indistinct citrus notes morphed into more clearly defined notes of kumquat, while sweeter notes of blueberry and marionberry emerged. I also began to catch a ghostly hint of orchid, while mineral notes began to emerge toward the finish. The later infusions were increasingly dominated by minerals and lingering notes of butter, vanilla, and wood bark, though fleeting impressions of flowers, aloeswood, marionberry, and citrus were still just barely detectable in the background.

Compared to the other two aged Tieguanyins I have tried, this was a totally different experience. Unlike the other two, this one was quite enjoyable. I greatly appreciated its smooth body and its unique aroma and flavor profiles. What ultimately made all the difference for me was that this tea still resembled an oolong, and a quality oolong at that. I could not say that about the other two.