Here’s another sample sipdown for y’all. This was the last of the first flush Darjeeling samples Vahdam Teas sent me last month. I still have an oolong and two white tea samples to finish, one of which is the Avongrove Emperor, a tea I’ve been wanting to try for over a year. Since I’ve been impressed with the other teas I have received from Vahdam, I will likely get to those in the near future. This Darjeeling was yet another hit.
I prepared this tea in the Western style. I steeped 3 grams of loose tea leaves in approximately 8 ounces of 194 F water for 5 minutes. I did not attempt any additional infusions.
Prior to infusion, the dry tea leaves produced subtly nutty, grassy aromas. After infusion, I noted scents of roasted almond, malt, Muscatel, grass, and straw. In the mouth, the liquor displayed a slight astringency along with notes of wood, grass, straw, lemon rind, Muscatel, malt, toast, beechnut, roasted almond, pungent herbs, and chestnut. There were hints of orange and mango lurking in the background too. The finish was somewhat dry, featuring lingering impressions of nuts, malt, grass, straw, and Muscatel.
Vahdam Teas impressed me once again with this Darjeeling. Of their offerings I have sampled in the past month, this one possessed the aroma and flavor profiles I most often associate with first flush Darjeelings. It, however, was not my favorite. I came to appreciate some of the milder, fruitier, sweeter first flush teas more during this time, but I still would not hesitate to recommend this tea to anyone looking for a quality first flush Darjeeling.
Flavors: Almond, Astringent, Chestnut, Grass, Herbs, Lemon, Malt, Mango, Muscatel, Nutty, Orange, Straw, Toast, Wood
