Bailin Gongfu Black Tea

BLACK TEA, YES.

I have not had a good, truly deep, dark, black tea in a loooooooooooong time. I have definitely had black tea recently (not logged since it was all bagged and out of town away from computer access) but not what I really consider black tea, and not THIS good.

The smell steeping was a grainy, malty smell.

The taste?

I am drinking a cup of chocolate, caramel, wheat….goodness. That’s exactly what I taste. Sugar and milk definitely brought the chocolate to the forefront, that’s the first taste that hits you right away. The wheat taste is a sweet, middle tone, that develops in the middle. The caramel is an underlying flavour, tasted throughout, and strongest at the end of the sip.

Usually, I do not taste three flavours as distinctly and powerfully in teas as I do in this tea, and they usually don’t taste as delicious. I mean, I have had flavoured teas recently that taste delicious—just look at my reviews—but that’s usually ONE flavour, not three. Teas with more than one flavour can be hard to pin down. I think that is why I love this tea so much—it is SO complex and so rich and dark and I LOVE it.

Man, and this was only a free sample from Angel at Teavivre that came with a purchase. :( IT’S GONE, NOOO.

I miss having a great black tea in my cupboard. I urge you all to go drink this—sweetened to taste and with milk or cream. It’s divine!

I am new to Bailin Gongfu, so this tea came as something of a surprise to me. Aside from the Lapsang Souchong, all the teas in the Teavivre black tea sampler I’ve been working through have been mellow and mild. But this tea is hearty. Somewhat earthy. For the first time, I’m understanding why people say ‘bread notes’ when describing tea. There’s some sort of vegetable it reminds me of, but for the life of me, I can’t put my finger on exactly which one. And there are other elusive flavors too. Man, this tea is complicated. Anyway, I like it, but it’s a lot to take in all at once. Maybe I’ll be able to sort out the flavors better the second time around.

Bailin Gongfu take two. My first steep was weird. Not sure if it was what I was eating or if I did the steep process wrong but it was very meh. But now I’ve pulled out my water kettle and a new basket. Before I start this let me just say I’ve got high expectation because of all the high ratings here.

So let’s start this off with the leaves. Wet they have an impressive earthy, somewhat chocolatly smell. The wet leaves smell kinda smokey. Kinda bitter. The tea kettle makes the water way too hot for me to drink so I am letting it cool a little bit. I’m taking sips here and there hoping to not burn my tongue. Think I’ll just wait..

Still kinda hot but not a tongue burning temp. So far I’m not tasting anything amazing like I smelled.

Ok now its at a drinkable temp. But honestly I still don’t find it to be anything special. It is very earthy. Slight bitter after tones. Honestly I’m just not that impressed. For fairness I won’t rate this one.

Polished off the rest of this sample from Cavocorax this morning. Realized it is much more flavorful when it is overleafed, I am still not getting any chocolate notes though.

Actually it struck me as a tiny bit smoky, but maybe that’s my untrained tastebuds misidentifying another flavor within.

Still enjoyable, just not as much as the Golden Monkey or the Superfine Tan Yang.

Thank you, Cavo!

I have 100g of this tea sitting right next to my Laoshan Black….and I haven’t touched them for months. It seems that I’ve relegated these teas to winter drinking without even knowing it….which is not good, because in southern california you’re lucky to wear out one sweater in your lifetime because you never need to wear one! So it’s time to pull out the winter sweaters of tea, albeit a little early in the season and start enjoying their warm fuzzies again.

As with other fujian blacks, my nose and palate always seem to pick up a cannabis note first. After that comes all the wonderful complex flavors that Chinese teas can bring…baked bread/grains, cocoa, malt, yam skin… and all balanced beautifully. Bailin gongfu has a lovely round mouthfeel and no astringency, which I adore. If you’re ordering from TeaVivre, ask for this to be your free sample….as you shouldn’t miss what this tea has to offer. It is refined, complex and just plain yummy.

This another type of black tea I haven’t tried yet. It smells nice, like honey wheat bread. That is also what I get in the flavour. The sweetness is nice and subtle. I think this should really be a breakfast tea.

Wowza, the super small, curled leaves kinda surprised me. Drinking it reminds me of a lighter, more caramel and less chocolate version of Laoshan Black, with a hint of honey. It’s quite lovely, and I may just need to add this to my wishlist to get more at some point. As it stands, it was a freebie sample that Teavivre sent me (thank you!) and I’m sharing the rest with someone that I think might enjoy it just as much.

This is exactly what I needed this morning.

Fiance was up at the crack of dawn to do some work related things (ERP upgrade going live this coming Monday and all). So, while I’m glad I’m not him, I am usually incapable of falling back asleep once I’m woken up. No exception today.

Basically I needed something that perked me up and cheered me up all at once.

What a way to fit a bill!

This is delicious, malty and bready with notes of dark, rich cocoa, and a bit of fruity caramel.

Mmm, this tea never disappoints. I really should try it gong fu style, but it’s just so easy to make it western style and it’s consistently delicious. It’s a great first tea of the morning too. The hint of smoke gives you that kick you need to wake up. I’m having some friends over for tea next weekend and trying to decide if I should try a new scone recipe or do everyone’s favorite. It gets so boring to make the same scone every time, but I know it’ll be a hit, whereas I don’t know what the reaction will be with a new one. Hmmm.

I am finally getting towards the back of one side of my cupboard and I found this gem with a few other blacks I have never tried yet. Excited! This is also perfect because it is a lower caffeine tea and I am planning on going for a run today before work. Double happy because I am not a fan of jittery trotting. :)

Dry: The loose leaf is thin and compact with tightly rolled leaves. There is some black and orange coloration to the individual buds. The dry scent is wonderful! Fragrant, sweet, malty.

Steeped: This makes quite a beautiful rich red-brown clear liquor. The steeped scent is also very enjoyable with an intensified malty-sweetness that is lovely to someone that enjoys teas from this spectrum like I do.

Taste: This tea is flavorful without being overpowering and naturally honey-sweet without being cloying or dessert-like. I brewed it Western style and did not add anything to it and it tastes fresh, medium-bodied, malty, and enjoyable naturally. NO astringency whatsoever. I think this one might be a good tea to introduce someone to Chinese black teas for the first time.