Lately, I’ve found that when fresh my Yunnan teas have been one of my most diversely flavoured tea types. They pretty well all have cocoa, honey and grainy/malt note which are the last notes to dissipate as they age, but diversify with fruity, herbaceous floral, leather, licorice, sweet potato, and mineral notes.
This tea may not have as complex a flavour profile or as thick a mouth feel as some of my others but what it does uyave is rich, pleasant, and comforting. It makes a nice, comforting everyday tea, especially for those who love distinct cocoa notes.
The dry leaves are longer thinner and more tightly wound than most of my current Yunnan’s. There is about 75-80% golden tips with short downy trichomes. The dry leaves smell comfortingly of malt, grain, cocoa, and a hint of alfalfa.
I got 5 steeps using a little over one TSP in 200ml at 90°C (1, 1.2, 1.4, 2 & 3 min)
The initial steeps brewed to a dark almost coffee coloured or dark oak tinged with gold colour. The scent was of malt, honey, cocoa and hay with butter and longan notes mixing in with these notes in later steeps.
Flavour notes appearing were top notes of longan, malt, clover, blended with dissolved cocoa powder, honey( sweetest in the middle steeps), sweet potato, cream, butter, berry, grapish note, alfalfa and minerals.
I found the tea to be only slightly sweet but well balanced. It is neither sour, sweet or overly savoury. It has a moderate density with little to no astringency with a nice kick of caffeine. The cocoa notes deepen as it cools.
Although it is not as complex or distinct as some of my Yunnan’s, it does what it does well and makes a nice cocoa rich everyday tea!
Thanks Angel and TeaVivre for this lovely tea.
People who liked this
Comments
yyz, What an excellent and highly detailed tasting note!
My farm girl background appreciates anybody who knows what alfalfa smells like!
Although I’ve mostly been a city girl with certain respites in the wilderness. I spent sometime on my great aunts farm and in High School, I taught lessons and worked at a stable that raised hunter jumpers and dressage horses and rehabilitated racehorses and had a specialty with problem broodmares. Very familiar with the scent of alfalfa, from growing it and stacking heavy bails of second cut hay.
yyz, What an excellent and highly detailed tasting note!
My farm girl background appreciates anybody who knows what alfalfa smells like!
Although I’ve mostly been a city girl with certain respites in the wilderness. I spent sometime on my great aunts farm and in High School, I taught lessons and worked at a stable that raised hunter jumpers and dressage horses and rehabilitated racehorses and had a specialty with problem broodmares. Very familiar with the scent of alfalfa, from growing it and stacking heavy bails of second cut hay.