Mmm, opening up the bag sent a rich waft of butter up to my nose.
Steeped at 90C for 3 minutes, the liquor is pale yellow, and smells buttery, with vegetal, umami and seaweed notes.
On the palette this is interesting. Very, very floral (jasmine?), a wee bit sweet, and very creamy, buttery. A burst of sweet hay mid sip, and then seaweed and umami linger on the finish.
As this cup cools the floral notes develop even further, becoming even more full-mouth, and taking on an almost perfumey quality, that is very pleasant. I also start to pick up some really awesome, round fruity notes – juicy, fresh and tropical, lychee, peach, mango. Toasty notes are blossoming on the finish as this cup develops further.
Continued sipping reveals rich coconut notes at the opening of the sip.
This is very different from the other milk oolongs I’ve tried, and I’m really enjoying the complexity and uniqueness of this. I’ve never had a cup of tea that has changed so much in a single steeping.
The second steep, again 90C, 3 min, still smells very buttery, but the taste is very vegetal, almost grassy, still lots of umami. A touch of tang and astringency, notes of toastiness again. A bit creamy still, though that’s mostly retreated to mouth feel rather than flavour. Floral notes on the finish instead of mid sip and much more subtle, and then lingering hay long after the sip is done.
As I sip and the cup cools, I’m getting more of the butter notes back on my palette. The grassy note is just a fleeting burst as the tea hits my tongue and then mellows right away, and the more it cools, the more the dominant notes shift from vegetal to buttery. There’s also a touch of astringent mouth feel developing as I get closer to the bottom of the cup.
The second cup isn’t as amazing as the first, but it’s still pretty amazing.
Third steep, 90C, 2 minutes, half as much water.
It’s both buttery and very perfumey on the nose. The perfumey taste is also the opening note on the tongue with this cup, which then draws in some vegetal and butter, and a bit of grassy tang on the finish. There’s a slight bitter note which only peeks out for a second before it’s gone.
I think I’m about done with these leaves for now, but I am super impressed with this tea. I think it’s going to be a staple in my cupboard.
Flavors: Astringent, Bitter, Butter, Coconut, Cream, Floral, Fruity, Hay, Jasmine, Lychee, Mango, Peach, Perfume, Seaweed, Tangy, Toasty, Umami, Vegetal
Aaaandddd wishlisted! Sounds fantastic :-)