This FF Darjeeling smells a lot like dried herbs. It has aromas of courgette flowers, grass, hay, thyme, citrus zest and there is also a subtle sweet spiciness in the dry leaf scent. When wet, further notes of garden peas, acacia flowers, and sage emerge.
The taste is savoury and slightly bitter with a lemon sourness in the finish. There are flavours of green wood, courgette, clear smoke, orchid, sweet grass and others. Aftertaste is also somewhat vegetal and floral, but much more on the sweeter rather than sour & bitter side of the spectrum. I get hints of various spices, vanilla, and cocoa powder, among other fleeting flavours.
Overall, I find the tea to be quite balanced and dynamic at the same time, which is not that common. It is worth noting that it is very much on the green side with little oxidation, even for a FF Darjeeling.
Flavors: Bitter, Citrus Zest, Cocoa, Drying, Floral, Flowers, Garden Peas, Grass, Green Wood, Hay, Herbs, Orchid, Pleasantly Sour, Sage, Smoke, Spices, Sweet, Sweet, Warm Grass, Thyme, Umami, Vanilla, Vegetal, Zucchini