72 Tasting Notes
Rinsed once this fellow developed such an intense fruity thick honey-ish scent – breath taking! This scents really stick to nearly everything around you – it manifest within your nose, later in your mouth and the air surrounding your tea session. Aroma of honey, magnolia delivered with a big fruit basket of juicy fresh mango, lychee and a hint of pineapple also left some space for a very nutty fusion of pine nuts and hazelnut. Especially within the taste this nutty a bit harsh mineral tone prepared the ground for a very VERY long lasting fruity sweet aftertaste experience which stick to your tasting buds for a very long time. Like I mentioned this pine nuts and hazelnut taste was one side of the coin but the other side definitely was a mix between raisins, honey-beeswax flavor, magnolia, mango and Japanese sweet soft bread. That’s it and it is totally enough because all those nuances are very well balanced and they play their parts perfectly without any off-time to it. Take it easy you can at least enjoy it for around 7 infusions – with Chao Zhou style even 12 or more.
Taste-wise there is a certain astringency to it but just a thin layer which covers the thickness of nuts and chocolate – and there is a lot of it!. Roasted steaming hazelnut meets hazelnut cream meets dark chocolate a hint of vanilla and cinnamon plus roasted pine nuts, walnuts and almonds steaming up through your entire scenting senses. Wow! That’s a really strong fellow – not strong when it comes to its pushing parameters but when it comes to its full taste. Within the second infusion you definitely are going to experience a herbal mineral flair too which also tingles your palatal, teeth and throat. This is for sure a Winter tea with all its warming benefits. This tea does might sound not that complex as some other ones do when it comes to a variety of nuances but within its little cosmos this Competition Dong Ding is definitely a precisely and masterfully composed Oolong with a deep nutty and chocolatey profile. If you want to compare it I would say it somehow reminds me of a fusion between a Wuyi Bai ji guan Yancha and a nicely roasted Japanese Houjicha. There is no end to this tea – after a countless infusions I stopped drinking because I noticed that my body had enough. This fellow keeps going and going
This Trap Bird Shu Pu-erh by W2T is a wonderfully strange fellow. The scent as the taste are very similar – clean, thick, full mouth feel but not overpowering. Definitely a nice introducing Shu for some new devotee of the dark side ;) – It is really amazing how excellent this Pu-erh was composed. I never experience such a clean harmonious bouquet and such a mellow rounded flavor within a Shu. Within the second infusion those nearly pitch black cups are stunning – I’ve never seen such a deep darkness within a teacup. This isn’t by far the first Shu I enjoyed but definitely the one with the darkest soul. This little demon really seduces your senses with such a fine and elegant creaminess – Taste-wise this fellow seems to be in existence just to please every tasting buds your mouth might offer. Its taste is hard to describe because it is like an overall concept where every part and bit works perfectly together within this symbiosis. Although the texture of the liquor is a very creamy one the feeling within your throat tells a totally and quite dry different story – a really interesting unfolding. Beside this typical Autumn woodsiness there is a distinct bourbon vanilla note noticeable within its nicely crafted profile. BUT this fellow isn’t a Shu for long infinity hours – the strongest parts are definitely the 2nd and the 3rd infusions – it still got a lot of potential until the 6th but then the show is nearly over. Nonetheless this Trap Bird’s whistle will be remembered!
Today I am talking about a beauty of its own – I am talking about the Nectar Top Shelf Spring 2016 Milanxiang Dancong by Bitterleaf Teas! Already those dried leaves spread out such a very nicely baked scent with a very herbal citrus hint of Ginger and ginseng plus a very nutty typical texture of pine nuts and grape seeds. Even in their dry stage those leaves really watering your mouth in expectations of the coming taste. Rinsed once, soaked in boiled water and steaming up the heat of their first bath the whole aroma gets even more heightened with a deep pickled cherry kind of flavor or like cherry jam. Beside that there is a very certain herbal note to it which reminds me again of ginseng but with a fruity aspect of lychee or best to say Chinese longan to it.
The sweetness level is very dominant but well balanced with the herbal aspects and the finish of a slightly subtle elegant grape seed bitterness at the end of it. But taste-wise there is a lot more going on and slightly different because this sourness within the aroma of longan before isn’t that much noticeable anymore. Instead there is a more lychee going on but first and foremost a very clear and straight to the point pine apple juicy flair to it. But the pine apples do not work alone they got a very lovely ally within their fruity fusion – Maracuya (Passion Fruit). Calling those the main actors so far there are some small but not unimportant cast member left like very sweet red apples and Asian pear. In the case of this Milan Dancong there isn’t a very intense warming or tingling feeling within the mouth region but instead this whole fruitiness covers your tongue, palatal, inner cheek sections and throat with a fine layer of this artistically composed symphony of aromatic pleasures for a very long time – it nearly sticks like the best glue ever to every tasting buds your inner mouth section could possible offer. Altogether the whole tasting experience reminded me a lot of a very nicely well-orchestrated multi vitamin juice. There is a certain floral aspect to it too but quite hard to put it to a certain flower typ – most I would say orchid and a hint of magnolia would suite the description the best. Talking about the herbal aspects again the two main parts which put this taste in line the best would be ginseng and cinnamon bark. There is definitely a honey sweetness to it too but more like a subtle layer very fine and thin on every of those named aspects before. This Milan Dancong is a total winner!
Look at those leaves – just breathtaking. Those different coloration you are going to discover especially when those leaves unfold and show their true size and nature. Within its dry stage there is already such a thick and characteristic scent to it which makes this Ginger Dancong so special. Major nuances are definitely apricot jam, pumpkinseed oil, pine nuts and sunflower seeds. Bathing in steaming heat everything gained a more intense aura now front-wise pickled cherries and of course the apricot jam. Beside some further elegant subtle aspects of Asian pear and peaches plus a fine layer of pineapple at the very end of it there is also a very certain herbal scent of ginseng to it within this very thick and creamy atmosphere.
But as nice as this already sounds the taste is even better. This High Mountain “Jiang Mu Xiang” Ginger Dancong is one of my favorites by now from Yunnan Sourcing’s current stock. Taste-wise it walks on a quite similar but still more complex and with mor depth to it as its scent already promised. The frontline definitely forms a very fruity line with a herbal ginseng support at their backs while a very subtle note of basil is noticeable far in the last rows. Nutty nuances are definitely an important aspect of this Dancong especially within the profile of sunflower seeds and pine nuts. At the end the very last echo got something vegetable to it like a fresh soybean sprout salad. But lets dedicate our attention to the main actors – Fruit and Sweetness! Main parts are definitely the fusion of apricots and a hint of cherries but more like cherry gums (like maybe some know them MAOAM). But there is so much more going on between such fine layers like strawberries plus a very sweet a hint of lychee and peaches. Even a subtle note of banana is noticeable – it really tastes like a multi vitamin juice in some way but in a very nice and non sugared composed tea-way. Very long lasting mouth feel! But you need to take care in comparison of bitterness but it is still a quite forgiving tea. Even its bitter aspects are very pleasant for your tasting buds – really a very good fellow.
There is so much going on within this Taiwanese Oolong – hints of roses changes the palette immediately with a thick and dense scent and taste of orchid, magnolia and osmanthus but even those ones aren’t enough to describe this intense floral overload ~ but in a very VERY good and masterly composed way. The texture is so fresh and creamy at the same moment. With this elegant creaminess comes also a perfect taste-wise counterpart to it which would be described best as butter biscuit. This is my second Baozhong by TTC and I think they were ones of the best I’ve had so far. Highly recommendable!
For a ripe pu-erh this fellow really comes along with such a nice sweetness plus a hint of fruitiness – just lovely. Scent-wise there is a first and foremost chocolatey aroma noticeable – very thick and well balanced. Further a very creamy view into the future one with a herbal nearly minty flavor to it but a bit more like ginseng is playing a very important role within this delicious act.
Like the shu fortune teller foretold this liquor is predestinated to be creamy and thick in its texture with a nice mixture of chocolate, a small hint of roasted hazelnuts, a much more distinct nuance of Chinese herbal medicine flair, a bit of wood and somehow there is a certain taste of marshmallows ready to be experienced – but not that extremely sweet ones – more like we know it in our Country called “Eibischteig”. But the most focus on sweetness definitely builds up again a nice elegant composition of filled chocolates with a fine hint of cherries inside. Like a fresh salad at the end you also might taste a subtle note of fresh spinach. Of course you can’t left out the main ingredients of earthiness and mushroom flavors when it comes to a nice dark Shu but this aren’t the main aspects of this wonderful Pu-erh – more like a known side effect. The balance and the creaminess within its dark magic is just breathtaking and really well put into the spotlight. A skillfully overall rounded concept.
This fellow walks hand in hand its tasty path when it comes to its taste and scent. Both express themselves in a very woodsy flair which really reminds me of the following components – Old Indian furniture like teak or mango wood, wet tree bark, a deep dense rainy day forest flair with a thick layer of mushrooms to it like shiitake and those brown mushrooms (we call them Creme Champignon). Beside that there is an unknown secret sweet accent to it and a very nice mineral / stony fusion. This fellow is definitely a worshiper of the dark side as you can see. Already the first infusion near lead into a deep sinister bloody red and transformed very quick into its final nearly blackish zone. Typical for a good little devil this fellow keeps going for many following rounds.
This is definitely freaking medicine! It taste and scents so completely different than everything I ever experienced before. Scent wise within its dry stage there is a small hint of a Sheng Puerh flair. Within its steaming wet phase your are going to notice a known White Tea scent but also something very herbal citrus like-ish. Taste wise you can feel this herbal medicine spiciness taking over every possible sensing, tasting or scenting functions of your body. Every cell even the smallest ones are effected and under control. This spiciness is cooling your mouth and throat region instantly without hesitating any second. There is no time to rethink or think at all – Everything is now and now is everything! This tea really gets you were you wouldn’t believe it could reach. It equips you with wings but keeps you on the ground at the same moment.
Getting deeper and deeper with this elegant precious tea you will discover more and more of it. In fact after a couple of cups I finally found the best description I could possible hand you over TCM meets Jassid bitten Tea! In this case the itemized formula sounds like this chrysanthemum flowers, Goji berries, dried Chinese red dates, Licorice root, Ginseng, Longan plus a fine cane sugar taste connected with this floral but more exotic fruity taste of an Oriental Beauty jassid bitten tea. Within this fruitiness there is an excellent fusion of passion fruit, a fine layer of sweet orange followed by a hint of lychee plus a fine citrus-hint. This is definitely a warming tea. Highly recommendable!
Scent wise your senses arrived straight into the middle of a fresh blooming sunny hillside covered with field flowers and herbs – very well chosen. Even within its steaming bouquet you can already feel its smoothness!
The main tasting profile is very well rounded with a fine perfectly placed sour astringent layer. Within this raw Sheng even a young one like this – the bitterness level is very well balanced and only noticeable if you screw it up and over brew it massively. There is a certain berry sweetness to it which blends in masterfully with the rest of this deliciously bouquet. After the cup last drop pleasured my tongue the empty inside isn’t that empty at all – this typical beeswax scent is very tasty and gained a level of perfection. Enjoying this wonderful raw Sheng is like feeling the first rays of dawn on your skin.
There is without a doubt a strong placed mineral natural accent to it while the main focus locates itself within a skilled composed vegetable environment filled with young fresh spinach, lamb’s lettuce and such a nice an unique sweet combo of a hint of raspberries and strawberries ~ just lovely! This is a perfect example of great skills, love, wisdom and experiences plus and most important the undeniable beauty of mother nature!
