Hua Tai Tea

My first cup of Bai Hao served to me 3 years ago was fantastic. Over the years I have slowly forgotten why I and everyone else in the world enjoyed this tea as much as we did. It got to the point that I rarely made myself a cup of Bai Hao. All of this changed for me when I was traveling in Taiwan with a friend.

This Bai Hao tea ended up being one of the best uncovered gems of the trip. We literally just stumbled up the shop selling it and made the purchase based on the way the dry leaves looked and smelled.

Dry Leaves: Wu se cha; 5 color tea, is a name that definitely best describes the dry look. The leaves look pristine, the way they curl around each other and clump together. There are different hughes of dark red, bordering on brown with some grey tips thrown in.

Infusion: The infusion liqueur is a deep red. The smell is so sweet- both a tropical sweetness and a malty sweetness.

Taste: The taste is very similar to a nice smooth, bold, and rich chinese black tea. But there are more layers than just that. Buried beneath the malty flavor lies a tropical pineapple paired with black pepper qualities.

Simply one of the most remarkable teas I’ve ever tasted. It’s easy to forget why Bai Hao is so well-known when I haven’t had it in a while. I infused this tea in a (rather generic) yixing-style pot, probably about 220ml in size. We were filming the infusions as a ceremony and so the timing was a little rushed at times and overlong at others. Once I even poured the infusion back into the pot and re-poured it to get a pouring shot! Absolutely every time was a meditative experience. The honey-rich flavor jolts you out of your thoughts for just a moment and you remember why life is great.

Amazing. Honey and cream. Sweet and comforting. This is real Bai Hao. Each and every leaf I find in the pot is a perfect two-leaves-and-a-bud with a glowing golden hue. Seems to last about 4-5 infusions.

Very sweet. Light in body and flavor. Like drinking fresh mountain spring water sweetened with honey.