Year: 2006

Dry Leaf: Small black leaves and vibrant orange curled buds.

Aroma: Musty notes of a long-extinguished campfire, and the smells of hot chocolate and oatmeal with raisins.

Tea Color: The dark red-brown of rosewood, completely crystalline with tea oil swirling on the surface.

Taste through early steepings: Assertive and literally mouth watering spearmint and cedar notes which quickly evaporate off the palate leaving the sweetness of flaky pasty and dark mission figs. A few steepings in, a warmth builds up in the throat like the glow of red wine.

Taste in middle to late steepings: The dark fig sweetness develops into a deeply complex spice of ginger and ceylon cinnamon with hints of cracked peppercorn, while paradoxically becoming cooling on the tongue. The tip of the tongue is engaged by the subdued sweetness of raw sugar.

Steeped Leaf: Dark mahogany brown, with buds still tightly coiled.

Notes: This brick is an excellent investment. At a lower price point, this tea offers an incredibly intriguing and diverse set of flavors that could only grow with time.

UPDATE: This tea has sold out. Verdant Tea has just released a second generation Tea Trail shu pu’er pressed in 2004 by Willow Grove Workshop. There is a new listing on Steepster for it here:

http://steepster.com/teas/verdant-tea/27294-tea-trail-2004-willow-grove-workshop

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