Keemun Aromatic Snail Black Tea

I’ve been really impressed with everything I’ve tried from TeaVivre. This is no exception. It’s quite complex and multidimensional, and was an extremely enjoyable drinking experience.
It’s thick and slightly savory. Notes of molasses and white flowers follow. Baked brown bread and raisins are in the finish.

Another tea I always thought was smoky and generally avoided. This has hints of maltiness, but with a coppery-ness. The Lapsang Souchong had this too, but less in my mind, because I remember not being bothered by it. This tea comes off more savoury. The coppery flavour falls into the background and more savoury-ness comes forward as the tea cools. It’s like I’m drinking a veg broth.

Yet another sample from Teavivre that I have to make note of because it is so delicious. I’ve had a hankering for unflavored blacks lately. Is this a thing? As one’s tea journey progresses, flavored teas fall out of favor? I feel like it is, indeed, a thing. I still love flavored teas, though. I don’t think that will change completely.
Anyway, I was perusing my tea cabinet this morning, and realized I needed to dip into my stash of samples in hopes of finding a tea I felt like drinking. Came up with this one and it was the perfect thing. Sweet, mellow, comforting, strong scent of, well, black tea. I loved it. So much so, in fact, that I went to Teavivre to buy some. I don’t think I’ll be getting it, though, as they are currently only shipping from their US warehouse to US destinations, and this tea didn’t seem to be on the warehouse list.
The current coronavirus crisis really brings home how globally interconnected we are, and how, eventually, everything gets affected. Even the tea in your cup. Here’s hoping this outbreak is short lived.

Straight black for this morning – super delicious today. Malty, cocoa like hints and generally just a smooth enjoyable cup.

Sample Sipdown! (41)

Ugh… I don’t know why, but I feel so tired this morning. It’s 10:30, and I still want to go back to sleep! XD Hopefully more tea will start to perk me up a bit.

This tea actually reminds me of a Taiwanese black. It has noticeable waffle-like cinnamon and honey notes, along with a nicely fruity flavor. It does also have the thick and satisfying malty sweet potato and bread notes that I would expect from a Yunnan black. There’s a touch of savory flavor, along with a smooth and mellow earthy undertone. And perhaps a wisp of a floral note at the end of the sip?

I guess I don’t know enough about Keemun to recognize which notes are characteristic of this type of tea… Luckily, I went crazy when TeaVivre had their samples sale, so I now have several of their Keemun varieties to try!

Anyway, this is a thick and satisfying Chinese black that makes me think of soft toasted bread drizzled with honey and perhaps a touch of apricot or plum preserves, and sprinkled with cinnamon.

A definite nom.

164/365

I finished off my bag of LP’s This Keemun is BS yesterday, and so I had to replace it with another keemun. This one is malty, with a streak of juicy fruitiness. It’s not astringent, as such, but slightly drying, and perhaps not quite as smooth and jammy as I’d hoped it would be.

It more than lives up to the “aromatic” part of its name, with a beautifully floral scent. I don’t get a lot of floral in the flavour, except maybe very slightly in the aftertaste. I’m glad of that, though, since floral in general isn’t something I particularly enjoy in tea.

I like this one, but I’ve definitely had keemun I prefer. It’s a bit too middle of the road to really stand out, but pleasant enough. Probably not a repurchase.

OK, that was an interesting tea. I mean, it looks interesting: nice little snails. Not much of an aroma though, and the taste is very mild and smooth. Some cherry, young green wood and bird-cherry. The flavor is quite distinct and it really…non-Keemunish. It also lingers nicely.

So, I don’t know. It was a sample and this tea really calls for being tried several times before a valid opinion can be formed. It certainly not a bold breakfast tea, but it also is not a tea for slow attentive sipping – the taste is not that complex. It is probably a drink for a special mood, and I do not know how often I will be in a mood for bird cherry or cherry.

Purchased a sample. Prepared in a gongfu session with a porcelain gaiwan. Followed Teavivre’s steeping instructions: flash rinse, 10 seconds, 15, 15, 25, 35, 60.

I was not expecting to be blasted by such a cocoa bean-like aroma from the dry leaf. So sweet, a touch bitter. The heated leaf uncannily resembles those times in which my house is filled with the smell of brownies in the oven, then you take those brownies a douse them with chocolate syrup. Hit with hot water, the leaf initially smells of sweet potato skin, clove, and malt. Later in the session, the aroma comes back to cocoa.

The liquor is a beautifully clear golden orange and has a full body and smooth texture. The flavor profile doesn’t undergo change throughout the session. From the first infusion to the end, I taste honey, molasses, and sweet potato (no skin), leaving me with a grain-like aftertaste and a slightly dry mouth.

This is another excellent hongcha offering from Teavivre. I enjoyed it thoroughly.

This selection has an interesting name. I’ve never associated snails with tea before. I do like escargot, so why not? I am now curious. I need to do some research to learn how this tea got its name.

When I opened the silver sample package, the smell inside was very rich, sweet, earthy, and pleasant. I steeped the full black leaves at 185 degrees for five minutes as recommended on the package.

The brewed result was a bright gold color. The aroma was like SWEET sweet potatoes.

I have to say, this was the first time I could easily identify the flavor of sweet potatoes in a tea. Although prominent, this taste was congenially complimented by attributes of molasses and honey. These flavors blended harmoniously. They also seemed to desire to be individually acknowledged. I could taste them moving in and out of the flavor forefront.

Initially my palate thought there might be a twinge of astringency present. However, the old taste buds settled into a nice smooth ride by the third sip. The brief after taste also presented nothing negative to upset the experience.

This is a smooth and amiable black tea for morning consumption without a blowtorch. If you need to be slapped awake when you start your day (as I often do), you might want to save this one for lunch. Either way, you’ve got yourself a winner!

What I found surprising about this tea was that it didn’t fit the flavor-profile that I typically associate with Keemun—there’s no smokey aftertaste. Instead I found it to be rich, full-flavored, and sweet with a slight floralness that hangs on the tongue. It was really unexpected and before I knew it my cup was gone. Before today if you had asked me if I enjoyed Keemun I’d likely have told you that it wasn’t one of my favorites, even though I do occasionally fix a cup, but this tea really has changed my opinion about what a good-quality Keemun should be.

You can read the full review on my blog:
http://www.notstarvingyet.com/index/2016/11/29/tuesday-tea-keemun-aromatic-snail-black-tea-teavivre