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“Continuing the oolong theme… This one surprised me. As I was steeping the first few steeps, and then tasting them, my first thought was, “are you sure this isn’t a sheng?” It had a woody, slightly...” Read full tasting note
“I awoke this morning, having made a decision to work my way through the Verdant TOMC bundle from August…finally! I’ve drank Zhu Rong a couple of times (& purchased enough of it to probably keep...” Read full tasting note
“My favourite perfume in the world utilizes sandalwood and vanilla. Burberry Classic, in case you were wondering. Jumped on the opportunity to buy a 15 Year Aged Tieguanyin because it listed...” Read full tasting note
“Drinking this now as I thought to myself: I’ll brew a roasted oolong to sooth myself into the night. Going to be brief. This is an excellent tea. I’m very picky about aged oolong; very. This one...” Read full tasting note
Verdant Reserve Club – August
Master Zhang is making some of the finest Tieguanyin in the world. Based in Daping village at the very highest peaks of Gande, Anxi. His terraced fields are overgrown with wildflowers, and fed by the sweetest spring water in the world.
This aged Tieguanyin has been roasted once a year for 15 years to create a dark, rich and commanding tea. It is very rare to find a tea of this age that has been tended consistently and has a verified origin of such quality as Master Zhang.
The first sip of this tea opens up on the tongue with the complexity of a fine pu’er. It is rich, caramel-like, and fruity like a cup of tawny port. This tea is roasted so masterfully that there is no charcoal or burnt sugar flavor. This is a pure, clean and sweet tea that brings out the natural creamy and floral notes of Anxi’s terroir. The flavor is so substantive that it reminds me of tsanpa, roasted and ground barley kneaded with tea and butter.
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Continuing the oolong theme…
This one surprised me. As I was steeping the first few steeps, and then tasting them, my first thought was, “are you sure this isn’t a sheng?” It had a woody, slightly earthy, slightly mineral scent and flavor, and just a sheng-yness. Must be the aging. As the steeps progressed its TGY character started coming out, with a hint of florals.
This is interesting but not my favorite because of that aging… I’m just not going to love anything that really reminds me of puerh. I’ll have to try this a couple of different ways to see how it plays out in different ways.
I awoke this morning, having made a decision to work my way through the Verdant TOMC bundle from August…finally! I’ve drank Zhu Rong a couple of times (& purchased enough of it to probably keep me set for life), and had cups of Yu Lu & Bai Mu Dan (a couple of days ago). Today I’m working on the Reserve club teas: Wang Yanxin’s Jin Jun Mei, 1st picking Jingshan Green, Haixintang Banzhang Mountain 2007 Stone Pressed Sheng, & this 15 year aged Tieguanyin.
What to say about this tea? I’ve been through several steepings & I would describe it as a very refined cup. The roasting is very light, the taste is gentle & sweet. The floral qualities are alluded to, but not dominant & more like a very light incense, which I can feel as a sensation in my sinuses.
Admittedly, tieguanyin is not one of my favorite teas, although I do enjoy a cup here & there. Having said that, this is a very mild cup, with a ‘pure’ quality to it, as if I were drinking from a mountain spring.
My favourite perfume in the world utilizes sandalwood and vanilla. Burberry Classic, in case you were wondering.
Jumped on the opportunity to buy a 15 Year Aged Tieguanyin because it listed sandalwood and vanilla as prominent notes. Also, being new to aged teas, it fascinates me that people are so patient as to store a bunch of leaves for as long as this.
I can’t imagine putting anything aside for fifteen years and thinking so far ahead for something in the physical realm. And I know there are teas and wines people keep for decades and decades.
Anyway, brewed this in my roasted TGY yixing and I’m really enjoying it. Part of the enjoyment is knowing how old it is, haha.
I always feel like I have to overbrew roasted TGY to bring out that fruity tang unique to this varietal. Does anyone else know what I mean? Otherwise, it can taste a bit like water-logged wood to me.
The raisin note is quite enjoyable here, even though I don’t like raisins, the sweetness level is perfect with everything else going on. Also lists a marzipan note, but I haven’t tried marzipan.
I found this to be a worthwhile purchase.
Drinking this now as I thought to myself: I’ll brew a roasted oolong to sooth myself into the night.
Going to be brief. This is an excellent tea. I’m very picky about aged oolong; very. This one does not have the reroasting profile that many do. The notes include an underlining chocolate that one may describe as cocoa. Most roasted tgy go too far, but this one is either in the perfect zone or close to it. I need to try the 30year a bit more, but this one is just a solid choice. Quite thankful that I bought some of this as well as the 30yr and 10yr to compare because normally I go for the oldest trying to be the cool kid on the block.
2/23/14 Morning gongfu. 3g/100ml gaiwan. This tea did not show well for me this morning – I’m going to revisit the steeping suggestions on the website before I try it again. There were all kinds of subtle fascinating aromas in the wet leaf that just didn’t make it into the cup at all this morning.
