This was one of my more recent sipdowns, as I think I ended up finishing what I had of this tea around either the end of the third or beginning of the fourth week in June. At the time I started working my way through it, it was a tea that I had been wanting to try for some time. As mentioned several times before, I am a huge fan of Feng Qing teas, and this green tea was yet another Feng Qing product. I found it to be a very good Yunnan Mao Feng green tea, maybe not quite the best or the easiest-drinking I have ever had, but certainly very good.
I prepared this tea gongfu style. After a quick rinse, I steeped 6 grams of loose tea leaves in 4 ounces of 176 F water for 5 seconds. This infusion was chased by 14 additional infusions. Steep times for these infusions were as follows: 7 seconds, 9 seconds, 12 seconds, 16 seconds, 20 seconds, 25 seconds, 30 seconds, 40 seconds, 50 seconds, 1 minute, 1 minute 15 seconds, 1 minute 30 seconds, 2 minutes, and 3 minutes.
Prior to the rinse, the dry leaf and bud combination presented aromas of smoke, malt, corn husk, hay, and sorghum molasses. After the rinse, I noted new aromas of lemon zest, chestnut, and squash blossom. The first infusion then introduced aromas of bamboo and spinach. In the mouth, the tea liquor presented notes of smoke, malt, corn husk, hay, lemon zest, and chestnut chased by bamboo shoot and spinach notes on the swallow. Subsequent infusions saw the nose take on a heavier and more complex citrus character as well as some apricot-like fruitiness. Notes of sorghum molasses and squash blossom finally appeared in the mouth, and lime zest, lettuce, umami, mineral, cream, grass, straw, seaweed, and green wood notes made themselves known as well. There were also some subtle fennel and sugarcane impressions lingering in the background. The final infusions offered mineral, malt, umami, grass, lettuce, spinach, and seaweed notes balanced by subtle sugarcane and corn husk impressions.
Compared to some of the other Yunnan Mao Feng green teas I have tried, this one was better balanced with less astringency. It also offered greater depth, complexity, and longevity both on the nose and in the mouth. Despite these positives, however, it was also a bit too robust in places and was a very filling tea. Still, this was a very good Yunnan green tea, one certainly worth a try for fans of such teas. I would recommend it to fans of Yunnan green teas who are looking for something a little busier, more complicated, and fuller-bodied than many standard Yunnan green teas.
Flavors: Apricot, Bamboo, Chestnut, Corn Husk, Cream, Fennel, Grass, Green Wood, Hay, Lemon Zest, Lettuce, Lime, Malt, Mineral, Molasses, Seaweed, Smoke, Spinach, Squash Blossom, Straw, Sugarcane, Umami